Birthday Weekend

So I am now 25. The weekend started on Friday with the usual trip to Belmopan early in the morning. I had to make it back by 7 pm to give a presentation to a youth group on the Peace Corps and Setting Goals and creating a Life Purpose statement. I was a little bit late but Belizeans are never on time so i fit right in. Saturday-Terra's host family invited us all to the private island for the night and it was awesome: camp fire, smores, 45 lobsters, sleeping on a dock etc. On Sunday morning we were taken back to Independence because we had to catch a boat to go to Placencia for a Beach Clean up with another Youth Group. The beach clean up went well and we saw the Prime Minister swimming with his kids. At 5 we all went back to Independence for a dinner/party for my birthday. My host mom worked really hard making all the food and the cake. It was Julie's birthday on the 11th so the dinner was for her too. On Monday we all went to Placencia again and had some fun. After we got home on Monday night Jacob's host family had us all over for dinner. Overall the weekend was awesome: private islands, placencia and free lobster, I am having way too much fun down here.

Far From Home,

Christopher Wilkins Weiss

Placements

So i found out a few days ago I am gonna be living in Belize City, Belize for the next two years. A few good things about being placed there: my house is close to the school I will be working at, there is a gym nearby, i am gonna be living on the safe side of the river, its an actual city and not a village, the airport is close and its a cruise port. The one bad thing about the city: its the crime capital of the country. Roughly 80-90% of the country's crime takes place in Belize City. Most if not all happens on the southwest side of the city.

Since my last post i've done a few things:
1. Cockscomb National Park/Preserve - a cool jaguar reserve with jungle hiking and natural waterfalls.
2. Volunteer Visit to Jungle - slept in a kechi village for a weekend, river bathing, soccer, volleyball, jungle fishing, jungle bowl making etc.
3. Independence Day Celebrations - get real drunk and sing bad songs
4. Placencia - wow beautiful Americanized vacation destination
5. Private Key - swimming and fishing off of a private island.

Far From Home,

Christopher Wilkins Weiss

The 23 hour Peace Corps Day

Alright since my last post a couple of things have happened: We started a garden in one of the villages, one of the volunteers let go of a machete and it stuck another volunteer in the face, (luckily it was the dull side), saw Punta Gorda - an awesome waterside community, saw Mayan Ruins, slept in the jungle, did some cave climbing at the Blue Creek Caves, attended my first Beliezean party - funny story from the party: My host dad and his brother were getting pretty drunk of some Rum and they like to sing old time country songs - hank williams type country. They thought i knew some of these songs. not so much. Towards the end of the night they decided to play a song that i might like and know. They dedicated it to America and Mista Chris. The song they decided to play: "We Are The World, We Are The Children" hahahahahahaha. Nice pick guys. 

Alright here is the good/crazy story: We all awoke at 4:30 a.m. to catch the 5:30 bus to Belmopan which is about 3 hours away by bus (the actual distance would be from Toledo Ohio to about Findlay, Ohio. In the states this bus ride would take about an hour) All of the training sessions were cancelled in Belmopan because one of the 2nd year volunteers passed away. So basically we all sat in the PC headquarters until 4:00 pm. We caught the bus back to Independence at 4:30. The Belziean bus experience goes like this: Its an old US School bus, Lines forget it, its a mob. pushing fighting swearing the works, as long as you get on that bus you are good to go. So picture a bus to its full capacity and add 40 more people. If you don't get a seat you stand in the aisles. Sometimes people stand for the entire bus ride. Meanwhile the guy who collects money doesn't collect the money right when you get on, that would be too easy and logical. He waits till everyone gets on and then starts to collect bus fare. He is climbing over people just about every time the bus stops. Speaking of bus stops or places that one would catch the bus forget that. If you want on you stand by the road (any road) and waive the bus down. so picture the full bus and then more people getting on along the way. It was one of those wow we aren't in America moments. So back to my long day story, So we are all riding back to Independence and then all of the sudden the bus stops in Dangriga (about half way) and someone starts yelling: "Chris! Chris! Is there a Chris here!?" I'm like whats going on here? It was my host dad: he was in Dangriga because his grand daughter was in the hospital. He wanted to know if i wanted a ride instead of riding the bus. I said fo sho. Jacob came along too. We thought we were leaving right away. No No. We didn't leave for another 4 hours. We were taken to the hospital, a bootleg casino (we didn't gamble) and given the full tour of the city. We ended up leaving at 9:30 pm. So we leave and hit Silk Grass (about 20 miles from Dangriga) and the van breaks down. Sweet. No cell phone service either. Someone finally makes a phone call for help somehow, and by help i mean a tow from a friend who has to drive to Silk Grass from Independence. We finally get picked up at around 12:30 am or 1. We decide to ride in the back of the truck bead which is sweet because it cools you off from the humidity and heat. By cools you off i mean 83 degrees. So we are cruising along and all of the sudden we get flashed down by some people who just had an accident. So we all get out and go check it out: This car struck a thick telephone poll and split it in half, 3 people injured: head injuries, showing skull, broken legs, shattered hips the works. The kicker: A dead guy. They were all drunk. The driver was thrown from the vehicle and didn't survive. Meanwhile right after we get there and until we leave its lawlessness. the ambulance arrived 45 minutes later. By ambulance i mean people with bootleg "medical training" and are basically there to give you a ride to the hospital. They picked up the three injured people and left the dead guy. All three guys rode in the same ambulance. The cops came about 2 hours later. (the cop car was driving by after we left). 

