So I decided to start this blog forever ago, and of course put it off til now. But here we are! This way you guys can keep up with what I'm doing work wise and otherwise.

I just had my 26th birthday here in my site (otherwise known as the ER). It was a pretty chill day, I didn't do a whole lot, because I had just gotten back from being consolidated for a week and a half. Also, no one here really knew it was my birthday (I mentioned it Doña Inuca (ee new ka) and Sole (So lay) my host family but I wasn't sure they were listening). But last night they surprised me with a dinner at Doña Inuca's daughter's (Doña Nancy) house. I don't think it was specifically for my bday, but they brought me in and everyone said Happy Birthday and we ate the traditional party meal, which is steak, potatoes and the traditional beverage- the chufly. Yes, as in chufly, don't bother me. Its a liquor called Sigani, made from grapes and citrus soda, with usually lemon or lime squeezed in it. Bolivians drink a shocking amount of singani. And no one gets their own glass...there are a few depending on the size of the group. One person has the glass and they look at you and say te invito (i invite you) to which you respond salud! or sirvete (serve yourself..kind of like after you) they drink and then pass you the glass and you do the same to someone else. its culturally very rude to refuse a te invito but i've gotten over it. i can get away with it because i'm a gringa, i think. i just can't drink like they can and nor do i want to! Doña Inuca, who is 66, can drink me under the table.

As you may or may not know, I am here doing micro enterprise development, or MED, as we like to call it. Specifically, I am working in tourism, because the ER is beautiful and awesome and people ought to come here. But, due to budget cuts they are elimating the med project so I can merge with either integrated education or agribusiness. I am kind of excited about this chance to mix things up a bit and expand my horizons. Random story: We had an outbreak of testing here and it was discovered that there are something like 30 cases of AIDS in my site. So I was at a store one day talking to the lady and she was like 'we have AIDS here now.' AIDS in spanish is SIDA. Well I had no idea what SIDA was so i responded 'cool!' And she looked at me like I was an idiot, which after i looked up what SIDA was, i felt like one. Anyway, I'm hoping to maybe work with the youth on AIDS education but we will see.