Saturday, April 7, 2012

Che Michimi Guarani (My Little Guarani)

These are words/phrases I learned in language class, but mostly in the schools from kids and from being around my host family so much. I highly doubt I will ever be fluent, but when I use a word or two that I know while conversing with a Paraguayan it tickles them pink, everytime. Lol. True, it's technically a lost language as it's only spoken here and not anywhere else in the world. Also, many foreigners find it difficult to learn/speak (imagine Japanese and French sounds having a baby and you'd get Guarani), but it's a part of the Paraguayan culture and history which is why it's engraved within the education system here and gains a person lots of respect for trying especially if it's not his/her first language. I think it's kinda cool that even though I don't speak the language really, sometimes I can still figure out what someone is saying from the context. And who knows, maybe one day I will hear Guarani being spoken in the U.S. or elsewhere and immediately recognize it. I guess until then I'd better practice what I know and keep learning, huh? Will do :)

-M'baeichapa (Coma estas?; How are you?)
-M'bae? (Que?; What?)
-che (yo; me)
-nde (vos; you)
-ha'e (el/ella; him/her)
-E'a! (No me digas!; No way!)
-Piko? (En serio?; Really?)
-vai-vai (asi-asi; so-so)
-Heterei (Que rico!; How delicious!)
-guazu (grande; big)
-pucu (largo; long)
-po (5)
-pa (10)
-petei (1)
-moko`i (2)
-che memby (mi hijo/hija; my child)
-wakala (asco; gross)
-jaha (vamos; let's go)
-jagua (perro; dog)
-ahendu (escuchar; to listen)
-ahecha (ver; to see)
-"i"(mas chico; makes the word smaller i.e. "jagua'i"=little dog)
-Kuratu (Cilantro)
-Che cherera ___________ (Me llamo es; My name is)
-quesu (queso; cheese)
-sapatu (zapato; shoe)
-opa (termino, fin; done, end)
A "tata kua" or brick oven
-tembi'u (comida; food)
-nahaniri (No)
-sipa? (Si?; Yes?)-this is actually Jopara (a mix) of Spanish and Guarani
-dale na (c'mon)-also Jopara
-ndaikuai (No se; I don't know)
-oima (dale; ok)
-tata (fuego; fire)
-ma'ena (chulina; cute, adorable)
-tata kua (brick oven)
-oi pora (esta bien; it's ok)
-ikatu (puedo; I may or might)
-terere rupa (merienda;snack)
-hake (cuidado; careful)
-hake chake (super cuidado; be extra careful)
-re (muy; very)
-ñande (nuestro; our)
-jacare (caimán;alligator)
-hai kue (Que mucho!; Wow!)
-Mba'e rejapo? (Que haces? What are you doing?)
-Rohechaga'u (Te extraño; I miss you)

Friday, April 6, 2012

On A Bookworm's Brain

Simple enough. This post is to help me remember the names and authors of books I've read, as well as, keep track of how many I've read. Being the sucker that I am for good writing, all of these books have received a note of some kind: a New York Time's Bestseller (my personal favorite type of novel) or Bestselling Author, Nobel Prize, or an Oprah's Book Club inductee. Most of them I would recommend, but there are a few exceptions which I've starred meaning I found them to be non-stimulating and/or predictable. Feel free to ask any questions if a title peaks your interest, I'd be happy to share my thoughts. If only I could win me a personal pan pizza for reading so much, eh? Lol, kidding (mostly).

