After a long first week getting adjusted to San Pedro High school, Anna, Jean, Natalie, and I decided to spend our Saturday taking a bike ride from our home away from home to the farthest Northern point of Ambergrise Caye. We rented our perfect pink bikes from Peter and made our way through town stopping at Pan Dulce for a cinnamon bun. We continued through town, past the high school and over the toll bridge. Once over the toll bridge we went past alot of the American resorts and our favorite hangout: Legends. Finally we ended up at the end of the island where we stumbled upon a few other people from our large group who had our same idea. We ended up at Akbol which is a yoga resort. There they had a crystal blue pool for us to swim in and a dock for us to snorkel off of. They also had random trampaline that we also had a lot of fun on. We sunbathed and swam for quite a few hours before it was time to get lunch at the restaraunt they had their. We each tried something different. I had four chicken empanadas which were delicious! Eventually we decided it was time to retreat from our northern paradise and return to town. Once we got back we showered and rested for a little while and then headed back out on our bikes to find the "Earth Hour" parade that was meant to march through town at 8:30. After watching the high school band parade with many following behind them holding candles our fierce foursome got ice cream and then returned to dark hotel rooms to celebrate the earth! It was a peaceful end to a very relaxing Saturday.
The next morning Ashlyn, Tess, Anna, Jean, Natalie and I went to have breakfast at George's. I had the Belizean breakfast of eggs, potatoes, bacon, toast, and ice coffee. George's is probably my favorite restaraunt in town! After breakfast Ashlyn, Tess, and I met up with Katy, Aubrey, Stephanie, and Elizabeth to take a boat out to go snorkeling. We met Lou, our driver, at Ramone's dock. From there we went to a dive shop to rent equipment and then it was off to Mexico rock to jump in. The boat was a little rickety but it still go the job done. Ashlyn and I sat on the front of the boat where we had a pretty bumpy ride. We rode on the boat for a while and got to ride past town, the high school, and tons of beautiful houses and resorts. Once we got to Mexico rock I was a little nervous about jumping in but I didn't want to be the last one left on the boat so I followed along with all the other more experienced snorkelers. After I went under with my mask and saw all the colorful, gorgeous fish I couldn't stop smiling. I took so many pictures with my underwater camera. We saw a giant stingray and plenty of exciting looking fish! After a few hours of underwater sight seeing we got back on the boat and went to a different location to see some different fish that were closer to the reef. Finally we went diving for chonks to take back and make ceviche with. We got about 14 chonks to take back to Lou's house. When we got there we watched him get them out of their shells and skin them. He brought them in to his wife to make the ceviche for us and we ate it with chips. The texture of the chonk uncooked was very interesting and chewy but still yummy! All in all it was another wonderful weekend on the island.
Monday, March 29, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
The Students of San Pedro High
My first week at San Pedro has been somewhat chaotic. Belizean high schools are much different than the ones in America. Students have eight classes rather than our usual four. The classes last only 45 minutes a piece and rather than having the students change from class to class the teachers move around which means that students stay in the same room all day long. I believe that this stagnancy causes them to be fidgety, energetic, and extremely talkative. I am having a hard time getting used to the discipline here. The students shout things out and hardly ever raise their hands. They get up out of their seats frequently. They talk over each other all the time and are constantly talking while others are speaking. The fact that they are frequently speaking a language that I don’t understand doesn’t help the situation either. The discipline is much different in Belize also; rather than sending a student out of the class for being disruptive they are given demerits for bad behavior. Once a student receives 5 demerits they must serve a detention which consists of hard labor around the school grounds, such as picking up trash, moving desks, painting, or cleaning up. I believe that the behavior that these students possess is directly related to their value in society. I find that they are all crying out for attention and like most adolescents are simply dying to be heard. When they do the right thing they are not praised for it. They are only scolded for bad behavior. In our culture we are focused on positive reinforcement but that is not the case here. I have found that the parents are not very involved in their children’s education and they are extremely strict disciplinarians. For example, today I had a student who was crying when she came in to class late – come to find out she was upset because she had been beaten by her mother that morning. Another student has welts all over her arms from a beating she received. I am not sure what provokes these beatings but in my American mind I cannot fathom any sin so great to deserve such treatment. In some ways I see this culture as self destructive because they are not valuing their youth in the ways that they could be. When you demoralize the youth of a country how can you expected to grow and flourish? Some days the things that I observe and the stories that I hear break my heart.
A British Invasion
On Tuesday I was planning to have a relaxing evening at Pedro’s. As soon as I stepped outside to work on my lesson plans for the next day I was greeted by a stampede of 70 British soldiers walking up to claim their rooms on the floor above us. The group was rambunctious to say the least. They headed straight for the bar and the pool to blow off some steam. They were all quite taken with the group of attractive female teachers staying just below. We were all invited to join them for dinner at Fido’s which overlooks the water and was delicious. From there we returned to Legends to listen to another “jam session”. The soldiers were all very chivalrous and took great care of all the girls. Luckily they were only staying for one night because when they all returned to the hotel later that night they were very loud and disruptive. We all went to school the next day tired but still well prepared.
