Vera
The dog is going today. Naturally, I'm in a melancholic mood, but I know it's right thing to do. All throughout the summer, my facebook horoscope has been telling me what to do with the dog. The first time I decided to not take her, right after putting her up with the security guards, it read something like, "You've just finished one big adventure. It's time to move onto the next." When I was fighting with my parents about whether or not I could bring her home and was really "solidifying" my decision to take her it said, "You had your doubts, but they've been proven wrong. The way to go is clear, and the road is wide open." Now, on the day when it's all final (right and just watch this thing fall through) it says, "Before making that big change, make sure you are thinking about your future, not just your present." It's right. So are all those who discouraged me in taking her. It's not the time for a puppy right now. She's great, but the woman who's going to take her is too. Vera is going to have a great life and that makes it all worth it.
7 days
One week left. That’s not much. I’m on the final leg and still feel like I have quite a bit ahead of me.
I finished my interviews last week with the Kuna. Generally, they went well. I felt very welcomed and everyone agreed to do the interview, which apparently is uncommon for Kunas. Obviously, the fact that I was accompanied by Kunas that already knew the majority of the people I spoke with (not the most randomized way of selecting participants) help a lot. One family even served me lunch one day and another sold me a mola. The woman that served us lunch was a founder of one of the communities and laughed to herself that if I were a Latina they probably wouldn’t receive me so well, that’d they’d be more inclined to reject me. That’s quite interesting and one of the few examples in the world when being American helps improves how people treat you. I’m not sure about this, but the Americans may have helped the Kuna in their rebellion. Anyway, the interviews are done. Today I went and spoke with the inspectors in Paraiso, the last of my official interviews. At this point, I’m sure I could have done a better job… but it was a learning process and I’m going to produce something of decent quality, so I’m happy with it. I made it work.
Beaches. This is the best part of the Panama experience. Last weekend I went with a group of people from the UN to a beach in the Caribbean. It was amazing, the best place I’ve been in Panama so far. The water was finally that color that everyone associates with the Caribbean, the turquoise/blue/green. Phenomenal. And the people were wonderful, so open and kind. It was exactly what I needed. It seems like I’ll go to another beach this weekend, either to another island or to a beach resort. And, I’m actually going to go with people from McGill. *gasp. I’m looking forward a final beach visit. I was so looking forward to some good beach time this summer and I actually have managed to get a bit of a tan.
Dog. Right. So after so many ups and downs, I’ve decided not to keep her. There is a woman who wants to take her and so I’ll let her. My parents don’t want her in the house. It’s not wise for me as a whimsical traveler. And, my roommate in Montreal finally said she doesn’t want her. Okay, it’s not possible. It’s too bad, but I feel good about this woman and am happy to have given Vera a better life. In the end, that’s the whole point.
The last week has put me in more contact with good people. It’s made me realize what a pity or how unlucky the situation with my peers from McGill was. It wasn’t just that we were so different and probably wouldn’t have been friends otherwise, which made for mediocre encounters at best, but also because we were stuck out in the Ciudad del Saber, in one house, we overdosed of each other and grew even more distant. On top of that, no one really took any of us by the hand to show us Panama, which happened all the time for me in Peru. Now, people are saying to me, “Oh, if only you had more time, I’d invite you to my house for dinner.” I guess there are three conclusions to be drawn from all of this 1)Things take time 2)The situation was just unlucky and 3)The people you experience things with make or break the experience. It’s been a challenge for me here socially and I’ve had to rethink somethings about who I am and why I am how I am. It’s been awhile since I’ve felt socially outcast and even though it’s not a nice thing, the reflection process it inspires is.
I’m looking forward to my last week and then to being in Nebraska for a month. I’ll get to spend quite a bit of time with my family, which I love.
Too bad Bush (and papa Reagan)
"Consumer spending seems likely to flag too. A jump in retail sales in April and May owed something to the tax rebates first sent out at the end of April. But a slim rise in retail sales in June is a hint that the effects of this one-off stimulus may already be fading." -- Economist July 17th
What?? Sending little bits of money to everyone, especially the rich, doesn't actually stimulate the economy in any sustainable way?? God, and I thought Bush had it all figured out.