1. Love in the time of Chlorea by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
2. The Memory of Running by Ron Clarity
3. Tears of the Giraffe by Alexander McCall Smith
4. Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons
5. A Virtuous Woman by Kaye Gibbons
6. Girl Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson
7. Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson
8. Spectator Bird by Wallace Stegner
9. The Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner
10. Songs in Ordinary Time by Mary McGarry Morris
11. Whisper of the River by Ferrol Sams
12. Icy Sparks by Gwyn Hyman Rubio
13. The Pilot's Wife* by Anita Shreve
14. The Patron Saint of Liars by Ann Patchett
15. Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin
16. The Tender Bar by J.R. Moehringer
17. The Virgin Blue* by Tracy Chevalier
18. Bad Girl Creek by Jo-Ann Mapson
19. Death Without Company* by Craig Johnson
20. Deep Dish* by Mary Kay Andrews
21. A Star Called Henry by Roddy Doyle
22. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
23. Incendiary by Chris Cleave
24. My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira
25. A Good Year* by Peter Mayle
26. Alice's Tulips by Sandra Dallas
27. Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat
28. The Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason
29. Where You Belong* by Barbara Taylor
30. The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing* by Melissa Bank
31. Plain Truth* by Jodi Picoult
32. What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day by Pearl Cleage
33. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
34. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
35. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
36. Lucky by Alice Sebold
37. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks
38. Larry's Party* by Carol Shields
39. Something Blue* by Emily Giffin
40. Sarah's Key* by Tatiana de Rosnay
41. Girl With The Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
42. Running with Scissors* by Augusten Burroughs
43. Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner
44. Plainsong by Kent Haruf
45. The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields
46. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon
47. The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother by James McBride
48. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
49. Friends, Lovers, and Chocolate* by Alexander McCall Smith
50. When We Were Orphans* by Kazuo Ishiguro
51. Ironweed by William Kennedy
52. Open House* by Elizabeth Berg

When Animals Attack....

Sometimes I swear I'm Dr. Doolittle reincarnated. The number of bugs/animals that have found their way into my home (or tried to) would surprise you. It surprised me at first, but now? Eh, not really. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I've become comfortable with this. It's more like I've accepted it. Yeah, just like any home (no matter where it's geographically located) there will be the occasional uninvited guest and you just have to stay calm and deal with it. I have found though, that here my animal experiences are unlike any others I've had before. A couple are comical while others scary, but most are just a part of daily life here. However, I have managed to record a few encounters that I've found to be memorable. (Warning: If you're squeamish and/or don't like creepy-crawly things or stories about them, this post is NOT for you!)


-A frog (hopped it's way into my shower once, but was quickly escorted towards and out the door.)

-A tarantula (crawled right on in on a rainy day; Rose and I were deeply absorbed in a Glee marathon which was rudely interrupted. She helped me scare if off after we finished panicking/strategizing for 30 minutes. After all that, it didn't fly like I'd predicted. Fortunately for us, it just went out the way it came in, but unfortunately for the tarantula it didn't survive the Insecticide fumes.)


-Tarantula #2 came to visit on the night of an electrical shortage throughout the city. Worse this time though it was in the guest bedroom (also where I sleep during the summer as it's cooler). I Skyped my grandfather out of slight panic but mostly disgust and he talked me through getting rid of it. I now sleep underneath a mosquito net si o si (no matter what). Can you blame me?


-A cat (or should I say THE only cat in Paraguay (most don't go anywhere near people) who wanted more than just a full belly. It just showed up at my backdoor one day and I tossed it some leftover bread. Surprisingly, it ate it all then blinked at me like "That all ya got?" From that day forward, it continued to show up announcing it's presence with a very lengthy "meowing" session until I stepped outside and demanded (in Spanish) what the problem was. If I'm being honest here, I didn't mind the company (being away from home sort of does that to a person). What I DID mind however, were these cat's attempts to cuddle, demand all of my attention, and enter my home (a couple of times successfully; once through an open window while I was hosting Thanksgiving-that's one way to shock your guests by the way). I'm not even a cat person. All I wanted was just a short visit every now and then, not a new roommate sheesh! I'm not proud to admit this, but after a while I resorted to scaring it away with a broom. I was losing sleep (for the second time due to an animal) and felt I had no choice. Sometimes it shows up for old time's sake but very, very rarely.
Oh Que. Um, I guess Facebook can wait.....

Mama Bird (I'm assuming)

-A bird couple (built a nest and had some babies in my bathroom window. Being woken up at dawn for 2 weeks straight was NOT fun, but I didn't have the heart to kick them out. So when it was time for them to leave the nest, they did.)

