How to get Salvadoran Residency

1)  Hire a lawyer.  My friend Lauren, a former BVSer in Honduras, was told right off the bat that she should hire a lawyer to get her Honduran residency.  Had I not already been waist-deep in the process, I would have done the same.

2)  You will need several documents from the United States.  First, a criminal background check from each state you've lived in for the last 2 years.  Also, an original copy (aka a copy certified by the state, not just a photocopy) of your birth certificate.  Each of these documents must be notarized in the US, and then "authenticated" by your state's Department of State with an Apostille stamp.  Your documents must be translated by an official translator.  Use the US Embassy's website to find out who are "official" and who are not.  If you're lucky, and come to El Salvador after I finish my BVS placement, you might find me here ... as a translator ... in which case I will happily help you through the very confusing process.  Post translation, all documents and translations MUST be notarized by a Salvadoran notary.  And signed by the translator.

3)  A letter from Mr Dan McFadden himself as BVS Director saying that you are being "sent" to your placement.  It will also need to be notarized, Apostille-d, translated, and notarized again, as per the other documents.  They (Immigration) won't tell you this off the bat, so you'll probably waste 3 or 6 months thinking you have everything together ... like I did.  And then they'll tell you 3 days before (or in my case, 3 months after) you become illegal and you'll have to either high tail it out of the C4 region (Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Honduras) before your visa expires OR pay a hefty fine of $114.29.

4)  Do not, whatever you do, assume that C4 means EU.  Or that the countries are like states in the US, where you can travel mostly freely across borders and still be under the same federal jurisdiction.  Salvadorans can travel through the C4 countries with just their national ID card, or DUI (pronounced Dewey), but you, my friend, cannot.  You must have a valid visa.  Immigration will not tell you this when you go for your first encounter with them.  And, taking your documents to the border does not mean anyone will help you out if you are illegal.  Nor will they really help you in the office in San Salvador either.  To get your new 3 month stamp WITHOUT LEAVING EL SALVADOR you have to have all your paperwork in order and TURN IT IN.  Then they'll finally smile and give you your stamp.  Hopefully.

5)  Fees:  Be prepared to shell out quite a bit for translations.  Cost is per page, generally.  Notarizations will also cost you per page, and immigration will charge you $121.43 when you turn everything in.  We're talking around $500 for a 1-year residency.  No longer can you do a 2-year deal.  If you hire a lawyer, they'll do the whole process for around $400, and then you'll still have to pay immigration.  Doing the math in terms of leaving every 3 months, let's assume you head to Mexico via Tica Bus.  16 hours round trip, about $75 for the bus ticket, plus lodging in Mexico and food along the way.  Going to run you between $100 and 125ish each time.  4 times per year, for 2 years ... at least $800 to leave and come back.  Not to mention the time you've spent going.  If you're like me, you always feel like you have a million things to do and don't really want to just leave it all to go get a stamp on your passport ... but of course, in life, there are always necessary evils.

6)  When you travel through the C4 countries, Honduras and Guatemala will want to give you 90 more days on your passport when you enter and/or exit.  You'll have to explain that you live in El Salvador, US State #52, and that you have to have a stamp from outside of C4 in order to get Guatemala's or any other C4 country's 90-day visa.  Sometimes, you will encounter nice people on the Salvadoran side of the border who want to help you out and are sorry you sort of got screwed by immigration in the city ... and then you will encounter nice employee's boss who will give you a lecture about being illegal and tell you there's no excuse for not having your paperwork turned in, regardless of whatever your reason is for not having completely fulfilled the document transmission.  You will then likely feel about the size of a pea, and decide to help others out by showing everyone immigration's hidden secrets.

7)  I've written this in a pretty cynical tone, I think, but it's all true.  And, immigration will change their rules from time to time to keep you on your toes.

8)  Make sure when you order documents from the US, the people on the other end of the line (well, if you're smart, you'll do this ahead of time and get to immigration as soon as you arrive in-country, and then get the process moving either by hiring someone or making sure the person who is designated to help you knows what they're doing ... it's good to trust people.  But maybe sometimes hold your cards a little close to you ... ) know that this is an URGENT matter and that they can't dilly-dally in their processing.  Your documents expire 3 months from the date issued, and if they're expired, you have to request new ones.  And possibly new translations.  So, stay on your toes, and make sure your project knows about all this.  If they don't, call me.  I will come help.  And if I'm back in the US, call anyway, and I'll make a trip down to visit / help you :)

9)  Just put all your cards on the table and accept one of the 12,000 offers of marriage you'll receive within the first 3 weeks of being here.  Kidding.  But it's crossed my mind.  It crossed quickly.  Certainly would make things with immigration much easier ...

