Let There Be Broccoli!!

I’m in Tarija right now and I got to watch Barack Obama accept the nomination to be the democratic presidential candidate. I’m going to buy some (hopefully) final materials for the mural including clear varnish to protect it from the elements. I got to spend almost two weeks in site with Mark before coming here and it was so nice to settle back into our somewhat domestic lifestyle. In particular, I missed cooking together and just having those little conversations that pop up when you spend 24 hours a day together. I did some laundry, which reminded me how tiring it can be to wash clothes by hand in cold water. Still, I felt that I’d accomplished something that day. We worked on the mural, completing about half of the flag border. It will be composed of about 200 international flags, each about 5 X 7 cm.









I realized I've never posted a picture of where this mural is located. Here is the view of the school building as you approach it from the center of town.
There’s been a bit more political turbulence lately in Bolivia, since the recall vote on August 10. We were sent to Santa Cruz with all other volunteers during this time, since there was some question over whether everything would pass tranquilamente. Ironically, the only violence we saw on TV was that of South Georgia, our new country director’s previous residence. During “consolidation” we attended project workshops, safety update meetings, watched the opening ceremonies of the Olympics, and commiserated with our fellow volunteers. It was nice to meet the volunteers who have entered the country more recently than us. We also spent a decent amount of time by the pool. It was a bit surreal because we had taken over this resort about an hour outside the city of Santa Cruz. It barely felt like we were in Bolivia, except that the meals were lacking in vegetables besides potatoes. Here's one of the main buildings we had our meetings in, plus a picture of all 150 or so of the volunteers listening attentively to something.
Once the word came through from DC that we were okay to head back to our sites, the flights were arranged and we were out of there. We did a little shopping in Tarija and then headed back to our site with Roque.It’s crazy to think that we have only a little more than 7 months left in our service here. We’re starting to think about where we might travel on our way home, which is exciting and intimidating at the same time. We’ve talked about traveling around south america and then possibly driving home from Panama. We’ll see what really happens when the time comes.
I’ve been working on my watercolor skills, since it’s pricey and tricky to get a hold of oil painting materials here. I’ve also gotten a copy of Photoshop and Illustrator (thanks to my parents and a fellow volunteer/courier) that I plan on training myself with to see what I might do as a professional artist. The process of designing and painting this mural has gotten me thinking about what it’s be like to take myself more seriously as an artist/designer. It’s been particularly rewarding to be doing this project at a school, where it naturally lends itself to conversations in English, discussions of worldly things, and fun.
On August 15th, El Puente celebrated St. Roque's Day. I don't know too much about Catholic saints, but in Bolivia at least, this is the story. San Roque was a leper with a very loyal dog. So loyal that it followed him when he had to move into a leper colony and the dog brought him bread everyday (I haven't met a Bolivian dog who could hold bread in his mouth without eating it). The dog would lick Roque's wounds and they would miraculously heal. I may have missed a part of the story but it sounds like the dog should be the saint rather than Roque. The way this is celebrated is by honoring dogs. In Tarija there's actually a parade with decorated dogs and men in shrouds to hide their symbolic leprosy. The men carry sticks that they flick, which was supposedly what lepers used to have to do to warn people they were around. In El Puente, all we saw were decorated dogs, no parades. Here are our landlady's dogs, proud of their colorful collars.
The main thing I've been focusing on with the school garden this year, instead of weed pulling, is the introduction of broccoli. They've been growing cauliflower, but they didn't know what broccoli was! So I bought some seeds in Tarija, planted them in my home garden and transplanted them into the school's garden. I wasn't sure if they'd survive the shock of being transplanted, but here they are. The first batch yielded 9 plants, and I've got 8 more to transplant when I get back.
I bought Roque a little shirt at the festival of all things miniature, Santa Anita. He was not amused. I guess it restricted his arms a little and threw off his balance, so he couldn't walk without falling over. I took it off of him promptly after this photo was taken.