A lot of updates...and whatnot:)

I’m sorry I haven’t written in about two weeks! Yeesh! It’s been very busy getting all my things together and writing the last of my papers and lesson plans.

Last weekend, Daisy, Beth, and I spent our time at Placencia (Our third time, and last time L)

Our waitress (who we had already known and seen for the past two times) told us about all the fun clubs, but we turned her down because we were too tired. In fact, we were such grandmas—we were in bed at 8pm, and then we were complaining about the loud music those young whipper-snappers were playing at the bar a block over. We turned up our TV and watched Honey I Blew up the Baby. I did a lot of swimming/getting out of the Carib, but the getting out part was quite the scene because there was a fish that kept attacking me and sucking my thighs. I kid you not—this was probably the same fish, and he somehow had my DNA on his mind. He was slapping his body against me and twice I found him just sucking on my thigh. Since this fishy gentleman was coming on too strong, I began to scream and flail my arms frantically as I rushed back to shore. No blood was lost, just creeped out.

I just completed my last week of school, and boy was that Crazy:

Monday—The kids made sparkly Christmas cards, and then we practiced for the Christmas entertainment. MY kids wanted to do a storytelling skit based on a book I had brought called “Hush!.” I made their animal costumes and we rehearsed daily numerous times.

Tuesday—I took off the day to cancel my flight in PG. Since we’re bussing up to Caye Caulker, I forgot that from there, we just go to Belize City, so the flight would not be needed. I got my refund, and then I worked on homework for the rest of the day. After homeworking, my friend Beth and I got pedicures from this lady and Elena knows. It took a bit of a wait to get in, but it was totally worth it. She also does designs on your toenails that are so cute. I got purple toes with a cool design on it. It was very pleasurable and inexpensive. One thing I marvel about this place is that if you want to start a business, you can just do it. If you want to start a taxi business, all you have to do is write “Taxi” on your car. If you want to do nails, you just get nail polish, a cheap foot bath, and some feet scrubbers and you’ve got yourself a business. The same way works for store clerks (buy in bulk and set it up in your home—make a sign that says “Store.”) It’s so simple, they don’t need much education for it, and the people get word. Elena’s “job” is cooking and catering. They supply her with ingredients or ideas, and she just cooks. It’s interesting.

Also, my friend Daisy’s boyfriend came in. I’m so excited and envious! I wished Andy were here all the time!

Wednesday—Entertainment day. All the students in each grade have at least one entertainment—some classes have as many as four entertainments. The teachers arrange for students to sing, dance, do a skit, or recite a poem—this revolving around a Christmas theme. Parents and community members come, and it’s the school’s longest practiced tradition. The kids practiced from 8:30 am to 12:00 pm. My kids did great at practice, but they were a little stage fright. After they left for lunch, teachers prepared food, decorations, costumes, and moved chairs. I sold at the school store with Yukki for a while. I was asked to MC the entertainment. I refused at first because I don’t speak the Mayan language, and that is primarily what the people speak here. They also wanted me to tell jokes, but I felt that comedian career wouldn’t fly here with my goofy sense of humor. Haley Eckard Live in San Luis Rey would not have flown well.

The program starts: it’s packed. There were foods, drinks, kids running around, performances (singing, country music, dancing, skits, poems, mc-ing) It was a fun long night and I got some videos from it that I can’t wait to show you!

Okay, so here’s where it gets sketchy. You remember how I take a bus everyday at 6am and then I take the 4:40 pm ride home? Well, after 4:40 pm, there are NO RIDES back to PG. Me and the three other teachers that live in PG arranged for a ride to pick all of us up at 9 pm. We had called our ride hours before and it was still going through. However, our ride never showed up. I was panicing because I did not want to spend the night in San Antonio. I was thinking my situations was bad because I couldn’t contact my host mom to tell her where I was. Then I started thinking about the other women who lived in PG: Verlene has four kids to watch over, Delsia has 2 kids, and one of them is a 3 month old baby that needs to feed before bedtime, and Yuki’s mom just flew in from Japan the day before. My situation didn’t seem as bad. After waiting around, my vice principal of the school volunteers to drive us half way (she lives at the half way point.) She drops us off at her house, saying that her truck did not have enough gas to get back to PG. We sit outside in the cold (it was a windy 50 degrees, without a sweater.) We are stumped. None of the ladies nor their husbands have vehicles. We call everyone we know, and finally, Verlene’s husband says his buddy would let them, but he’s got to scrounge up some money for gas. He goes around town asking for money to get enough gas to pick us up. They finally arrive at 12:30 am. We get home around 1am. I’m beat…

Thursday comes.

