Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined....

So we are finally in Barranquilla, Colombia, and I'm pretty sure this is EXACTLY the life we imagined. Warm weather days, cool Caribbean breezes, sprawling beaches, friendly people, and a community that offers more hospitality than we can ever hope to reciprocate. To say it simply, life is good. However, it hasn't all be roses and vacation fantasies.... but I will get to that in a moment or two.

To start, Barranquilla is situated on the northern coast of Colombia on the Caribbean Sea. While most guidebooks would suggest simply skipping it, passing through only en route to the more exciting nearby destinations of Cartagena to the west or Santa Marta to the east, I adamantly disagree. Barranquilla has a laid-back energy and a Caribbean friendliness that is certainly unique, and definitely not worth missing. Come visit me, and I'll show you!!

We are currently living in a boarding house of sorts, owned by an awesome woman named Margarita. She lives in the house with her two children, Kati and Edgar (college aged), as well as four other tenants, mostly university students. Our group has taken over the entire third floor, with each volunteer enjoying his or her own room and sharing a bathroom with one or two other people. The rooms are pretty basic, similar to dorm style, but they certainly do the trick. We share a kitchen, dining room, and living room with the rest of the house, but we get free internet and laundry, which is awesome. Also, there is roof access, providing the perfect setting for early morning tea, journal writing, exercise classes, and anything else fun that we can come up with. It has a beautiful view of the neighborhood, the beach, and and the city. On those rare moments that you can get the whole roof to yourself, its like a little slice of heaven.

While we are free to come and go as we please, Margarita is quickly becoming our second mother. She definitely does her best to take care of us and tries to join in on our adventures whenever she can. She has participated in our exercise classes, adventures to the beach, and dinners out with coworkers. Whenever possible, she drives us to run errands or to show us exactly where to find the best gelato. She helps us cook (we tried a few Colombian dishes) and even offered to take us out clubbing some time. She is definitely crazy, but we love her. Her kids are really amazing assets for us as well. They inform us of all the fun places to go and teach us the slang language used in the area. I couldn't imagine exploring Barranquilla without them.

La Playa, itself, is actually right outside Barranquilla city center, so it has more of a small town, Caribbean feel. Most of the buildings are cement walls with tin roofs, and resemble small seaside shacks. The people often sit out front and wave to passerbys, or let their children run in the dirt streets. However, due to La Playa's proximity to almost all of the city's universities, several brand new developments are also springing up nearbye. It's crazy to see these brand new condos just blocks from the shacks of the rest of town. However, the town certainly has a wonderful community feeling and a warmth that I'm excited to be a part of. I'm hoping that after we start teaching, we might get to know some of our neighbors a little better. the teachers at the school have already invited us out to dinner and to their homes, but most of them live closer to the city. Still, the Colombian hospitality certainly makes the transition here so much easier.

Anyway, while this the setting for our adventure, the true excitement doesn't come from the vibrant city, quaint La Playa, or even our lovely host family of sorts. I think what makes me smile the most every day is the kids. Whenever I get frustrated with my lack of Spanish, or my failure to make any kind of dent on my to do list, I remember the reason why I'm here. Our team of seven eager, creative, talented volunteers are in La Playa to work as English teachers, teacher educators, and community development associates at Fundacion Pies Descalzos, the Barefoot Foundation. It is an organization created by performing artist Shakira to work with displaced Colombians throughout the country. Colombia has the most displaced people and children in the entire South American continent and second only to the Sudan in the world. With a history of violence among paramilitary groups, including violent deaths, kidnappings, and lootings, a great deal of progress remains to restore the lives of these people. FPD has set up schools and community development programs all over the country, but the school in La Playa is it's most recent and ambitious endeavor. As a flagship school, a lot is riding on the success of this ambitious project and the children in this school have a long way to go.

The building, itself, is absolutely beautiful. The campus is connected by long outdoor hallways and seperate buildings for primary, transition, and secondary classes. It has a beautiful auditoriam (paid for by the Warren Buffet Foundation), a covered cafeteria (with local mothers providing nurtritious meals through a program set up by the Clinton Foundation), and a gorgeous AstroTurf soccer field that gets plenty of use. The rooms are covered in inspirational posters, the computer labs are equipped with the internet and other learning tools, and the library is slowly building up a collection of books, far beyond what these children have ever seen before. The rectangular pond (see left) at the center of the campus seems to put the final touch on a wonderful atmosphere for learning.

However, despite all of its many assets, the school is still lacking in many aspects. We quickly learned that even after one whole school year, most kids across all grade levels could barely speak a word of English. On the first day, we struggled painstakingly through "What is your name?" and "My name is." The English teachers, themselves, while enthusiastic, only possess a basic level of English and lack in correct pronunciation, vocabulary, and knowledge of engaging teaching techniques. This not only makes our job difficult while teaching the students, it also presents a major challenge with lesson-planning alongside our co-teachers. The language barrier will especially prove challenging for me, due to my severe lack of Spanish skills. However, while the situation before us is certainly challenging, we definitely have a lot to contribute. We all bring powerful life experiences in working with children, most of us in the education field. We also received a great deal of valuable TEFL training during orientation. Furthermore, the foundations we establish through curriculum development, classroom techniques, and English usage both in and out of the classroom will drastically transform the way this school conducts it's English education. Through working alongside local teachers, we will help improve their language and teaching skills. While working with the students, poor children will receive constant access to native English speaking and engaging teaching techniques. While we constantly face challenges of resources, language barriers, and the last-minute, casual Colombian way of doing business (we still dont have class schedules), I know I have something to contribute this year and after meeting the children, I have already realized I have a lot to learn. I cannot wait to see the amazing way God uses us in the months to come. I could not be happier about calling La Playa my new home.