Monday, March 22, 2010
A Legendary Weekend
My first weekend in Belize was unbelievably eventful. Friday afternoon all the high school teachers went to a meeting at San Pedro High to meet with their new partnership teachers and get an idea of what they would be teaching on Tuesday. I will be teaching Belizean literature with Mr. Kirk Lainfiesta. I have just finished reading some of the short stories that the class has already finished and they were very difficult for me to understand because all the dialogue was written in Creole. Mr. Kirk wants me to read the next story out loud to the class on Tuesday which I am a little nervous about. I also found out that the school will be holding the 2010 Miss San Pedro beauty pageant while we are here and I have been asked to be a guest judge! I can’t wait to see all the beautiful Belizean girls dressed up in their fancy gowns walking across the stage (some of them might even be in my classes). Apparently this pageant is a pretty big deal on the island and I may even get my picture taken for the local paper!
Later that night a big group of us went to this tiny hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant for dinner. The portions were huge and the food was very good. After dinner six of us decided to walk to a place called Legends where there was a band playing. Tess, Ashlyn, Anna, Jean, Jeanne, Natalie, and I walked for probably five miles to get there. We walked all the way through town, past the high school, over the toll bridge, on to another neighboring island, and in to a random house which we thought was the restaurant. The house that we walked in to had a live band playing, tiki torches lit, and tons of friendly people walking around inviting us to come in even though they had no idea who we were. We went in for only about 5 minutes and took a few pictures of the experience and then made our way out – totally embarrassed. We continued walking for another ½ mile and finally made it to Legends and enjoyed the music and the people who we met there. It was without a doubt one of the most fun nights I’ve ever had.
Saturday morning everyone slept in until it was time to go to the San Pedro High school fundraiser barbeque. When we came back Anna, Natalie, Jeanne and I all decided to go lay out on the beach. I came back around 4:00 to get ready for our dinner at Michelle’s house who is a science teacher at San Pedro. When we got there she had prepared for us rice and beans, roasted chicken, and chick peas with pigs tail. I was a little hesitant to try the pigs tail but it ended up being pretty good; it tasted a lot like ham but you had to bite around the bone. Michelle’s son Cory was there and we all really enjoyed playing with him! We got to her house around 7:00 that night and didn’t leave until 11:00. Talking with the teachers that we would be working with was really entertaining and made me feel welcome.
Sunday morning I woke up early and went with Natalie, Jeanne, and Anna to Living Word church which is just up the road from Pedro’s Inn. We could hear the service from the street. The four of us went in 15 minutes late. The service consisted of an hour of worship music and then another hour of preaching plus announcements and offering prayers. It was probably the longest service that I’ve ever sat through. The worship songs were familiar for the most part. His sermon was solely on spousal abuse which is apparently very prevalent in Belize. He showed a power point and related all of his points to scripture. His sermon was much different than anything else that I’ve heard. Once we finally finished with the service the four of us went to eat lunch together. When we got back from lunch around 3:00 the power was out. There was no internet connection, no power, and no water for over five hours. While the power was out I read by the pool but once it started to get dark Natalie, Jeanne, Anna, and I sat in a dark room and told funny stories to each other! The most brilliant idea of the night though was going in to town in the pitch black night to get something for dinner. Once we got there we realized that almost nothing was opened and there were no street lights on. We finally found a little lady on the side of the road making pupusas over a gas grill for $1.50. Pupusas are fluffy tortillas filled with meat, cheese, and beans. We covered them with hot sauce when we got back to the hotel and they were delicious! The walk back to the hotel at 7:00 at night was probably the scariest thing that I’ve ever experienced. We luckily ran in to two boys that were also staying at Pedro’s who agreed to walk us back. The four of us had our flashlights out walking down the street and we were holding each others hands and practically sprinting down the street. Finally the power came back on at about 8:00 and we were all so relieved to find each other back at the hotel safe and sound! The weekend was absolutely legendary.
Later that night a big group of us went to this tiny hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant for dinner. The portions were huge and the food was very good. After dinner six of us decided to walk to a place called Legends where there was a band playing. Tess, Ashlyn, Anna, Jean, Jeanne, Natalie, and I walked for probably five miles to get there. We walked all the way through town, past the high school, over the toll bridge, on to another neighboring island, and in to a random house which we thought was the restaurant. The house that we walked in to had a live band playing, tiki torches lit, and tons of friendly people walking around inviting us to come in even though they had no idea who we were. We went in for only about 5 minutes and took a few pictures of the experience and then made our way out – totally embarrassed. We continued walking for another ½ mile and finally made it to Legends and enjoyed the music and the people who we met there. It was without a doubt one of the most fun nights I’ve ever had.
Saturday morning everyone slept in until it was time to go to the San Pedro High school fundraiser barbeque. When we came back Anna, Natalie, Jeanne and I all decided to go lay out on the beach. I came back around 4:00 to get ready for our dinner at Michelle’s house who is a science teacher at San Pedro. When we got there she had prepared for us rice and beans, roasted chicken, and chick peas with pigs tail. I was a little hesitant to try the pigs tail but it ended up being pretty good; it tasted a lot like ham but you had to bite around the bone. Michelle’s son Cory was there and we all really enjoyed playing with him! We got to her house around 7:00 that night and didn’t leave until 11:00. Talking with the teachers that we would be working with was really entertaining and made me feel welcome.