I’m up at 5 am to get ready for my last day at SLR-RC. I’m cranky. The night before, the gals and I talked about leaving early from school. Then I’m told that the staff is having a special goodbye dinner on my behalf. So obligation strikes again ;) The kids party turned out to be fun. The party just said “Merry Christmas kids, let’s sing and play games!” The kids danced, made pictures, and played games. It was a good time. They ate, and said Goodbye. The goodbyes were a bit disconnected. There were no emotional hugs or “you’re the best” comments. They are very detached kids, and I guess that’s what I should have expected. I guess it’s different in the states. They cry, they make promises to call you, and they vow upon their lives that you are the best teacher they’ve ever had. It’s funny how much more open kids in the US are.

Then after the children’s lunch, we prepare our own Christmas Lunch for teachers. The menu consisted of Turkey legs, potato salad, cakes, rice and beans and other Christmas candies. Some people gave speeches speeches, they asked to me to say a couple words, and I was surprised to see how much I would actually miss them, even though this experience was so hard for me. They gave me a traditional hand-made Mayan shirt that was truly beautiful. They asked me to come again and visit as well. We made toasts, there was dancing, and then the principal got awkward and said, “Haley, if it would be alright, would you please have a farewell dance with Ernesto?” Ernesto is my friend here who teaches a grade above me. Nothing romantic with this kid, so it was totally awkward and goofy for the principal to ask me to dance with some other teacher in front of the group. I politely turned him down and proceeded to tape Yuki doing the Punta dance!

The gals and I took the bus home, and it was very fitting this way. The last time riding Bol’s bus home from San Antonio. Mr. Bol at the wheel in his black cap and flannel shirt, the same old people on the bus, the sun setting behind the jungle, and pulling into PG and seeing the length of the pier through the left side window.

We said goodbye to Elena on Friday morning, and we caught our bus, that took a five hour drive to Belize City. We hopped a ferry, and have been on this little island since.

It reminds of me a tropical Madaline Island. It’s so small, everybody knows everybody. There is kayaking, boating trips, snorkeling trips, shopping, and cool unique bars Some of them have swings for chairs! How cool is that?!

I have also seen tropical fish, swordfish, and a HUGE stingray that Beth nearly jumped on because she didn’t even see it. I got pictures!

Apparently I look Belizean because I guess I’m getting dark. Beth and Andrea went wakeboarding….and I was not that daring to try. I guess since my horrible water skiing experience on Lake Nebagamon when I was seven, I haven’t had any goals or aspirations to die ;) Plus, hours before they went on the water, we learned that there were crocodiles, sting rays, and baracudas in the channel where they were boarding. Personally, the water is something I’ve always been skeptical about because you can’t see what’s in it. I guess when the girls were boarding they saw all the sea creatures. EEK. So instead I tanned, drank beer, and had good conversations with Daisy and Cory.

So, I’m not as daring as I thought I was, but I think I can forgive myself for not trying it.

Now, I finally found some free internet on the island. I just saw an iguana in this vacant restaurant I’m sitting in. Pictures to come. Tomorrow, our group will go snorkeling and we get a special present for doing the trip, but you’ll just have to wait and see what I bring back from this trip! I’m so excited.

Well, I’m off to lay on the beach. Again. Third day in a row. Gosh, life is so hard.

;)

Hope you’re doing well. I miss you! Only Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and we LEAVE Wednesday! I’ll be home around 10pm. Hopefully I’ll blog on the way back. I’ve got a four hour layover in Miami. Yuck.

Miss you, and talk to you soon!

