[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right, right.

[Assistant] But there had never been a Peace Corps volunteer there before.

[User] No, there was a couple. There was a guy and he had gotten married.

[Assistant] To a Colombian?

[User] No, to an American.

[Assistant] So now there were four of you.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] No, there was a couple. There was a guy and he had gotten married.

[Assistant] To a Colombian?

[User] No, to an American.

[Assistant] So now there were four of you.

[User] Yeah. No, they were moving and that's why they were sent us. So I went from the, you know, plains to the mountains. And very overcast most of the year. Very, very cold climate. But I just, you know.

[Assistant] And it was cold all year long?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] No, to an American.

[Assistant] So now there were four of you.

[User] Yeah. No, they were moving and that's why they were sent us. So I went from the, you know, plains to the mountains. And very overcast most of the year. Very, very cold climate. But I just, you know.

[Assistant] And it was cold all year long?

[User] Yeah, pretty much so. There were some nice spring days, you know, part of the year. But you know, basically it was pretty cold.

[Assistant] And here you are, a Florida Miami Beach boy and then you're up in cold mountains.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah. No, they were moving and that's why they were sent us. So I went from the, you know, plains to the mountains. And very overcast most of the year. Very, very cold climate. But I just, you know.

[Assistant] And it was cold all year long?

[User] Yeah, pretty much so. There were some nice spring days, you know, part of the year. But you know, basically it was pretty cold.

[Assistant] And here you are, a Florida Miami Beach boy and then you're up in cold mountains.

[User] It was, yeah, the climate where I went to eventually to El Carmen was more like the winters of New Orleans.

[Assistant] And it can be quite chilly.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, pretty much so. There were some nice spring days, you know, part of the year. But you know, basically it was pretty cold.

[Assistant] And here you are, a Florida Miami Beach boy and then you're up in cold mountains.

[User] It was, yeah, the climate where I went to eventually to El Carmen was more like the winters of New Orleans.

[Assistant] And it can be quite chilly.

[User] Yeah, overcast and cold.

[Assistant] And I'd like to just interrupt the interview to tell the listener that it is February 4th here in New Orleans.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] It was, yeah, the climate where I went to eventually to El Carmen was more like the winters of New Orleans.

[Assistant] And it can be quite chilly.

[User] Yeah, overcast and cold.

[Assistant] And I'd like to just interrupt the interview to tell the listener that it is February 4th here in New Orleans.

[User] You're shivering.

[Assistant] It's darn cold.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, overcast and cold.

[Assistant] And I'd like to just interrupt the interview to tell the listener that it is February 4th here in New Orleans.

[User] You're shivering.

[Assistant] It's darn cold.

[User] New Orleans is shivering, and that only means it's 40 or 50 degrees here.

[Assistant] So where, were you living with a family or were you living on a what?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] You're shivering.

[Assistant] It's darn cold.

[User] New Orleans is shivering, and that only means it's 40 or 50 degrees here.

[Assistant] So where, were you living with a family or were you living on a what?

[User] We rented a little, like a little house. You know, the houses are built all together, you know, in a block.

[Assistant] In the village.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] New Orleans is shivering, and that only means it's 40 or 50 degrees here.

[Assistant] So where, were you living with a family or were you living on a what?

[User] We rented a little, like a little house. You know, the houses are built all together, you know, in a block.

[Assistant] In the village.

[User] You know, there's a wall separating one house from another.

[Assistant] OK. They're all attached.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] We rented a little, like a little house. You know, the houses are built all together, you know, in a block.

[Assistant] In the village.

[User] You know, there's a wall separating one house from another.

[Assistant] OK. They're all attached.

[User] Like the French Quarter here, you know?

[Assistant] Are they two stories or are they single story?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Like the French Quarter here, you know?

[Assistant] Are they two stories or are they single story?

[User] Mostly one story and very Spanish style. But we had, we found a place. We lived for very short while in the place where the previous volunteers lived. And one of the previous volunteers was in our group, but he was made. The reason he moved, he was made, what are they? A leader, which meant he went around to all of the groups in the state that, you know, that had a Peace Corps volunteer. They call them states. I mean, we call it states, but it was that. Anyway. And the other guy got married and so he was going into another group where there were married couples that had recently come to Colombia.

[Assistant] Yeah. Yeah.

[User] So they lived in a place and we didn't particularly care for it. So we started looking around right away and we found another smaller, smaller place that had two bedrooms.

[Assistant] So Peace Corps didn't find this for you. You shopped around on your own and you negotiated. And you're expected to pay for that out of your Peace Corps allowance?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Mostly one story and very Spanish style. But we had, we found a place. We lived for very short while in the place where the previous volunteers lived. And one of the previous volunteers was in our group, but he was made. The reason he moved, he was made, what are they? A leader, which meant he went around to all of the groups in the state that, you know, that had a Peace Corps volunteer. They call them states. I mean, we call it states, but it was that. Anyway. And the other guy got married and so he was going into another group where there were married couples that had recently come to Colombia.

[Assistant] Yeah. Yeah.

[User] So they lived in a place and we didn't particularly care for it. So we started looking around right away and we found another smaller, smaller place that had two bedrooms.

[Assistant] So Peace Corps didn't find this for you. You shopped around on your own and you negotiated. And you're expected to pay for that out of your Peace Corps allowance?

[User] That's right. Right. And that was a hundred dollars a month at that time.

[Assistant] The equivalent of a hundred dollars?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] So they lived in a place and we didn't particularly care for it. So we started looking around right away and we found another smaller, smaller place that had two bedrooms.

[Assistant] So Peace Corps didn't find this for you. You shopped around on your own and you negotiated. And you're expected to pay for that out of your Peace Corps allowance?

[User] That's right. Right. And that was a hundred dollars a month at that time.

[Assistant] The equivalent of a hundred dollars?

[User] Yeah, equivalent of a hundred dollars a month. And yeah, it was in pesos, in Colombian pesos. And it was adequate, plenty adequate. We always, we would be able to save a little so that we could, you know, when we gathered enough time, we could go on little trips and what have you.

[Assistant] You lived frugally.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] That's right. Right. And that was a hundred dollars a month at that time.

[Assistant] The equivalent of a hundred dollars?

[User] Yeah, equivalent of a hundred dollars a month. And yeah, it was in pesos, in Colombian pesos. And it was adequate, plenty adequate. We always, we would be able to save a little so that we could, you know, when we gathered enough time, we could go on little trips and what have you.

[Assistant] You lived frugally.

