PCV: Paid Caribbean Vacation

So I knew that as soon as I got to San Ignacio for my host family stay that I was in a very privileged position. There are things that we have that we enjoy and there are things that arent so great but we didnt really have a frame of reference for which to compare until yesterday.

The other 39 volunteers and I went to the capital in Belmopan for training and it was the first time we had a chance to exchange stories of what our host family lives were like. We are the luckiest people on the planet. Here are a few of the things that San Ignacio has that other towns do not:

-running water
-showers
-this little thing called electricity
-phone service
-bars
-trivia night
-a movie theater showing movies sooner than the U.S.A.
-fans
-internet cafes
-cars
-roads
-police
-bridges to cross the river
-parks

those are just some of the few that come to mind. I have most of those things in my house. I may not have hot water in my shower, but trust me... I dont think I want another hot shower until I get back into the States. I didnt even know we didnt have hot water until a week of living there when I asked just because every time I turned the water on, the cold was so good that it was all I needed.

As for the bars, I guess every town has at least 1 bar. However, some of these towns have such a church presence that only "whores, homosexuals, and drunks" go to places like that. Therefore, some people basically have no bars to enjoy. It is something we like to laugh at them for.

Training on Friday was quite comical to hear some of the stories. While we all seem to like our families, it's very hard not to compare our sites. I have a cold shower with plenty of pressure, others wash themselves in a bucket of water. I have a working toilet, others spray bug spray the entire time they use the restroom in order to keep the mosquitoes away. Nothing wrong with either... just different.

One of the conversations that happened the other day at dinner was Adam talking about how his family in Belmopan had 4 cars (extremely rare), Taylor's reply was, "You have a car? We dont even have a horse!" All this and they live about 9 miles from each other.

Just goes to show you the differences that exist from town to town. I live in the 2nd biggest town in the country with a population of about 17,000 and its considered huge here. When I was trying to explain to my host brother about how big towns are in the US it was hard because he didnt really understand.

I think some of the biggest differences between where I am and where some of the other volunteers are is the reason that families decide to host volunteers. For example, I would assume that most of the families in San Ignacio do not need the money that PC gives them to host a volunteer. They are not rich by any means but they seem to be able to get by just fine. In other villages, however, families will host a volunteer in order to survive and supplement their income. Nothing wrong with either one, just different.