New pics!

Here are a bunch of photos that I took with a spare camera I brought just in case something happened to my digital. They had to be scanned so the resolution may not be that great, but there something new.

Here are some pictures pouring the concrete in the roof of the tank. This is I feel where I used my engineering most so far. I had to make sure that the reinforcing steel was at the right level and the cement was properly placed. You can see in this photo I have a trowel and hammer to make sure the cement gets under and around all the steel and there is no air pockets.

To make the top you first make a really big table inside the tank. This supports the weight of workers and cement before it dries. Then you put up boards on the outside to act as walls to keep the cement in. You can see the table top that I´m standing on above.

This series of pictures (I don´t know what happened with the last one.) Roughly shows how you mix concrete in Panama, or any place where you don´t have a concrete mixer. First you mix you sand, gravel and cement when its dry. Then you make a "volcano" out of this and slowly add water to the top of the volcano. After waiting for a while so the water can seep down you mix it and begin to open the volcano up. Eventually if done properly the is no more liquid water just wet cement that won´t spill out. If done improperly the water can spill out and take much cement with it.
We built this roof to cover the cop because it poured a few times during construction. We didn´t want the cement to get to watery.

This is a different tank. In my town we have two aqueduct tanks. The first is higher and older and works fine. The second is less than a year old and is lower, and has several small leaks. The aqueduct committee has been meaning to fix this for a while but had no funds to buy the cement and sand needed. I got about 6 bags of cement from the US Army as they were leaving, and worked out a deal where the community would carry fine sand for a house being built down the road, where cars couldn´t got in exchange for some of the fine sand.

These pictures are of the first day of work where we chiseled a hole in the wall for a drain cleanout (the tank had none) and then washed the sand and gravel filter inside. It was almost like being in one of those water playgrounds at a waterpark.

New pictures, kinda

Well not having my camera has put a serious damper on my blog. Just an update on somethings. I´m still working on getting materials from the Army, through US Aid.
I´m going to start building my 4000 gallon tank this week after bringing up 360 6" cinder blocks, 60 rebar, and 66 sacks of cement. My soccer team is still undefeated.

I recently found these pics on the web of my site and my host mom. They are done by a professional photographer. The second picture is my host mom, her shirt is stained from the juice of banana trees. Word of warning next time you harvesting bananas that stuff stains! The rest of the pictures are from my site, or the town next door where I am building my aqueduct.

http://www.andrewlamoreaux.com/main.php

Bad news

Bad news is that i got my camera and ipod stolen from my bag in an internet store. I was in the big mall and bus terminal in Panama City and had left them my bags with a friend while i went to the bathroom. When I came back to leave the bags were all in the exact same spot but my camera and ipod were missing. I spoke with the Peace Corps safety and security officer and filed a official report but there is not much I can do.

I am much sadder about my ipod because I was just getting into podcasts to stay up to date on news sports and other stuff. My camera was really old and I brought it to Panama expecting for it to be destroyed by the weather. This means my blog will probably seriously be lacking until my family comes down with my other digital camera.

Soccer and a trip to the Peninsula

Its official! My soccer team, Alianza de Riscó is in first place with a record of 5 - 0. There are 11 teams playing in the coregiemento (county) league. We play every Sunday in my town and some team walk for more than an hour or take buses to play. My team is made up of the teenagers that play futbolista or small sided soccer on weekdays. Some of them come of as being punk that aspire to be reggaeton stars, but most have warmed up.
Here we are after or Easter Sunday victory. I am in the upper right corner in a Portugal Jersey. For a while I was borrowing a red shirt from a teammate when I decided that of all the people on the team I shouldn´t be borrowing a shirt so I went out and got a $7 replica. I´m still learning on how to match my style of soccer which is very rigid about positions and focused on passing and moving the ball to space which their style of holding on the the ball as long as possible. It is almost a metaphor for the combination of cultures. I think I can bring alot to the team simply because I recognize where I should be to receive a pass or to guard a defender. On the other hand I don´t always receive any passes because my teammates like to dance with the ball.


As you can see it was muddy this Sunday. The field gets played on just about everyday which really does a number on the grass. This was by far the muddiest soccer I have ever played. My cleats were so watered down and caked with mud that I almost kicked one off. The ball would also hardly roll anywhere and you had to advance it in the air. In this pic you can see a free kick, the goal made out of bamboo, and handmade net and the rain clouds receding from the valley.
Another shot of the mudpit. You can see in the background several small casitas. This is wear spectators gather to watch, the league president, keeps track of substitutions and score, and people sell food. I love Sundays because there is always people to talk to as well as empanadas, and duros (frozen juice in a baggy), this is the only time of the week that you can get these delicacies.

