Zumba in Belize and Other Highlights

Way too much good stuff going on here, so I have to melt it down into tasty nuggets (no sauce).

My Zumba classes got started last Tuesday, June 21. We held the class at the bandstand at Alejo Beni Park, right by the Caribbean Sea. So beautiful! I don't have a very good sound system, but other than that everything was perfect. First class had about 5 (Steve and 3 PCVs and one 11-year-old Belizean girl, the daughter of Michele Irving, my counterpart) people. That first time a bunch of kids came to watch and figure out what the heck we were doing. Now there have been 4 classes (we meet Tuesdays and Thursdays 5:30-6:30) and our numbers are way up - same Americans, same 10 or 12 kids, and a few more Belizean ladies. Check it out!

Yesterday, June 29, was Steve's 64th birthday - his FIRST birthday in Belize. I tried to plan a surprise party, but logistics made it tough. Nevertheless, we managed to have a few people - PCVs and locals - to wish him well, a really sad looking cake (it is such a LONG story, I cannot conceive of trying to type it all out!), with candles, and refreshments, and some good Garifuna music to celebrate. Here's a couple pics from the party. Steve's wearing his (certified pre-owned) birthday shirt!

PCV Ava and our host mom, Patsy

Miss Cas (Garifuna language teacher) and Norine (President of POWA

Other good stuff. I've given some presentations to some young people, Sexual and Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS. Steve and I co-presented at a monthly Diabetes Support Group meeting. For the youth stuff, I had to create flip charts and visuals on "shop paper," including all the drawings for the male and female reproductive anatomy. NOT easy. I must say that I was pleased with the youth presentations. I will be the first to say that I don't think I do well with kids, but I followed the Peace Corps formula, which included lots of activities and learning games, and they really liked it, were engaged in the topic, and even asked the organizer to have me back to teach more sessions. Huh, go figure.

For the diabetes group, we had a projector, so we wimped out and used Powerpoint. Steve talked about the medical aspects of diabetes, and I discussed nutrition and dietary tips. Steve did his usual stellar performance. Again, I tried out small group discussions to see if we'd get good participation and interest. I thought I'd have to explain what I meant about gathering in groups and working together, but they jumped right in and got to work, produced the result we asked for. There must be something to this PC stuff.

OK, what else? We've got a house lined up to rent as soon as Peace Corps Safety Office passes it. We have bicycles (and helmets) so it's quicker to get around. We are starting to make some friends. I mentioned to some people that I didn't have friends yet, but that I do have friendly acquaintances and it seems that many locals seem happy to see us. There are some women in POWA I would really like to get to know. Also the daughter of my counterpart is just a real doll. Her name is Thandiwe (pronounced TAN-di-weh), but she says I can call her T. Somehow, I stuck with Tandy and she seems OK with it. I'll try to get a picture of her in the blog soon.

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As usual, Steve has written some things, so I'll include them here :--)

Cathy and I talked to the diabetes support group here onThursday morning. The public relations officer from the clinic set it up and both of us gave presentations. He took some pictures that he gave to me. My shirt is soaked with sweat, but that's the way it is. 

Yesterday afternoon I was invited to attend the clinic staff meeting. I guess they have them monthly. It started at 2PM and went for 2 hours and 40 minutes. ALL the clinic staff were there, including the domestic staff, the doctors, nurses, pharmacists, receptionists, and community health workers from the satellite village clinics. A lot of it was arguments between doctors and pharmacists, etc. Some of the discussion wounded disrespectful, but that may be business as usual. The meeting started with a prayer and ended with a slideshow presentation by one of the practitioners on combating human trafficking (aka slavery). She mentioned that US nationals buy young children from their parents to take back as domestic help. I was ashamed that we are singled out.

This morning we went to all the bicycle shops around town. The going price was between BZ $220 and $260 each. All but one of the places were run by foreign nationals. The local man will be getting in some adult bikes on Wednesday, so we will go back then. He also does repairs if anything goes wrong. He is also very friendly and likable. Peace Corps volunteers are required to wear bike helmets when we ride, so everyone knows we are Peace Corps and not just the unusual white person on a bike. Cathy went to Belmopan on Friday and picked up our helmets at the PC office. 

I have Rosetta Stone Spanish software on my laptop and have continued to work on it since I have been here. It is expensive, but it teaches by reading, speaking, listening, and simple pictures to illustrate the idea of the word or phrase. If they had a Garifuna course, I would certainly buy it, since it is so effective. On Wednesday afternoon I am going to my first Garifuna lesson taught by one of the local ladies who taught Garifuna to some Peace Corps volunteers last year. I am hoping to learn pronunciation.  I have already been working on computer flash cards to build vocabulary. Yesterday afternoon I was invited to attend the clinic staff meeting. I guess they have them monthly. It started at 2PM and went for 2 hours and 40 minutes. ALL the clinic staff were there, including the domestic staff, the doctors, nurses, pharmacists, receptionists, and community health workers from the satellite village clinics. A lot of it was arguments between doctors and pharmacists, etc. Some of the discussion wounded disrespectful, but that may be business as usual. The meeting started with a prayer and ended with a slideshow presentation by one of the practitioners on combating human trafficking (aka slavery). She mentioned that US nationals buy young children from their parents to take back as domestic help. I was ashamed that we are singled out.