Reptile Farm

Tuesday Cole encountered a gecko in our shower - tried to catch him and got a wriggling tail (came off), but later the gecko was caught and put into Cole's "bug" container, which we filled with a little bit of grass and bugs we caught. That was a little bit of the lead in to our trip to the reptile farm.

The gecko is now released and his tail will grow back fully in about 2 months - it is a protective mechanism against predators like 5-year old boys. Later, we discovered they like to eat crickets (and mosquitos which is very good for us), so the bugs we caught may not have been appreciated nor eaten. Our gecko was not quite as large nor green as the one we saw at the farm, but cool nonetheless.

Wednesday was a very fun day for Cole and I. Diane, one of our neighbors in the Complejo and wife of the General Director - Ken, took us on an exclusive tour of a reptile farm by the coast (near to Costa de Sol beyond the international airport). I really didn't know what to expect - it was pretty amazing --- quite an operation/business (well cared for reptiles) that breed and then send the young or juvenile reptiles all over the world. They have the breeders (larger/adult reptiles located in large outdoor spaces) and then the smaller ones are those that are shipped out (fed-ex) and in a more controlled environment. We saw (from small to big) different types of tortoises - African and Brazilian, iguanas (reddish, green, and blue), chameleons (so cool), geckos, and bearded dragons (spikey). For the bearded dragons we were able to see the eggs and some that had just hatched. The adult bearded dragons are kept indoors in the evenings (moved from outside to inside). Cole really wanted to bring an iguana or tortoise home (he loves lizards and has been asking even before we left for a lizard as a pet when we get to El Salvador) - may be... He was really wonderful (gentle, not scared) when he held the various reptiles - no surprise as he loves animals, nature shows and has grandparents (Sharon - memory of me as a child with a large boa wrapped around me - and Lou - patience with Cole's bug-hunting on nature hikes) and parents that encourage his love of nature (along with a collection of life-like reptiles gifted by his cousin Jacob).



Diane (former teacher) also took us to see the school next door where she volunteers in the kindergarten classroom. This school has been adopted by the reptile farm with added facilities/materials and support of additional teachers. The school is a typical rural school in a developing country with limited resources; the kids were wearing uniforms (very cute). The children came rushing to see and hug Diane and as she made her way to their classroom they were singing a "Good morning/how are you" song as she encourages their English.

I continue to have this week off and find adventures (big and small) for Cole and I. We will ALL have next week off, so it will be fun to have outings together and we have a few things planned with other families at the school. Cole and I mapped out (driven by - closed on Mondays when we ventured out) a couple of museums we will go to at some point - National Anthropology Museum and Children's Museum. Today Cole and I joined the group of new international teachers and headed to the coast where we walked along a beach with black sand and found cool shells and "sea glass" (thought of Cole's grandma who collects sea glass from the beaches of Cozumel) and swam in the pool. There are a couple of new teachers who are surfers and headed there early to catch the waves -- I hope at some point this year to learn to surf. El Salvador is known for it's good surfing/waves.

Hasta luego!

Settling in and venturing out

Buenos Dias!

We arrived in San Salvador, El Salvador on July 11, 2010. It was a bit bumpy at first, but we are settling in very nicely. The first week we stayed at a nearby home of the General Director/Templetons while I recovered (from bronchitis/pneumonia) and the house was being finished with repairs/updates/etc...and Rich and Cole went shopping for things for the house (we did not ship anything - only took suitcases/bags). We live in the "Complejo" of Escuela Americana - a group of residences (apartments, town homes and houses) for international hires. It is connected with the school itself, so we can all walk to work/school. Here is the website of the school: https://www.amschool.edu.sv/index.htm and if you go to the Careers section there is some information including an EA Video.

We were able to move in the following Sunday (house looks wonderful); it is good to be home with all of us together (Rich, Cole, Chloe, Spencer and myself), if not completely settled in; and on that day we made our way to the coast to explore and see the ocean. It was a rainy day, but we found a nice place to eat lunch and take a walk along the rocky coast line in Libertad (35 min drive) and see crabs scuffling around the rocks.