This past week we had our regional meeting out on the Peninsula of the Comarca (Indian Reservation). It is a beautiful place with many beaches. It was a combined meeting with Bocas and the Comarca so there was almost 50 volunteers out for this event. This a shot when the group was leaving. The volunteer that was host the meeting chartered a boat that could fit about 35 volunteers and their bags. The boat was cut out of one massive tree!!
It was kinda raining when we left, and we ended up covering ourselves in a tarp to protect us from the splash of waves and rain. The Country Director was also out for the meeting which was a big deal.

I visited my friend Melissa´s site to help her with her aqueduct and encountered some of these kids with a carro. It was a 55 gallon drum with a hole cut in it. I figured I take it for a spin!

Is this a good idea?? I bet this can roll over really easily.

And I crashed into the fence, this was so much fun. Probably the closest thing to sledding in Panama. I highly recommend you do this if you get the chance.

A sunset from Melissa´s porch over Bahía Azul.
Melissa´s kitchen. It is tiny! Her whole house is about the size of my bedroom, but it is definitely sufficient. We made some delicious curried soy with rice and peanut butter.
This is Jack´s house. He lives across the bay. He has any amazing view of the ocean, and accordingly has really cool windows that fold up. We had two days of Ngobe language class here.

In other news today is Easter and so the end of my fast of soda, candy, chips and sweet breads. It was much harder than I expected because sometimes when you are tired and hot a cold Coca Cola from a glass bottle sounds so good.

I went to visit the US Army base. I met some interesting people especially some reservists from NH that included alot of Bostonians with thick accents. I need to return there to find out if and how much materials they can donate.

I SHOOK THE PRESIDENTS HAND!!

The President said he was going to come for the inauguration of the new school... and he actually did!!!

As you can see Valle was packed. There was about 20 cars of people from the hydroelectric dam, National Police, different government organizations, and education officials.


After much waiting in the hot sun the sound of a helicopter became audible and it roared over the new school to land on the soccer field.

Right after this picture above was taken the President Martin Torrijos walked towards the school. He shook some peoples hands. I greeted him with a ¨Hello. How are you?¨ He replied back in English that he was good and wanted to know how long I had been in Valle. He obviously knew I was Peace Corps and speaks perfect English because he studied at Texas A and M.

There was tons of media there. You can see in this photo the people at the main table. The guy in the blue striped shirt in the Director of FIS - Fundación de Inversión Social, (Social investment fund). This is the government organization that gave funds to build the school. They primarily work in impoverished areas. The next guy is the National Director of MEDUCA which is the Ministry of Education. El Presidente is next. The guy in green is a teacher from my town officially welcoming them.
The Pres appear a little exhausted. I think he must have woke up very early and was a little overwhelmed by the heat. Next to him is Deputado Benicio Robinson. He is sporting the Bocas baseball hat and is kinda like a senator of the province.
The gringo looking guys in hats are from the hydroelectric company. They announced that they would be improving the health center in town, by adding a full time doctor and hospital beds. The last guy is the new director of the school. He is great and really personable. Later that day the President had payed for 2 cows to be killed and essentially food for the whole town. The Director and myself were talking about NBA and he was saying how he doesn´t really like all the new players and that Jordan, Bird and Magic are the all time best. We also talked about the movie Blood Diamond.

Lots of media completely blocking the students view.

Me and my buddy Kevin in front of the Presidential Helicopter.
My host brother Ochoa next the the Presidential Seal.
The new computer lab that is part of the school. They got 24 new computers all with DVD players, optical mice, flat screen and internet. There is also a scanner, wireless router and digital projector.
The Pres touring the new school.
A final shot of the main man himself.

In other news, on a recent trip to Bocas Island I ran into some US Army soldiers that are on a humanitarian mission in Bocas. They are building schools, roads and health posts. I was chatting small talk with an engineer and he asked me where money for projects comes from. I explained to him the Peace Corps does not provide money and that we get it from NGOs and friends and family through Peace Corps Partnership. He told me that he has loads of materials that he needs to donate to a certified NGO before they leave in a month. After some talks between the country director and Army personal it has been approved. This week I will go to their temporary base camp and see what they are willing to donate.

Panama Verde Camp

Two weeks ago the was a Panama Verde camp in a town down the road from me. Panama Verde is a environmental youth group that some volunteers have in their sites. I brought four kids from my town.
We hiked for about an hour to this waterfall. Initially many kids had pena (shy) about going in the water but eventually almost all did. They had a great time and I think the majority had never seen a water fall. In this picture is Colin in the sunglasses, Adam, Melissa, and Maria. You may notice that all the girls essentially swim in regular clothes, this is customary so female volunteers can´t wear bathing suits in their sites.



