Last friday was the Fiesta Patronal for the town of San Juan de Dios, so there were a ton of people out and about, celebrating the life of San Juan and the solidarity of their community. Viva San Juan!
We went to a special mass in the morning, and afterwords they had a bunch of bautismos (baptisms), so I awkwardly took pictures of other people's children (this little fella was stoked about his baptism, and was transfixed on the candle flame...until he saw a tall lanky gringo snapping fotos of him in his new white digs.)
After the mass, there was a fair outside with food vendors, community members selling vegetables, and oddly enough, political party representatives passing out free food. This político was dishing out free huacho (Panamanian beef soup, delish), and caught out attention saying, "Americanos!," so i snapped a picture of the good man.
Friendly niños having a blast in the river in the front yard.
Late in the afternoon there was a procession with the statue of San Juan. There was a ton of people, probably over 500. We slowly walked through the town together as people shot off fireworks overhead. Very neat experience.
On Saturday we hiked up through the hills to a great spot with an awesome view of the city of San Juan de Dios, and a 360 view of mountains in the region. These cheeky Panameñitos were our guides up through the misty mountains.
Our group of pals for the weekend: 3 current Volunteers, Alyssa, Nate, Jessica (and her pup, Royce), and my fellow trainee with the sweet 'stache, Logan.
That night we went to the town baile where I saw my first pelea de gallos (cock fight...it was fascinating and pretty violent, and yet I couldn't look away. 'Twas a dose of culture to say the least), and learned to dance to típico music of Panama (kinda). We all crashed at Jessica's on the floor volunteer style, it was a blast!
Great view of San Juan from afar. The Pacific ocean is also in the distance, and we could make out some tall buildings that sit on on the beach Santa Clara, where we visited on Sunday!
Chillin in a hamáca en la playa Santa Clara! A group of volunteers spent the day together, many with their visitors also, so it was super cool to see some volunteer vacation day time. Can't wait to check out the numerous beautiful beaches in this country!
Hi Mr. Danny! We all miss you. Your students were so excited to hear from you and they have some questions/comments for you!!! Stay safe!
ReplyDelete1. Why did you cut your hair? :) Miss Caitlin told us! We want to see pictures of you in Panama!!
2. C-dog says he hopes you are doing well and he wants you to know that he is getting good grades.
3. EY- Thinks it's cool that you are teaching them ultimate frisbee. (We are offering it as a class next session!) He says that if he had to move away like you, he would miss his family and his shower. "Hi! It sounds fun there. I am doing good. My mom misses you. When are you coming back to Columbus? Do they listen to Nikki Manaj there? I am getting good grades!"
4. IA- He thinks that it would be hard adjusting to new surroundings.... How are you doing that? He misses you and hopes you have a good time.
5. BC- She wants you to know that her brother had to quit.... She thinks it sounds fun seeing all of the different animals!
Thank you for the note!!! We all love hearing from you. We will write again soon!!
-Miss Emma (and all ASAS staff!)
Hello old pals at All-Stars!
ReplyDelete1. I cut my hair because it's super hot here and I have to appear very "professional" when working in the schools! Maybe once I get integrated into my school and community I can think about letting it grow again.
2. You're the man Corndog, keep it up
3. EY: I do miss my family and friends, but the technology in our world is crazy so it's not too bad keeping in touch with loved ones. Bucket showers aren't bad, and we save a lot of water! My host brother Carlos loves Nikki Minaj, and a lot of the Panamanian kids listen to Rihanna and Beyonce as well!
4. IA: Practicing my Spanish with my host family as much as possible. My host siblings Alánis, Alán, and Carlos are 8 years old, 10, and 19, so they help me a bunch. I am in training with about 20 other volunteers so having Americans around to talk about everything helps a lot!
5. BC: sad news about Ricardo. Tell him I say hello and hope he continues to work hard and school and keep his head up!I will try to take pictures of the cool creatures and animals I encounter. Still haven't seen any snakes or scorpions though, probably a good thing!
I hope you all are reading every day. Panamanian children don't read much, so many Teaching English volunteers have started book clubs to encourage them to read in Spanish and eventually English. Keep it up so when I start a Rockin Readers club here you guys can encourage my students. I miss you all and hope springtime in Columbus is wonderful. Say HOLA to your siblings and classmates for me, and to all the lovely PLs as well! Adios! I'll be in touch