Tortí, the Wild Wild Este

Tortí, Panama Este; my new home for the next two years. Tortí lies off the Interamericana highway, just before the Darien region of Panama. You can take the highway from Canada and you will drive by my front porch, and me sitting in my hammock, a few hours before you reach the only break in the highway, the Darien gap, where the jungle is crazy thick along the Colombia-Panamá border. Tortí is a highway town that had seen a ton of rapid development in the past few years. There are supermercados, a nice hotel/restaurant owned by the husband of one of my teacher counterparts (Andres is also an entrepreneur of sorts, he also runs a microfinance credit union), fondas, repair shops, agriculture stores and other small businesses along the highway. I have heard/seen a variety of numbers for the population, but if you include of the surrounding farms and ranches it is probably around 8-10 thousand. The landscape consists of mountainous jungle in all directions, tons of cow pastures, and a few farms. A huge  percentage of the inhabitants are from Los Santos on the Azuero Peninsula in Panama Oeste, who immigrated here throughout the past 50 years or so upon the governments request to develop the land (especially from what I've seen in Platanilla, further into the Darien, it reminds me of the frontier the western U.S. back when it was up for grabs, except with rainforest..). Thus there has been a lot of forest-clearing for cattle grazing, and land tension between the Interiores and Kuna and Emberá populations that also exist throughout the region. Other than ganancia (raising cattle), another popular business is maderera (lumbering). It is unfortunate to see enormous 200+ year old trees getting hauled off down the highway on a daily basis, but this is the image of 21st century development here in Panama. There are multiple reforestation process, some ran by Swiss groups (the lumber companies are also Swiss, German, maybe Panamanian?..I will continue to investigate more of the situation), which plant new teca (teak) trees. Reforestation is an important part of the Environmental Conservation sector of Peace Corps, especially out here. It will take a lot of time and education to even begin to stop these huge lumber companies, but that's one of the reasons we are here. My friend Margaret is a CEC volunteer in Platanilla, about 30 min away from me, so hopefully I can get some of my students involved with some of her conservation projects.

Restaurante Valdez

Valdez property extended, my room is behind garage in the center

    

Mi cuarto

Where I'll be when you visit

Tío Jose and Adiel, host-hermano 

Out back

Anyway, my setup here in Tortí is pretty solid. I live with la familia Valdéz, who moved east abut 40 years ago. The family has a restaurant, a farm out back, and ton of land a little ways away in Río Congo/Platanilla where they raise cattle.  The 3 children of Edilma and Hermán live in separate houses out back and have their own children. I am excited to help out on the farm and in the restaurant and live the campo lifestyle. Chickens roam freely around back, they have over 10 pigs, dogs (Balto, Oso, and Bobby, could be more), a cat named Anastasia, Paco the parrot, and tons of cows,  This weekend I am going to help plant corn and hopefully ride one the horses on the beautiful ranch, surrounded by mountains and tropical fruit and palm trees. Behind the house there are also palm, mango, orange, papaya, and plantain trees! I also have access to the kitchen to cook my own food, and the family is used to many gringo-isms (like running, cooking/eating vegetables, etc.) because I am a follow-up to this site, and the previous volunteer, Casey, lived with the Valdez family throughout her service.

 

I am currently living in a room adjacent to the property. I have one room and a flush toilet, which is like gold to most PCVs, and a shower, but water comes and goes sporadically, so I leave the tap running to fill my shower bucket. The water is not potable, so I have to filter it or buy it at the supermercado next door (they also have Oreo's, among any other thing you'd need. tough life, right?) I have electricity and a Claro stick, which is a USB internet modem that you use to purchase internet daily or monthly. As i have mentioned before, technology these days travels fast, even (or perhaps especially) in the developing world, and cell phones and internet are widespread. My site is pretty yeye (slang for high class), especially compared to other volunteers. This is the hand we are dealt as TE volunteers. We are placed in bigger cities because part of the agreement with MEDUCA (the Ministry of Education) is that PCVs work with at least 3 English teachers in the schools. I am happy to be an access point for other PCVs who are living more in the sticks, and in turn would like to visit them to experience their lifestyles and help with their projects...Thus, my battle with technology and balancing my time rages on. I am glad to be connected with family and friends easily, and have access to tools to help me enjoy my hobbies (guitar resources, books, etc.), but I will try my best to limit my distractions and be fully present here in this way of living.

the walk home from school

the school  

The school I work in is huge, more than 1200 kids in total. Primedio (6th-9th grade) and Secondaria (10-12) school is in the morning, and Primaria (K-6) is in the afternoon. For my first couple months here, I am going to spend 2 weeks observing each of the 6 English teachers, starting with Primaria. It will be difficult at first because it is difficult to explain my complicated if not ambiguous role here and to articulate that I must take time to observe in order to integrate, understand the system, assess the needs, learn a ton, and develop a plan in order to have the greatest impact. My biggest challenge will be time allocation, because in addition to my primary project of working in the school with the English teachers, I want to develop secondary projects within and outside of the school. There are also night classes and University classes on weekends that I could get involved with. So before I get too overwhelmed, I am going to take these first couple months very slowly. I want to get to know the teachers and develop relationships so that they understand that I am a resource and here to make their jobs easier. (I am also trying to learn names of the students and staff, gunna take a while) I intend to slowly branch out into the community to understand the dynamics of the town and what they are facing in regards to development right now. I am not here to reinvent the wheel or change the education system. I have a ton to learn and hopefully I can help organize and connect people and resources and make some small changes.


However, I am understanding my role here, and the role of Peace Corps in general, more and more every day. It is a much deeper experience than accomplishing projects. For me, what determines success is relationship building; sharing ideas, culture, and friendship. I have already been connected with different families in the community who have invited me to their homes to eat and chat. It will be frustrating and overwhelming at times, but I can always pasear (visit) around town to meet people and explain why I am here, and I am always greeted with incredible generosity and appreciation. Or just hanging out with the kids at school would pick anyone up, especially the younger ones. I just finished my first week, and I have already been bombarded with hugs and kisses everyday, pictures, candy food, and even fresh mangos, all from the students! I am super lucky and excited for this opportunity, and by building relationships, learning and assisting in local activities like farming, milking cows, etc., and developing my skills and hobbies (guitar, yoga/exercise, reading), I will have an incredibly rich and successful experience. Also, traveling and visiting other PCVs in this awesome country will be a constant thrill!