Hungry baby birds











-A lizard (or something was tickling my calf while I was sleeping oh-so-peacefully at my host family's house one morning. Upon first glance I did confirm my original lizard theory, but was confused to feel the same tickling on my other calf. "Two lizards? Great." I mumbled as I sat up, trying to shake my dream-like state. Wrong. It was in fact only one lizard, but an ill-fated one who just so happened to shed or lose (still unclear) it's tail--which was the actual cause of the "tickling"/what woke me up. Yep, a detached but dancing colita (little tail). Believe it. If not that's ok, there is proof below! (See video)



-Out of the side of my eye I witnessed something white-looking blur by my doorway while I was somewhat engrossed by something on my computer. I jumped up to investigate and found a medium-sized, well-camoflauged scorpion (but not well enough). Luckily for us both, I did not have to kill it but instead, gently swept it outside. (Side Note: A year ago I would probably have had some sort of panic attack at such a sight, but I reached for my camera to take the picture below before reacting to the intrusion. Um, possible sign I 've been here a little too long, maybe? Ha.)







On The Map



Perhaps other volunteers would disagree, but becoming familiar with the country in which I'm living seemed like only common sense to me. I decided not long before I arrived to learn as much about the lugar (place) as possible. Being that Peace Corps is such a closely knitted organization within an even smaller country as Paraguay, so site-seeing isn't all that difficult. Imagine having family in every state in the U.S. only not so spread out, it's kinda like that. Volunteers keep in touch with each other for the most part, and thus receive a lot of visitors. As far as I can tell, many of them don't mind the occasional drop-in. Lol kidding! But seriously sometimes it does happen, yet por suerte (luckily) most are pretty understanding, tranquilo (calm/chill) about it. (Unfortunately, I can attest to this given my track record for poor sense of direction, ehem.) The point is, you embrace the guests because you never know when that tricky bus schedule will leave you stranded (or worse), so it's only polite to return the favor, verdad (right)? I'm listing below the cities of which I've ventured into and was graciously welcomed. In addition, as an offer of thanks, the residing volunteers and locals should know (if they didn't already) that they can swing by Long Island anytime! :)

-Guarambare (home of my training community and host mother Rosa)
-Fernando de La Mora (site of a G-32 volunteer where I took my first trip solita (all alone :/)
-San Lorenzo (location of Super Selemma, a very large and famous Super)
-Caacupe (home of my LFP family, the carpenters)
-Yegros (site of a fellow G-35 volunteer and my closest volunteer neighbor)
-Santa Elena (former site of a G-31 volunteer; is somewhat campo or country)
-Caraguatay (nearby city relative to Isla; home of one of the PCV Radio programs)
-Capiata (the city of myths)
-Aregua (home of the Strawberry Festival; where I participated in Habitat for Humanity)
-Quindy (site of a fellow G-35 volunteer; the city of soccer balls)
-Paraguari (home of Mbatovi the zip-lining place)
-Pilar (the city of cotton)
-Itacurubi (site of a fellow G-35 volunteer; has small beach called San Andres)
-Villeta (site of a fellow G-35 volunteer; known for its industrialization and proximity to Argentina)
Katie, Rose and I at Salto Cristal
-Encarnacion (site of a fellow G-35 volunteer; known for PY Carnaval;)
 -La Colmena (home of Salto Cristal, the famous small waterfall)
-Coronel Olviedo (college home of my host sister Paola)
-Ciudad del Este (home of the Itaipu Dam the world's second largest hydroelectric plant)
-Trinidad del Parana (home of the Jesuit Ruins)
-Villa Rica (site of a fellow G-35 volunteer; home of the carpinchos)


part of the Jesuit Ruins
statue in Carpincho Park, Villa Rica
Itapu Dam at night :)


Fun Foods Found :D

No lie. It's tough being a Foodie and living in a foreign country. It forces you to be creative (which can be frustrating at times) and renders you helpless when you can't curb that craving you've been having for weeks (months even) due to lack of ingredients or rather, unavailability. BUT, the good news is this just makes it all the better/more exciting when you find something rare. Below are a list of jewels (lol) I've found and treasured so far:

-Spring Rolls (my latest obsession!)
-Cornbread (made my Vegetarian Chili even better!)
-Asparagus (one of my fav. veggies of all time!)
-Crissants (enough said)
-Gruyere cheese (one of my fav. cheeses)
-Peanut Butter (can't live without it. I was thrilled to find it here after being told otherwise!)
-Gummy Worms (what's a Dirt Cake without them?!)
-Maple Syrup (awesome find! Pancakes here I come!)
-Tilapia (my fav. type of fish for it's suaveness) 
-Cream Cheese (now if I could only find a bagel! Lol)
-Snickers (one of my fav. candy bars!)
-REAL butter (you'd be surprised at how hard it is to come by here!)
-Key Lime Pie (one of my fav. desserts!)
-Caesar Salad (my fav. salad of ALL time!)