[User] Yeah, right. And it was very inexpensive to live.

[Assistant] Yeah. You did your own shopping, your own cooking, you cooked for yourselves?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, equivalent of a hundred dollars a month. And yeah, it was in pesos, in Colombian pesos. And it was adequate, plenty adequate. We always, we would be able to save a little so that we could, you know, when we gathered enough time, we could go on little trips and what have you.

[Assistant] You lived frugally.

[User] Yeah, right. And it was very inexpensive to live.

[Assistant] Yeah. You did your own shopping, your own cooking, you cooked for yourselves?

[User] I cooked. Yeah, I knew how to cook. So my partner and I lived together and I did most of the cooking. And then he left. He got sick. They tried to find out, but they finally sent them back to the States, here to New Orleans actually. There used to be a public, a United States public hospital here. And he stayed here for a few months and then they sent him to Washington. And I'm still in touch with him. But he had a psychological problem, I believe, and that was part of the problem. All of us had something go wrong while we were in Colombia. You know, I had a bout with some, you know, respiratory problems. But then they got, they cleared it up and, you know, no problem.

[Assistant] So you're living, your little house then, like that first one, was it also attached to other houses on either side?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, right. And it was very inexpensive to live.

[Assistant] Yeah. You did your own shopping, your own cooking, you cooked for yourselves?

[User] I cooked. Yeah, I knew how to cook. So my partner and I lived together and I did most of the cooking. And then he left. He got sick. They tried to find out, but they finally sent them back to the States, here to New Orleans actually. There used to be a public, a United States public hospital here. And he stayed here for a few months and then they sent him to Washington. And I'm still in touch with him. But he had a psychological problem, I believe, and that was part of the problem. All of us had something go wrong while we were in Colombia. You know, I had a bout with some, you know, respiratory problems. But then they got, they cleared it up and, you know, no problem.

[Assistant] So you're living, your little house then, like that first one, was it also attached to other houses on either side?

[User] Yeah, it was, right. And this, very often in Colombia, they have the central patio type house, whereas all the rooms open onto the patio. Well, the house we moved into was, that we rented, found and rented. It was more like an apartment. Had two bedrooms and had a little place for a kitchen and an outside bathroom with a shower.

[Assistant] Oh, that's nice.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] I cooked. Yeah, I knew how to cook. So my partner and I lived together and I did most of the cooking. And then he left. He got sick. They tried to find out, but they finally sent them back to the States, here to New Orleans actually. There used to be a public, a United States public hospital here. And he stayed here for a few months and then they sent him to Washington. And I'm still in touch with him. But he had a psychological problem, I believe, and that was part of the problem. All of us had something go wrong while we were in Colombia. You know, I had a bout with some, you know, respiratory problems. But then they got, they cleared it up and, you know, no problem.

[Assistant] So you're living, your little house then, like that first one, was it also attached to other houses on either side?

[User] Yeah, it was, right. And this, very often in Colombia, they have the central patio type house, whereas all the rooms open onto the patio. Well, the house we moved into was, that we rented, found and rented. It was more like an apartment. Had two bedrooms and had a little place for a kitchen and an outside bathroom with a shower.

[Assistant] Oh, that's nice.

[User] You know, a shower, but there was no doors or anything like that. So I mean, there were two guys. So no problem. And then they had this little walk-up thing that was, I guess it was that people would go up there and just sit and enjoy the view.

[Assistant] Sit on the roof?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, it was, right. And this, very often in Colombia, they have the central patio type house, whereas all the rooms open onto the patio. Well, the house we moved into was, that we rented, found and rented. It was more like an apartment. Had two bedrooms and had a little place for a kitchen and an outside bathroom with a shower.

[Assistant] Oh, that's nice.

[User] You know, a shower, but there was no doors or anything like that. So I mean, there were two guys. So no problem. And then they had this little walk-up thing that was, I guess it was that people would go up there and just sit and enjoy the view.

[Assistant] Sit on the roof?

[User] Yeah, it had a cover. It had a like a, um, what do they call these things that they put outside made out of wood, you know? They were like an umbrella type thing, but only made out of wood and had a roof so you could sit out in the open air. But it wasn't closed.

[Assistant] And the word is escaping me too, but I know what you mean.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] You know, a shower, but there was no doors or anything like that. So I mean, there were two guys. So no problem. And then they had this little walk-up thing that was, I guess it was that people would go up there and just sit and enjoy the view.

[Assistant] Sit on the roof?

[User] Yeah, it had a cover. It had a like a, um, what do they call these things that they put outside made out of wood, you know? They were like an umbrella type thing, but only made out of wood and had a roof so you could sit out in the open air. But it wasn't closed.

[Assistant] And the word is escaping me too, but I know what you mean.

[User] Yeah. And so, uh, we hardly ever used that. But we, in spite of the fact that there were only three rooms, there was a room that we used for reading and listening to music, etc., once we got some music. But we had this little kitchen and we had a Bunsen burner and you know, something, you know, very primitive type.

[Assistant] Like a camp stove or something.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, it had a cover. It had a like a, um, what do they call these things that they put outside made out of wood, you know? They were like an umbrella type thing, but only made out of wood and had a roof so you could sit out in the open air. But it wasn't closed.

[Assistant] And the word is escaping me too, but I know what you mean.

[User] Yeah. And so, uh, we hardly ever used that. But we, in spite of the fact that there were only three rooms, there was a room that we used for reading and listening to music, etc., once we got some music. But we had this little kitchen and we had a Bunsen burner and you know, something, you know, very primitive type.

[Assistant] Like a camp stove or something.

[User] We tried, yeah, camp stove. That's what exactly what it was. But we made do.

[Assistant] Did you have running water?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah. And so, uh, we hardly ever used that. But we, in spite of the fact that there were only three rooms, there was a room that we used for reading and listening to music, etc., once we got some music. But we had this little kitchen and we had a Bunsen burner and you know, something, you know, very primitive type.

[Assistant] Like a camp stove or something.

[User] We tried, yeah, camp stove. That's what exactly what it was. But we made do.

[Assistant] Did you have running water?

[User] We did have running water for the kitchen, and for the shower.

[Assistant] And did you drink it? Oh, and you had a toilet too?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] We tried, yeah, camp stove. That's what exactly what it was. But we made do.

[Assistant] Did you have running water?

[User] We did have running water for the kitchen, and for the shower.

[Assistant] And did you drink it? Oh, and you had a toilet too?

