My next host and community guide, El Señor Marcelino Barba

El Señor Marcelina is perhaps one of the most gentle, thoughtful men I have ever met. At 68 years old and 5´ le falta an imposing figur. He said that he had 1 year of formal education in 1950, but then the teacher left and by the time another came, he already had a family. He can write his name and he struggles to read some. However, he seems to be one of the driving forces of Esquiguita´s Ecological concience. A man full of activity for his age, he remembers when there was much more forest in leu of cow pastures. His son in the president of the ANAM (National Environmental Ministry) environmental group that is a year old. Marcelino looks like a Muchacho when esta a pie cerca de los otros ancianos.

Last night he started telling me about a country (that he called pakistan) that was full of poor black people and recently had an earthquake that caused tremendous distruction. After much discussion we resolved that it was Haiti. Today, he mentioned it again and I took the opportunity to explain the impact of Haitian style deforestation (a direct metaphore for the azuero penninsula). He already knew. He explained to me about how the water runs more rapidly and doesn´t stick around during sequias. He also told me how the suelo le falta alemientos cuando los arboles estan cortado. I think que vamos a tener mucho exito todavia.

His 8 year old granddaughter Anna has vitiligo on her knees and a few other parts of her body. Every time she showers, her ¨baba¨is very careful to cover those effected spots with vitiligo cream. At 42 dollars for the tube, Marcelino said it was extremely expensive.

Anna gave a very special poem presentation in school today when I was received formally by all 80 students. In adition to her poem, the students did 3 folkloric dances, a fables skit complete with masks, a grito 7saloma contest, and 3 songs in my honor. The show that the three teachers ( 1 director, 1 teacher, and a girl that didnt look older than 18) was really inpressive. The school goes from k-6th grade.

Times up at the cafe. Until next time, adios!

What I learned in school today in Esquiguita.

La Historia de los dos conejos:

Once there was a rabit being shased by a couple of hunting dogs. The rabit ran very fast away from the dogs and got to the point that it could no longer see the dogs coming. It then ran into another rabit, who when he was told about the dogs, doubted that they were coming. So the rabits argued, the first insisting that they should run, and the second, once he was convinved that the dogs were coming, arguing about the direction that they should run.

Meanwhile the force of nature that was the dogs cought up to the rabits, killed and ate them both.

When the kids acted it out, they didn´t say what the lesson of the fable was, but Im pretty sure that everybody understood.

Let´s Meet Contestant Number 1!

I just got out of a meeting that took all day in Chorrera

We were finally assigned our sites. It was kind of goofy the way they presented them, like we were each winning an award. But in the end, I think they did a great job of placing us. The picture is of the group going to the Darien.

Mine is in the Province of Herrera. The place is rediculously deforested. Looking at satelite images you can barely make out a grove of trees.

That said i´m rediculously psyched. Im gonna have to worry a bit more about bot flies and hanta virus, but I kinda feel like that comes with the job. I have heard that the area is home to the second largest carneval festival in the world (next to rio) Every year hundreds of thousands of people descend on the otherwise sparsely populated region for a week of carne vale.

no more time at the cafe. Be back soon