The Entertainment At Barbacoas

In Santa Ana there are two schools, a public school and a charter school, Barbacoas.  The charter school is supported by a foundation so students only pay a nominal annual fee (the equivalent of 4 USD).  I work at the charter school.  It is beautiful.   Each classroom has two walls equipped with chalkboards and two open spaces where walls should be.  The classrooms are not joined together but they are maybe fifteen to twenty feet from one another.  This is great but also presents some unique challenges.  I tend to tape up posters and signs on the chalkboard for various lessons and on the occasion that there is wind they just get knocked back down.  Each classroom has at least one broom because they floors accumulate dirt, twigs, and such.  I think at any hour of the school day there is a student sweeping in a classroom.  I will be in the middle of a lesson and one or two students in my class will be sweeping away.  I don’t even want to think about what life will be like in the rainy season with open classrooms and dirt roads.  The rainy season doesn’t start until September or October so I have some time to buy rain boots and mentally prepare myself.  Also the placements of the classroom understandably lead to quite a few distractions.  If another classroom is singing a song all the surrounding classes hear it as well.  Moreover, students are always yelling at one another at different classrooms.

One of my favorite parts of my school is the natural environment surrounding it, but at the same time it is the biggest distraction for students and teachers alike.  In the past two weeks I have seen about as many animals in my school as I have seen in a national park.  There are always dogs, chickens, and roosters within the school grounds.  We have named most the dogs and consider them our unofficial pets.  Recently there was a cow about seven feet from my class chomping down on some plants.  All the students yelled “Teacher, una vaca.  Como se dice vaca en English?”  I respond with cow and they all start yelling, “Cow!”  In another class I looked outside for a second and I saw an iguana carrying a frog by the corner of its mouth.  It proceeded to drag the frog into a bush and then the bush just started shaking back and forth.  As I entered my sixth grade class a giant crab was chilling outside.  One of the students shooed it into the classroom with a broom.  Another student was trying to catch it and kept stepping on it.  I was in the background trying to tell them to leave it alone and put it back outside which they finally did.  Later during that class I glanced outside and there was another class gathered around a tree looking a snake. 

My friend, Shannon, teaches Kindergarten through second grade here and a frog entered her classroom.  We always give her a hard time about frogs because there are always frogs in her bedroom; they seem to follow her.  So this frog was in her class and a little boy picked it up to throw it outside but he waited to long and threw it up instead and the poor frog hit the ceiling.  It sure does make the school day interesting; that is for sure.

Colombian Face Muscles

When I was in Argentina I realized that Argentines talk a lot with their hands.  Many of their gestures are reminiscent of Italians.  Colombians talk with their hands but above all else they talk with their face.  I have found myself doing it as well and my friends have caught me doing it with even realizing. My friends and I have described this as “Colombian face muscles,” one develops them quickly here.  The most common is when Colombians scrunch their nose.  This means that they do not understand. Often instead of pointing with their hands, Colombians point with their mouth.  In actuality, it is very comical to ask where the bathroom is and to see someone purse their lips and push them to one side, almost like a controlled twitch.  I finally got used to the hand motion for “come here,” which is palm face down, instead of palm face up like in the U.S.  This was easier for me to remember because it is the same in Argentina.  However, in Colombia they also convey, “come here” with their head.  They do a quick thrust of their head downward towards their neck.  Between all the head bobs and nose scrunching sometimes it feels like we just walked into an I Dream of Jeannie set.

You Know You Are In Santa Ana When. . .

Our favorite fried breakfast: Deditos!

My friends and I have been complying this list.  It continues to grow but here it is so far. I hope it conveys the uniqueness of Santa Ana.  

WHEN... You're upset when your shower is slightly warm (from the heated pipes).

WHEN... You're pumped about wearing power ranger helmets to the beach.

WHEN... You're excited to spot a frog in the bathroom.

WHEN... You are getting eaten alive by bugs while attempting to use the internet.

WHEN... fighting the ants in the kitchen is a typical after dinner routine.