Hairdo's and bad news

Hey folks. Updates are sad this time around:

I had a student bite me, kick me in the shins, and call me a shit. No joke. This kid is great--he's smart, he's funny, and he also has the worst life imaginable. He's the youngest in a house of 15 brothers/sisters/cousins/aunts/uncles/grandparents--no parents because they didn't want to be parents. Anyway, this boy gets picked on all the time at home, so of course he would be the big bully in his class. He punches, shoves, cusses, destroys property, you name it. SO, last week he is fighting a boy in my class--I go to separate the boys, and this boy gets so angry at me for stopping him. I try to remove him, and then he bites my arm (no pierced skin), kicks my shins, and calls me a "Ca!" ("shit" in Mayan). I get the principal, and he lightly scolds the boy, makes him apologize to me, then gives him a new notebook and pencil...? yes. That did happen, and I was angry. I told the principal that he rewarded the boy for his bad behavior. He said, "Well, I'm not going to lash him. He apologized, and if he shows more good behavior, I will give him more gifts."

Ugh.

Fast forward to this morning at Assembly (the whole school gathers, prays, sings anthems, and then the principal gives announcements).

He calls five boys to the podium. He then says, "Look at their ugly hair. These boys are not to be talked to, looked at, or agreed with when they have hair like this. If you come to school with your hair like that ever again, you will be kicked out of school until you get a better haircut. I don't know if you think you're a movie star or some Hollywood actor, but your hair looks horrible." The whole school laughed at these kids, and some teachers dragged more "horrible haired" children to the front to be ridiculed. Their hair was no different from the boy hair we see in the states. It was jelled--some of it was spikey, some of it was a Jimmy Neutron/Elvis flip thing, and some of it was shaved a little smaller on the base of the head compared to the top. It was sad to see all these children looking at their reflection in the bulletin glass at their "unacceptable" styles. I sulked in the back whispering to myself "Two more weeks, two more weeks, two more weeks of this utter b-s." I also laughed a bit because both Andy and I would have been kicked out had we been teaching here over the summer: With his spikey hairdo and my pink-red-mullet streaks, they would have had a field day with us!

Then, when I think that this assembly couldn't get worse, he brings up the little boy from my class who kick/bit/shit me.

He says, "This boy has the devil in him. We need to pray for ____ because he doesn't listen to his teacher. He is naughty, and he bites, he kicks, he cusses. When you see him, pray for his behavior. I want his cousins, aunts, and sisters to watch over him at school so he doesn't act like such a bad little boy."

I seriously started tearing as I watched this boy enfold into himself--what embarrassment. How are these speeches productive? No wonder these kids have low self esteem issues. Ugh. I like teaching--but now I'm realizing even more that you have to stand for the school you represent. I hope that whatever job/school employs me, the staff and I will have an understanding about how we discipline children in a kinder and more humane matter.

Well, enough of that vent session. I do like it here. I love my class of kiddos:) Tomorrow I am observed for the last time in my student teaching career. It is all downhill from tomorrow:) Wish me luck!

Didn't do much this weekend but write lessons, chill in the sun with Beth, and did homework at this cute little hotel in PG owned by a couple from Idaho.

Anyway, I should get some sleep for this observation tomorrow--don't want to wake up with a bad do and get kicked out of the school ;)

Take care--more to come soon!

Also, if you get a chance, wish Andy luck--he's going to LA this Thursday for school. Give good juju or vibes for his flight, schooling, writing, and so on.

Talk to you later!

Hey Folks! Boy does the week fly by fast! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. People here don't celebrate that holiday, but our group did anyway and we invited our host families over dinner! It was really nice, and our guys on the trip made the turkey all by themselves! How awesome is that?!

Well, last week after my birthday post, I got really sick with a cold/flu. I'm slowly getting better, and I missed a day and a half of school because my voice was shot, but I rehabilitated in Placencia on Saturday and Sunday by laying on the beach with my friends. No crazy adventures (other than eating the most amazing gelatto in the world. Twice.)