Sunday morning I woke up early and went with Natalie, Jeanne, and Anna to Living Word church which is just up the road from Pedro’s Inn. We could hear the service from the street. The four of us went in 15 minutes late. The service consisted of an hour of worship music and then another hour of preaching plus announcements and offering prayers. It was probably the longest service that I’ve ever sat through. The worship songs were familiar for the most part. His sermon was solely on spousal abuse which is apparently very prevalent in Belize. He showed a power point and related all of his points to scripture. His sermon was much different than anything else that I’ve heard. Once we finally finished with the service the four of us went to eat lunch together. When we got back from lunch around 3:00 the power was out. There was no internet connection, no power, and no water for over five hours. While the power was out I read by the pool but once it started to get dark Natalie, Jeanne, Anna, and I sat in a dark room and told funny stories to each other! The most brilliant idea of the night though was going in to town in the pitch black night to get something for dinner. Once we got there we realized that almost nothing was opened and there were no street lights on. We finally found a little lady on the side of the road making pupusas over a gas grill for $1.50. Pupusas are fluffy tortillas filled with meat, cheese, and beans. We covered them with hot sauce when we got back to the hotel and they were delicious! The walk back to the hotel at 7:00 at night was probably the scariest thing that I’ve ever experienced. We luckily ran in to two boys that were also staying at Pedro’s who agreed to walk us back. The four of us had our flashlights out walking down the street and we were holding each others hands and practically sprinting down the street. Finally the power came back on at about 8:00 and we were all so relieved to find each other back at the hotel safe and sound! The weekend was absolutely legendary.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Walking Around San Pedro
Yesterday we walked around the entire island. We visited the three schools that we would be teaching; Ambergrise Caye Elementary, Isla Bonita Elementary, and my personal favorite - San Pedro High School. We started the day off with breakfast at George's restaraunt which was delicious! I had these things called fryps which are kind of like elephant ears without the sugar. We also had fresh fruit and the most wonderful orange juice I've ever tasted! After breakfast we walked to Ambergrise Caye Elementary where we met the principal, a few teachers, and some very excited students. The school was so cute and bright. There they only have about 100 students ranging from 2 years old to 6th grade. In San Pedro there are not middle schools, just primary schools and high schools. When we left the elementary school we walked back to Pedro's Inn. We saw alot of really cool things on the way back. After about an hour break we walked back through town towards San Pedro High. The kids there were so friendly and yelled to us out of the windows of their classrooms. It was really interesting to see how different their school looked from New Hanover. We didn't get to stay very long so I am looking forward to finding out more about that school and those students. We will start there on Monday. We then went to Isla Bonita Elementary but only stayed there very briefly. After our visits to the schools we walked around down town San Pedro and Dr. Kubasko showed us lots of different places to eat and shop that were inexpensive. I have a feeling that I will be spending alot of my time down town. Later that night we all went to dinner together at this place called The Reef. I had Mexican shrimp and ceviche which was delicious. After all the walking and touring around that we did I was unbelievably tired so I went to bed early last night. Today is a free day so I am looking forward to eating fruit and laying out on the beach!
Flying Over Islands
I'm a little behind on my blogging but on Wednesday, March 17th we flew in to San Pedro on a small 10 passenger plane. It was the most amazing experience! As we were flying we could look out and see Belize city and a few other islands off the coast. We made three stops; one in Belize city, one in Caye Caulker, and a final stop in San Pedro. The plane flew over the water, which was so unbelieveably blue. As we were flying up in the air we could look down and see the coral, and the fish, and even manatees. The landing strips that the pilot landed the plane on were very short and not even paved the way that our roads in America are. The bunkers or airports are so run down and tiny; I couldn't believe it. When we finally arrived in San Pedro we took a cab from the landing strip to Pedro's Inn which was right across the street.
The Inn is very interesting. We stay in these small rooms with two beds with only sheets, a sink, a toilet (that you're not allowed to flush paper down), and a shower (that does not have hot water). We only have one outlet which is quite a struggle with two girls. It is going to take a little getting used to. I especially hate taking cold showers but I will survive. The people here are very friendly and talkative and it seems like there's going to be plenty for us to do together. I think that I'm going to like it here!
The Inn is very interesting. We stay in these small rooms with two beds with only sheets, a sink, a toilet (that you're not allowed to flush paper down), and a shower (that does not have hot water). We only have one outlet which is quite a struggle with two girls. It is going to take a little getting used to. I especially hate taking cold showers but I will survive. The people here are very friendly and talkative and it seems like there's going to be plenty for us to do together. I think that I'm going to like it here!
Monday, March 15, 2010
Preparation
Today is such a busy day! We have our all day seminar today. We've made 19 giant piles of school supplies thanks to all our wonderful donations. When our meeting is over I have so much packing to do. I am so excited! I can't believe we'll actually be on the island in just two more days.
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