[User] Yeah, no. We had to boil the water. We had to boil the water. And even though the natives all drank the water, they told us, make sure you boil the water. And we had, well, of course, Colombia was famous for their beer, so we drank a lot of beer.

[Assistant] Yeah, no worries about having to boil that.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] We did have running water for the kitchen, and for the shower.

[Assistant] And did you drink it? Oh, and you had a toilet too?

[User] Yeah, no. We had to boil the water. We had to boil the water. And even though the natives all drank the water, they told us, make sure you boil the water. And we had, well, of course, Colombia was famous for their beer, so we drank a lot of beer.

[Assistant] Yeah, no worries about having to boil that.

[User] That's right. And that was one thing we didn't have to worry about. But so and it was right near the center of town, the central plaza, down about half a block away. And it was, it accommodated us very well. I stayed and I lost my partner. They tried to bring in other people, see if they wanted to stay in that. I don't know. They had more of a decision, the people that followed us, than we did. We were sent to, you know, a place and we were there until, you know, something serious came up that we transferred.

[Assistant] But you spent the rest of your two years there?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, no. We had to boil the water. We had to boil the water. And even though the natives all drank the water, they told us, make sure you boil the water. And we had, well, of course, Colombia was famous for their beer, so we drank a lot of beer.

[Assistant] Yeah, no worries about having to boil that.

[User] That's right. And that was one thing we didn't have to worry about. But so and it was right near the center of town, the central plaza, down about half a block away. And it was, it accommodated us very well. I stayed and I lost my partner. They tried to bring in other people, see if they wanted to stay in that. I don't know. They had more of a decision, the people that followed us, than we did. We were sent to, you know, a place and we were there until, you know, something serious came up that we transferred.

[Assistant] But you spent the rest of your two years there?

[User] Yeah.

[Assistant] And did you get lonely when your partner was called away?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] That's right. And that was one thing we didn't have to worry about. But so and it was right near the center of town, the central plaza, down about half a block away. And it was, it accommodated us very well. I stayed and I lost my partner. They tried to bring in other people, see if they wanted to stay in that. I don't know. They had more of a decision, the people that followed us, than we did. We were sent to, you know, a place and we were there until, you know, something serious came up that we transferred.

[Assistant] But you spent the rest of your two years there?

[User] Yeah.

[Assistant] And did you get lonely when your partner was called away?

[User] Somewhat.

[Assistant] But the rest of the time, you were alone there?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah.

[Assistant] And did you get lonely when your partner was called away?

[User] Somewhat.

[Assistant] But the rest of the time, you were alone there?

[User] Not so much. Um, we had two and a half days a month, as I recall, for free time. So at least once a month, we go into Medellin, the capital of Antioquia, which is the department that we were in, the state, and we would see other Peace Corps volunteers then. Once in a while, Peace Corps volunteer would come out and visit us. You know, another Peace Corps volunteer in another village. I didn't do that very often, but a lot of, a number of people came to my village. And sometimes several would come. And then we'd have a party with some Colombian, with the comments, in our little house. But, you know, just drinking beer and getting to know you and all that stuff.

[Assistant] So how long a journey was it from El Carmen? How do you say it?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Not so much. Um, we had two and a half days a month, as I recall, for free time. So at least once a month, we go into Medellin, the capital of Antioquia, which is the department that we were in, the state, and we would see other Peace Corps volunteers then. Once in a while, Peace Corps volunteer would come out and visit us. You know, another Peace Corps volunteer in another village. I didn't do that very often, but a lot of, a number of people came to my village. And sometimes several would come. And then we'd have a party with some Colombian, with the comments, in our little house. But, you know, just drinking beer and getting to know you and all that stuff.

[Assistant] So how long a journey was it from El Carmen? How do you say it?

[User] De Viboral.

[Assistant] De Vivoral.

[User] It's with a B. In Spanish, they say B.

[Assistant] Yeah. And how long did it take you to get from your village into Medellin?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] De Viboral.

[Assistant] De Vivoral.

[User] It's with a B. In Spanish, they say B.

[Assistant] Yeah. And how long did it take you to get from your village into Medellin?

[User] Ok, took about, on a collectivo, which is a bus, an old United States school bus, made into open air type thing where you get on and you slide down to the other side and people follow you.

[Assistant] Was it still yellow on the outside?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] It's with a B. In Spanish, they say B.

[Assistant] Yeah. And how long did it take you to get from your village into Medellin?

[User] Ok, took about, on a collectivo, which is a bus, an old United States school bus, made into open air type thing where you get on and you slide down to the other side and people follow you.

[Assistant] Was it still yellow on the outside?

[User] A lot of them were, but many of them were painted. And then they, uh, you know, I was way up high and Medellin was way down in the valley. And so it was very treacherous.

[Assistant] That's what you mean by sliding down.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Ok, took about, on a collectivo, which is a bus, an old United States school bus, made into open air type thing where you get on and you slide down to the other side and people follow you.

[Assistant] Was it still yellow on the outside?

[User] A lot of them were, but many of them were painted. And then they, uh, you know, I was way up high and Medellin was way down in the valley. And so it was very treacherous.

[Assistant] That's what you mean by sliding down.

[User] Oh yeah, it was lots of crosses on the way down.

[Assistant] Meaning deaths where somebody died?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] A lot of them were, but many of them were painted. And then they, uh, you know, I was way up high and Medellin was way down in the valley. And so it was very treacherous.

[Assistant] That's what you mean by sliding down.

[User] Oh yeah, it was lots of crosses on the way down.

[Assistant] Meaning deaths where somebody died?

[User] Yeah, in an accident. Yeah. And so, but uh, and it took about an hour, maybe an hour and a half to get from my village to, in one of those. It was, um. And you know, it wasn't expensive at all, you know, and there was a village in between that where they had, was a larger village. And that is where I would go often to get like meat and things like that, you know, to cook. Because they didn't always have meat in my village.

[Assistant] Yeah. Uh huh.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Oh yeah, it was lots of crosses on the way down.

[Assistant] Meaning deaths where somebody died?

[User] Yeah, in an accident. Yeah. And so, but uh, and it took about an hour, maybe an hour and a half to get from my village to, in one of those. It was, um. And you know, it wasn't expensive at all, you know, and there was a village in between that where they had, was a larger village. And that is where I would go often to get like meat and things like that, you know, to cook. Because they didn't always have meat in my village.

[Assistant] Yeah. Uh huh.

[User] But um, it was not difficult. I mean, that little town was only maybe 15 minutes away, you know, so you could get a collectivo.