Now Playing!

Within the information sent to me by Peace Corps describing Paraguay, the term "3rd world country" wasn't iterated enough. That being said, I prepared myself to live without the luxuries we so often take for granted including one of my personal favorites: the movie theater. So imagine my utter shock when I stumbled into Asuncion (the capital) and discovered not only a decent cinema, but one stocked with modern movies as well! Needless to say, I haven't looked back since and I try and take advantage of the coveted entertainment as often as I can (but not too often). To help me keep track (I'd like to know how many I've seen by the end of my service) and for those interested, here are the flicks I've seen thus far:

(2011)
-No Strings Attached
-Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (3D)
-The Hangover 2
-Friends with Benefits
-Breaking Dawn (Part 1)

(2012)
-New Year's Eve
-The Price of Tomorrow
-War Horse
-Tower Heist 
-The Descendants 
-This Means War!
-The Hunger Games
-Men In Black 3D
-Taken 2
-Breaking Dawn (Part 2)

Comidas Caseras (Cooked in Casa)

For those of you who know me best, I think to say I have an obsession with food would be an understatement. Lol. But for those of you who don't know, I love food. Specifically, GOOD food. (Who doesn't, right?) Yet there just isn't a feeling quite like eating that amazingly good food and knowing that you made it yourself. Very smilier to writing poetry or painting a masterpiece, it makes you want to exclaim your excitement with whoever is around or willing to listen. And since I only get blank stares and/or curled upper lips in return from neighbors, my blog is the next best thing. So,  I'll be adding to this as I stumble into my latest culinary creation. Feel free to drool as needed, just try to avoid the spacebar and family (you made need them both later).
Curried Eggplant w/ Rice

Chicken Salad
Pasta Salad
Hummus (PY style; no Tahini here :/)
Pico de Gallo
Mango Key Lime Pie
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
5 Cheese Macaroni & Cheese
Green Onion Mashed Potatoes
Biscuits
Red Velvet Cake
Pizza (Margherita; BBQ Chicken, "DC", Broccoli, Spinach & Ricotta among others)
Veggie Burgers
Tomato Alfredo
Chicken Manicotti
Falafels
Coconut Squares
BBQ Nachos
Panko Chicken
French Fries
Crepes
Banana Nut Bread
Sour Cream
Vegetarian Chili
Fried Rice
Dirt Cake
Pancakes
Nutella & P.B. Stuffed French Toast
Coconut Squares
Black Beans & Rice
Calzones
Mini Apple Pies
Blueberry Pancakes
Guacamole
BBQ Beans
Chicken Pot Pie
White Chicken Chili
Curried Eggplant

Chicken Pot Pie
White Chicken Chili
Chicken Manicotti

Tomato Alfredo


Red Velvet Cake

BBQ Bean Nachos
BBQ Pizza


Homemade Biscuits

Pita-Stuffed Falafels

Fresh Salad (veggies courtesy of my garden!)

I've Got Mail :)

This is to help me keep track of who has sent me some love either in the form of a card, letter, postcard or a package. More importantly, it's also to personally thank those who have thought of me and were kind enough to send something my way. I am ALWAYS grateful for mail, no matter the size. If you've ever lived anywhere other than home, you already know how precious even the smallest reminder can be. Thank you all again for your continuous support. There is no way I would be able to preserve on this journey without you all!

Kisha Modeste (1st ever mail I received here! Easter card w/ pics of adorable Ryan included, thanks Kish!)

Aunt Candi (1st ever package I received here! Those Reeses Pieces made my week, thank you!)

Coco (postcard all the way from Amsterdam! Thanks hermana! Xoxo.)

Mother Dear (Package #2 full of much needed clothing and of course Samoa's lol thanks!)

Ms. Joan (Package #3 and definitely the most generous one I have received so far! A HUGE thank you!)

Vanessa (Package #4 nearly brought tears to my eyes. Chocolate covered pretzels? TQM V!)

Mom & Grandfolks (Package #5 full of Halloween goodies and other necessities muchas gracias!)

Vanessa (Package #6 mostly full of goodies..need I say more? Lol. Thank you Love!)