Rich started work on Monday, July 19 as the Director of the Upper School/Secondary School. Escuela Americana is a pre-k - 12 school that follows the traditional educational model of the United States where the majority of the kids are Salvadoran. During the week when Rich was working, Cole and I shopped for a few more things for the house while finding fun things to do here and there...and Haydee who will be working in our home arrived on Tuesday. Haydee had been working for another family who just left/moved for an international school in China after being here for 6 years. It is generally expected with your posting/position that you hire someone ---- and it certainly will be nice/helpful (especially with the climate) and another opportunity to learn/use Spanish since she has very limited English. So this week was a process for Cole and I to get settled and connected with various people and places. Here is a quick run down of our week.

Monday, Cole and I went to the school to get Cole's uniforms and school supplies. I met a woman named Sophia from Guatemala (lived in ES for 3 years) with her 5 year old son Santiago - while standing in line. Later on I asked her if we could get together with the boys to play and we exchanged numbers.

Tuesday, Haydee arrived and we all went to the supermarket to get items for the house/kitchen and food. Haydee selected various things she needs for house/cleaning/cooking and food items for dinners. All of this with my VERY limited Spanish and navigational knowledge of the area. All in all, it went well. We also went to a nearby "park" to do something fun with Cole. It is certainly a process, again with our limited Spanish and her limited English, to get acquainted and used to one another -- and introduce her to my very active and independent 5 year old son.

Wednesday, July 21 was my 40th Birthday! It was fun to be spending it in El Salvador. Haydee had the Complejo/EA (school) gardener gather some beautiful flowers and deliver it to the house - they were lovely and smelled wonderful (gardenias in the mix). Cole and I met Sophia and Santiago at a Pizza Hut (yes, one with a large play area) for a play date - which I think we will get to know well. She is very nice; Santiago and Cole were friends towards the end; and Cole enjoyed playing with a couple older kids there as well (universal language of play!). Cole has been craving other people/kids - so I am trying to find and make connections whenever possible. I then got a pedicure (Cole on my lap also soaking his feet) at a nearby salon for $10 - very nice! Rich came home at 3:30pm and we made our way to the coast to a restaurant called Beto's in Libertad (about a 40 min drive) on the cliffs above the ocean with a margarita in the mix. Cheers!



Friday, Cole and I had another play date this time with Christy (she works in the Extension program at the school and her husband works at the US Embassy) and her kids Xavier (6), Rebecca (4) and Ally (3). Where did she suggest? Pizza Hut! So we met up there again - at this point I am going along with whatever is suggested, and at least I do know how to get there. We will likely get together again next week. And she clued me in on a few more places (zoo, anthropology museum, art museum, botanical gardens...) to go with kids that we will check out.

Saturday, we had a really fun outing to a town about 1 1/2 hours away or so...called Suchitoto. I enjoyed my time at Suchitoto as it is a bit off the beaten path. The drive there was interesting and I kept looking at the small towns and wondering if there was a Peace Corps Volunteer there - probably! Here is a description in a local travel guide: "Suchitoto in the Nahuat language means 'Place of Birds and Flowers'. This colonial city, with it's warm climate, architectural beauty and rich cultural heritage offers a number of interesting attractions... The central park, in the heart of the town, is the perfect jumping off place for a peaceful walk by the cobble stone streets, or to go for a stroll into the surrounding area." http://www.suchitoto-el-salvador.com/english/urbano.htm The town was known (long ago) as an indigo producer. Many/most towns have a "town centre" which includes a church (Catholic) and town square where there are shops, restaurants and other businesses. The church in this town is Santa Lucia's Church - I thought of my grandmother Lucy and my good friend Lucia... It is a beautiful church and has been recently restored. There was a market in the town square that we walked through and we went down a few of the cobble stone streets to find El Harlequin restaurant with local food items and I enjoyed my first local beer - Suprema from El Salvador. It all brought back good memories of when I was in Peace Corps - it seems local beers taste a bit similar around the world. In Kenya it was Tusker...and I cannot think of the local brew in Uganda - anyone? (Aaron?)



The other place to highlight in the town is the Center for the Arts and Peace. It is a church originally of the Dominican Nuns and has recently been beautifully restored and reopened as a center for the arts and peace. At the time we visited, there was an art class going on that we observed and spoke with the instructors who are volunteering there for 6 weeks from California. The kids were outside drawing plants. Cole also got in on the fun and painted a picture of a "forest fire" with his favorite color - red/rojo! And you can see an example of the rich indigo color in the picture of the hanging material.



This blog is already super long....but I wanted to get in our ventures of the past two weeks. I will end it for now and say bienvenidos to our first blog posting!