One Month At Site

Week 4 marked a month at my site. Things are definitely falling more into place as I figure out my day-to-day routine as a Peace Corps Volunteer in my community.

Monday and Tuesday were pretty standard days for me. I spent each day at the elementary school. On Monday I observed 4th grade classes and on Tuesday I sat in on some sixth-grade classes. It is fascinating to see the difference in the curriculum and behavior of students in each grade. Sixth graders will head to the colegio, or high school, starting in February, and this age gap is noticeable. Most afternoons I spent working on my diagnostic report and reaching out to community members to make further connections.

On Wednesday, I went to the biggest city in my canton, Desamparados, with a couple other volunteers serving at nearby institutions. There, we met with two regional directors who help administer our schools on behalf of Costa Rica’s Ministry of Education. After that, we spent the morning exploring the city. Because Desamparados is a bit commercialized, we ended up at a mall. We’ve spent the better half of 4 months on a diet predicated on rice and beans, so we snuck in a lunch at the American food court. (I settled for Taco Bell.) Afterwards, I returned to my site and interviewed a community leader who represents my city at the municipality level. She had a lot of great expertise on the local political system and the political climate, so that will be a huge resource for my upcoming diagnostic report on the community.

Thursday, I returned to the high school. A significant part of my service will be helping promote “life skills”. This will likely include various character-building activities and workshops. Because of this, my main counterparts at the institutions will be the school counselors, or orientadores. So, I spent the morning shadowing an orientadora as she dealt with a few different incidents related to bullying. In the afternoon, I met with another member of the community for a cafecito. He provided valuable insight on the history of my community, as well as its resources, strengths, and challenges. He even gifted me a couple of fossils from my site. 

Friday, I continued with my observations at the high school. The high school in my community is a technical school, which is very different from the high school experience I had back in the States. My school offers several different vocational specialties for students including things like tourism, accounting, telecommunications, and more. On Friday I sat in on an electronics class, which although interesting to observe, was way over my head as someone who is more humanities-focused. I then later went to a math class. That afternoon, I had another interview scheduled, but as often happens with Peace Corps, their plans changed, so I ended up with the afternoon off.

On Saturday morning, I was able to sneak in a run before tuning into the Razorbacks game. I’m about five weeks out from running a half marathon so I’m trying to keep my fitness at a somewhat competitive level. That afternoon, one of my Peace Corps friends in a nearby community hosted a Harry Potter/Halloween get-together for a few of us volunteers. Halloween isn’t nearly as big in Costa Rica as it is back home, so it was fun to celebrate the holiday with some American friends. It was also my first opportunity to see someone else’s site in my cohort, so it was neat to compare our communities. 

Sunday was a rainy day in my community, so I’m writing this blog, watching football, and chalking it up as a rest day before getting after it again tomorrow.