10)  Breathe.  I should take my own advice.

What's so special about El Salvador?

Answer:  Archbishop Oscar Romero and Salvadoran hospitality.  In short.

Here are photos from the March 24th events surrounding the commemoration of Romero's martyrdom in 1980.

And, there are photos from the Easter Build in Alegria, as well as my little vacation there a couple weeks ago.

Early morning devotional

Colegio Bautista Emmanuel

"In the name of God, stop the violence!"

The Mediation Team helped out with the devotional as well.

Rally with youth groups from the rural communities

Fatima, one of the youth from Cuscatlan, firing up the others!

Greetings from the US of A.

Walking from the hospital chapel where Romero was martyred, to the cathedral downtown.

Making our way downtown.

Point B - the Cathedral

The procession of leaders in the ecumenical commemorative service

March 24, 2011

Afternoon worship service in the church, commemorating Oscar Romero

The woman on the left, just in front, is Romero's niece, and works tirelessly to keep his legacy alive.

Working on one of the houses in Alegria

I admit I call it "my house" because I'm good friends with the family who lives there now.

Working on "my house" ... check me out, Dad!

My house.

Canadians, me, and Manuel, one of the owners and a very good friend

Coffee plants in bloom

Crepes with strawberries and ice cream

And the BEST Americano ever.  Sorry, K'mo ... 

Good Friday meant "alfombras" or sand pictures on the streets to celebrate Easter

Vacation started with an apple pie.  I even achieved the cavernous effect ... the apples cooked down but the crust stayed put ... Only the second time ever in my life that an apple pie has turned out as such.  I count it as an achievement because Grandma's pies are often that way as well.  I used Gala apples, a little sugar, nutmeg, cloves, and cinnamon.  It was a huge hit.

Next mural at KenapocoMocha?

Hangin' out with the neighborhood kids / cousins of my friends in "my house"

View from where I stayed

Spent an afternoon at Cartagena, a restaurant / coffee shop where my friends work.  Good fun.

Orlando making my Americano

Spent 3 days in Alegria ... didn't want to come back to the city ... 

And we got a flat.  Fate?  Maybe, but we were eventually on our way.

Not much has happened since my vacation.  Moved into an apartment 2 blocks from the church.  Very nice to have my own space, do my own cooking, etc.  New Community Project has a group coming in July, so I've been busy with planning their itinerary and such.  Tomorrow I'm heading to Alegria to do some negotiating and such (it sounds so much better in Spanish - "cotizar"), see where the NCP folks can stay, who will provide food, meet with the folks they'd like to speak with, etc.  Should be a nice day.  Two girlfriends are coming from the US in a couple weeks.  Very much looking forward to their visit!  Until I have more photos ... 

Our house is your house.

I took a few days off this week to visit some friends in Alegria.  I think I learned more about myself and God and community in those three days than in the last few months in San Salvador.  City life is city life.  Anywhere.

I want to share this song with you. It's my current manifesto / mantra / message.  (Ahem, Marlys, pay no attention to the grammar ... I wanted to get the message across more than do a direct translation!)

"Casa Abierta" - Guardabarranco

Quiero estar bien con mis hermanos                                   I want to be well with my brothers
De norte a sur al fin de mundo                                           From the north to the south to the end of the world
Saber oir y dar mis manos                                                 Know how to listen and give my hands
Sudar jugando algo bien sano                                            To sweat playing something really healthy

Todos aqui somos hermanos                                              We're all brothers
Que mas me da el color, la raza                                         That give me my color, my race
Dentro tenemos sentimientos                                              Inside we have feelings
Que necesitan de sustento                                                  That need support
Si adentro hay buenos sentimientos                                     If there are good feelings inside
No se pueden quedar adentro                                            They can't stay inside

Aqui esta mi casa abierta                                                    Here's my open house
Hay un plato por ti en nuestra mesa                                    There's a plate for you at our table
Sombra de arbol para tu cabeza                                         A tree's shadow for your head
Libro abierto a tu vida mi puerta                                  Your life is an open book and my door is open for you
Casa abierta                                                                       Our house is open
La amistad no cuestiona tu credo                                        Friendship doesn't question your beliefs
A la tierra le gusta que amemos                                          The land wants us to love each other
Sin distinguos de culto y bandero                                        Regardless of our religion or flag

Hard to translate, but I think I got the gist of things.  It's a beautiful song, and totally sums up the last 3 days.  Go find them on iTunes.