We got home at 2:30 and went to bed at around 3 am. 23 hour day. no big deal. 

Lessons learned: Stay on the bus and Belize is not America nor do Belizieans operate similarly to Americans. 

Far From Home, 

Christopher Wilkins Weiss

Whoa

What up,

Alright a lot to cover here: Staging in Miami was awesome. Being in a room full of people that really want to make a contribution to Belize made me feel pretty good. Hurricane Faye hit Miami while we were there. NO BIG DEAL. There was a big greeting for us at the Belize Airport, it was pretty cool. Training while at the Peace Corps Headquarters was basically a 8 hour session of Belize stuff. They kept telling us about procedures for quitting and going home, which was kinda weird, but 2 people have already quit. In the past two weeks I've seen or done the following:
-Garifuna Drumming and Dancing
-Cliff Jumping
-Watched Sunrises
-Watched Sunsets
-Caught a Sting ray
-Consumed more food than i ever have before (Ive only had rice and beans for one meal)
-Learned/Learning Kriol: Da weh yo nehym Bwai? Its basically bad English
-Biting Bugs (enough said)
-My host family is the shit: they call me Mista Chris
-Private Island: i am going to buy in 5 years: $40 K Belize
-2 International Soccer games
-Dead snakes dragged through the streets of San Juan: He shot it with a gun.
-Mango Time: Shook mangoes out of a tree: Them be some big trees.
-"Hey Bwai you be dat German!!!" apparently i look German
-I don't miss the U.S. at this point and i can see myself living here for the next few years.
-Had a two hour conversation with the town drunk about life and Belize. He said if he had my education he would "dominate people" Whatever that means. He really wants to fall in love with a french woman. This guy gets paid on fridays, proceeds to put his payday money in his pocket, gets drunk, passes out in a random place and people steal the money out of his pockets.
I'll add some pics and videos later. I'm out.

Far From Home,

Christopher Wilkins Weiss

In Belize

Yo Yo,

I am in Belize and I just had the best week of my life. I've seen more stuff in 7 days than my previous 24 years of living: Garifuna Dancing, Beliziean Sunrise etc.

I wont have the Internet so i'll catch up in a couple weeks. We leave for our towns today.

Far From Home,

Christopher Wilkins Weiss

Almost Time To Leave

So I've got about 6 days until I head to Miami, FL for the staging event. I am going through lists of what I need to pack and making necessary purchases. There is a facebook group for all of the volunteers and some of the people who are already down there have made suggestions on what to bring and what not to bring. One volunteer's list included numerous items including: pots and pans, vegetable peeler, pillows, spatulas, nice pair of sunglasses, hanging shoe organizer, etc. Lets be serious here, I don't have most of these items and I am pretty sure I wont need them in lesser off conditions. She's telling me to bring a blow up sleeping pad. A blow up sleeping pad? Come on now....I slept on a pile of clothes for a little over 6 months in San Diego. I repeat a pile of clothes. I think I can make it without buying a blow up sleeping mat thank you very much.

About a week ago we were asked to fill out questionnaire's so the Peace Corps volunteers can get to know us better and one of the questions was: What is the craziest item you are bringing to Belize? I replied with: "I'm actually bringing a full grown adult chimpanzee. I'm thinking I am just gonna duct tape his mouth and bury him under clothes during the flights. He should make it through security right?"

Far From Home,

Christopher Wilkins Weiss

Conference Call

So I had a conference call from Belize the other day and I was taken back by a few things. I couldn't understand the lady (my future boss) on the other side of the line due to her thick Caribbean accent, she was on speaker phone, and we were the two only people on the call. I thought conference calls involved more than two people? I guess that's how they do it down in Belize. I also wasn't expecting the questions she asked. The email informing me of the call said that it would be an info session and they would answer any questions we had. Well there was very little info given and she couldn't really answer any of my questions. The call consisted of her interviewing me.

I left Chicago this past weekend. My buddies threw a party that consisted of keg stands, daring people to take their shirt off, and yelling: YOU BETTER BELIZE IT!!!!!! I had a great time for the three months that I was in Chi city. A couple memorable things: Moe's bottle service, Kenny Chesney Concert, working for Ralph Lauren again, living with fraternity brothers, Taste of Chicago, and the art museum. All in all Chicago is an awesome city, but its a bit expensive and from what I hear the winter is miserable. Despite the amount of friends in the city, I don't think its for me.

34 days until I leave.


Far From Home,

Christopher Wilkins Weiss