[Assistant] You didn't have a bicycle or motorcycle?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, in an accident. Yeah. And so, but uh, and it took about an hour, maybe an hour and a half to get from my village to, in one of those. It was, um. And you know, it wasn't expensive at all, you know, and there was a village in between that where they had, was a larger village. And that is where I would go often to get like meat and things like that, you know, to cook. Because they didn't always have meat in my village.

[Assistant] Yeah. Uh huh.

[User] But um, it was not difficult. I mean, that little town was only maybe 15 minutes away, you know, so you could get a collectivo.

[Assistant] You didn't have a bicycle or motorcycle?

[User] No. In the middle of my stay, someone in Minnesota or someplace donated a bunch of, um, trail bikes and they sent me one, a trail bike. Because I had the roads that I could hop to my, the little villages where I worked.

[Assistant] Which we'll talk about in a little while.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] But um, it was not difficult. I mean, that little town was only maybe 15 minutes away, you know, so you could get a collectivo.

[Assistant] You didn't have a bicycle or motorcycle?

[User] No. In the middle of my stay, someone in Minnesota or someplace donated a bunch of, um, trail bikes and they sent me one, a trail bike. Because I had the roads that I could hop to my, the little villages where I worked.

[Assistant] Which we'll talk about in a little while.

[User] And so I had one of those. But I had a horse and that's why.

[Assistant] Oh, you had a horse.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] And so I had one of those. But I had a horse and that's why.

[Assistant] Oh, you had a horse.

[User] Yes, I had a horse. His name was Tarzan. I was inherited it from the previous volunteer that was there. And he, uh. But you could rent a horse, too. There were horses that someone could, you know, if you wanted to go out into the boondocks, as we called it. But I mean, it was like, you know, a group of people living in a way out.

[Assistant] Very isolated.

[User] Right. But I had this, and this was probably the last year of my service. I had this little motor scooter or motorbike. So I could get into the next town. But I rarely, if ever, I don't remember ever taking it to Medellin because that was pretty much further trip and then you have to have someplace to secure it.

[Assistant] That's right. That's right. But if you have a horse, you have to have some place to park your horse. And you have to feed the horse.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yes, I had a horse. His name was Tarzan. I was inherited it from the previous volunteer that was there. And he, uh. But you could rent a horse, too. There were horses that someone could, you know, if you wanted to go out into the boondocks, as we called it. But I mean, it was like, you know, a group of people living in a way out.

[Assistant] Very isolated.

[User] Right. But I had this, and this was probably the last year of my service. I had this little motor scooter or motorbike. So I could get into the next town. But I rarely, if ever, I don't remember ever taking it to Medellin because that was pretty much further trip and then you have to have someplace to secure it.

[Assistant] That's right. That's right. But if you have a horse, you have to have some place to park your horse. And you have to feed the horse.

[User] Yeah, I had to rent a little place to leave the horse that he could roam around. And then there was a little kid that came and visited us a lot. And I'd, you know, ask him if he would like to take the feed out, to feed him on a regular basis. And then I'd pay them, you know, a little bit. And uh, this was more than he'd ever get, you know, at home. Or, I mean, it's very poor, poor situation. And so he would, he would help out with that. But then I once in a while, I'd have to go out, you know, I'd go out and look at the horse, and I said, this horse isn't eating. And I was thinking that maybe the food wasn't getting to him. But uh, but he survived, you know? When I left, they took the horse and sold it. They did not put in a new volunteer in my village.

[Assistant] I was going to ask you. So the expense of maintaining that horse, paying the kid to watch the horse and buying the food, would have also come out of your hundred dollars a month living allowance?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right. But I had this, and this was probably the last year of my service. I had this little motor scooter or motorbike. So I could get into the next town. But I rarely, if ever, I don't remember ever taking it to Medellin because that was pretty much further trip and then you have to have someplace to secure it.

[Assistant] That's right. That's right. But if you have a horse, you have to have some place to park your horse. And you have to feed the horse.

[User] Yeah, I had to rent a little place to leave the horse that he could roam around. And then there was a little kid that came and visited us a lot. And I'd, you know, ask him if he would like to take the feed out, to feed him on a regular basis. And then I'd pay them, you know, a little bit. And uh, this was more than he'd ever get, you know, at home. Or, I mean, it's very poor, poor situation. And so he would, he would help out with that. But then I once in a while, I'd have to go out, you know, I'd go out and look at the horse, and I said, this horse isn't eating. And I was thinking that maybe the food wasn't getting to him. But uh, but he survived, you know? When I left, they took the horse and sold it. They did not put in a new volunteer in my village.

[Assistant] I was going to ask you. So the expense of maintaining that horse, paying the kid to watch the horse and buying the food, would have also come out of your hundred dollars a month living allowance?

[User] Right.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah. And I'm still trying to get a picture of your house. Did you have, we didn't talk about electricity. Did you have a light bulb in there?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah. And I'm still trying to get a picture of your house. Did you have, we didn't talk about electricity. Did you have a light bulb in there?

[User] There was electricity for two hours on Wednesdays. So if you wanted, and then they expanded it to more days, I can't remember how many days, but we used a lot of candlelight and oil lanterns. But the center, the center of town where the plaza was, where the church was and then the government offices. And then there were a few saloons, you know, like drinking places and food places. Only two perhaps in the whole village. And so on the nights we didn't have, uh, we didn't have electricity and we didn't want to stay in, we'd go down to the canteens and, you know, have a drink with the people. Well, that's what we're supposed to be doing anyway.

[Assistant] That's right, socialize with the people.

[User] We were, yeah, supposed to get to know these people. And they had a drink called aguardiente, which is like a what you might say, firewater. And it was pure alcohol. You know, it was like taking a bottle of alcohol you used on your skin. And they always wanted to challenge you to, you know, drink that stuff. It was awful, but they are very. [tape break]

[Assistant] We were talking about, um, going into town to socialize and one of the reasons that made it, um, an attractive option is that you didn't have electricity at home except for a couple of hours on Wednesdays. And before we get back into the bar and the aguardiente and the rum, I just want to finish getting a handle of your living arrangements. You're living in this house. And it was more like an apartment. What was it made of? Was it wooden? Was it brick?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] We were, yeah, supposed to get to know these people. And they had a drink called aguardiente, which is like a what you might say, firewater. And it was pure alcohol. You know, it was like taking a bottle of alcohol you used on your skin. And they always wanted to challenge you to, you know, drink that stuff. It was awful, but they are very. [tape break]

[Assistant] We were talking about, um, going into town to socialize and one of the reasons that made it, um, an attractive option is that you didn't have electricity at home except for a couple of hours on Wednesdays. And before we get back into the bar and the aguardiente and the rum, I just want to finish getting a handle of your living arrangements. You're living in this house. And it was more like an apartment. What was it made of? Was it wooden? Was it brick?

