Belize

So, I should probably change the name of this blog, given that I am no longer in Nicaragua, but I figure it is easier to just leave it as it is. Plus, I like to think that I will always be at least a little bit Nicashannon, no matter where I am. I have been here in Belize for almost four weeks now. In my site for three. My first impressions are that it is very different than Nicaragua. The town where I live is called San Lazaro and it is in the north. The border of Mexico is very close and many people cross the border on a regular basis to do shopping in cheaper Mexico, (although, this is illegal and I am not saying I would ever do such a thing...) The people in San Lazaro speak Spanish but nearly all of them speak English as well. The language at school is English so I speak a lot of it and I can't say I like that part too much. I feel like my Spanish is suffering a lot for this. Another factor is the Spanglish. It is not uncommon to hear expressions like "Es muy nice." Which makes it easy for me to, when I don't know a word in Spanish, just say it in English. I am really going to have to work to keep progressing, I know. San Lazaro is beautiful. It is like a little country town where all the people speak Spanish. The houses are large, wooden and have huge yards with lawns. This is, of course, nothing like Nicaragua. Oddly, I feel that Belize, or at least where I live, is more similar to living in the U.S than it is like living in Nicaragua. This is good and bad for me. I do find that I miss Nicaragua a lot. When I listen to the radio I sometimes hear songs that were popular there and I am reminded of the life I left behind and it makes me feel a little sad. Also, I sort of liked the roughing it that I did there, even though I may have complained. It was a good challenge. But it is nice here, and I am sure in time I will grow into life here. I really can't complain. At school, the kids swarm me with hugs and the amount of pictures and stickers and candy that they have given me could fill a small garbage bag. They are very, very sweet. Fortunately, I think I have broken most of them from calling me Mr. Shanny, which was my name up until last week. As I said many speak English, but the little ones are still partial to Spanish. I work in two different schools, one Catholic and one Methodist. Prayer is a big part of the day in both schools. Yesterday I was doing a grammar exercise in the Catholic school about "was" and "were". I asked for an example of "were" and a student said "Were you there when they crucified my Lord?" I had to chuckle to myself at the irony of it. Who would have ever imagined me working in a Catholic school? My address here is:
Shannon Tanner
San Lazaro Village, Orange Walk
Belize, CA
In case anyone wants to send me any mail. Letters are great! I wil post pics as soon as I get my cable from my mom.