Wills and Won'ts

As of today I have exactly 35 days left here in Bogota. This past week it's started to really hit me that things are coming to a close. I have only 13 classroom teaching days left, and I know that is going to fly by. As I cram as much as possible into the teenagers' reluctant brains, I've been thinking about what I will miss most (and least) about this year. Here's a working list...

1.  Will miss- my students, most of them, when they do their work and care about learning and speak          English.
     Won't miss- grading, making worksheets, lesson planning, teenage too-cool-for-school-ness.

2. Will miss- rocking my lab coat every day.  
     Won't miss- all my ugly clothes here. Most of which I am leaving behind.

3.  Will miss- practicing Spanish
      Won't miss- struggling to express myself in Spanish

4. Will miss- cafe con leche
     Won't miss- disgusting coffee at my school and when Juan Valdez doesn't open until 9ish on a Sunday!

5.  Will miss- The awesome albeit crazy Transmilenio and generally great access to public transportation.
      Won't miss- the super bad pollution and general traffic chaos.

6.  Will miss- So many fruits! Feijoa,lulo, mora, maracuya, guava, guanabana...
     Won't miss- PAPAYA! Disgusting feet fruit sneaking its way into fruit salads and silently terrorizing fruit eaters everywhere.

7.  Will miss- Cheap veggies! Freshest and tasty non-GMO tomatoes and lettuce and so many yummy things.
      Won't miss- walking by dead pigs in storefronts and general displays of dead animals.

8.  Will miss- Arepas, empanadas, and the plethora of street food.
      Won't miss- rice and potatoes at the same meal and constant carb overload

9.  Will miss- no humidity and no bugs at a comfortable 9,000 feet above sea level.
      Won't miss- the lack of seasons. I miss fall and snow and even sometimes heat.

10. Will miss- walking to buy groceries and city living with things right on the block.
       Won't miss- threats of street crime and sticking out wherever I go

11.  Will miss- Villa de Leyva! By far my favorite place in Colombia. And all of my opportunities to travel.
        Won't miss- I actually really like all of the places I've been and will miss them all...

12. Will miss- Simon Bolivar Park. The Central Park of Bogota.
       Won't miss- rain crashing our picnics

13. Will miss- Colombian music and dance parties. Especially Vallenato music.
        Won't miss- The dance parties in my house all night when I'm trying to snooze.

14.  Will miss- Ridiculously cheap haircuts and manicures.
        Won't miss- The risk of getting way too many layers or losing skin during a pedicure.

15. Will miss- Colombians' happiness, sharing, sensitive feelings, and love of having fun.
       Won't miss- General disorganization little "AHHH" moments of frustration living in a new culture.


Yea, I'm going to miss a lot. And even the things I won't miss I may look back on fondly after some time. (Except for the dead animals in the windows and the papaya. I'm really over that...)

Colombian flag on a street in Villa de Leyva

Do you know where your coffee comes from?

If you are thinking about traveling to South America, you have to consider Colombia. 

If you come to Colombia, you have to go to the coffee region. 

If you go to the coffee region, you have to go to Salento. 

And if you go to Salento, you have to visit Don Elias' coffee farm!

I spent a few great days in the coffee region, and all of it is beautiful. But my visit to Don Elias' coffee farm made the trip really worth it. 

When Ben and I got to Salento, we were following many WorldTeach volunteers before us and had a lot of advice about what to do and where to go. There are yummy American food restaurants and great hikes, but the number one activity on my list was to take a coffee tour.

There were quite a few tours to choose from. Not many were available in English, and they ranged from bigger farms to little fincas. Ben and I decided to go for a smaller place, and decided I could translate for Ben just fine in English We found a jeep-taxi in town and drove about 30 minutes into the mountains. We pulled up to a small fence with a little wooden sign that read "Don Elias- Coffee Tour." . A few friends recommended Don Elias but warned us that he was a little old man with no teeth. They said to hope for his grandson that's quick and super easy to understand.

Well, we got Don Elias.

He greeted us with a big smile and mumbled (in Spanish) "My farm is small, but it is the work of my life. Welcome." Ben and I exchanged a look of "what are we getting ourselves into?" and off we went into the field. 

Not exactly the fields of Vermont or the Midwest

The fields were set along a fairly steep hill, and we soon noticed coffee trees weren't the only thing growing here. Plantain and banana trees, blackberry bushes and pineapple shrubs sprouted all over the place. We walked through the trees touching, smelling, and of course picking the red and yellow beans. 

Don Elias reminded us throughout the tour of the importance of his natural, tradition approach to farming. he pointed to a spider wed and said. "these are my only pesticides. These friends eat all the unwanted bugs." And for the coffee shells and rotten fruit, "This is natural compost, the best possible food for the soil." He was so into it, and of course the Vermonters in Ben and me were thrilled to see such an organic process.

Here's some things you may not have known about coffee:

It's colorful!

The tree flowers first in April and May and produces coffee through the fall-- October into November. (Perfect time for us to be there!)

It's the second most traded commodity in the world after oil.

De-shelling the beans. Don Elias uses all hand operated machines.He said if he
used an automatic one he'd be out of work.

There are two types grown in Colombia, and the Arabica type is most popularly exported.

Beans are exported before they are roasted. They look like this when they arrive at the door of Starbucks or Dunkins.

The tour with Don Elias was by far one of my favorite things I have done in Colombia. It was great to see where something that is so integral to our lives comes from. It's important to remember that these things we love come from the earth and there are real people harvesting these for us. So maybe this morning you'll think of this sipping on your cup of joe.

Things I can now successfully do in Spanish:

1. Get from one end of the city to the other (and successfully survive the bus "system").

2. Talk about anything related to food vocabulary or cooking. I understand 98% of food vocabulary and the 2% would be the exotic meats this vegetarian doesn't eat.

3. Get my hair cut. three different times. two of which I did not hate.

4. Read the mysterious handouts that I am asked to give my students. Now I'm in on the secret field trips and assemblies that were much more of a surprise in the spring.

5. Understand when my kids swear in class and call them on it. (Mierda! Endendiste?!)

6. Make one dirty joke. And possible three regular jokes. (Other than people just laughing at my accent.)

7. Understand and sing the entire Colombian National Anthem. (Part of which is on video for further proof.)

8. Have multiple bus conversations about the everyday trials and tribulations of the 8th graders on my bus. And understand their jokes, usually related to vomiting or falling down.

9. Eavesdrop on approximately four conversations. This takes quite a bit of brainpower, and I usually put in the effort only when I can tell they are talking about me.

10. Adapt my vocabulary and mannerisms to include Colombian Spanish sound effects such as uush, uuuf, oye no, and related hand gestures.

and maybe a few more things... I am certainly no where near being fluent at this point. But of course I understand more now than last year or even last May. Speaking another language in my opinion is a necessary evil. (Evil only because it's so hard.)

And some Spanish-speaking goals of mine before I leave here:

1.  Practice writing, my level of reading and speaking is much higher.

2. Learn the lyrics to a full song and be able to sing it. I have a few that I've been practicing.

3. Successfully explain and/or discuss politics. There are some great organizations I would love to be involved in here if only I could get over the language barrier fear.

4. Have better come backs when people say dumb things or make fun of me. Particularly a new roommate of mine who has had two five-minute conversations with me so far, both of which have been mildly offensive. Ugh.


So I have just under two months left! And luckily I have no choice but to practice every day!