Article (click)
Interviews!
Yesterday I started my interviews. Just as I had expected, me going with the Cacao group in their transport was problematic. First, Gorgas is currently short on drivers, so they barely got to go. Luckily, they asked the director if he needed his driver and he was kind enough to let us go in the car normally reserved exclusively for him. We were late and the woman that I had arranged to meet in Koskuna had to wait. I only got three interviews done in end because of the delay and then, quite predictably, the Cacao group finished their work before I did and wanted to leave, which we did. There were other delays as well, such as the husband of the first woman I was interviewing, who just kept talking and talking, answering my questions. Of course, it is important to include the knowledge of men in explaining the Kunas’ understanding of Dengue, but that’s not my study. Men know more about it because they go out and women don’t really (at least in the age group I was interviewing, 65+). In two of the three interviews (the two where there were husbands still alive), the husbands felt it would have been wiser for me to interview them, because they know more. One came into room and gave my coworkers a talking to in Kuna, not angry but unhappy that I was talking to his wife not him. It’s true, the women don’t know much, but that’s what I’m here to document. Also, in the middle of the interviews, the woman I was working with as a translator got a call that her son had been robbed. Then it started to rain, so another coworker suggested that it wasn’t a great time to be walking around (I in fact prefer a bit of rain to the intense sun). Anyway, it was good we left because I was already exhausted from the three we had done. I’m going back tomorrow and I’ll have to do seven. Luckily, I’m not going on the Cacao group’s watch.
When I decided to leave at the end of July, my Spanish friend Claudia and I planned all our weekends. Last weekend was Isla Iguana, a small island in the Pacific off Peninsula Azuero. It’s a protected area, so no one lives there, except for the crabs, which are protected by law. Claudia and I left Saturday morning, and got to Pedasí, the town closest to the Island (also home to the first female Panamanian president, Miyrea Moscoso (no one likes her)) around 3. Claudia was tired, so we decided to get some food and then just hang. After amazing shrimp cebiche, I walked around the town while Claudia slept. I was expecting to find the town in full festival swing, as it was a patron saint day, but no such luck. The town was basically dead, although a political party did throw an event later that night…we did not attend. The town was sweet, though, chill, and fresh, unlike the humidity that we’ve become used to in Panama City. The next morning, we got up early and went to the Island. We were hoping to see some whales, as they’re in breeding season, but we didn’t get to. However, the island is great. To get there, you have to take boat, big surprise. It was the first time I had gone out in the ocean like that. I’ve been on a ferry in the Mediterranean Sea, but the ocean is a whole other thing. It was kind of scary, actually. The power of that massive body of water really humbled me. The boat we went out in is the kind that people take off for Europe in from Africa. I can’t imagine being in that little thing in the middle of ocean. We only had about 4 hours on the island as we had to go back for dinner in Panama City, but we did get some snorkeling in. Unfortunately, the majority of the coral off the island is dead from El Nino in ’82 and the US Army using is as target practice…awesome. There are actually craters as a reminder. Even the coral wasn’t so amazing, it was my first time snorkeling and I loved it! There were some fish, beautiful beautiful fish, like Parrot Fish. The high point was seeing a Sea Turtle!!! It made the whole trip worth it. I’m hooked on snorkeling. When we go to Kuna Yala, I’m definitely going to do it again, and there the coral is in better shape. We were supposed to go this weekend, but my coworkers haven’t been paid yet, so we’re waiting until next weekend. I think I’ll go to Chiriquí instead.
Random Notes
After the whirlwind change of plans, I’m left focusing on the time I have left in Panama, instead of dreaming about how to get out.
The woman who cleans our house speaks really odd Spanish, it sounds like it’s not her first language, so I asked her if she was Kuna. She said she doesn’t know. It’s obvious she’s got some indigenous roots, but she has no idea, neither do her parents. I thought that was shocking.
The think there are more protestants in Panama than Catholics. I’ve seen almost no Catholic churches, but many Baptist and Evangelical ones. Evangelical conversions are on the rise worldwide, I think, but it might be because of all the US influence that Panama left Catholicism behind early.