I get observed again next Tuesday by the supervisor down here. My class is going okay. They were tested yesterday and they will test more today. I had some kids who got into a bit of trouble for harassing me and my friend Yuki--I don't know what got into these kids, but they started stoning my classroom and yelling "We're gonna lash you, Miss Haley," and then they laugh in fits of hysterics. These kids come from a family of fifteen, they live with their grandparents, and they never see their parents. I feel horrible for them, but at the same time, I'm pretty sure that the root of their bad behavior is the lack of supervision going on at that house.

I like my class best when the students are doing learning centers. I don't have to say "Be quiet!" or "Raise your hand." They go right to it, working independently or in groups. It's truly magic--they are learning and having fun.

Only three more weeks left! Oof-da! Going to catch my 6am bus now. Hopefully a crazy thing will happen and I will write again! Love you and miss you!

Holidays, Hospitals, and other H-things.

Well Hello Hello--Didn't think I'd be posting this soon, eh?? Ay???

Well, just wanted to let you know that my birfday is going okay here. It's so sunny, and I stayed home with a cough and runny nose. Nothing serious. My teacher and principal knew I'd be gone, but they are thinking I'm in Guatemala, and we came home early. It rained so much that half of our group has some form of sinus/cough/hacking/runny nose thing going on. No biggie. I got homework done, went for a bike ride, and I'm currently hanging out with my favorite ladies internetting:)

We're going to go out for dinner I think. It's sad to think I won't be at home celebrating my day with Andy and the fam, but I'll live. I've got at least ten birthdays ahead of me if all goes well;)

Things I miss:

the first snow in Minnesota

sledding

Thanksgiving at Grandma's house--those mash potatoes and cheesy broccoli and rice will be sorely missed:(

My big dorky dog:)

Christmas lights--man do I miss those

Christmas that comes early to all of the stores. I used to hate when carols played from Halloween on--haven't heard one since I got to Belize just yet.

EGG NOG (mom, I want an abundance of this when I arrive;) Just kidding, but seriously!)

Shopping...with a list! I have been clueless as to what to get people here--a silly gift? A cultural thing? Something applicable? I just don't know.

And hospitals. I hate hospitals, but I will always appreciate an American hospital. Last night, my good friend Beth had to go to the hospital here for a bug bite that somehow got into the veins of her foot. She's been bitten to shreds on this trip for some unknown reason, and no creams, sprays, or ointments are doing the trick. She found a bump on her foot after the waterfalls in Guatemala, and that bump swelled and the redness spread into the veins of the arch of her foot. It was scary, and myself and another friend here went with her to the hospital in PG. We waited outside with a lot of Belizeans waiting to get in. She saw the nurse, then shortly after, was allowed to see the doctor. They let me come in to hold her hand for what we thought was going to be one shot of Hydrocortizone. What they didn't tell her was that they were hooking her to an IV and putting three meds through that IV. There was no communication. The nurse dealing with Beth was coughing and sneezing--she didn't even wear gloves. I nearly cried, this situation was so horrible--to be in a foreign country in a hospital where the doctor is not being as serious as doctors should be, being given shots and having to ask, "What is this for?" instead of them telling you "We're giving this shot, it's for ___, it will feel like ____." It was horrible. They brought her to a hospital bed, and they shared with Beth that the guy in the next bed had Hepatites--grrreat. No HIPPA or confidentiality here. Then a guy came in with a needle telling Beth she needed blood drawn--Beth and I started freaking out asking him "Why? What for?" Then the doctor came in and said, "No, not her. This guy" and he pointed to the patient with Hep. Seriously. Then the doctor laughed because Beth was freaking out and said, "It's okay. You're fine. Don't worry." I explained to him that it was hard to feel fine when we're in a foreign country, in a hospital, without our family--he left us alone. After nearly an hour later, we left and went home. Currently, Beth is okay--she took some of the prescriptions from the hospital as well as some other things for her foot. Hopefully it will get better. Can you pray about her?

She kept saying last night, "I hope nobody has to go through what I just went through at that hospital." I'll tell you more when I get back, but it was seriously horrible. Even when our hospitals screw up, at least they have resources, some bedside manner, and a sterile healthy environment (or at least the laws to enforce it!)

