Settling in...

It is 4:45 a.m and I am wide awake. I am actually up on my computer ready to blog. Back home, I would have had difficulty prying myself out of bed even 2 hours from now. I'm not a morning person at all, but I think I am going to have to become one. I am officially in Honduras. The temperature in my bedroom already feels as though it has climbed above 90 degrees making it difficult to sleep. Rather than the sound of the MBTA whizzing by or homeless people digging through the trash in the dumpster next to my apartment, I instead hear the sounds of various types of lizards crawling around on the tin roof and roosters crowing. (Did you know that roosters don't "cock-a-doodle doo" at dawn online? They do it 24/7!)

I feel guilty that I am just starting to blog now, as I know that everyone back home is anxiously awaiting to hear about the start of my adventure. Please forgive me for taking a few days to get acclimated and "dilly-dallying" on starting this. As many of you know, this is the Honduran way!

I had a nice, relaxing weekend here in Juticalpa. I got a lot of down-time to get acclimated to the area and "find my bearings". It really isn't that difficult to quickly learn your way around here, with the exception of the fact that it's impossible to give directions! There is only one real street with a name in Juticalpa, and that is the Boulevard. Essentially, if you head down that street you will find your way to the "guys house" where Eric, John, and James (the male volunteers) live, and the "girls house" (where myself, Bree, and Maria) will be living. I am currently staying in the Colonia, a government owned housing area with Annie (the principal of Santa Clara) and her husband Henry. Two other volunteers are still staying here, and they are still staying in my place. It is really nice to stay with Annie and Henry as I know the both of them already and they are so friendly and welcoming, but I am kind of anxious to get into my own place. I don't really feel "settled" yet as I am kind of living out of my suitcases right now. I am afraid to unpack them, because closing the both of them was a nightmare. Therefore, I guess I will just deal with the mess of living out of them for a few more days and enjoy my quiet time here in the Colonia. It is so quiet over here that at night, you could hear a pin drop.

This morning, we officially start our new teacher training. I have to admit that I am extremely nervous and apprehensive about what lies ahead of me. All I know is that I will have two sections of first graders. One I will have in the morning, the other I will have in the afternoon. I am to speak in English to them only, which I clearly have no other option anyways as I don't speak ANY Spanish at all. What really scares me to death is that I learned this weekend that I will not have the teacher's assistant that I was promised. Therefore, I will have 23 spanish speaking little munchkins at a time ALL by myself. I know from teaching kindergarten back in the states that this is going to take every ounce of energy out of me. I am not scared about putting in the effort or working hard. I guess what I am most afraid of is that I will not be "good enough" to educate these children. I am afraid that the language barrier will hinder me from being a good teacher. Both Jess and Colleen (last year's volunteers) have warned me how difficult the first month or so of school is going to be, but I am afraid that I won't pick up the language fast enough.

It just amazes me how different things are here from in the states. Back home, it would be next to impossible to even find a teaching job as my undergraduate degree isn't even in Education. It would surely be impossible to find a teaching job in an inner city school where being billingual is a necessity. Here, it doesn't even seem to be an issue. Two of the other volunteers have never even stepped foot in a classroom in their lives! It just amazes me how we all seem so unqualified in different areas, yet everyone seems SO excited and so appreciative to have us here. Walking down the street last night to the cathedral, a group of little kids started yelling to us "hi teachers!" in English. I guess they know that any "gringas" that are here in Honduras are here to teach. Everywhere you walk in town, people stop and stare at you. It is SUCH a weird feeling to be considered a minority. I have never felt like that before anywhere back home! I would not say that I am homesick per say as this place is amazing, but it is definitely a lot different being here on my own rather than in a group like I was in April. I think what is most difficult for me right now is that I am seeing all of these familair faces and experiencing all of these amazing things and I can't share it with the people back home that I shared it with in April. I feel a strong desire to pick up the phone and just call one of these people and tell them about everything that is happening. At least I got to talk to my parents this weekend, which made me feel a lot better. I know that they share the same level of love and connection with this place, and it made me smile to tell them about my adventures thus far. (Even the fact that I we hung out at the Esso station for 2 hours to keep cool yesterday, they appreciated!) I feel as though I don't want to tell them TOO much though, as I know that they wish they could be on this great adventure with me. In regards to everyone else, I guess I am just going to have to work REALLY hard on keeping up with my emails! It will give me something to do in my "down-time" I suppose!

Anyways, I am going to cut this short because it is time to get ready for my first day at work. Getting ready is going to include an ice cold shower with a limited water supply. I must turn the water on and off as I wash to conserve water. When I get out of the shower, I will get dressed and throw my hair in a ponytail. It is so hot here that I have already thrown all of my hopes on looking beautiful to the wind. Makeup? It wound melt right off your face? Styling my hair? I'm lucky if I get enough water pressure and can withstand the cold water long enough to get the soap out of my hair. You know what though? I already like it better this way. It is so nice to know that in the mornings I will be able to just get up, comb my hair, throw on something comfy and cool, and go. Wish me luck! Today is going to be a VERY full day with LOTS to digest! I love and miss you all back home!

To my friends, I think about you all everyday! It was hard for me to leave, but please realize that this is something that I just have to do right now. It is going to be an experience of much growth and I have such a strong connection with these people that I know I have made the right decision. Don't think I have forgotten about any of you though!

Anyways, I am off! Hasta Luego!