An open letter to the new PCVs

A fundamental part of the Peace Corps experience is integrating into your host culture. Ya know, really get in there and talk, dress, eat, sleep, interact, and celebrate just like the people in your community. Integrating into la cultura Salvadoreña may require you to wear long pants in 100 degree weather, drink coffee and eat pan dulce because you were offered it, and wake up with your siblings at 5 a.m. because that's when the house is the loudest. Everyone has some growing pains in the beginning, but you learn how to adapt. Eventually you will refer to your site as "home" and drop the "host" when talking about your familia anfitriona.

The quest for total integration is never ending, but it's the little victories that make the journey worthwhile. Some might take a "trial and error" approach to integration while others fall back on monkey-see-monkey-do. Most of us end up doing both. It's how we learn to love atol chuco and to look every passing human in the eye and say "¡Salud, que le vaya bien!"

Total integration for a PCV is comparable to a practicing Buddhist reaching nirvana. Just look at this definition from the well-trusted academic source, Wikipedia:

Nirvana... refers to the event or process of the extinction of the fires of attachment (raga), aversion (dvesha) and ignorance (moha or avidya). In the Buddhist view, when these fires are extinguished, suffering (dukkha) comes to an end, and one is released from the cycle of rebirth (samsara). [Emphasis added.] 

If you want to integrate, you gotta put out the fires of your attachment to deep dish pizza, aversion or anger you feel when carefully planned meetings go awry, and ignorance you experience regarding culto or velas. Only then will you stop suffering from awkward sideways glances and the crushing sense of being completely alone. You'll be released from the cycle of integration and will simply be integrated. Om, nirvana!

Yeah... total integration sounds nice.

In the meantime, keep making mistakes. Try the enchiladas, go to a wedding. Pass the rainy season by drinking coffee with your neighbors and remember to keep an open mind. Call your fellow PCVs when you have a funny story or when you feel like crying. Help each other get through the first few months. They are the hardest and most rewarding of your service. When the going gets tough, sit yourself down and repeat this mantra, proven to help you reach total integration: "I got this. I'm a Peace Corps Volunteer. I can do anything."

Because you really, truly can.

Welcome to PCES!

Command center

Check out my beautiful, custom made cedar table! My host uncle is a carpenter and I commissioned him to build me a mesa so I could finally get work done on my capstone. I've never missed Milner Library more than now, even with all the chatty freshmen and the guys who listen to music on their ear buds WAY TOO LOUD. 

I do everything at this table- plan english classes, eat meals, skype, work on El Camino, practice spanish, plan for world domination. I'm glad I got to pay a community member for his handiwork! Looks like economic development is starting to pay off. Get it? Pay off. 

I crack myself up.

Body By Ale

Have you gained the “first-year fifteen”? Feeling out of breath as you walk to your community guide’s house? Want to get beach-bod ready for the next swearing in party? HIIT can help with that!

What is HIIT? High Intensity Interval Training involves short but challenging bursts of activity followed by a period of rest. The athletic community has replicated HIIT into many different regimens such as CrossFit, Insanity, and boot-camp style classes. HIIT is hardly a new phenomenon but it’s recently become a favorite among medical professionals and athletes alike. In 2012, a study lead by exercise physiologist Martin Gibala, PhD, found that HIIT workouts can provide the same cardiovascular and muscular benefits in half to one-third the time as typical, longer endurance workouts[1].

Why is HIIT ideal for PCVs? HIIT cycles typically last between 20-30 minutes, which is perfect for the hardworking PCV. Workouts take up minimal space, with most exercises only requiring your body weight, an interval timer, and a yoga mat or towel. It’s easy to design your own workouts and the quick pace will keep your mind from wandering. Exercise is also a great stress reliever. Would you believe me if I said it was fun, too!?

There are tons of resources for HIIT workouts on the internet. I suggest www.dailyhiit.com and www.bodyrock.tv to get started. Try swapping exercises and experiment with work/rest intervals to find what works best for you. Interval timers are free in the App Store or you can keep an eye on your digital watch. HIIT may seem intimidating at first, but after a few weeks you’ll step up to the timer ready to rock!

I like to structure my workouts starting with pure cardio, then legs, arms, and abs. I also pick exercises I can do barefoot because I hate washing my socks (lame argument, I know).

***It should be said that I am in no way a medical professional, nor have I ever been certified as a personal trainer. I’m just a fellow PCV who loves to work out! As always, consult your PCMO for medical advice and treatment before starting any exercise program.

Alex’s Four by Four Workout

4 cycles of 4 sets of exercises. :45s work/:15s rest. Push yourself during the work periods. You shouldn’t be able to talk because you’re working so hard. Take an extra :20s break between cycles. Remember to breathe deep through your nose and drink water during the :20s break. It’s just you against the clock, baby! Let’s go!

