So, we are here in Casigua el Cubo and it has been interesting! (More details and pictures later...) Everything is going good so far...There are only 4 people taking the phonetics class, David and I and another couple. The other couple is Leonardo and Maria, the pastor and pastor´s wife in this town and they are training to go to work in another indigenous people group in Venezuela. It has been fun to be around other missionaries who are studying linguistics! Braulio, Jacqueline, and Emily are also here and have been coming to the classes and helping out a lot. I am learning a lot. We are doing about 6 or 7 hours of class a day, but it hasn´t been too bad since we get a break in the afternoons. The class has been challenging, and we´ll just say very ¨humbling¨ for me since I am the only one who isn´t a native Spanish speaker. But there are some parts of phonetics where I have an advantage since I am a native English speaker, so it is good that we can help each other out! So now, I´m just trying to fit as much phonetics in my head as I can...and learning lots of sounds...
Different families from the church where Leonardo preaches have ¨adopted¨us for the week and offered for us to stay with them. Luzmarina (the professor) and I are staying with one family. I have been overwhelmed with everyone´s generousity here. For lunch, we have been going to different families from the church homes and it has been humbling to see their generousity. Most of the houses here are middle-class, but yesterday we had lunch in one house that was obviously more lower class. However, this family served us a huge lunch and had such servant´s hearts! They were a blessing to me. After we eat, we stay for an hour and so and talk (which is normal VZ culture), which is fun! For breakfast and supper, we have either been fed by a family or gone to a restaurant. Last night we had pizza. I´m also getting to try some new foods, although it´s similar to the Maracaibo diet.
It is a very cute, colorful town. The houses are small, and lots of bright colors. There are also lots of palm grees and flowers of all colors. I will put up some pictures soon. It´s hard for me to believe that it´s December being here!
Before coming here, Braulio told me it was hotter here than Maracaibo, which gets up to 115 F, and I didn´t believe him. But our first day here, when I opened the door to go outside, it seriously felt like an oven. Hot and humid tropical climate! But thankfully it has been a bit cooler since the first few days. Well, at least with some clouds! Thankfully there is AC in the houses and where our classes are
The plan is that we will finish our classes Tuesday night. It will take less than 2 weeks since we are doing more hours a day than originally planned...but plans often change in South America...
More coming soon...
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