It's been a while

I don't think I could ever be a professional blogger.  My readers would riot if I posted so irregularly ... Oh, wait. I post irregularly anyway.  Thank you for not rioting, faithful readers.

March was, well, fast.  Pretty uneventful up until the end of the month.  On the 19th I went with my host mom and her two boys to a patron saint festival out in the country.  Fact: many towns and villages are named for Catholic saints, so on or around the particular saint's day for which the town is named, they throw a huge fiesta.  For those of you in PA / "the Cove", think Martinsburg's July 4th festival, but on a smaller scale.  There is junk food (read: fried yucca, French fries, STEAK, pupusas), fireworks, music, a procession, and dancing.  Oh, and cheap beer for those who choose to partake.  I had a lovely time away from the city, meeting Claudia's family and friends, and making new friends.  And the dance was a blast, even though it was less merengue and salsa and more reggaeton.

The church in San Jose.

Only the bell tower and entrance are original.  The rest was destroyed in the civil war, but has been rebuild by the residents of the village.

Processional

Patron Saint of San Jose ... Jose

The next day was like a family reunion.  Everyone hanging around Claudia's cousin's house, eating fresh mangoes, visiting, relaxing in hammocks.  And did I remember to take photos?  Nope.  Too busy trying not to get up and thus lose my hammock!

West Side Story.

Up until now, my posts have been about places I've been or people I've met or meals I've cooked.  Well, it's time to change gears.  Let's talk about culture shock, privilege, and other such theories that exist that I've not really experienced before ... until now.

February has been a crazy month.  Crazy with work, crazy with fun outings, new beginnings, etc.  On the work side of things, we started the selection process and training for our group of peer mediators in Colegio Bautista Emmanuel.  It's definitely not easy to get a group of 10 people together, let alone when security is an issue.  It's not terribly safe to be out past dark, and we can't let the kids take the bus at night, etc., so we've settled for meeting every Tuesday from 3:30pm - 5pm.  And the teachers had an inservice day last Friday, so we were able to take advantage of that time and have a decent meeting with the peer mediators.  We're still in the theory part of things ... it's like teaching 4 years of peace studies in 6 hours ... and are slowly moving on to communication exercises and the mediation process.  And we're trying to keep everything in context.  Josue did a really great job of giving sort of a cultural / contextual overview on Friday, and we each made a pyramid of the 5 gravest problems (in our opinions) in El Salvador.  On Tuesday, then, I did the same thing, but we talked about it in the context of the colegio.  It was really helpful for me to understand where the students are coming from, their opinions on things, etc.  There is definitely a need for peace education, and we two crazies are moving forward with our program.

About a month ago, I had the privilege of being invited to a wedding.  My friend Douglas, whom I met through my friend Carlos, is from the western region of El Salvador, Sonsonate.  And he wanted to take me along a) to experience another part of El Salvador, and b) to experience a Salvadoran wedding.  Man, was it fun and relaxing!  I loved it.  And he has two adorable daughters, Alejandra and Sofia, who came along as well.  It was a huge family affair, and they were all very welcoming and friendly.  I've met a couple of his family members before, so it was nice to continue to get to know them and to meet others.  That Sunday, then, we zipped around to a few little towns outside Sonsonate.  (Well, the wedding was actually in Nahuizalco), and from there, we went to Salcoatitan, Juayua, and Apaneca.  Beautiful mountain countryside.  And coffee plantations.  Just gorgeous.  It's so interesting/strange/sad/disturbing to live in a country that is so beautiful, but yet because of the poverty and violence, most Salvadorans don't have the chance to experience the beauty.

