Crayon Shavings

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This week we're finishing up a Unit on the Rock Cycle.
Here is a fun experiment I did with my class. They loved it!

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A skit by a group of students to illustrate their vocabulary word: "sculptor".

Unexpected Adventure

After school, Caitlin and I went down to Hotel Maya (Alambra Travel Agency) to buy our tickets for Guatemala for over Semana Santa. We thought maybe we'd swing by the mall to grab dinner afterward, but little did we know how our plans would radically change.

The lady at the traveling agency (Sandra) was very cordial and inviting, telling us about 'very cheap' weekend trips, and doing us the favor of explaining things in fluent English. I had seen her yesterday as well, because I went with Tim and Hannah to buy tickets at a different time. Caitlin and I made small talk, practiced our Spanish a little bit, and as we were finishing up, the agency was about to close for the day. Sandra asked us where we lived, and when we said Loarque, she told us that she lived close by. If we waited a little while, she could take us home, and even shopping at the market. Amazing!!

Her and her co-worker Maria drove us through the busy downtown streets to Friday Night market. It was a busy night, with stands piled high with the freshest fruit, baskets of colorful vegetables, and people milling about carrying reusable bags (for 5 lempiras = 25 cents) or being followed around by boys with wooden wheelbarrows who'll carry your groceries for you, meanwhile navigating the narrow walking spaces. Maria jumped out with us, while Sandra went to park the car. Maria was a pro. She spoke to us in English and Spanish as we admired the bountiful heaps of produce, and she very wisely selected which stands to shop from. It was an incredible opportunity to shop with a Honduran who knew the market inside and out. We even walked through to the meat/fish alleys, which reminded me a lot of the Arab markets in Jerusalem. Maria bought fish there, commenting fish from the market was much fresher than buying it in a supermarket...well, I bet.

The prices at the market were astounding--an even better value than what our corner Fruit Guy offers, and soon we had a bag brimming with pineapple, cucumbers, broccoli, bananas, tangerines, and even more pineapple. About half an hour later, Maria reunited us with Sandra again, and we had quite a different shopping experience with her. Sandra also had a boy with a cart to wheel around our groceries, but she made it a point to stop at only specific stands, where she picked out the "best fruit". I had to laugh when I heard her tell one of the stand owners, "solo las frutas bonitas" (only the beautiful fruit). It seemed she knew everyone in the market, and she was a very savvy barterer.

For instance, most people stand for lengths of time at the cheese counter contemplating what type of cheese they need. They linger and crowd around the large wheels of different colored cheeses inside a glass case, plastic tubs of crumbly cheese, vats of liquid cheese, essentially quesillo in many forms. But Sandra strode over to the counter, clapped her hands twice and pointed directly at a cheese wheel to get a sample. She sampled two, bought one for the price she told, and got a bag full of liquid (mayonnaise-looking) quesillo which they scraped into a plastic bag with a spatula. Then before about-facing to head to the next stand, she touched the woman's arm, as if they were old friends, and thanked her.

In fact, we saw a lot of Sandra's generous spirit as the night went on, tipping the boy who wheeled our cart around (enough money to eat for a day), giving a Lempira to a man who started washing our windows when the traffic was at a standstill, and giving Caitlin and me a ride all the way back to our neighborhood. It was also really encouraging talking with her, and she patiently taught us some Spanish while we exchanged travel stories. It was also a blessing and inspiration to see a Honduran care so much for the poor in her own city.

Caitlin and I returned to Casa Verde, and just shook our heads in amazement. I kept saying, "I can't believe it.." Imagine, simply going to buy bus tickets, and ending up with a full trip to the Friday night market, a ride home, and new Honduran friends! Completely unexpected.


Proverbs 19:21
Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.

AGAFAM

Agafam.

Asociación de Ganaderos y Agricultores de Francisco Morazán.
In other words, Tegucigalpa's local fair the week of Dia de la virgen (Suyapa), another big holiday in Honduras.

My housemates and I went to Agafam with another teacher and her Honduran boyfriend on Thursday night before the crowds arrived, and had a fun time strolling around and looking in the little shops. It was almost like a flea market, with stores selling everything from silver watches to baby strollers to illegally ripped DVDs. In between these tiny stores were squeezed orange juice stands and companies promoting their freshly brewed coffee. We followed the pathway around the fair, passing carts selling french fries (with cheese, ketchup or sugar) and churros, and every restaurant waiter bombarding us with their menu lists. It was quite the experience.

We eventually sat down at a table, mostly to get out of the customer competition, and found ourselves in an outdoor concert area, with a live singer, giant screens playing music videos, and men walking around selling turtle eggs from picnic baskets. We were laughing at the ridiculous scenario, as green disco lights dotted the restaurant, and the singer was accompanied in one song by a fog-machine. It was definitely a flashback to the 70's and 80's (or at least from what I know of those decades).

