Saturday, September 5, 2009

Mi Casa No Es Su Casa

After more than a few setbacks, I am finally in my own house! I can’t even describe how wonderful it is to live alone and be able to finally unpack everything for the last time and feel like I am really at home here. This is especially exciting after I was concerned about having nowhere to live after my host family rented out my room and gave me 24 hours notice to vacate…nice. Pero asi es la vida (But so is life).But gracias a dios my army of friends came to my rescue and in 24 hours found me 4 houses to look at, one of which was perfect, convinced the landlord to loan me some furniture, found me a truck, drove all my newly purchased furniture back from Choluteca (the city over an hour away), helped move me out of my host family’s house and into my own even putting the books on the bookshelf! They are amazing!

I have now been in my new house for almost two months and it is great! My house is really cute and exactly what I hoped for when I was sitting in my parents’ home in the U.S. It is a traditional Honduran home, or as traditional as Peace Corps safety and security standards will allow, located two blocks from the mayor’s office where I work and also from the local market. The house is my favorite color, green, inside and out with a large fenced in back yard. My backyard has a large coconut tree, some baby banana trees, corn, and various other crops which makes for a pretty atmosphere when I am reading in my hammock. There is one large living room area and two bedrooms, one of which I converted into a kitchen. Outside there is a covered patio where my pila (where I wash my clothes and dishes) and my bathroom are located. So far electricity has been very steady which I am extremely grateful for and water comes about 3 to 4 times a week which means I can take an actual shower during these days instead of a bucket bath. As far as furniture goes I bought a queen sized bed (which I love), a mini fridge, hotplate, plastic patio table with 4 chairs, water cooler, and 2 hammocks. My landlord was nice enough to prestame (loan me) a large table, an armoire, and an entertainment center which I am using as a bookshelf since I don’t exactly have a television haha. I am still buying pots and dishes as I discover that I need them. It’s been an adventure in learning to say the least, especially when it comes to cooking. As far as cooking goes I have been living consistently off of granola, omelets, peanut butter and jelly, tuna salad, chicken patties, and of course super cheap and amazing fruits and veggies. Also, I am lucky to have a lot of friends that like to cook for me and people who want to teach me to cook so it doesn’t look like I’ll be starving here.

But one thing that everyone will certainly find surprising is how clean I am here. I actually keep my house very clean. Everything has its place and I like it that way. I keep up on my laundry which I am still hand washing and wash my dishes directly after every meal. I also make sure to dust, sweep and mop my entire house once a week. Also while cleaning I have battled my fair share of horrible bugs which range from large furry spiders, to millions of stinging ants, to gross banana worms and even a scorpion. Luckily my neighbors are not close enough to hear and do not understand English during these “brave” moments. hah

Overall, even though living in my own home is all the hard work my parents always promised me it would be and then some because living in your first home in a developing country certainly has its own unique challenges, I absolutely love it. The control and privacy is something I won’t soon be able or willing to give up. And more than anything it is so nice to have a place to escape to when I need it. So in conclusion, I am super happy with my new place and I want to thank everyone who helped me purchase furniture or sent me house warming presents! I really appreciate them! Hasta la proxima! (Until next time)

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