[User] It was made out of brick. And it was, uh, it was pretty primitive, but made of brick and mortar. It was not, um, the floor was tile floor, you know? There were two industries in town, small industries. They made inexpensive dinnerware, ceramic dinnerware, which were sold in the five and ten type stores in Colombia. And that was the one and only big industry in the town.

[Assistant] And could you bake in it or was there some danger of the lead or whatever in the glaze?

[User] Yeah, no, I don't think so. I think, yeah, there was a caution that we had to take.

[Assistant] Did you have an oven?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] It was made out of brick. And it was, uh, it was pretty primitive, but made of brick and mortar. It was not, um, the floor was tile floor, you know? There were two industries in town, small industries. They made inexpensive dinnerware, ceramic dinnerware, which were sold in the five and ten type stores in Colombia. And that was the one and only big industry in the town.

[Assistant] And could you bake in it or was there some danger of the lead or whatever in the glaze?

[User] Yeah, no, I don't think so. I think, yeah, there was a caution that we had to take.

[Assistant] Did you have an oven?

[User] I did. I bought an oven. It was a very interesting contraption. It was like, oh, something, I guess maybe you might find out in a campsite. A metal square or metal frame thing and it had a wire at the bottom of it I believe that, you know, got electricity. So at the one time when we had electricity, I could cook in it.

[Assistant] You'd have to really plan ahead.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, no, I don't think so. I think, yeah, there was a caution that we had to take.

[Assistant] Did you have an oven?

[User] I did. I bought an oven. It was a very interesting contraption. It was like, oh, something, I guess maybe you might find out in a campsite. A metal square or metal frame thing and it had a wire at the bottom of it I believe that, you know, got electricity. So at the one time when we had electricity, I could cook in it.

[Assistant] You'd have to really plan ahead.

[User] Yeah, right, right. But we did have a burner, a Bunsen burner type camp stove that we could cook in other times, you know, but like if I bought a little piece of roast or something like that, like roast beef, I could cook it in the oven.

[Assistant] And then without electricity, you mentioned music eventually, but without. So you would have had a battery operated record player or?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] I did. I bought an oven. It was a very interesting contraption. It was like, oh, something, I guess maybe you might find out in a campsite. A metal square or metal frame thing and it had a wire at the bottom of it I believe that, you know, got electricity. So at the one time when we had electricity, I could cook in it.

[Assistant] You'd have to really plan ahead.

[User] Yeah, right, right. But we did have a burner, a Bunsen burner type camp stove that we could cook in other times, you know, but like if I bought a little piece of roast or something like that, like roast beef, I could cook it in the oven.

[Assistant] And then without electricity, you mentioned music eventually, but without. So you would have had a battery operated record player or?

[User] No, no, I had. I got it. Once we got electricity, probably by the second year we were there, we got electricity. And electricity on a more regular basis, but not full time. I think we got it on every day of the week, every night of the week, it went on a certain time at night. And then I could, I bought a little record player.

[Assistant] Had you brought records from home or were you listening to local?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, right, right. But we did have a burner, a Bunsen burner type camp stove that we could cook in other times, you know, but like if I bought a little piece of roast or something like that, like roast beef, I could cook it in the oven.

[Assistant] And then without electricity, you mentioned music eventually, but without. So you would have had a battery operated record player or?

[User] No, no, I had. I got it. Once we got electricity, probably by the second year we were there, we got electricity. And electricity on a more regular basis, but not full time. I think we got it on every day of the week, every night of the week, it went on a certain time at night. And then I could, I bought a little record player.

[Assistant] Had you brought records from home or were you listening to local?

[User] I asked my brother, a brother here. I had some records here in New Orleans in his apartment. And so he sent me them. It took it took forever to get here, but he sent them to me. And then there was, um, when you went to Medellin, there were. Medellin was a pretty cosmopolitan city. And they had some, uh, some places where they sold records, you know, I suppose, especially Spanish, Latin.

[Assistant] Yeah. So did you get into Colombian music?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] No, no, I had. I got it. Once we got electricity, probably by the second year we were there, we got electricity. And electricity on a more regular basis, but not full time. I think we got it on every day of the week, every night of the week, it went on a certain time at night. And then I could, I bought a little record player.

[Assistant] Had you brought records from home or were you listening to local?

[User] I asked my brother, a brother here. I had some records here in New Orleans in his apartment. And so he sent me them. It took it took forever to get here, but he sent them to me. And then there was, um, when you went to Medellin, there were. Medellin was a pretty cosmopolitan city. And they had some, uh, some places where they sold records, you know, I suppose, especially Spanish, Latin.

[Assistant] Yeah. So did you get into Colombian music?

[User] Uh, yeah, pretty much, because.

[Assistant] Dancing the cumbia?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] I asked my brother, a brother here. I had some records here in New Orleans in his apartment. And so he sent me them. It took it took forever to get here, but he sent them to me. And then there was, um, when you went to Medellin, there were. Medellin was a pretty cosmopolitan city. And they had some, uh, some places where they sold records, you know, I suppose, especially Spanish, Latin.

[Assistant] Yeah. So did you get into Colombian music?

[User] Uh, yeah, pretty much, because.

[Assistant] Dancing the cumbia?

[User] Yeah, the cumbia. Oh yeah, we were big in cumbia and we were also, uh, whenever there was festivals, there was a lot of dancing in Colombia, you know, the festival. Whether they were church oriented or otherwise, you know, there was dancing and everyone there, very happy people, you know, very happy go lucky people, you know, they love. Their famous expression was "puente," which meant that a national holiday arrived on a Thursday or Friday, and then you had the whole weekend and they'd call it a bridge. Puente means bridge. And so you took advantage of the holiday to combine it with the weekend.

[Assistant] Sure, I can just imagine that if it was a holiday on the Thursday, then why on earth would you even think about going to work on Friday?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Uh, yeah, pretty much, because.

[Assistant] Dancing the cumbia?

[User] Yeah, the cumbia. Oh yeah, we were big in cumbia and we were also, uh, whenever there was festivals, there was a lot of dancing in Colombia, you know, the festival. Whether they were church oriented or otherwise, you know, there was dancing and everyone there, very happy people, you know, very happy go lucky people, you know, they love. Their famous expression was "puente," which meant that a national holiday arrived on a Thursday or Friday, and then you had the whole weekend and they'd call it a bridge. Puente means bridge. And so you took advantage of the holiday to combine it with the weekend.