WHEN... everything you eat is fried or with a side of starch and more starch.

WHEN... you name the random animal that decides to follow you (Scruff, Stick, Jafarra, etc.)

WHEN... deodorant, bug spray, and sunscreen replace perfume and make-up.

WHEN...you are ALWAYS rocking a headband/hat.

WHEN... getting out means getting pan con arequipe (dulce de leche).

WHEN... you know what NOPIKEX is.

WHEN... bamboo is the background to every Skype session.

WHEN... you don't pass anyone without saying Buenas or Adiiiiioooos.

WHEN... it's normal to see three children under the age of 14 on one moto.

WHEN... juice in a bag is a delicacy.

WHEN... you fear running into a cow, donkey, or pig while riding on a moto taxi.

WHEN...a thin flat sheet is too much for covers on your bed.

WHEN... you can power a car with your fat Flintstone feet.... (they swell because of the humidity).  Also known as the Mickey Mouse Club around here.

WHEN...you are ready to knock people out for a seat by a fan in a staff meeting/the lib/the cafeteria.

WHEN... you half expect your roommate to be carried away by ants in the night.

WHEN... you take 3 showers a day and you're still not clean.

WHEN...you ride in the back of a truck and get dressed in the gas station parking lot to meet the attractive lady mayor of Cartagena.

WHEN...you've had fried breakfast three days in a row and are still hungry for "second breakfast" in the cafeteria.

WHEN... you can play a pretty sick game of connect-the-dots on your calves thanks to the bug bites.

Note: We also plan to create a Baru-opoly.  It will go something like this "Your moto ran into a donkey go back 3 spaces" or "You stole a pig and made jamon go directly to jail do not pass Go do not collect 400,000 Colombian pesos."

Getting Acclimated With Our Surroundings

Colombia seems to be the land of contrasts.  The reputation, the geography, and the distribution of wealth all speak to this notion.  For starters Colombians have two very contradictory reputations.   When a lot of people abroad hear Colombia they immediately think of “the good old days” when drug lords and violence ruled the country.   The last president ruled with an iron fist and cleaned the country up significantly.  While some still fear robberies and kidnappings, Colombia is now considered safe to travel.  Colombians are also known for being some for the nicest people in the world.  The ones I have met so far are incredibly kind.  For example, I sat down on a bus next to a teenage girl who was playing with a beaded bracelet.  I asked her if she made it and she nodded and then put it on my wrist.  When it was my stop I went to give it back to her but she wanted me to keep it.  The bracelet is made up of three strands: yellow, red, and blue, the Colombian flag colors all twisted together.  

The people of Santa Ana are extremely welcoming as well.  It is so interesting walking around the town.  My friend Alyssa put it well when she said, “I feel like I’m in a parade because I wave to everyone.”  We really do greet everyone whether or not we know them.  Everyone on the coast says “Buenas” or even “Adios” to greet someone (they use Adios if they do not want to stay and chat).  Often people know who we are even though we do not know them.  Word spread fast in this town and they have known for a while that a new crew of teachers was coming.

A few days ago we went to Playa Blanca for the first time.  It is the biggest tourist destination in the area and one of the best beaches in all of Colombia (maybe even South America).  It is only takes 20 minutes by moto down dirt, unpaved roads, to arrive at the clear ocean and stunning views.  It is such a different world from where we live.  There are tourists roaming around and all-inclusive resorts are a stone throw away.  The good news is the beach is public so anyone can come, but the only people we see there who are from Santa Ana are the workers.  They all try selling things on the beach, offer massages, or work in a restaurant.  We actually took a workers bus home when we went on Wednesday.  A bunch of us were trying to figure out what to do for dinner.  At the dorms we are provided with basic groceries for breakfast and dinner (lunch is provided at the school) but last week a lot of our food did not come in so everyday was a chore to figure out what to eat.  As we were discussing our dismal options a man came on the bus with a cooler full of shrimp.  He was heading back to Santa Ana and had to get rid of the rest of them so we bought the shrimp off of him and made shrimp pasta for dinner.