Sierra en Panamá: S-s-s-site placement

Current volunteers, PC staff, Panamanians and Americans packed the Peace Corps office to find out where the 45 trainees (we've lost a few from the original 48) would be placed in a somewhat drawn-out and over-hyped site announcement ceremony. Emotions ran high; people were squealing with happiness and others were almost in tears. We're spread out across the country - from Bocas del Toro bordering Costa Rica, the Comarca Ngöbe-Buglé, Veraguas, Cocle to the Darién bordering Colombia.

Drumroll....I will be living in the Comarca Ngöbe-Buglé in a small community called Cerro Gallina! Which translates to "Chicken Hill". I know very little about this place yet so I'll keep this short, but I will be the second volunteer to live there, the population is ~200, it's located in the mountains with a 60-minute hike to public transportation, the community is interested in my help with aqueduct construction, latrines, health charlas, working with water committees, and side work with cacao, agriculture, a women's artisan group, youth sports and gender development work. Wowwww I am so excited! It sounds like the place for me.

This weekend we built a latrine on Saturday, went to Albrook for some shopping Sunday, went to a huge birthday party at my neighbor's house for a 1-year-old, and this morning we got up at 4 AM to come to the Peace Corps office. I met a man from my community, Eduardo, who came all the way here to Panama City (his first time!) to meet me and go through an all-day community entry conference with all of the other G79 volunteers and their community guides. He was shy but friendly, apparently the community is stoked to get a female volunteer so I can't wait to get there! I'll be staying for five nights and don't really know what I'll be doing the whole time (hopefully just tons of pasearing). Tonight we're in the Ciudad del Saber dorms, bright and early tomorrow we head to the Comarca!