Food...I mean, English Class!

Since Carnaval has been over for almost a month, things in Barranquilla are finally starting to happen. Projects put on hold for indefinite periods are starting up. Classes are held with regularity, and normalcy of the Barranquillan sort is beginning to settle in.

Of course, in a week there's a full week of vacation for Semana Santa - Holy Week/Easter, but we're not going to think about that yet.

Instead, let's focus on how last weekend, a project that has been discussed since basically the time we got here finally came to fruition: English classes for English teachers throughout the whole of Barranquilla.

Coordinated through the Secretary of Education, these classes were begun last year by the former Response Volunteers. Three hour sessions held on Saturday mornings, they're a chance for English teachers of all English abilities to gather and learn about US culture, as well as have a space to practice listening and talking English.

With six volunteers in the city, we hold two different classes on alternating weeks. With Jessica and I co-captaining a class, naturally, naturally our topic is...food! She likes to bake, I like to cook...we thought we'd take red and blue and make purple. Our idea: use food as a lens for culture, covering geography, cultural trends, holidays, nutrition, recipe exchanges...and have an awesome excuse to cook up food every other week. We call it: "Food and Culture in the US: A Taste of Culture"

Okay, so, maybe we like food a little too much...but 18 teachers, a giant batch of homemade English muffins, peanut butter and jelly (of the homemade strawberry sort) sandwiches, and three hours later, we have to say it was pretty much a success.

...And what's our next class? The West: Vegetarianism, Fast Food, and Easter. California-style pizza and hot cross buns, here we come...!

For the fact Colombians are usually apathetic about peanutbutter, 

our class got surprisingly into their PBJ's

Of course we taught the song "Peanutbutter and Jelly"...at the "And Jelly!" moment here...

We had them use charla paper. They turned into professional artists...it's a little hard to see, but this is a masterful rendition of a "breadbasket" with all sorts of goodies from the Midwest. So good it made me a touch nostalgic...