I found myself asking that question all the time during my sweet summers between school years. And here I am, asking it again. Where the heck does time go when you're really enjoying it?? I can't believe it's already been almost 7 weeks since I last updated--it's certainly been action-packed!
Feria de Artesanias
The national artisan's fair was held in Panama City June 15-19. Hundreds of vendors packed Atlapa Convention Center with their traditional crafts ranging from molas to jewelry to intricately painted feathers to wood carvings and more. I went Friday night with my friend Josh and met up with his girlfriend Isis who was working the event. She walked us around and I was immersed in sensory overload. There was traditional music playing and groups performing traditional dances, a man was walking around selling freshly made coconut ice cream, the back area was packed full of vendors selling greasy and succulent street food (I had a chicken tamale and some chicharrones--fried pork rinds--mmmm). Pretty sure Anthony Bordain would have been in heaven. I was in too much sensory overload to actually buy any crafts that night; so I went back the next night with my friend Jenny. I found some very cool mola pillow covers for myself as well as a few little gifts for family and friends. I also found out there will be another fair at the end of October so I'll have one more chance to be thrown into this culture before I leave in November.
Ziplining
I have always, always wanted to go ziplining. For those of you who are unfamiliar with it, you put on a harness similar to rock climbing gear, hook yourself onto a cable and go flying through gorgeous mountain scenery. Jenny told me at the artisan fair that she would be going with a group of friends the next morning and invited me to tag along. Of course I said "Absolutely!" We packed into a cargo van with about 10 other young professionals and drove about an hour to an area between Colon and Portobelo on the Caribbean side. We took a very hilly side road where we were surrounded by lush green forests. We ended up at a wood pavilion where we unloaded and hung out for an hour or so before gearing up for ziplining. We went on a course that had 9 different lines. There were platforms built around the mid-section of towering trees and we flew from platform to platform on the line. On the very last line I did the superman technique where you hook to a guide and fly with your stomach parallel to the forest floor and your arms stretched out--I felt like superwoman for sure. It was one of the coolest things I've ever done. Coming down from that high we took inner tubes in a river and floated down and then jumped from a rope swing, 15 feet down into the river. It was the perfect getaway from the city...thanks for the invite Jenny!!
Turning 23
My 23rd birthday was on June 25th. This was the first time I had ever celebrated my birthday away from friends and family. But my Panama friends/family did a great job making it special for me! On Thursday the 23rd I was surprised with a cake and little mini party at CELI--thanks Christine for organizing that, and also thanks to Luis, Josh, Dora, Temy, Isabel and all the CELI teachers for being there to help me celebrate! The next night I met up with many of my other friends at Cedros (one of my fave little restaurants in Panama) and we had food, a little hookah, and I had some birthday flan :) Gracias a mis amigos en Panamá!!
Montevideo: Mid-year Fulbright Conference
Drew and I flew to Montevideo, Uruguay on June 25th for a conference with ETAs based in Argentina, Costa Rica and Uruguay. We arrived in Montevideo at 1230 am on June 26, but they hadn't changed their date stamps in immigration yet so my passport is stamped with my birthday :) We arrived at a very nice hotel and crashed pretty quickly after arrival. After all it was about a 7-hour flight! We were the first Fulbrighters there, the others wouldn't arrive until the next night, so the first day we spent just walking around the city. The whole conference was so refreshing on many different levels:
1. It was cold!!! Uruguay is on the other side of the equator so they are in the middle of winter. In the morning it would be about 32 and would get up to about 50 during the day. Drew and I obviously don't have much cold-weather clothes, so we were still a bit chilly in our jeans and hoodies. But honestly, it felt kind of great to be cold.
2. Culture, culture everywhere! There were cafes, and bookstores, and little diners and pastry shops and coffeeshops and gorgeous theaters and old churches and quiet streets with parks. We went to the symphony; we ate cute candlelit dinners; we saw a gay pride party in the middle of a plaza. It was just so wonderful.
3. Public transit! Panama is working on its public transit system--Martinelli rolled out 100 new Metro buses a couple weeks ago and they're in the process of constructing some of the main subway stops. However, the streets of Panama are still packed with Diablo Rojos (the diesel exhaust-spitting, brightly painted, sometimes dangerous, converted school buses). Montevideo, on the other hand, had a detailed, easy-to-use public bus system, the streets were mostly quiet, drivers followed traffic laws, pedestrians were given the right of way to cross and I only heard people honking a couple different times. It was a great break for my ears.