Well, I love you! I miss you! I'll do something happy today:)

Can't wait--four weeks!

"I will never forget Guatemala...even if I wanted to!"

Hi there:) Remember that one time when I said, "I'll write on Sunday" ? Yeah, did not think it would be a week from the Sunday I was referring to.

Okay, so I've been here for nearly four weeks, and I'm so comfortable in PG. I seriously love it here and I want to live here someday. I have another four weeks left, and I'm also looking forward to coming home-- I keep thinking of Christmas...and Dan's house Christmas!!! Eeeee! So excited. Okay: here's the scoop!

I got observed by two teachers so far as well as my principal. I am doing well, the students are amazing, and as cheesy as it sounds, I really feel like I'm making a difference here. My kids love to teach me Mayan words and phrases. These kids can also dance better than me--like, they've got the moves. It's incredible that children so small can shake their booties and not get in trouble from their parents. Did I tell you about the punta dance? There's a well known dance in Belize called "punta" and it's basically shaking your butt so fast you don't know what's what. No joke. When two people dance the punta, it looks like intercourse with clothes on. It's crazy. Now, being a slightly more conservative female from the U.S, I look at it and laugh or blush. For this culture, they love it and think nothing of it--it's just a dance people do, it doesn't mean love or nasty, it's just a dance. Kids do it, grandmas do it, middle aged people do it, kiddos my age do it--It's just the "in" dance.

Last Thursday was cultural day, and all the local schools had their students dress in their cultural wear and visit culture booths made by the teachers. girls wore colorful dresses and blouses with shiny fabric, boys wore tunics or a white shirt with black pants. There were many cultures represented at my school: The Mayans are the main population in San Antonio. After that is the Catche (similar to Mayan/Indian). Next are the Mestizos, and last are the Garifunas. Each group did a dance, shared a food, and made posters of their culture with words in their language, their flag, and a video of their dance as well. Being the only American, the vice principal asked if I could make a booth for America--I didn't really want to because we don't really have a trademark food or anything. Instead, I helped my friend Yukki make signs and posters for Japan.

I don't really remember what I wrote last week, so a brief recap--I went snorkeling on Saturday for the first time ever. It was awesome. We saw small sharks, coral, colorful fish, star fish, big fish with big names, and conc shells. On Sunday, our teachers and supervisors took our whole group to see the Mayan ruins, which are located near my school in San Antonio. Did you know that the Crystal Skull was supposedly found there in the 1920's?! Crazy. They also had plants that were similar to Venus Fly Traps--awesome! After the ruins, we went to a house/restaurant where women cooked us tortillas over a hearth along with the cultural token meal: Caldo (that stuff I had before and did not like). Oooo--this reminds me of a story I'm going to tell quick and then I'll get back to my post: I ate a boiled hot pepper last week! Dumb me, thought it was a boiled sweet red pepper--my host mom gave it to me, I popped the whole thing in my mouth, and within minutes was sweating/crying/panicking/fanning/screaming for cold milk! My whole family was laughing hysterically--in hindsight, hilarious. At the time--crazy. Okay, fast forward, we ate Caldo, we saw a cat eat a baby chick that was once cute and alive. I swear, I see the most weird and graphic things here! After eating, we drove through San Antonio and went to the waterfalls where we jumped off cliffs into the water. Yeah. What of it. I am a cliff jumper now. :) just kidding. I was scared to bits. I was the third to jump off, and I did a painful butt landing onto the water. I have never felt so alive. Crazy, too :)

This past weekend seven of us from our group went to Livingston, Guatemala. We played a bit fast and loose not having a definite plan of where we were staying or what we'd do there, but thanks to two very nice captains, we found a cheap place to sleep ($4 American per night), food to eat (a whole fried fish complete with eyeballs and fins in tact), and things to do:

We rode in a tiny boat, and our captain drops us off at this random spot with a dock. He says, "Hasta Luego" and we start...walking? We didn't know what was going on, so we walked up to this hut, and there sat this man burning some intense smelling incense. He shows us a picture of a beautiful waterfall and says, "You're going to walk up river for about ten minutes and then you'll get here." Sweet! We start walking down a path, and we see this huge river with a tiny cord followed by a thicker rope...and we had to cross the river!!!! Ah! So I was scared, hesitant, there was a lot of rain that week and the current was strong, but I crossed it, and as I crossed it, I thought Sigh, the worst is over! Wrong! The craziness continued as we hiked upstream--there were no trails, no paved stones. Just our slippery sandals, mossy rocks, and hanging vines--and trees with crabs crawling all over them. So we hike up river, and we have to cross it again--this time, no ropes or chords. A guide was there and he helped us get across the river by carefully balancing on some rocks. This is the part where my sandal broke completely and I went barefoot the rest of the way:) We walked another five minutes upstream and get to the awaited waterfall. We see one thick rope. We see the guide climb the rope to the top of the waterfall. We see him take two huge leaps and jump off the waterfall. That's when I almost threw up my cookies! So a couple group members so and jump off, and then curiosity gets the worst of me, and I climb up to--the guide was there with me and was holding my hands much like the style of Jack and Rose from Titanic minus the romance--I tell him in spanish "I'm scared!" He tells me "Correr!" which means "Run!" I think of Andy, and take one giant leap! It was amazing! So crazy and so much fun. I thought about my cousin, Kyle, and I wished he was with me, too. We were such daring kids together, and when I got older (10ish) he got upset when I wouldn't jump off the dock with him. He said, "You used to be so brave, Haley. What happened?" I think about this memory often, and I feel like I'm a more courageous and daring person...maybe moreso before I turned ten:)

We spent only two days in Guatemala...we actually just got back early this morning. It was a draining trip--physically, emotionally, mentally--we had to speak Spanish! It went better than I thought, though. I really liked the group I was with. Beth, Daisy, and Andrea are really amazing girls and I'm so happy they are on this trip, too. Without them, I think I would possibly cry every night:)

I think about you all often. No joke. When I eat something amazing, I think about Grandma and Bernie, and I try to write down the things I'm eating that they need to try. When I see a parade in the street or see something scenic that is beautiful, I think of my parents and how they should be here, too--that I would pay a lot for them to see this. When I shop, I think of Kiersten:) When I do something crazy like jump off a waterfall, I think of Kyle and Annalynn. When I see the rain, I think of Britny and our rainy adventures. When I see people dancing punta, I think of Natalie and wished I could see her stellar dance moves. When I teach at SLR, I think of Nikki and how I wish I had a pal to relate to about teaching at this school. I think about my Lincoln Piedmont kids and how blessed they are to have what they have, even if it doesn't seem like much. I think of the Halverson family a lot--about the adventures we would have if they were here and how they would seriously eat it up--the shopping, the site seeing, the beaching, the soccer in the streets, the amazing food, and the people they would meet. I think of Andy most (it hurt a bit to write that). I know it's not much longer, and I really am happy here. I just wish you all were here, too. If I didn't list your name alone, don't worry--I think of you. When I'm shopping, when I'm biking, when I'm teaching, or when I'm just sitting here writing on my computer, I'm thinking of you, hoping you are well, that you are happy and that life is going smooth.

And now, a quick funny Bol's bus story: It's late afternoon, and it gets dark here at 5pm, so we're all sitting on a bumpy Bol's bus, and Mr. Bol is collecting money from the riders, and in flies a bat. For real. It's huge, it's ugly, and people start screaming. Mr. Bol runs to the front of the bus, grabs what looks like a long wooden stake/used-to-be-broomstick and starts batting at the bat (no pun intended...), and then he starts stabbing the bat continuously. Silence. Then everyone cheers as he lifts up the bloody bat and throws it out the window. He laughs, takes a bow, and the bus rides on.

Looking forward to this week. Not much planning to do. My kids have to take numerous tests, so I will review with them on Monday and Tuesday for there tests, and then I have Friday off. I might go cliff-jumping at the falls, I might go to Placencia, I might stay home and plan/relax. I'm just not sure. I am shopping for presents here, though. So if you have any insights about what you might like or think would be sweet to own, let me know! Stuff is cheaper here! I'm already getting a sweet hammock, awesome handmade jewelry, and bringing back some sweet cultural music. Can't wait!

