There are 250 communities in Cubulco with an estimated 50k people. When I say communities I’m talking about the outlying groupings of people in areas around town. These areas range from heavily forested, dry desert, mountainous, next to rivers…what ever you can think of we have here. The center of town, where I live, is populated with about 10k people. It takes about 20 minutes to walk from one side of town to the other. We have one Catholic Church, many Evangelical churches, one bank…actually just finished building the second, a municipal office building, and of course Pancha’s steak house. Anytime we take someone not familiar with Pancha’s, my doctor friend always asks how strong their good intestinal bacteria is. Basically they serve grilled meat or chicken served with black beans and tortillas…no silverware…delicious. We have a public pool that is actually pretty nice and an artificial turf soccer field (5v5 size) for entertainment. There are no gyms, movie theaters, malls, fast food chains, bars or clubs…unless you consider cantinas part of that realm. Cantinas are where men…only men…go to get liquored up then pass out somewhere in the street. Alcoholism is a big problem here; people seem to not be able to control their consumption. Life is actually pretty tranquil here…I’m assuming this is what small town America would be like, except for maybe the many street dogs running around and the 5am wake up call from people lighting off fireworks to celebrate a birthday. In the house I live in, I pretty much have all the luxuries that we have in the states…maybe not as efficient or easy to use but I do still consider myself fortunate. For example, I have a washer…yes, most volunteers have to wash their cloths by hand or pay someone to wash them. I have a washer, however, unlike in the states where you just turn it on and it fills up. Our washer is not connected to water so I have to get a hose and fill it up manually. Not such a bad deal, but then there is the fact that water here comes out brown, so I usually have to filter the water through a towel before it goes into the washer. Then I have to do it all over again for the last wash cycle…but I’m not complaining I’m completely happy having access to a washer! Other commodities…flushing toilet, hot water…not always but usually, cable…only have 10 channels but 3 of them are movie channels. And the last thing that may come as a surprise is Internet…I wouldn’t say high speed, but definitely faster then dial up. It comes and goes…never that reliable, but when it’s working well, it’s great. I know what you must be thinking…some people in the states don’t have these commodities. This is true and I feel very fortunate for what I have. So now that I’ve explained my living situation…all of you should feel more assured about coming to visit. I guarantee some of the most scenic roads and mountain passes you have ever seen on the road toward my site.
So a quick update of my work here in Cubulco and what I’ve been up to these past months. I remember working in DC and always hearing the phrase “work-life balance”, in DC I never had an issue with this as many of you know…like when I was “on the bench” for 5 weeks, sitting at my house reading and watching TV still getting paid. Here though I had been feeling overwhelmed, I was always on the go…and that is basically what I did. Everyday we would go to a different community, spend the day in the community talking and making plans for projects and then leaving only to return one month later and talk about the same stuff. The strategy of our non-governmental organization (NGO) is to reach as many communities as possible, even if that means having very little impact. As a volunteer, here for only 2 years, my strategy is to focus my work in a smaller area and hopefully have more of an impact. We made this known to our NGO and have since embarked on our own mission. So I’ve decided to choose a community a reasonable walking distance away from town and focus my efforts there. This will give me the opportunity to not only become part of this community but also allow me to return to town in the evenings and still have a life. So no more long intense motorcycle rides…well at least not everyday. My community is called Salamcho and is located 3km, roughly 2 miles, outside town. So I’ve been walking over to the community, meeting community leaders, and figuring out, with the help of the community, what their major needs are. From there we begin writing grants to apply for funding for these projects. Most of the grants we write are funded by NGOs in the states as well as some international organizations. My goal is by the end of February to have at least 3 grants completed, they ask for a lot of information about the community and the project. I was also thinking about some smaller projects that could be funded through donations by friends and family. So don’t be surprised when you get an email from me asking for donations…help get me working…and at least you know where your money is going!
So a quick update of my work here in Cubulco and what I’ve been up to these past months. I remember working in DC and always hearing the phrase “work-life balance”, in DC I never had an issue with this as many of you know…like when I was “on the bench” for 5 weeks, sitting at my house reading and watching TV still getting paid. Here though I had been feeling overwhelmed, I was always on the go…and that is basically what I did. Everyday we would go to a different community, spend the day in the community talking and making plans for projects and then leaving only to return one month later and talk about the same stuff. The strategy of our non-governmental organization (NGO) is to reach as many communities as possible, even if that means having very little impact. As a volunteer, here for only 2 years, my strategy is to focus my work in a smaller area and hopefully have more of an impact. We made this known to our NGO and have since embarked on our own mission. So I’ve decided to choose a community a reasonable walking distance away from town and focus my efforts there. This will give me the opportunity to not only become part of this community but also allow me to return to town in the evenings and still have a life. So no more long intense motorcycle rides…well at least not everyday. My community is called Salamcho and is located 3km, roughly 2 miles, outside town. So I’ve been walking over to the community, meeting community leaders, and figuring out, with the help of the community, what their major needs are. From there we begin writing grants to apply for funding for these projects. Most of the grants we write are funded by NGOs in the states as well as some international organizations. My goal is by the end of February to have at least 3 grants completed, they ask for a lot of information about the community and the project. I was also thinking about some smaller projects that could be funded through donations by friends and family. So don’t be surprised when you get an email from me asking for donations…help get me working…and at least you know where your money is going!
More pictures of town...
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