¡Viene la fuerte!

Dancing Jegui (pronounced Heggi)


A bridge I crossed on the way to and from Chichica


Making mothers day cards in Recilia's class



The map of panama taking shape, now it just needs paint!

The little smelly dog that Mile has affectionately named "Pus"

Adonis sitting for his big TV interview

Members of the community dancing Jegui for the camera


Well it's been yet another full week in Panama! I ended up doing laundry on Saturday after I got back from Cerro Punta (which by the way I was just barely able to take inside today, it has taken nearly a week for it to dry!). On Saturday I went with my neighbor kid Lito to Llano Ñopo to the fair. I went last year and knew what to expect, which wasn't much, but it was good to see it again to say that we can do better with the feria in Chichica! It is a three hour walk, and although I love hiking my knee has been acting up lately when I walk for more than two hours. So I arrived in Llano Ñopo after some really nasty mud (shoulda worn the rubber boots!) only to find some pathetic stands, tons of mud, and many drunk Ngabes. So I ate some food from each of the stands that was selling food and bought a few things while I waited for Dan and Andy to arrive (ha ha, that sounds like it could be the name of a tv show, Dan & Andy). I ate two bowls of soup and drank a pipa (green coconut water) and chupared me an orange panamanian style.

This drunk guy named Nicanor came up to me and started talking to me in English, but I got rid of him after a bit. Then Andy showed up, so I hung out with him. I also talked to some people from MIDA that I know, and this guy that I met at the feria last year who apparantly a few weeks ago was crossing the river drunk with his son on his shoulders, and his son fell in the water and was carried off and drowned. Needless to say he was drunk again, and I didn't know that it was him that lost his son but he seemed really sad.

Well, Andy wanted to talk to Nicanor (because apparantly he teaches him English) and Nicanor took Andy aside and asked if I was his girlfriend. This is a common assumption, that volunteers of the opposite sex are either girlfriends or sisters. Anyway, Andy said no so Nicanor asked if it was ok if he slept with me. Andy said, uh, no it's not ok, and apparently some playful punches were being thrown during this whole dialogue so Andy decided to get out of there before he had to fight for my honor.

So I ate an hojaldre and drank a coke, and the artisan group from Andy's site invited us to dance jegui with them, which is the traditional Ngabe dance. It is quite simple but it can break you out in a sweat easily. Basically, you form a line and grab the shoulder of the person in front of you and follow the leader as he or she stomps. There are variations of stomping patterns (left foot, right foot, or both) or the formations of the lines (one or two lines, straight or snail shaped), or the direction (forwards or backwards). I asked a Ngabe lady to take my picture, and she wasn't sure that she could do it but I assured her that all you had to do was press the button so she did it for me, and not too bad considering that you can't see what picture you're taking! I am the white girl in the blue nagwa, and Andy is the tall white guy in the green Ngabe shirt. Anyway, it was a really fun and cool experience. Also, as Andy pointed out his community was the only group of people that weren't drunk and actually engaged in a cultural activity! They also had the largest representation there as far as I could tell. However, several more men asked Andy permission to sleep with me. He said that he should have said yes, and that I am really shy so they need to be persistent! He also said that my nagwa was too provocative!

Dan showed up about a half hour before I had to leave, as well as Kalli and her Panamanian boyfriend. MIDA had offered me a ride back to Tole so I wouldn't have to walk back to Chichica, but I really didn't feel like depending on the flaky agency people because I didn't want to get stuck somewhere other than my house that night. So I decided, since it was turning out to be a beautiful rainless afternoon, that I would walk. It was a gorgeous day for a hike, although somehow I ended up taking the hard way back to Chichica through Llano Palma. I think it is less direct and also has more hills, but it wasn't as muddy as the other route. By the time I got to Llano Palma and Cerro Cruz, my knee was making each step downhill quite painful. Anyway, I made it back to my house as it was getting dark. Seven hours walking, 5 hours standing in mud. A tiring but full day.

Next day I reluctantly borrowed a shovel to go dig at the tourism meeting. However, we ended up just talking about the fair so that was fine with me. I may have carried that shovel up there for nothing, but it makes me look like a hard worker for little effort! I then went straight home and rested my poor body, which was cursing me for making it walk some more.

Tuesday, after my knee and body were back to normal, I went to Recilia's class again to make their mother's day cards with the photos of the kids. Then I went over to the high school to finish drawing the Panama map mural. I got that step done, which is the hardest part. As I was leaving the school there was a crowd and a camera man filming a kid from our school, named Adonis. Apparently he had competed in a tv show competition which is like American Idol for kids that sing cantadera, and he won the regional competition so he is now going to represent the province of Chiriqui in the show!

I went over on Wed. morning to start painting it, and even with Jess's help I didn't get all the ocean done. The paint was giving me a headache so I called it a day before we got to the caribbean. Then Mile came to my house and cooked me coconut curry chicken and patacones, which I have to say were divine! I should make that more often I have decided.

And then on Thursday, my body decided to have another tantrum just by being sleepy. I had a full day planned but none of it happened. I especially wanted to get my phone charged because it had died, but it had been raining and nobody can charge stuff with solar panels when it is raining, so I have been out of communication for a few days. I slept until 9:00 until Loli woke me up asking to borrow something, and I laid back down until 10. At that point I decided to eat breakfast and do the dishes, but then I laid back down again, thinking that maybe I would feel better before 2:00 when I was supposed to meet with the tourism group to work on their brochure. Well, at 1:30 Encarnaciona came to invite me to go with her to the party that they were going to have up in Chichica, which apparently was to celebrate Teachers Day yesterday and Mothers Day next week, but I told her that I didn't feel like going and that I was just going to rest. In fact, I skipped out on going to the tourism meeting because 1. I was still tired 2. It had been raining non-stop for two days and the trail was likely to be really bad 3. it was raining and this would make everyone not show up anyway except me and Jess 4. It was raining and there would be no electricity to run Jess's computer on Ruben's solar panel. So, I slept until sunset at 6:30. I got up and made some patacones and ginger tea, and went back to sleep until the next morning, feeling fresh and new!

This morning as I was struggling to get a place on the chiva due to the massive amount of people there from the party last night and the paying of welfare checks this morning, I heard one of the construction guys working on the farmers market building say "Ah, viene la fuerte!" Yep, that's me, the strong one! And now I'm here in David hoping to get a lot of stuff done this weekend, not like last time when the stars were against me. Well, TTFN!


Adonis singing his little intro spot for the TV show Semilla de Cantadores