I really love you and miss you all. [insert a huge hug and kiss HERE].

Take care, have a wonderful week, see you in about four of them:)

Only in Belize...

Well, the first week of school is over--it has been a tough one. The culture here is unlike America in many ways. For one thing, people don't really say, "Thank you" here. They just don't. So Minnesota nice is a bit uncommon for them. My kids at the school are amazing. They follow me like sheep and they love being read to. I'm starting a reading program after school for kids 5-8, and I will just do an enrichment program where we will do poetry readings, reader's theater, and do activities associated with books. I am also getting my own classroom! My class has about 40 students in it, and my teacher is very overwhelmed because it is the largest class she has ever dealt with. One of the ideas we had was to split the class and I would teach half of the students English and Math, and she would do the same. At the end of the day, we would finish out the rest of the subjects as a whole class. My teacher, the principal, and my supervisors were all for this idea, but some of the teachers at the school seemed very upset because they thought I didn't have enough experience and that I was just some volunteer from the states. I told them about my experience and that I would love to learn from them, that I didn't know everything, but that I wanted to help the students become better learners, and part of this would have to do with splitting the class so some students could get more one-on-one attention and focus on the two main subjects. So, I get my classroom, and I'm busy planning lessons/units/reading groups. I miss everyone, and I do my best to get on the internet--sometimes it "goes out" here (phone lines, too.) because of the aftereffect of the hurricane.

My new best pal here is Yukki--I think I've mentioned her before--she's a Japanese Peacecorp worker who is also teaching at the same school as me as a technology teacher. She is hilarious. She is so positive and always smiling--yesterday on our bus ride we had a cute conversation:

Yukki: (in her thick Japanese accent) Harley? When somebody say 'What's up' to me, what do I say back?

Me: Well, you could say "nothing much," or "just chillin'" or "chillin' like a villain."

Yukki:(scribbling all of these sayings down on her notepad.) Mmk, let's practice, cause I want to use.

Me: Okay. Hey, Yukki. What's up?

Yukki: Uh.....nothin' much. Just chirrin' like a virran.

I laugh so hard--she's so fun. I don't know what I would do without her here.

Okay, so I was thinking about a funny list to compose of about Belize so you can get an idea of what it's like here.

Only in Belize will you see ...

a man cutting his grass with a machete,

a man mowing his lawn with a small weed wacker for nearly a whole day,

pigs, horses, sheep, chickens, cats, dogs, and turkeys within a mile stretch of a walk in San Antonio,

chickens on a bus,

a man kill a chicken on a bus,

the bus driver make a special stop to talk to his friend for 10 minutes,

the bus driver make a special stop to get a round of beer for the passengers,

dogs humping on your morning run.

That's all I've got for now! I'll write more on Sunday!

This was written for Friday's entry

So guess what? (“What, Haley?”)

I was told by two teachers who work at the school I am teaching at that there would be no school on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday. I started to panic, but then one of our host mothers suggested I go teach at St. Benedict’s with Miss Olive (the principal AND teacher of the school). So I got up early, thinking I was going to observe her 4^th/5^th grade class. I ride in a taxi with the most interesting cab driver (Allan—has three kids. Two are in New York, one lives in PG with him and participated in the Special Olympics in Beijing, China—met Jackie Chan and Arnold Schwarzeneggar—Talk about an interesting guy!)

Anyway—fast forward: I take a cab, I get out, I get into this small classroom full of students, and I am greeted by Miss Olive:

Miss Olive: “Welcome to St. Benedict’s Catholic School! I have a meeting that I need to be at in ten minutes. Here is the schedule for the day, here are the worksheets they will have to do, and Miss SO-and-SO will be in the class across from you if you need help. Any questions?”

