Site Visit!

This past week I was in my future site. We first had a quick introduction for 2 days with the people that would be taking us to our site. Immediately, mine began to introduce me as his son. He said that he will be my dad in Panama while I am here and he will take care of me like his son. He was very outgoing and talked to me a lot. I felt very comfortable with him from the beginning. We took a bus (a few buses) to get to the site. We then needed a boat (which was his) for about 10-15 minutes to get to the community that I will be living in for the next two years. The people there are indigenous and are a group called the Embora. The immediately took to calling me 'djaba' (cha-ba) which literally means brother but they also use it as amigo. The help me with my bags (which were very heavy) up to my dad-in-Panama's house. They live in their traditional grass huts that are raised up on stilts. Here is a picture of the house I stayed at and where I'll be staying when I first get back

Here is a picture of the inside.

The three logs are a fire place in the house on stilts where they traditionally cook food. The 96 year old grandma in my house still cooks almost all of her meals on it. Impressive. The thing about the house I live in is that there is that kitchen area you see in the pic, and then the living area where I was standing to take it. Thats it, no rooms. We would roll out our mats every night and hang up the mosquito nets before bed, then in the morning take them down again. I had zero privacy, especially since the father of the house sells gasoline out of 5 gallon tanks in the latrine. Every time I would sit down, someone was outside waiting to buy gas. So, I am going to have to build my own traditional hut, which I'm very excited for. The whole community is very excited as well. They told me on numerous occasions, including once from the Noko (chief) of the community that I could put my house where ever I want and they will help me to build a casa grande. I told him I don't need a large house, but I appreciate the enthusiasm. I already have a site picked out and have the Noko going to talk to the Gov. agency so I can deforest a little bit to make my house. Since we live in the middle of a National Park, we'll need permission first. My dad here said that since I'm now his son (which he symbolized by giving me a bead necklace with a large boar tusk on it), I can use his house as if it were mine for now and take his boat if I need it. Here is a picture of his boat on the right, and a canoe similar to the one he will help me build someday. These will be my main mode of transportation for the next two years since I will be working in various communities on the river and lake.

Here are a couple of pictures I took when we went upstream to visit other communities. The river is beautiful and we saw river otters along with various beautiful birds and plants. I was also told that there were crocodiles, some people say they are too small to bother humans, and others said we're crazy to go in the river. I guess I'll find out more the longer I'm here, although I have not heard of any injuries.

My site is home to a lot of tourism. A lot. Here are a couple pictures of the beautiful baskets and wood (coco bola) and tagua nut carvings along with other jewelry they sell.
They walk a tight rope with tourism. The more they get, the more culture they lose. It will be sad to watch over the next two years because they have a beautiful culture. Here is a picture I took of footprints and one boot print, I thought it was significant.
Here is a picture of the waterfall that they take tourists to. So if you come, you can see it too. Deborah is on the left and my dad's real son (friction.....) is the guy there. We went there one day and just got to hang out. Since tourists come everyday, I will be able to hitch a ride on a boat there when every I want.
Here is a picture of a guy we were with spear fishing at the waterfall. I got to try and it was so fun. It is very difficult, but I'll get better with practice.
Here is another picture of the boat we took to the waterfall. Deborah is hilarious and lives about a 10 minute walk (not hike) from my house. This is unusual for Peace Corps to put volunteers to close to each other, but she is in the Community Economic Development and has her work cut out for her at all the communities on the river with Tourism.
The tourists I talked to were from all over the world, France, Spain, the States, Japan, and Argentina. Here are a couple of pics of my community welcoming the visitors. Also there is a pic of the women making baskets and a couple of the dancing they do with/for the visitors to the music they make.
We took a boat my dad was driving in the dark one night. This is especially scary because of the very shallow spots we often hit the propeller on and have to get out and push. I was braced to hit something, be he navigated the river like a champ. Also one day we went across the lake to get some palms. We loaded the dug-out tree boat FULL of palms and killed one scorpion while we were doing it. I got in the boat for the 45 minute ride back to our community and had to sit on the pile of palms. When we started to unload it we killed 3 more scorpions right were I was sitting. I guess they won't kill an adult, but they hurt like hell. I just didn't want to be stung on the parts that just happened to be on the palms...... Anyways, once we were done I found out the palms will be for the roof of my future home, so I was excited.

That night it was dark so I decided I wouldn't need my swimming trunks to bathe at the tap that night. It was beautiful; as I took my shower, I watched shooting starts streak by, lightning in the distance along with the occasional rumble of thunder. And no one came by.

All in all, my site feels very much like a beach resort. I ate very well, even if a lot was fried. I had the most delicious smoked pork I've ever had, even if I had my Peace Corps taste buds on. You see, I noticed our training group is getting to the hungry point, where food is food. Its been, as weird as it sounds, a very liberating experience for me. Before I would have scoffed at fried plantains and rice, but now its a meal that will give me energy and fill my stomach till the next. I did eat very well considering other places we've been (days of boiled green bananas). It may be hard to understand in a place where you have the option of Burger King or Wendy's, but here when you eat what the people you work and live with eat, you gain a lot of respect. If you don't, they get a sense that you are too ye-ye for them and that you are better than them. But I've liked the food. So next time you get a burger with tomatoes on it even though you asked for no tomatoes, just try and eat it, at least once, because not everyone has the option.