4. Colleagues in the flesh and blood. It's one thing to know, on paper, that there are other people around the world in the same position, having similar struggles/challenges/successes; but to actually talk face-to-face and share stories and pictures and advice with these people is completely different. I was honest about how my time as an ETA in Panama has been filled with struggles and I've worked to overcome those struggles and through that process I have grown and made this experience a positive one for myself. Many of my colleagues were surprised by the challenges I've faced and gave me kudos for sticking with it and getting through it--that was really great encouragement.
5. Community involvement. We spent one of our days at a high school called Liceo Jubilar where we did different ice-breaker activities, gave a short presentation about US culture, listened to a presentation about Uruguay culture, made homemade gnocchi (it's tradition to eat gnocchi on the 29th of every month there) and chocolate chip cookies with the students. It was a lot of fun and a wonderful way to exchange culture.
6. Relaxation. Fulbright treated us very well for this conference. We stayed in a nice hotel with kick ass breakfast (eggs, fruit, yogurt, dulce de leche to spread on your toast!!, arroz con leche, etc mmmm), we were treated to a city tour, some very nice meals and we also had free time. One night we went out to a great little restaurant where we drank sangria and I ate a chivito--perhaps one of the most delicious dishes ever: steak, bacon, a fried egg, fries, lettuce, tomato and potato salad...yummmmm. Our last day was spent at Estancia Siglo XX. This was heaven on earth. We knew it was going to be a good day when our bus was met at the entrance by a man dressed as a gaucho, carrying an Uruguay flag and escorted us to the ranch where waiters held trays of wine. There were green, rolling hills (very Iowa-esque!), horses, alpacas, farm dogs, hammocks between trees, a little pond, a fire going in the ranch and wine flowing and delicious food all day. Our lunch consisted of wine, salad (with arugula!!! I was really excited to eat arugula), cheese, french bread, roasted vegetables, MEAT (Uruguayans eat a ton of red meat--that's their thing, and I'm so glad it is), and a delectable dulce de leche cake with fresh whipped cream for dessert. We were all woozy with happiness and many of us plotted to try to stay at the Estancia, but alas we eventually had to get back on the bus. We drove to Punta del Este--normally has 20,000 people, in the summer months the population jumps to 200,000! We went to a famous beach where there is a sculpture of a hand sticking through the sand.
Drew and I flew back to Panama on a red-eye flight that night. Thanks fellow Fulbrighters, presenters, the organizers at Liceo Jubilar and especially the Uruguay Fulbright commission for planning and organizing a perfect 5 days in a beautiful country.
Meeting the Sobrino
I had 24 hours to re-group, unpack and re-pack before I headed back to the good ol USA for some family time, 4th of July celebrations, and most importantly meeting my nephew for the first time! Things I noticed that I missed about the US (other than my family): not taking taxis, walking safely, quiet streets, limited/no traffic, TARGET!!!--I had no idea I loved that store so much!, good beer on draft and no ants inside. It was a really relaxing week spent running errands, hanging with the babe, seeing my mom and David for the first time in six months, spending time with Jack (including helping him celebrate his 23rd bday!) and meeting up with Lea from my Galapagos study abroad! By the end of my week in Charlotte I really didn't want to leave; I was pretty nervous about coming back to Panama and getting into a funk because I had had such a nice time stateside. However, I got right back into the swing of things here and while I, of course, miss Jack and friends/family, I'm the happiest I've been here.
