Some scattered thoughts from the last few days.
I am sitting in the CAL office with our lovely new beige furniture unpacked and assembled (two plastic tables and eight plastic chairs) waiting for the technicians to come and connect us to the internet. It may also be a connection to Cable TV but that won’t be a priority. There are only so many Latin American game shows one can handle in their lifetime. Of course, the hostesses for those game shows are rather more spectacular than our customary Vanna White types.
It has been raining here for the last three days. Today is only cloudy but the streets are still muddy. The temperature is quite cool and a jacket feels very nice. My Sunday plans of watching the local soccer league games were put on hold. I wasn’t sure they would even play in the rain and I really didn’t feel like finding out.
Instead, I bought a copy of Dr. Doolittle movies in Spanish and watched them. For $2.00 you can buy a DVD with a movie on it. Two years ago, there was generally only one movie on each DVD. Now, the customary number is three or four. Not a bad deal for your money. My laptop has the capability of showing the movies so that is delightful.
Monday was a meeting at the Mayor’s office again with three more officials. One was the Principal of the Education Department for the Santa Cruz area. He was quite delighted with our program plans and that was good to hear. They had a letter ready to send to the Minister by afternoon and it was going to be taken by the Principal (evidently a friend of the Minister’s) to Tegucigalpa on Tuesday.
Yesterday we were in San Pedro Sula trying to track down some more of our curriculum materials. However, the Education offices were blocked by parents wanting to get a Teacher’s College developed for this region. The blockade was in its second day and no end in sight. Evidently this is a common occurrence (even more so in Tegucigalpa) as it is one of the only ways to get action on matters.
The school year is supposed to have a minimum of 200 teaching days. However, because of strikes, disruptions, lack of salary, etc., the real number is nearer 120. The program we are working on will offer a very attractive option. Right now, the only option is a private school and the majority of parents can’t afford those fees. As well, many of the private schools aren’t offering a real quality of education.
Sunday and Monday I met some of the residents in my shower stall. Under the top bar of the shower doors is the home of a small 12 cm long lizard. Obviously it comes out at night to enjoy insects drawn to any puddles or whatnot. Monday I noticed that one of the buckets I use to store water had a companion feature of a miniature frog. Not sure how it got there but he wasn’t getting in the road of my bath so ... let it be. Last night a couple of crickets were meandering through the house. Will see what else appears over time. As long as it is not snakes or cockroaches I am rather comfortable.
Bryan
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