[Assistant] Sure, I can just imagine that if it was a holiday on the Thursday, then why on earth would you even think about going to work on Friday?

[User] Exactly. Very much like New Orleans.

[Assistant] And you talked about reading a little bit. You mentioned reading. Did Peace Corps provide you with a book locker?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, the cumbia. Oh yeah, we were big in cumbia and we were also, uh, whenever there was festivals, there was a lot of dancing in Colombia, you know, the festival. Whether they were church oriented or otherwise, you know, there was dancing and everyone there, very happy people, you know, very happy go lucky people, you know, they love. Their famous expression was "puente," which meant that a national holiday arrived on a Thursday or Friday, and then you had the whole weekend and they'd call it a bridge. Puente means bridge. And so you took advantage of the holiday to combine it with the weekend.

[Assistant] Sure, I can just imagine that if it was a holiday on the Thursday, then why on earth would you even think about going to work on Friday?

[User] Exactly. Very much like New Orleans.

[Assistant] And you talked about reading a little bit. You mentioned reading. Did Peace Corps provide you with a book locker?

[User] They did. They did give us a whole locker of books.

[Assistant] Today, you know, they don't do that. Can you describe what a book locker was and what was in it?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] They did. They did give us a whole locker of books.

[Assistant] Today, you know, they don't do that. Can you describe what a book locker was and what was in it?

[User] It was like a regular, uh, you know? Two feet high, maybe two feet high and four feet long. You know, like they do in the army. And they send you a whole thing of books from, you know, any kind. Romance novels or, you know, the whole gamut. A dictionary was in it. And you know, a number of things. You might have brought some books with you too. But um, Medellin is the second largest city in the country, and it had a lot of bookstores and some in English and some, you know, a lot more in Spanish. So that was available to us. And the interesting part about one of my, one of my most enduring and important projects in my village was a town library. They never had a town library and there was a group of women who wanted to establish one. The idea of our, when we were in the Peace Corps, was that you went in and you got to know the people and then you try to get people to get together and decide what they wanted for their community.

[Assistant] Yes.

[User] And there was a group of women who wanted a library. And so we would meet once a week and we would discuss how we're going to implement this library. And we got a library eventually, with the help of. A lot of people from the village gave books. A lot of people that had left the village and lived in Bogota or Medellin or what have you, had sent books to our group, our library group. And I, of course, had to learn the Dewey Decimal System in college.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you had an idea of that.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] It was like a regular, uh, you know? Two feet high, maybe two feet high and four feet long. You know, like they do in the army. And they send you a whole thing of books from, you know, any kind. Romance novels or, you know, the whole gamut. A dictionary was in it. And you know, a number of things. You might have brought some books with you too. But um, Medellin is the second largest city in the country, and it had a lot of bookstores and some in English and some, you know, a lot more in Spanish. So that was available to us. And the interesting part about one of my, one of my most enduring and important projects in my village was a town library. They never had a town library and there was a group of women who wanted to establish one. The idea of our, when we were in the Peace Corps, was that you went in and you got to know the people and then you try to get people to get together and decide what they wanted for their community.

[Assistant] Yes.

[User] And there was a group of women who wanted a library. And so we would meet once a week and we would discuss how we're going to implement this library. And we got a library eventually, with the help of. A lot of people from the village gave books. A lot of people that had left the village and lived in Bogota or Medellin or what have you, had sent books to our group, our library group. And I, of course, had to learn the Dewey Decimal System in college.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you had an idea of that.

[User] And so we tried to set it up the same way. And eventually we collected over five hundred books and we opened the library. The priest gave us a little room next to the church that we could use.

[Assistant] You didn't have to rent the space?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] And there was a group of women who wanted a library. And so we would meet once a week and we would discuss how we're going to implement this library. And we got a library eventually, with the help of. A lot of people from the village gave books. A lot of people that had left the village and lived in Bogota or Medellin or what have you, had sent books to our group, our library group. And I, of course, had to learn the Dewey Decimal System in college.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you had an idea of that.

[User] And so we tried to set it up the same way. And eventually we collected over five hundred books and we opened the library. The priest gave us a little room next to the church that we could use.

[Assistant] You didn't have to rent the space?

[User] No, we didn't.

[Assistant] Just fix it up a little bit maybe?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] And so we tried to set it up the same way. And eventually we collected over five hundred books and we opened the library. The priest gave us a little room next to the church that we could use.

[Assistant] You didn't have to rent the space?

[User] No, we didn't.

[Assistant] Just fix it up a little bit maybe?

[User] Right. So yeah, it was. We just had to get some chairs and some shelving and things like that.

[Assistant] And were those donated? Did people build the shelves?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] No, we didn't.

[Assistant] Just fix it up a little bit maybe?

[User] Right. So yeah, it was. We just had to get some chairs and some shelving and things like that.

[Assistant] And were those donated? Did people build the shelves?

[User] Yeah, basically donated labor. Yeah, right. And we got the library set up not too long before I was about ready to leave. And we finally got it done. But we got a lot of help from the Pan-American Union. They supplied us with books and they supplied us with sources for books and. The Pan-American. What did they call it, Pan-American? I don't think it's any longer in existence, but Pan-American something. League? Anyway, it was a United States effort to work with Latin American countries in this hemisphere. Anyway.

[Assistant] And did you have to have a staff person who would be trained and keep the bookshelves in order?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right. So yeah, it was. We just had to get some chairs and some shelving and things like that.

[Assistant] And were those donated? Did people build the shelves?

[User] Yeah, basically donated labor. Yeah, right. And we got the library set up not too long before I was about ready to leave. And we finally got it done. But we got a lot of help from the Pan-American Union. They supplied us with books and they supplied us with sources for books and. The Pan-American. What did they call it, Pan-American? I don't think it's any longer in existence, but Pan-American something. League? Anyway, it was a United States effort to work with Latin American countries in this hemisphere. Anyway.

[Assistant] And did you have to have a staff person who would be trained and keep the bookshelves in order?

[User] Oh yeah, no, that was completely volunteer. The women that were on the committee, right? So and it was rather successful, and the priest was very much in favor of it. He donated the room for the. He wasn't always that favorable about things we did. But that one he did. And well, there are so many women. They were all women, but they were my age. They were graduates from the collego, the high school. Women and nuns taught it. And so. And we had, you know, quite a group. We had a lot of fun.

