Culture shock

As I have mentioned before, I have lived in Latin America for about 5 years of my life. I always tell people that is where my heart is. I have gone back and forth between my life in white suburbia and Latin America more than 7 times.
When I went to live in Guatemala for the first time I remember how much it changed me. I was 14 and I had no idea what real poverty was. But then I found myself walking the streets of Zone 1 with some sister missionaries among the humble people of Guatemala. It was hard for me at first. I didn't know how to accept that dirty glass of juice that was made with water I knew I shouldn't be drinking. However, I always kept myself going by thinking about how I had a nice carpeted apartment with warm yellow light waiting for me. The cold cracked cement floors and florescent light was foreign to me and it made me uncomfortable. I hated myself for feeling that discomfort and so I pushed myself to get over it. I sought out opportunities to feel uncomfortable.
Little by little I was able to glide between both worlds and easily feel at home in each. When I lived in Buenos Aires, Argentina it was easy for me to live in that tiny apartment and take bucket showers.

I was able to eat what people offered me without being completely grossed out. But my family and home were still in my mind and I knew that I would be able to return to that comfort.






My trip to Bolivia has affected me in a deeper way than I thought. For the first time I was able to completely throw myself into Latin American life. This time, I didn't bring America with me. I was on my own. But I wasn't on my own.

The dear Barrigola family took me in under their wings and gave me some of the most genuine and pure love that I have ever had. I have been home for a month and I still miss them SO MUCH. I keep on thinking about them and their lives. How Eli had to work 15 hours a day and that her husband was hardly ever able to be home because of work. I think about how they had to send their son to live on his own in the city at age 12 so he could get a better high school education. Then I look at my blessed life and I feel guilt and sadness. Why me? Why not them? You'd think by now I would have learned how to deal with these emotions, but it is quite the opposite. Now I feel the tables have turned... now I feel uncomfortable in my privileged life and I keep on telling myself that I have a home in Latin America waiting for me.

Back in La Paz

I have been having so much fun watching the world cup! Aguante ARGENTINA! I am glad I got to serve my mission in a country that ROCKS at soccer! I hope they go all the way.



I am back in La Paz for a week or so. I went to go watch the Argentina vs. Mexico game. Here in the Plaza del estudiante. It was so much fun.



There were hundreds of people there. It couldn't have been better.



the other day we went to this huge fair that they have in El Alto, and we wanted to get a fruit salad. We decided to get the one for 8 Bolivianos... we hoped it would be enough to share....I mean its only a dollars worth... but in the end, had more than enough!



now that school is out, my little brothers and I like to take it easy and watch movies on my laptop. Here are Jovy and I. We won the lazy award and Elvis lost. So he had to make us hot chocolate.

Happy New Year!

Like I said in my previous post June 21st, the winter solstice, is the Aymara new year. They worship the Sun as a god. So to welcome the new year, every one climbs the hill that we burned before sun rise.


Here we are making the long trek up.


The whole town was up their waiting for the sun to rise. Luckily Eli made some hot chocolate.



right as the sun rises everyone raises their hands and prays to the sun. Here is my family. Elvis, Jovy, Eli and Theodora.


Afterwords we celebrated with the families favorite meal! Guinea pig!! When I took this picture, I had no idea that the next day I was going to help kill and eat this Guinea Pig.... it was traumatizing and yes, it tastes just like chicken.

In the name of participant observation

For all of you that aren't nerdy anthropologists like me, participant observation is a form of research. In order to really understand a culture you have to try and see things the way they do. You have to learn their ways and do what they do. You know, try and stand in their shoes. My capstone paper is about how globalization is affecting the indigenous youth of Bolivia. So for a lot of my research I have to hang out with Bolivian teenagers. Its a blast.



So as you know, down here in the southern hemisphere it is winter. June 21st was the winter solstice. Also considered to be the Aymara new year. The Aymara are a group of indigenous that were part of the Incan Empire. Since it is considered to be the coldest night of the year, the people of Copacabana have a long standing tradition of setting everything ON FIRE!!! The pyro in me loves this tradition!



For example this hill that is right to the east of Copa... it gets set on fire every year. However a few years ago it was made illegal. But old habits die hard.



So in the name of participant observation, I went with my boys to go burn down the hill! Here we are getting our torches ready.



We had to drench them in gas and then light them up.



Here is my little brother, Jovy starting the festivities.



Here's Papush, Ronald and Fernando



did I mention that I am a pyro?



afterwords the boys lost a bet with me and had to do a musical number. They chose to sing "la cucaracha". It was stupendous.