Panama is an interesting place, so diverse. My supervisor says it’s geographically Central America, historically South America, culturally Caribbean, politically dominated by robiblancos (greedy white people who steal from the poor to get richer), and sentimentally American (as in USA). Sarah, the girl who came down from McGill that it’s a hard place to get as a tourist because it’s so diverse, there’s so much of everything: “You can’t tell who’s Panamanian, who’s a tourist, who moved here, etc. I like diversity at home but when you’re travelling it’s easier to just go another culture.” It’s true the “Panamanian culture” is hard to figure out. It’s not so apparent, like in Cuba, or even Peru. They’ve got influence from Spanish, Colombian, French, and the USA. They had slaves and more blacks that came from other parts of the Caribbean to help build the railroad. Bocas del Toro is primarily black people, who speak both Spanish and creole English. There are 7 indigenous groups, 7 in this tiny country. They’re strong, too. As a rule, you don’t often see people walking around in their traditional attire in the capital city. In Panama, you certainly do. There are also quite a few Asians (thank God, otherwise there would be zero vegetarian food. Yum yum, went to a veggie restaurant yesterday. YAY Tofu!!). I think the average Panamanian is the color that we’ll all end up after a few hundred years more of globalization. They’ve got a caramel everything: skin, hair, eyes. There’s a new influx of immigrants: retired Americans, Canadians, and Europeans. So, I guess Sarah’s right that this is a place of everything. She may also be right that it’s harder to handle as a tourist. For me, for example, I know I’m not happy with the super obvious American influence. I travel to see places not like the US. Hm.
Things go stale really fast here. Leave a bag of chips overnight, and you’ve got yourself food for toothless.
Rackataca: These are women who walk around the city with curlers in their hair. I thought it was kind of cool when I got here, but now I don’t get it. We prepare ourselves to go “out”, including the grocery store sometimes. I thought it was nice they weren’t so obessessed with their appearance that they went in public obviously not primped. But, the other day when we were at a music festival in Casco Viejo, I saw a “Rackataca” there. We were at a party for heaven’s sake! For whom/what/when was she getting ready? Someone suggested work, that could be true.
The growth of tourism and its effect on locals and local economy is complex. On the one hand, tourism certainly creates new jobs and attracts investment, which is generally thought of as a good thing. Roads may be made better for the tourists, too bad it wouldn’t be done for locals, but it’s a reality. Water services may be extended. Electricity. Police, even…not always great for locals, especially if they’re corrupt. So, these are good things. But, tourists can dominate. They can take over local settings, imposing themselves and their culture. They can be noisy. They can bring drugs and sex desires (Yay Southeast Asia + HIV got into Peru that way). They can also bring new, less morally questionable diseases. They can bring trash and not care where they throw it because it’s not their place. The majority of these things can be managed by national law, but the question is always if the country will do it, and then if the law will be enforced. Also, it puts the disproportion of world income right in the eye of both the observant tourist and the local. This could be a good thing, it could inspire the tourist to do something at home or cause the local to demand more from their government…both of which are really long shots. But, it’s been proven that perceived poverty is more powerful than actual poverty. If you see others with much than you have, you’ll feel poor, causing perhaps depression or anger, inspiring crime, even worsening health. Lastly, while tourism certainly creates jobs, a) they’re not always reliable. If a disease breaks out (like malaria) people will be scared and not go. Civil strife deters tourism, e.g. Kenya after the election…no one went. Now, with the cost of gas skyrocketing, tourism will also go down. B) The new jobs/agencies are often dominated by foreigners themselves. To deal with tourists, you should be able to speak at least English and locals often. So, foreigners move in, take the good jobs, sucking up the potential payoffs of this new trade and perhaps hire a few locals and disproportionate salaries to that which they’re making. Yeyes serving Yeyes in the end. (yeye is a Panamanian word for yuppie).
Without recycling services, I throw out a bunch of crap. It’s disgusting. I’ve been thinking about getting it all smashed and brining it back to the north with me. Poor Earth.