For all you train fans / Pennsylvanians, there's a railroad track in the middle of Sonsonate.  And the train says PHILADELPHIA on it.  Small world.

Not the best shot of the church, but hopefully you can see it's beautiful.  The egghead standing up in the middle of the ceremony is Douglas; he was charged with taking photos and video for the day.

My favorite photo from the whole weekend.  Finally figuring out camera settings ... 

Town cathedral, Juayua

Shops and touristy things, Juayua

Coffee in its natural habitat.  Coffee beans come from cherries.  These are the cherries.

Laguna Verde, Apaneca

As if I don't get out much, Josue and Karen took me to the beach a couple weeks ago.  So nice to get away and soak up some vitamin D!

Playa San Blas, La Libertad

Catching some waves.  The waves eventually caught my sunglasses.  Oh well.

MS.  18.  Do these letters and numbers mean anything to you?  Multiple Sclerosis ... voting age.  Gangs?  They're the two main gangs here in El Salvador, and throughout Central America.  They started in Los Angeles, believe it or not, and with deportations of undocumented Mexicans and Central Americans, the violence has filtered down into these tiny and impoverished banana republics.  A lot of people think Venezuela is the most dangerous country in Latin America, but in terms of people per square mile, El Salvador has a much higher rate of violence.  About 7 million inhabitants in 21,049 square kilometers.  Do the math.  

Over the last few months, I've felt pretty safe and secure.  I witnessed one assault on a bus back from a mall on the other side of San Salvador, but nothing else.  Just as I was beginning to feel comfortable, things have begun to get a little warm.  A couple weeks ago, the pupuseria (aka restaurant that makes pupusas) on the corner beside the youth center was robbed.  There is a barber shop across the street that "has its way of settling things."  To show that gangs have control of an area, they not only paint graffiti and symbols on buildings, but ask for "renta" or rent from businesses.  Most business owners won't give them anything ... and then come the threats.  This also happens with the buses in the city.  Rent is demanded from the drivers, and if they don't give anything, threats.  Assaults, sometimes homicides, etc.  So, the pupuseria, where I often ate breakfast or lunch when I had early meetings or wanted to go with friends, was robbed the other week.  The folks in the barber shop, according to neighbors, are informants for 18.  They're asking for rent from the area businesses, and last night, there were consequences for one of the businesses.  A small auto-parts shop was set on fire ... 4 doors down from the house I share with the church secretary, her brother, and her twin boys.  And because the homes on our block are not very far apart (think 2 feet of space) or are like duplexes, we had to leave the house and go into the street.  3:30 in the morning.  The smoke was so black and thick and the flames were coming out of the windows, and things inside the shop were exploding.  It was quite the scene.  At first I figured it was probably an accident.  And then as I was sitting there watching the police mill around and the firefighters put out the blaze, I wondered if it was because the owner refused to pay rent to the gang ... I found out this morning that that was likely the case.  There is an older woman on our street who is like a vigilante, I swear she never sleeps, and apparently she saw someone throw something into the shop, and then it started to burn.

So, today's been a little rough.  Not only because of lack of sleep, but I'm a little freaked out.  Like I said, I've felt pretty safe, up until now.  And such privilege, to have been raised in a country, or rather, in a part of the US where the most dangerous thing that could happen is a car accident because of bad winter roads.  People here have such a strong faith in God.  I admit I don't.  Or rather, my faith doesn't seem to be nearly as strong as theirs.  And now I have an idea why.

I don't write this so you all worry.  I write this because I felt like I needed to organize my thoughts, and I wanted to let you know that it's not all sunshine and teddy bears, even though that's what I often portray.  I still love it here.  But it's difficult sometimes.

Don't dance in the rain.

We had a nice hard rain last week.  I didn't realize how much I missed precipitation, and decided to dance in the rain.  Except it was a bad idea.  Because of the serious pollution day in and day out, it was acid rain.  Of course, regardless of where you are in the world, all precipitation is slightly acidic.  And this wasn't acid rain like "Ouch, my skin is burning!"  But after I dried off I was really itchy.  So, moral of the story, don't dance in the first rain of the season.

After my last post and all its pictures, I think I'm going to write with more of a photo-journalism approach.  That is to say, I'm going to post photos and write long-ish captions. ... At least while I'm trying to catch up over the last month and a half ...