We continued this time trip as we journeyed on to the carnival side of the fair. We were greeted by vintage cartoon-faces painted on kiddie rides, a rickety Ferris wheel rotating at super speed, and impossible target games. Needing a change, we decided to proceed through the Animal section of the fair. Call me a city girl, but I have never in my life seen cows that enormous (actually hump-backed Zebus!). We picked our way carefully along a narrow, hay-strewn path between the cows. Some were laying and some standing, and I'm pretty sure one had just given birth. Once, the other teacher bumped into me and I jumped, thinking I was going to frighten a cow and get kicked. Although, it was interesting to note that the cow's caretakers slept next to the barn. We saw a series of hammocks by the entrance, and our Honduran friend told us these were their beds for the week. We also saw horses, but no rodeos or showings were going on at the time, so we headed for the exit.

As we were heading there, a few Honduran guard police started walking beside us. I turned around to discover a host of them trailing us. Carrying guns, they don't always make you feel the safest. But our Honduran friend reassured us, "Looks like you have an escort." We all laughed and the guards parted ways once we reached the fair exit. A great time had by all.

Prayer Requests 2

Please be praying for the safety of everyone here..some incidents have happened recently, and the school, students, and teachers really need prayer for protection.

Pray especially for trust that Christ has overcome the world, despite the injustices we see everyday.
Pray that we wouldn't lose faith in God's promises and we wouldn't lose heart in doing the work God has called us to do.

Romans 4:20
²⁰ Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, ²¹ being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.

Fruit

Every day this week another teacher and I have walked down the hill to see if our Fruit Guy is there. Finally, today he was there with an overflowing display of fruits-even mangos! I bought 10 bananas, 8 mandarins, 1 mango and 1 mystery fruit for the equivalent of a dollar. Gotta love Honduras!

Pepsi on Strike

First, I heard someone chanting over a loudspeaker. I was organizing my room and doing some grading, and thought, "okay that's kind of odd, but not too out of the ordinary." At least once a day, I'll hear someone yelling through a megaphone about shoes or fish or whatever they're selling from their pick-up truck. I continued to grade, unphased, when I heard a group cheer and what I thought was a round of gun shots going off. I ran to my window and leaned out to see what was going on in the street below.

Across the street from the entrance of the school, there was a large gathering of Pepsi factory workers protesting for higher wages. They carried a banner and angrily pumped the air with their fists to punctuate their echoed chants. Each person held a piece of paper, maybe of what chants they were saying next, and wore a red shirt. It was definitely a sight to behold.

I quickly learned that the "gunshot" noises, were, in fact, large firecrackers they were setting off after giving really powerful statements. The firecrackers left smoke in the air and seemed to rock the school building like a mini-earthquake. I watched them for awhile from our balcony alongside some other teachers, then, finding I couldn't concentrate anymore in my classroom, went over and joined in a teachers' volleyball game going on in the high school poli.

What an afternoon!

Spanish Slip ups

Well, I've had three weeks now to get back into the swing of life in Honduras and, as part of a new year's resolution to get the most out of my experience, I've been attempting to speak Spanish every opportunity I get.

Three quick stories:
1. I was playing a card game with a mix of N. Americans and Hondurans, and I leaned over and asked one of the Hondurans how to say "your turn" in Spanish. He replied, "Te toque." I rehearsed the phrase a few times, but when it came time to actually use it, my sounds got mixed up and I ended up saying "Tu taco," which means "your taco." Now, when we play card games, we tease each other by saying "It's your taco."

2. I was trying to practice my Spanish on a weekly student behavior slip; I had wanted to communicate that a student was having trouble focusing in class. So I had written " a veces ella ha hablando y no se foca" (which literally translates to: "sometimes she is speaking and not a seal"). Fortunately, my student corrected me before the nota went home, and the parents and I had a good laugh at parent/teacher conferences over the mistranslation. Next time, I'll use a Spanish dictionary.

3. Last night, my housemates went with a Honduran family to go see "Enredados" (Tangled). They had taken us to the only theater in town that had a showing of it in English, which we found out after we arrived, wasn't playing that night. Even without subtitles, it was an enjoyable movie, and surprisingly, I found myself understanding a lot of it (although it definitely helped to have seen the movie before).
Prior to a fun night of movie watching, we went with the family to cheer on their daughter play with the IST Junior/Senior futbol team at a tournament in town. It was a tied game, but we had fun cheering alongside students, teachers, and a man with a bullhorn. I learned the cheer, "Vamos Inter" (Let's Go Inter.--like international school).

More adventures to come!