1.       Squat jumps into streamline

·         Squat low with your buns behind you. Keep your knees behind your toes. Jump up, fully extending your legs, abs drawn in tight to your spine. Shoot your arms into a streamline position, one hand on top of the other. Land gently into another low squat. Targets: quads, calves, buns, abs.

2.       Curtsey lunge with side kick (optional pichinga weight)

·         Stand with feet hip width apart. Take a giant, diagonal step back with your right foot. Bend both knees like Sansa Stark curtseying. Keep your abs contracted so you don’t lose balance. Push your body up with both legs, slowly and carefully bringing your right leg up for a side kick, toes pointed, knee facing forward. Bring your feet back to hip width apart and repeat with your left leg. Targets: buns, obliques, calves.

3.       Push-up with side plank

·         Do a basic push up. Make sure your back doesn’t slouch. When you push up, rotate your body weight on to your right arm, reaching with your left arm straight to the sky. Don’t lock your elbow, but try to keep your right arm straight. Your body should be flat as if you’re up against a wall. Push your hips up to tighten your obqliues. Hold for 5 secs, breathing steady. Rotate your body down to a high plank, arms directly under your shoulders. Repeat the push up and alternate to your left arm. Targets: abs, obliques, inner thigh, triceps, biceps, chest, shoulders.

4.       2 V-ups, 2 bicycles  

·         Lie flat on your back with your arms at your sides. Contract your abs, bringing your knees to tabletop position and lifting your flat back to make a V. Keep your arms parallel to the ground. Lie flat again, repeat. Contract your abs bringing your right elbow to the left knee, pointing the toes on your right foot. Repeat on the other side. Targets: abs, obliques, inner thigh, back.

(Adapted from an El Camino article)

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[1] Gibala, M. et al. (2012). Physiological adaptations to low-volume, high-intensity interval training in health and disease. The Journal of Physiology, 590, 1077-108.

El Camino

Some of you may know that I took on the role of Co-Editor of the PCES publication El Camino. I love the magazine, and I'm so thankful my fellow COEDs are entrusting this responsibility to me. Honestly, editing this magazine is peaceful for me. It's one thing I know I can do well!

Past 2 covers of El Camino

Can you believe that you can't rotate images in Blogger? It's like the dark ages.

Not every PC country has a PCV publication. In fact, most don't. It's a very special opportunity we have in El Salvador and a great souvenir from PCES. 

Here's a special treat- my first Letter from the Editor. I won't share all my Camino edits here, but I'm especially proud of this letter. Hopefully it'll give you an idea of how much I love El Camino! 

Hello Peace Corps El Salvador! 

I'm so grateful to take on the role of Co-Editor alongside Jade. Trust me, our beloved Volunteer publication is in good hands! Jade has done an amazing job compiling articles and heckling you all for submissions, and I'm here to join in the fun.

I love El Camino and everything it represents for Peace Corps Volunteers. I remember reading the July/August 2013 issue during the first weeks of PST thinking "Wow, what a cool Peace Corps time capsule!" El Camino is what we're thinking, feeling, doing and eating right now. Someday when we're old and wrinkly (and thanks to the Central American sun, we might be wrinklier than we wish), we can pull out El Caminos and reminisce about swearing-in, community projects, and so much more.

Throughout my career as a PR yuppie turned Peace Corps Volunteer I've been responsible for seven organization's press releases and editor of four publications. Although I enjoyed writing for each of them, I've never felt as deeply invested as I am with El Camino. My goals as Co-Editor are to gather up our memories and freeze 'em like Han Solo in carbonite. I honestly couldn't think of a less-nerdy way of saying that. 

Here is a special place where we can connect, share our pride, and laugh at our mistakes. El Camino belongs to us. It is our responsibility as much as our opportunity to uphold this Volunteer tradition. I mean, how else will incoming PCVs know about the perils of leaving home without a stash of tp!?

Pep talk aside, I want to congratulate everyone on the small victories, big projects, and overall successes of integrating. COEDs will celebrate their 6 month mark in country in January, and Youthies are planning a swearing-in party for February I know we’re all excited for. I also want to welcome the 2014 Youth Development Trainees! Take a deep breath, you’re one step closer to becoming PCVs. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes and take every opportunity that’s offered to you. We’re so happy to have more members of the PCES family!

I hope you enjoy this issue of El Camino. As always, we welcome your comments, questions, suggestions, and personal anecdotes. And remember, it’s never too early to start writing for the next issue of El Camino. Submit those memories! I’ll keep the carbonite ready.

Alex Trimble

Co-Editor