Bolivia week Uno

One week down, three to go (plus one in Peru but that one is just for fun).

We arrived in Cochabamba last Saturday afternoon after spending the morning in the Law Paz airport. Our flight overnight from Miami to La Paz was my first overnight flight. After being on and off planes all day, it was very hard to get comfortable enough on that flight to sleep very soundly. We were all very grateful when we walked off the plane in Cochabamba, knowing we wouldn't have to get on another one for a month! In the Law Paz airport the culture shock already began hitting. Everything was in Spanish, there were a lot of locals around, the altitude was really high, and even Subway didn't taste like Subway. It was interesting observing the culture there though. Being World Cup time, it was interesting to see how dedicated people in South America are to it. Even the security PMs were standing where they could see the game instead of doing their rounds with their sticks hanging on their belts (I didn't know if I felt safer or more vulnerable with them around... and security guards are everywhere in Bolivia: banks, grocery stores, malls and even one in a white shirt and tie at the temple gate-but him I like). We also saw two wedding groups walk through the airport. The brides had white dresses and white flakes of something on top of their heads. The grooms were in clean white or tan local clothes. I bought a cool stitched wallet there :).

Silvia, the director of the foundation where we are teaching, met us at the airport. We packed everything into her ranger type car and packed in with 4 in back and me in front with a car seat on my lap. The traffic moves so differently here. Silvia explained that going with the flow of traffic often trumps the rules. I sometimes feel like it's survival of the fittest. We take taxis everywhere we go, packing all five of us (2 in front, 3 in back) in.

The first weekend was slow. We mostly got our bearings, got food, went to church with Nadine(the only member at the foundation) and watched the world cup. Come Monday afternoon though, we were thrown into the frying pan, ready or not. That's when it really hit me that I know no Spanish whatsoever. I was actually really grateful my brass class couldn't make it that day, because I was already so overwhelmed without having to remember how to play brass instruments.

I have been assigned several different groups because they don't have any oboe players at the foundation. I have a mixed brass group (a couple trumpets, a trombone, and a younger kid playing something they call a fliscorno but actually looks like a small marching baritone in E flat), a clarinet and sax group, helping some with the small beginning wind orchestra, helping run woodwind sectionals for the top orchestra, and helping teach a wind ensemble Silvia pulled together especially for us (it's like a skeleton of a band pulled from the top orchestra, but we are loving it!). This means I'm teaching for a couple or more hours everyday, which means making lesson plans, writing reflections, trying to learn some key Spanish words, and this week, pulling together music that will work (I've done my fair share of transposing this week!)

By Wednesday I had gained enough important words in Spanish to get by, like lento, rapidio, mas, frase, baquilla, bemol, sustanito, their names for certain note lengths, numbers, fixed Do notation, aqui, mejor, bueno, etc. They understand most of the itallian music terms, which is wonderful, and then for anything else I see if they know the word or look it up in my pocket dictionary. I also sing a lot in the effort to show them what I mean. There are many times that I feel my two private oboe teachers and my band professors comming out in my teaching, so thank you for preparing me!

The food is cheap and delicious here (especially the Empanadas con Queso!), the smells and sights of the city are unique and so varied. There is a crazy mix of indigenous and modern here. Even the streets in our nicer northern section of the city are checkered with nice businesses/homes and shacks (the side walks are so varied that I don't know what to make of them sometimes). They still have some protests here, the public trasnportation blockades being the most common (we had one Thursday, which meant a lot of students couldn't make it to school-so we had more homework time-due to lines of public busses parked all along important streets in and around the city.). It's definitely different.

I realized yesterday that this city and the students are beginning to grow on me. While I know it will be a long hard month, I also know it will be worth it to see the students progress. I'm going to miss it when we leave.

P.S. I love the fact that the LDS Church is true no matter where in the world you are. While I may not understand everything being said, the Spirit is still present at church, the priesthood and authority is still the same, and the feelings at the temple here are just as pure and wonderful as anywhere else (we did baptisms for the dead yesterday and hope to get back to do more in a couple weeks).

Well, Buenas noches ya'll! Tomorrow starts week two!