Dia de campo!

So I have been teaching English in the elementary schools and high schools here in Copacabana and on the weekends, in Siripaca. This last weekend however, I did not get a chance to go to Siripaca because it was a five day weekend. It was the Catholic holiday Corpus Cristi and the Provence of La Paz had its 59th anniversary. So pretty much I got to play with my family all weekend. It was a good time!

On Thursday me and my family all loaded up in Jose's bus and they took me out to a plot of land 30 minutes down the coast, right on the boarder of Peru.



This plot is where Eli and Elberto's Grandma was born and raised. Their grandma died last year at 96, so this adobe house is over 100 years old. This particular part is the kitchen. That is Eli looking for fire wood.



This is what the inside of the kitchen looked like.



The reason they brought me out here was because they wanted to have a BBQ Bolivian style! First what they do is they build this. Then they build a fire in it. and wait until the rocks get so hot they start turning white.



Here I am pretending to my part in helping. :)





Here are Eli and Theodora with the food. They had two kinds of Potatoes. Normal kind and then oca. They had all kinds of meet. They had beef, pork, chicken and lamb. They put it in the most amazing sauce!




When the stones are hot enough, they put the fire out and threw the potatoes on the bottom. Then they put the tins with the meet in and put some of the hot rocks on top of it. After that they put sheets of metal on top of the stones and then this herb... I don't know what it is called in English, but it smells really good.



Then they cover it up to keep all of the steam and flavor from the herb in. We left it like that for an hour.



in the mean time I showed Jovy what people from the "campo" (countryside) in the US are like.



after the hour wait, we all sprawled out on a blanket and dug in. No utensils were allowed. We ate with our hands. By far the best BBQ I have every been to. I love my family!!!! They are so good to me!

Siripaca

So every weekend I go to a town that is located on the other side of the Copacabana Peninsula. I am working with a local NGO that is trying to help small villages like Siripaca develop tourism. Siripaca has a lot of potential. However, for a long time most of the high school graduates leave and head to La Paz to work. The NGO I am working with is trying to reverse that and create more jobs in Siripaca. They have taken a few highs school grads and are paying for their college tuition and living expenses with the promise that they will return and work in Siripaca. I am going there every weekend to help give workshops in anthropology and archeology to help them know how to better present their culture to tourists.


It really was so relaxing to go and stay in this little village for a few days. No one has cars. In fact the only transportation that comes through is only on Thursday or Sunday.



the beach is BEAUTIFUL and would be a blast during the summer.



The hills that surround Siripaca are covered in terraces that an archeologist has said that are over 3,000 years old. That means they are pre-incan! Its pretty crazy to think how long people have lived in this little valley.



plus, there are llamas everywhere!



I decided to walk (I guess I should say backpack bc I was carting my backpack and two other bags) halfway from Siripaca to Copacabana. I had a teacher drop me off where the highway starts. After awhile I found this path. My professor told me that these are incan roads! So it was really cool to hike through the countryside. I think I might do it every week! It took about two hours.

Here are some other pictures I have taken lately.



here is Eli at her store. I spend a lot of time just sitting there with her. She makes me lunch every day, the sweety. We also watch our nightly Spanish soap opera (novela) "Mar de Amor" every night at 7pm. It is a a good time.



Here is my "little brother" Jovy. He is 14 and has an AWESOME obsession with Michael Jackson. He knows a lot oh his dance moves. We had an MJ dance session and he taught me some moves.



Here we are on the beach... that is one of my "dads" swimming. Ferna and Jovy just throwing rocks... I didn't get in this time.. I was too cold!

Calvario

HI everyone!
Greetings from Copacabana! I have been having a very good time here in Copa. They people have been treating me great! Here are some pictures of Copa!


This is a picture of one the typical boats that the inca used on the beach of Copa.

Here is one of my sworn protectors/ little brothers, Elvis. He is 18 and just left Copa today to go to college in La Paz. He will be missed.


Here is Elvis's Mom, Eli. She is so sweet and I spend a lot of time with her. She is great as a friend and as an informant. She also likes to be my mother by telling me that I need to put on my coat and sunscreen. It is nice to know that I am taken care of.



Here is the view of Copacabana from the hill Calvario.Isn't it pretty?




This is when we were climbing down on the other side of Calvario so that we could go swimming. We had to scale down a bunch of terraces.


Here are Elvis and I taking it easy in the sun after taking dip in Lake Titicaca.



I Love being in the sun!


Here I am eating this amazing potato dish that Eli makes.