Christmas!  We had a really great Christmas Eve service at the church, complete with a Nativity drama.  The catch, though, with the drama was that it was the Nativity story, but based on the context of migrant journeys from El Salvador to the United States.  The youth did a fantastic job.  I helped with technical things, set design and painting, and was the token Gringa at the border who shouted and yelled in English at the migrants.  The service ended with Silent Night and candle lighting.  Just like Church of the Brethren services I've attended.  I felt very much at home, but also very far away.

After the service, I spent the rest of the evening, which is the traditional time to celebrate with family and friends, with Pastor Miguel and his family, and their extended family.  It was a nice time, but folks kind of kept to their family circle, and not many conversed with me.  I left around 11:30 and went home, expecting to find another celebration at home ... but alas, they were still at Claudia's brother's house.  So I did some writing in my journal about Christmas traditions and listened to music until they came home around 1 am.  And then we all went to bed.  So, Christmas was a little boring.  I resolved to have a better New Year's celebration ... and I did!  But before New Year's, on December 28, which is "April Fool's Day" here, I went to Antiguo Cuzcatlan for the town festival ... where they run around in the streets with balsa-wood frames of bulls that have FIREWORKS attached.  And they shoot the firecrackers INTO THE CROWD.  And everyone ducks and tries not to get burned.  Oh, and the crazy people, mostly teenage boys and drunk people, run around in the street WITH THE BULL, charging at it.  And then, if you get burned, everyone yells "Culero, culero!!" which means, well, I'm not going to say it outright, but a worse term for homosexual or gay.  Cultural homophobia aside, it was a fun time.  Luckily, I didn't get burned.

Nativity play rehearsal

Another scene from rehearsal ... except someone forgot to strike the candle and little table.  Oops!

Our esteemed director, Daniel.

Christmas Eve spread, complete with turkey in the roaster!

Christmas gifts

I spent New Year's with my host family.  We had a service at the church to celebrate the end of the year and ask for blessings for 2011, and then returned home for dinner.  Afterwards, we went over to Claudia's brother's home to watch the fireworks (Did I mention they set off fireworks here for Christmas and New Year's?  I don't think I did ... Anyway, it was really fun), and once the fireworks were over, around 12:30 or 1, we walked up the hill a bit more to a neighbor's home to DANCE!  They converted their garage-like room into a dance floor, with lights and a stereo, and I danced merengue, bachata, and salsa.  Great fun!  And a very cool way to ring in 2011.  But alas, I didn't take photos.  Sorry!

January 2 was a very exciting day.  My sister, Heather, came to visit for 6 days!!  To summarize the week, we basked in the sun, did a little shopping, basked in the sun a bit more ... with beverages, went dancing, hung out with some of my friends, and ate pupusas.  And didn't get much sleep.  And were bitten by mosquitoes.  Overall, though, it was a really great week.  I had a great time showing her around, which indirectly made San Salvador and San Jacinto feel like home.  I think that was when I made the switch from tourist to citizen (well, not in the legal sense).  Looking forward to welcoming more visitors!  Hint, hint ... 

First day in El Salvador

Los Planes for pupusas!

After Heather left, I jumped right into work.  And haven't really jumped out of the depths of work yet ... Josue and I began the actual implementation part of our peace education program in the school, starting with a 2-day workshop as part of the teachers' in-service days.  Classes began the following week in the school, I started working with the new English teacher, Josue and I led 2 more workshops with the high school age students, and Cal Pipil opened back up after 2 weeks of planning time on the 29th.  And somehow it's now February.

A week or so ago our praise band group, 3:16, was asked to provide music leadership for a worship service near the center of San Salvador for January 31.  Cool.  I found out yesterday morning that this was to be a service of blessing for the incoming President of the Salvadoran Legislature ... WHAT?!  Yep, high-profile thing and didn't really realize it until the morning of.  Ahh, language barriers.  So it was like singing for the Speaker of the House.  I wasn't entirely in agreement with the service, but it was at least ecumenical and a great honor to be asked to participate.

Discussing song choices

Singing ... duh.

I bought that dress over the weekend.  Already wore it twice.  An excellent investment.

Members and friends of Iglesia Bautista Emmanuel with Sigfrido Reyes, new President of the Salvadoran Legislature (Guy in suit and blue tie)