Here’s what “normal” looks like for me:
-Running (when I can) out to the edge of my community and back. That way everyone sees me and they think I’m super guapa (hardworking) for doing that. Even though I actually hate running, I always feel better afterwards.
-Doing yoga (a good practice = a good day). I’ve had some neighbor girls and my sister’s daughters join me a couple times. They love doing yoga with me. I taught them a mini class last week, complete with naming all the poses after animals and then making animal sounds when doing them. Super cute.
-Attending a cooking class. This part is pretty dope, and requires some explanation. Pretty much, there’s this government organization called SINA FOCAL that offers free courses to communities who express enough interest in said course. The mothers commission at my community center has been talking about starting a baking (desserts and breads) course since the day I arrived here. The class has finally started, and 27 women are participating (this is the max number and there is actually a waiting list!). The course is every single week day from 1-5pm and Saturdays from 8-11am. If you miss two classes, then you’re out. At the end of the course there is a practical exam, and everyone who completes it gets a certification and all these dope prizes. The prizes include an electric oven (yes, a 42 L electric oven) and a shit ton (I literally mean a shit ton, we are talking like 25 kilos of sugar, flour, etc…) of ingredients to bake with. So I am not enrolled in the class, but I go every afternoon to watch and try to become best friends with all the moms. Its pretty much all in Guarani and I’ve never even heard of budín before, but I’m having a good time and enjoying the routine of going to these classes. My goal is after the class is complete, and all the women in the community have all this cooking supplies, I’m want to teach nutrition classes and how to cook/bake healthier things (even though all these desserts are great)!
-Teaching English (that’s a given). Everyone always asks me to teach English, so I’ve been helping out a girl with her English homework, and prepping for a kids class I’m about to start teaching during their winter break.
-Nightly phone calls with Grace- every night we pretty much re-hash our entire days to each other, enough said.
-Drinking mate with the family- its been “cold” (for paraguayans), so we drink hot yerba mate every evening before dinner
-Watching Eva La Trailera- my favorite telenovela here. We watch it every weeknight at 7pm while drinking mate. Eva is currently out of jail and her co-madre is currently shacking up with her ex husband. Juicy stuff.
-Conversations with my dead mom- this one’s a bit weird. Usually at least once to twice a day I talk in my head (or out loud sometimes, let’s be real, no one understands English here so even if they heard me they would have no idea what I was saying) to my mom, as if she was there. I run through our conversations, filling in what she would say back to me if I could hear her. I know what advice she would give me, and this time I never argue back with her if I disagree with what she says.
Anyway, this is my normal (okay so maybe everything but that list one on the list actually is normal) and this is what my life in Paraguay is looking like. More things and stories coming soon.
THINGS
- A portion of meat here is the size of your head, not your hand
- Sand/dirt roads are not easy to ride a bike on
- Boudín is similar to flan, and very easy to make
- Paraguayans love banana bread
- Hair doesn’t dry in the Paraguayan winter
- Platform sandals are the cool shoes to wear, and I’m a loser in my Chacos and Birkenstocks