I'm going to start off with a plug for my sitemate's stove project. We work on different sides of town and she is still looking for funding for her projects. She was also put in a bad situation because of Peace Corps' decision to have our training class take early close of service, so she is staying a month after finishing service to monitor the construction of the stoves in her communities. Here is the link to her blog http://30stovesin90days.blogspot.com/. She's doing a paypal or FOG check option, for FOG its the same, but with Melissa Amyx- Cat II in the memo line.
Good news on the SPA project proposal! I got the call Friday afternoon to let me know it was approved and I will be beginning construction at the beginning of next week!! The project is now fully funded and will be completed by March 5th, with a few weeks of evaluation and monitoring before I finish service and turn over my responsibilities to my replacement.
Town fair was just as fun as I hoped it would be! We were invited to a first communion lunch, went over to another friend's house to watch Convite (kind of like a parade, but it's all day dancing to marimba in heavy costumes) and had friends come to visit Cunen. The Conejos (the most famous marimba band in Guatemala) did come to Cunen, but because the Municipality was left in heavy debt, we had to pay an entrance fee. Last year it was in the park and free. The nice part about charging an entrance fee, is that all the drunks that wandered through last year's free performance stayed out to save their quetzales for alcohol.
On the main day of the fair there was a parade and Melissa and I walked with the other health center workers right behind the new mayor and his administration. The fair is in celebration of the Virgin of Candelaria so there were just as many religious processions as there were parades and dances. It was cool to have so much going on in town when its usually pretty quiet and low key. Most people are usually home for the night by six or seven p.m. but the night of the Conejos we left the dance around 1:30 in the morning and there were still lots of people dancing or watching and enjoying the music. All in all it has been a successful and enjoyable week. Things are turning out better than I expected with the new close of service date, and it has allowed me to make fun travel plans before returning to Pennsylvania. I will be traveling to a few sites in Guatemala that I haven't seen yet, then head on to Belize and Mexico, get in some beach time and hopefully see some Digo Rivera and Frida Khalo art in Mexico City. Then I'll be on to South America to visit family in Ecuador, perhaps see either Chile or Bolivia and definitely to Peru to see Machu Picchu, which has always been on my travels wish list.
I will be adding pictures as the stove project progresses!
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