week 5

This week was a turnaround from the last. My time was jumbled and strained as our activities ran virtually back to back. Some days I left my house at 7:30am and didn't come home until 8pm. I felt guilty for not spending enough time with my host family but am making up for it over the next couple of days. Despite being busy, the week was very fun and positive.

Our language class circled around the theme of cooking and food. A favorite topic for me, of course. My cluster didn't have as much time in traditional language class as we were preparing for our cookout. We spent more of our time becoming more culturally adept to the traditions around Filipino cooking. We ventured to the larger market and watched a Filipino prepare a traditional meal. We learned the ins and outs of cooking without the same appliances as we are so accustomed to in the states. 

Once Thursday rolled around, we had our language cookout on the beach just outside of town. It was one of the many moments when I thought, “Am I really in the Peace Corps?” Sometimes I feel I am in some derivative of vacation. The eight CYF volunteers and two trainers spent the morning preparing our dishes as we overlooked the beautiful, cerulean sea. I made a simple, traditional Filipino dish called Ginisang Kalabasa. It consisted of stir frying garlic, onion, tomatoes, okra, squash, and greens (similar to spinach). My partner and I cooked with a bit less oil than good ole Filipino food, but it still conveyed the appropriate taste. Other groups made lumpia (Filipino spring rolls), homemade flour tortillas with avocado, and fried bananas with sugar accompanied by copious amounts of rice and tropical fruits. It was a delicious and relaxing “class.”

My time was stretched further again this week by participating in tutorials at LCP (Little Children of the Philippines). Luckily, the experience was incredibly fun and rewarding. The three boys I worked with primarily were in grade five. All three worked through their math worksheets quickly and were ready for additional problems just for fun. Some days I helped them with reading or gave them spelling tests. Although sometimes they became distracted by spider fights or putting on temporary tattoos, they were still initiating extra activities with Ate Leah. Our seven days wrapped up with lots of photos and laughs. I will miss going there in the evenings but will continue to work with them on other projects for the remainder of my training.

All the trainees will be departing Dumaguete on Monday for our Supervisor's Conference. We will be finding out where our permanent site is and what our future work will consist of. Over the course of the four day conference we will work with our supervisors to solidify our work expectations and get to know one another. Following the conference, I will travel with my supervisor to my site for a three day orientation to my center and its clientele. Other volunteers in my cluster are speculating where their site will be based on what denomination of pesos they were given for travel allowance. It is quite amusing to listen to the hypotheses as to where they may end up. More money equals further away from Dumaguete...or does it? I am not worried about my site placement. I will know my fate in three days and be enthusiastic about wherever I end up. The anticipation isn't killing me just yet.