Mi Prima Laura Me Visitó
My cousin Laura flew into Panama just a few days after I returned from Charlotte. Laura is my mom's sister's daughter, she recently graduated from high school and will be a freshman at Tulane in New Orleans this fall (can't wait to visit her for Mardi Gras!). Laura and I spent many trips together when we were younger-I was often invited on their annual American Library Association conference trip from everywhere to San Francisco to Orlando and a Midwest trip to Mt. Rushmore. I was excited for Laura to come here and see the highlights. Her first morning was beautiful--the sun was shining, the sky was blue, it wasn't too hot so we took off for Parque Omar. That weekend was "Día del Niño y la Niña" (Children's day) and there was an adorable carnival set up with bumper cars, a carousel, a mini roller coaster and booths with games and activities. We soaked in a bit of the nostalgia and hit the walking path. When we had about 10 minutes left in our walk we noticed dark clouds in the distance but I figured we had enough time to finish and get back to the apartment...wroooong. Within a couple minutes a massive downpour was upon us. We tried to stand against a wall and under a tree for shelter but we were just getting soaked. So we continued to walk, our shoes got heavier as they filled with water, we passed little kids in ponchos who pointed and laughed at us--we looked like we jumped into a swimming pool fully clothed. This was actually my last experience in Parque Omar with it right outside my door because I moved that afternoon (more on that later). On Saturday, Laura and I went to the canal, Cerro Ancón and the Artisan's Market. In the afternoon we went to the VIP showing (meaning waitresses and your own leather recliner) of Harry Potter. That night we had dinner in Casco. Sunday was finally a gorgeous day so we took the ferry and spent the day on Isla Taboga where we soaked up a lot of sun, walked around a bit and then returned to the city later in the afternoon. We decided to cook tacos for dinner and bake brownies for dessert. Monday Laura helped me get a little more organized/settled in my new place and we went for a lovely hike at Parque Metropolitano where we had panoramic views of the city. Tuesday, her last day, she came to CELI with me and we played Catchphrase with the English club students, she helped me with the Access students and sat in on the conversation class. Thanks so much for taking a week out of your summer vacation to visit me, Laura. I had a really really great time showing you Panama: The Abridged Version :)
Other Panama Updates
Like I mentioned, I moved to a new place! The apartment I was living in is owned by Latina and is for the Senior Fellow (Christine's position). Christine is leaving in a few weeks and a new fellow will be coming so the apartment needed to be clear and ready for her to move in. I'm now renting a place (scored a killer rent deal!) in a 23-floor building with a gym, pool, balcony with spectacular views of the city, king-size bed and a flat screen TV. The building is within walking distance of one of my favorite areas of the city, Via Argentina, which is also where a lot of my friends live. It is also on Tumba Muerto, the main road that goes right to Latina. Speaking of....Panama City introduced a new public bus system! They rolled out 100 new, air-conditioned, Volvo buses with a route right on Tumba Muerto, in front of where I live, stopping in front of the university for a whopping...25 cents! The first day I tried to take it I waited for more than 30 minutes without seeing one, but I was successful in my following two attempts. I feel great being in my own place, walking and taking the bus--I feel much more independent and in the groove of things, as if I'm finally connected here.
Exciting Stuff Coming Up
1. I started work with the Embera community. Their indigenous language is not formally taught in schools and is therefore being lost. They predict that if it's not introduced to schools it will be lost within this generation...scary stuff. So this past Monday I met with the community president and one of the teachers who leads informal, one-hour lessons to about 20 kids on Saturdays and Sundays. We decided that given the limited time I have left in Panama, how I can best help them is getting them organized, nailing down their goals and producing a formal document that they could use to lobby for support and resources. I will hopefully go back to the community at least a few more times to meet with all of the teachers and the community chief to meet these goals.
2. My mom, David, Kelly and Wes will be here in 19 days!! We have quite the itinerary planned, complete with: taking a boat through the canal, a few days in the Pearl Islands, seeing the sites of the city and where I work and spending a few days in a beautiful apartment in Casco. I can't wait for them to finally see this life of mine firsthand!
3. I have 93 days left in Panama...WHAT?! My departure date was moved to November 1st because there are so many holidays/everything is closed down the first two weeks in November here. So I'll be flying back to Chicago on the 1st, hoping to see as many of my college friends as possible that night and then going back to Iowa on the 2nd. I cannot believe it. As you know, my first three months were a tough adjustment and time crept along. But ever since I've really started enjoying myself here time has absolutely flown! I'm looking forward to getting back, being with Jack and family/friends and starting my next chapter (entering a Latin American studies MA program in fall 2012). But now that I'm finally actually settled and happy here there will be things I'll miss for sure. However, I've still got a full three months to enjoy it--including a trip to visit Drew in David and Chiriqui, hopefully hiking Volcan Baru, seeing some of the World Baseball Championships at the end of Sept/early Oct, and likely seeing Ricky Martin in concert in October!
I apologize for this crazy long delay. Time flies when you're having fun :)
Cuídate.
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