The other day a camera crew came from a channel 12 news based out of Panama City. They were filming a documentary and conservation and ANAM they government ministry that protects the forests. In the foto is a girl that sang a song about caring for the environment and one of the stores in my town. The guy in the long hair did a juggling act and really impressed everyone one in town although he only juggled 3 clubs.
In this picture you can see what is left of the rancho that was constructed when we were building the toma. More importantly you can see part of the 30 meter cable bridge that is suspending the 1 and 1/2 inch PVC pipe. We built this bridge to go around part of the hill that will most likely landslide. Obviously you can´t bury a pipe in a landslide zone. Here is a picture of Benicio digging out some of the ditch for the tube. At this time the tube has arrived at the tank and hopefully at the town in two days. On average it is about a foot underground, but will be more when going through pasture where cows can break pipe up to two feet underground when its muddy.

This is the famous human knot game we were playing with my group at the camp. I was assigned to 7 kids from different indigenous communities in the province. They choose to be called the Lions and all had to where their colors all weekend. I really liked most of the kids in my group they seemed to get along and have no problem participating. We did many games like this one including tug of war, sing along songs, and a blind folded trust walk.
Here is the four kids I took from my town with their official certificates that they attended the camp (its a big deal to them). Also in the foto is Sarah, who organized the whole camp and Ennio the financial director of Panama Verde. Everything at the camp is payed for as well as transportation. The money ultimately comes from the Kellogg's Foundation.
Here is some group members planting saplings. We showed them how to mix native clayey soil with sand and compost to make and ideal soil to grow in.
Here is another shot of Adam helping teach kids how to apply the compost without burning the roots of the sapling. I actually learned alot at this camp too! I didn´t exactly know how to plant trees!
Juan, myself and Joel at the waterfall.

Around the house and a new aqueduct

Besides that aqueduct in the town next door I have also been working on developing two other potential aqueduct projects. The Representante has his eyes set on building an aqueduct in far away from town where I think he has family. There are only a few houses there, and he things he can bring water from a spring, or creek, to my town which is about at 25 minute walk on flat ground. The water source has yet to be identified. However, he is willing to spend money so, I want to be a part of the team to make sure it is built properly. We walked out there the other day with a community member, the Representante and an engineer from the municipality.

I also may follow up a proposal for an aqueduct in another neighboring community, and have plans to visit them in 2 days.

This is the poso, or open well, that they were drinking out of. The water apparently comes up from under the ground here, but it is very unsanitary because rain water washes off poop from farm animals right into the same water. Ducks and other birds also swim in it. I recommended that the fence it off and build a drainage canal to divert runoff but who knows if they will do it.
They identified this creek as a possible water source. It is important to measure water sources in the dry season (now) because when it is raining they sometimes appear to be plentiful and can practically dry up during this time of year. To measure water you make a dam out or leaves and mud, and channel water in the a 5 gallon bucket. This can give you gallons per minute.
This is the area where we may provide water. It is essentially one big family with about 6 houses.
These guys were my guides back the the trail. Crossing this river stands to be a major problem because with normal rains it rises, 5 ft and with floods it overflows the bank.

My host sister Juanita, left forever. She was one of my best friends in town, and was a great worker. I also paid her to do my laundry, and she would always help look for sawdust for the composting latrine, or help me with my garden. She left to live with her dad, way up in the mountains of the Indian Reservation. I think this will be a really hard change from her, especially because she had become accustomed to having expendable income. She spent most of her money on batteries for her radio, and good percentage on food for the family and some for new clothes.
This is my host sister Gaylena, she is just learning to walk and is really cute.
Another picture of them working on my roof. I have been really busy with the aqueduct so havn´t really had time to help out. You can see all the penca they had stacked up to do roof. My uncle Dario is up in the roof constructing.

The night before Juanita left we killed two of the three chickens she was raising. I helped by holding the bird down while someone else cut the neck with a knife. It was really primal.
This is my host family, pretty much everyone in this picture has left except for the kid on the far left and the older guy in the hat.
One night I was getting ready to go to bed in my house and my host broth Justin hollered at me and told me that ants were attacking the tree between our houses. These cutter ants form a highway, that you can literally see. There is so much ant traffic that thy push dirt to one side. They cut parts of leaf off the tree, and bring it back to their mound where fungus grows on it that they eat. Essentially they grow their food. Anyways, they can really cause damage to trees and even kill them in some cases. I sprayed the trunk of the tree with some peace corps issue 25 % DEET OFF, and it was like a wall. They ants couldn´t cross, so they couldn´t destroy they tree any more. I did feel bad that as a environmental volunteer I was using harsh chemicals, but I want my shade!