Me: [Wide eyes, choking back nervous vomit, queasy smile]

So, that was my first day in a Belize classroom, and boy oh boy, it was interesting! We did a lot of worksheets she had prepared, and the students will always address you by saying, “Yes, Miss,” “No, Miss,” “Okay, Miss.” They are dedicated to their schoolwork, and they ask a lot of questions! I liked it a lot, even if it was a little overwhelming, I thought to myself, “Well, as long as nobody dies, I think today will be okay!” Eek!

Thursday’s classes were cancelled for the Elementary students due to teacher meetings, and the teachers at my school (San Luis Rey) said I did not need tome to the meeting. The past three mornings I have awoken at 5:45am, walked to the pier with some of gals here, and have gone swimming. I feel so awake here compared to Duluth (it could possibly have to do with the weather. Wink!) After breakfast yesterday, Beth and I walked around town, we got some ice cream, we tanned at the pier, and we finally got some decked out bikes thanks to our new pal, Levels. He takes us running every day at 5pm with a little group of us ladies.

I love that everyone here has a smile on their face and a story to tell. I meet at least one new person a day and hear about their life in Punta Gorda. I also ask every person I’ve met here, “Where is your favorite place to go in Belize?” All of them have said, “I love this place the best.” A group of girls I met two nights ago said, “Our favorite place is to sit here on the street right here with each other.” I like that. J

Elena (my host mom) continues to amaze me with her cooking abilities. She was also featured in a cooking magazine, which includes a picture of her cooking a meal a detailed critic on her recipe. She is seriously one of the most amazing people I have been fortunate to meet.

I find it hard to make phone calls here because I have to buy a special calling card, and last night I spent $10 American to talk to Andy on the phone for about twenty minutes. Mom, if you get this, I will call you soon, but it will be on the home phone, okay? It’s also difficult to get internet here. Today the signals were really weak due to the aftermath of the hurricane hitting other cities in Belize and affecting the power lines. I am sorry if I do not respond speedily to facebook or email messages. And for those of you who were wanting my address, I will try to facebook that to you tomorrow when I am doing my homework after school.

I am still sweating buckets and getting little sunburns here and there. I look like Rudolph with my big red gringa nose.

Today I also judged a Halloween contest at St. Benedict’s school.

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Halloween contest was awesome. The winner was a boy dressed up as a woman, with balloon boobies and a big balloon booty, a wig, and a tight black dress with heels! I couldn't stop cracking up! On a sad note, someone stole the school's printer. They broke into the school and took only the printer, and now the school is worried about how they are going to get another one. They run for about $2,000 Belize dollars.

Doodle doot doodle doot (Wayne's World time passing forward)

Okay: Updates:

Saturday: Went out to Placencia. Google it! gorgeous water, beaches, palm trees, just amazing! Layed out on beach, swam in the Carib, and then went to a Halloween Costume party at a bar there called The Barefoot--SO MUCH FUN! There were three people there dressed as Avatars! I screamed when I saw them! It was so cool! Our group just had a blast dancing! The next day we were supposed to go snorkeling, but that didn't work out because the company's boat wouldn't start and we were running out of time.

Today was my first official day at my school. My bus ride is 1 1/2 hours long, and I ride with my new pal, Yukiko (Yuki). She's a Japanese Peacecorp worker and she is the computer teacher in the village. She's so cute and funny. Today she asked me, "Haley, how do I respond when someone says 'What up?' to me?" She cracks me up. So we practiced ways she could respond to "What's up?" She said she wants to try using the phrase. She's letting me use her Internet right now, and I think I'm waring my welcome, but some of the internet sites here block facebook and blogs because they are social tool and not a learning tool.

The kids in the village are so cute and funny. They follow me like sheep and are always holding my hand or tugging on my skirt. I am going to start an after school book club. Trouble is this: there are three amazing things Belize is missing--books, movies, and guitars (my essentials!) So I'm hunting for books and other random supplies.

I'm always happy to be here, and I only get sad during my down time because it's then that I think about my family, Andy, my friends, and my kids at Lincoln Elementary.

I'll do my best to keep updating. I usually write a little blurb on Microsoft Word and then copy/paste it into my blog, so if my tenses are off, I apologize.

And I'll give you my address as soon as I write it down and put it to memory!

Love you:)