[Assistant] Now how did you get that going? How did you find the people? How did you identify which people you would sit down with and start organizing this library?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, basically donated labor. Yeah, right. And we got the library set up not too long before I was about ready to leave. And we finally got it done. But we got a lot of help from the Pan-American Union. They supplied us with books and they supplied us with sources for books and. The Pan-American. What did they call it, Pan-American? I don't think it's any longer in existence, but Pan-American something. League? Anyway, it was a United States effort to work with Latin American countries in this hemisphere. Anyway.

[Assistant] And did you have to have a staff person who would be trained and keep the bookshelves in order?

[User] Oh yeah, no, that was completely volunteer. The women that were on the committee, right? So and it was rather successful, and the priest was very much in favor of it. He donated the room for the. He wasn't always that favorable about things we did. But that one he did. And well, there are so many women. They were all women, but they were my age. They were graduates from the collego, the high school. Women and nuns taught it. And so. And we had, you know, quite a group. We had a lot of fun.

[Assistant] Now how did you get that going? How did you find the people? How did you identify which people you would sit down with and start organizing this library?

[User] We had a, uh, our connection was with the Department of Health. So we worked with the people that were sent out here as extension workers like, to work in villages like ours, to establish health programs, you know, teach people how to, you know, make, you know, utilize what's available to them as well as, whatever, you know, the health questions, help answer health questions, programs, etc. Anyway, so I went. So my Colombian co-partner was from the Department of Health.

[Assistant] So you did. You had a Colombian counterpart.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Oh yeah, no, that was completely volunteer. The women that were on the committee, right? So and it was rather successful, and the priest was very much in favor of it. He donated the room for the. He wasn't always that favorable about things we did. But that one he did. And well, there are so many women. They were all women, but they were my age. They were graduates from the collego, the high school. Women and nuns taught it. And so. And we had, you know, quite a group. We had a lot of fun.

[Assistant] Now how did you get that going? How did you find the people? How did you identify which people you would sit down with and start organizing this library?

[User] We had a, uh, our connection was with the Department of Health. So we worked with the people that were sent out here as extension workers like, to work in villages like ours, to establish health programs, you know, teach people how to, you know, make, you know, utilize what's available to them as well as, whatever, you know, the health questions, help answer health questions, programs, etc. Anyway, so I went. So my Colombian co-partner was from the Department of Health.

[Assistant] So you did. You had a Colombian counterpart.

[User] Yeah, yeah. And he was, you know, it was an off and on relationship because he had much more work to do that was more, not hands-on, you know.

[Assistant] And did he live in El Carmen?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] We had a, uh, our connection was with the Department of Health. So we worked with the people that were sent out here as extension workers like, to work in villages like ours, to establish health programs, you know, teach people how to, you know, make, you know, utilize what's available to them as well as, whatever, you know, the health questions, help answer health questions, programs, etc. Anyway, so I went. So my Colombian co-partner was from the Department of Health.

[Assistant] So you did. You had a Colombian counterpart.

[User] Yeah, yeah. And he was, you know, it was an off and on relationship because he had much more work to do that was more, not hands-on, you know.

[Assistant] And did he live in El Carmen?

[User] Yeah, he did. He did live in El Carmen, but he was gone quite a bit. But anyway, then they had volunteers. And these were the women that volunteered for the health department. And they, I got to know them.

[Assistant] And then they were the ones who came up with this idea.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, yeah. And he was, you know, it was an off and on relationship because he had much more work to do that was more, not hands-on, you know.

[Assistant] And did he live in El Carmen?

[User] Yeah, he did. He did live in El Carmen, but he was gone quite a bit. But anyway, then they had volunteers. And these were the women that volunteered for the health department. And they, I got to know them.

[Assistant] And then they were the ones who came up with this idea.

[User] Yeah, they came up with the idea. We want a library. And we have meetings and then Barry and I would cook something, you know, for them, something that they are not familiar with. Like spaghetti and meatballs. And they loved it, you know, because they had never had that. You know, I can't think of any.

[Assistant] Well, what would have been the typical diet of people living in your village?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, they came up with the idea. We want a library. And we have meetings and then Barry and I would cook something, you know, for them, something that they are not familiar with. Like spaghetti and meatballs. And they loved it, you know, because they had never had that. You know, I can't think of any.

[Assistant] Well, what would have been the typical diet of people living in your village?

[User] Well, yucca is a big, that's a root. And that is like a, what do they call them, red potato? What is red potato?

[Assistant] A yam?

[User] A yam, yeah. It's like a yam, but lighter in texture.

[Assistant] Yeah, could it also be sometimes called manioc or cassava?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] A yam, yeah. It's like a yam, but lighter in texture.

[Assistant] Yeah, could it also be sometimes called manioc or cassava?

[User] Maniac is a little tougher.

[Assistant] Is it?

[User] Yeah. Cassava? I can't remember.

[Assistant] It's a white tuber.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Maniac is a little tougher.

[Assistant] Is it?

[User] Yeah. Cassava? I can't remember.

[Assistant] It's a white tuber.

[User] Yeah, right.

[Assistant] We ate that in Nigeria, and I think I've heard people say that yucca is something like what you were eating across the sea, which doesn't have a lot of nutritional value.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, right.

[Assistant] We ate that in Nigeria, and I think I've heard people say that yucca is something like what you were eating across the sea, which doesn't have a lot of nutritional value.

[User] No, no, no, no. Potatoes were farmed. Tomatoes were farmed. And a number of vegetables. So I'm trying to think. A lot of soup. You know, soup was a very popular thing.

[Assistant] Onion? Garlic.

[User] Yeah. Or chicken. But you know, one chicken for a lot of soup. And then, um, so chicken was made and then they might serve the chicken separately. And yucca as the main dish, and the soup was extra. But it was.

[Assistant] And the yucca would be sliced or mashed or?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] No, you know, it would in many, many ways, many ways. But very often it was in pieces and very often in soup. Rice was very, very, very popular. Rice was very popular. And um, let me think about what else? It's a long time ago.

[Assistant] Anything green?

[User] Uh, not much. Not very much at all. Um, I can't remember any spinach being grown or lettuce or anything like that. That is a very tough product to grow. I mean, you know.

[Assistant] Oh, lettuce?

[User] Yeah, we don't even grow it here I don't think. I think it's too hot. I think you have to have, you know, California weather.

[Assistant] We grow it in Wisconsin.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Uh, not much. Not very much at all. Um, I can't remember any spinach being grown or lettuce or anything like that. That is a very tough product to grow. I mean, you know.

