One week later part1

Apologies ahead of time for any typos on this Spanglish keyboard. There will also be a lack of contractions for the same reason. haha. Ok so almost a week under my belt and feeling pretty ok. Still feels a lot like a more intense study abroad in Costa Rica. And thank God I for Costa Rica first. And also thanks to Route 7 for providing me with the training to sleep through barking dogs, fighting roosters and Nica radio. It is not that bad at all thanks to the Route 7 trucks. Peace Corps gives us mosquito nets for our beds, big huge green nets and just after one night I can definitely see the difference. Mosquitos are just part of life here, so thanks to Keewaydin for the practice udring those humid summer months. About a week with my host family now and they are awesome. The voluteer before me, Lindsey, apparently spoke little to no Spanish, so the whole family has been really impressed with anything that comes out of my mouth, Unfortunately, I have to step up my game then since they do not slow down, but it is a welcome challendge. My host mom, Dona Lizeth, and host father, Don Manuel, have a relatively big house and a farm with 2 mazanas or acres. It is a lot of land! My older host sister, Yajaira and her husband, Pedro, live with us and their son is Manuel (or Manuelito-little Manuel). The Agriculture specialist told me that the walk to the house is longer, but the loving feeling in the house more than makes up for it and he is so right!! They are subsistence farmers and then some. Technically, it is a compound because the rest of the related family lives on the same land but in different houses. Don Manuel is also an woodworker and he built the entire house! There are 4 dogs, but they are not pets like we have in the US. they are working dogs, not allowed to come inside. This week has been Spanish 24/7. Wake up sometime between 6 and 7 (although been dozing since 4 or 5 when my host father wakes up to start working in the campo (field) and the dogs and chickens wak up too). Breakfast is usually beans and rice of some form although I{ve also gotten 2 oranges every morning too. Then it is 4 hours of Spanish with our facilitator, Edwin. I{m in a group of 3 other trainees in the same village. We are all at the Intermediate-low level and all trainees must be at Int. Medium or higher to "pass" Peace Corps training. Jardin Botanico is the best!! After our first class the whole village gathered for a welcoming party for us with folk dances and a pinata. It was such a warm expression of welcome! There are a lot of little kids, including my younger host sister, Melissa, who is 4 and my nephew. I also have 4, 5 and 6 year old William, Dianna and Leonardo, all cousins. Found a couple cafes with Internet so will try to update often but PC is serious about making a commitment to immersion.