[Assistant] Oh, lettuce?

[User] Yeah, we don't even grow it here I don't think. I think it's too hot. I think you have to have, you know, California weather.

[Assistant] We grow it in Wisconsin.

[User] Oh, yeah, in Wisconsin, probably. Yeah. Um, but yeah, the food was really one of the biggest drawbacks, and that's why we resorted to, I resorted to, you know, cooking myself. There was like a hostel in my village where they called it a hotel, but it was hardly a hotel. But it was, you know, they had, the main dish was chicken soup, you know, and very little parts of chicken, mostly broth.

[Assistant] So to keep yourself healthy, you would go and purchase some kind of meat maybe?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, we don't even grow it here I don't think. I think it's too hot. I think you have to have, you know, California weather.

[Assistant] We grow it in Wisconsin.

[User] Oh, yeah, in Wisconsin, probably. Yeah. Um, but yeah, the food was really one of the biggest drawbacks, and that's why we resorted to, I resorted to, you know, cooking myself. There was like a hostel in my village where they called it a hotel, but it was hardly a hotel. But it was, you know, they had, the main dish was chicken soup, you know, and very little parts of chicken, mostly broth.

[Assistant] So to keep yourself healthy, you would go and purchase some kind of meat maybe?

[User] Fruit and vegetables from the market, they had market every Saturday. So people brought in stuff from the farms surrounding the people. So you could buy. And then in this little village that was close by, a larger village than mine. A famous village too, Rionegro it was called. Black River. Famous in history of Colombia. But anyway, they had not only a butcher, but they had a much, much better market, farmer's market. So you could go in there. So you know, it was, uh.

[Assistant] So did you see yourself as, um, trying to expand the choices that people would make when they're shopping to get more healthier food?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Fruit and vegetables from the market, they had market every Saturday. So people brought in stuff from the farms surrounding the people. So you could buy. And then in this little village that was close by, a larger village than mine. A famous village too, Rionegro it was called. Black River. Famous in history of Colombia. But anyway, they had not only a butcher, but they had a much, much better market, farmer's market. So you could go in there. So you know, it was, uh.

[Assistant] So did you see yourself as, um, trying to expand the choices that people would make when they're shopping to get more healthier food?

[User] Yeah. One, uh, yeah. We were, like we had gone out into a very rural village, rural area. We call anything that was outside of our village rural. The village wasn't much more, but they were clustered together. I mean, my village was clustered. There were ten thousand people in my village.

[Assistant] Oh, wow.

[User] Yeah, so it was spread out pretty much. But outside of that, you know, everything was, you know, just groups of people that had settled outside due to farming land and survive. And so we had a tomato co-op that we had grown, that we started, with some farmers that, you know, were interested in growing tomatoes.

[Assistant] So they hadn't grown tomatoes before?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah. One, uh, yeah. We were, like we had gone out into a very rural village, rural area. We call anything that was outside of our village rural. The village wasn't much more, but they were clustered together. I mean, my village was clustered. There were ten thousand people in my village.

[Assistant] Oh, wow.

[User] Yeah, so it was spread out pretty much. But outside of that, you know, everything was, you know, just groups of people that had settled outside due to farming land and survive. And so we had a tomato co-op that we had grown, that we started, with some farmers that, you know, were interested in growing tomatoes.

[Assistant] So they hadn't grown tomatoes before?

[User] Yeah, no, they did, but on a very small basis, you know.

[Assistant] So the co-op was an idea to help them grow more efficiently and get things to market cooperatively.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, so it was spread out pretty much. But outside of that, you know, everything was, you know, just groups of people that had settled outside due to farming land and survive. And so we had a tomato co-op that we had grown, that we started, with some farmers that, you know, were interested in growing tomatoes.

[Assistant] So they hadn't grown tomatoes before?

[User] Yeah, no, they did, but on a very small basis, you know.

[Assistant] So the co-op was an idea to help them grow more efficiently and get things to market cooperatively.

[User] That's right. Right. And then we had these excursions by the health department to go out to a village that we could do demonstrations. And I especially remember, the reason I remember is because I have a photo of a group of us going out there, the other people. Some of the library crowd and my counterpart and anyway and the nurse from the Department of Health and the doctor. And we all went out to this village, to this little not much of a village, but it was a cluster of people, and we demonstrated on how to cook rabbit. And so there were rabbits, a lot of rabbits in the area.

[Assistant] Rabbits were plentiful. Ok. That's a good source of protein.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, no, they did, but on a very small basis, you know.

[Assistant] So the co-op was an idea to help them grow more efficiently and get things to market cooperatively.

[User] That's right. Right. And then we had these excursions by the health department to go out to a village that we could do demonstrations. And I especially remember, the reason I remember is because I have a photo of a group of us going out there, the other people. Some of the library crowd and my counterpart and anyway and the nurse from the Department of Health and the doctor. And we all went out to this village, to this little not much of a village, but it was a cluster of people, and we demonstrated on how to cook rabbit. And so there were rabbits, a lot of rabbits in the area.

[Assistant] Rabbits were plentiful. Ok. That's a good source of protein.

[User] That's right. And because you know, the way. They lived off the land and they would come in on a Saturday because that was market day and buy stuff that the farmers brought in. And then they would, they buy enough, you know, like we do, for a week until the next market. The thing is, they would, um, most of the time resort to making the most simple things, you know, back in their own homes, you know? So we were trying to get them to eat a little bit more nutrition and we mixed in some vegetables with that rabbit demonstration. But um, it was uh, it's hard to try to change people's habits.

[Assistant] You know, that's a part of it. What one eats is part of one's culture.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] That's right. Right. And then we had these excursions by the health department to go out to a village that we could do demonstrations. And I especially remember, the reason I remember is because I have a photo of a group of us going out there, the other people. Some of the library crowd and my counterpart and anyway and the nurse from the Department of Health and the doctor. And we all went out to this village, to this little not much of a village, but it was a cluster of people, and we demonstrated on how to cook rabbit. And so there were rabbits, a lot of rabbits in the area.

[Assistant] Rabbits were plentiful. Ok. That's a good source of protein.

[User] That's right. And because you know, the way. They lived off the land and they would come in on a Saturday because that was market day and buy stuff that the farmers brought in. And then they would, they buy enough, you know, like we do, for a week until the next market. The thing is, they would, um, most of the time resort to making the most simple things, you know, back in their own homes, you know? So we were trying to get them to eat a little bit more nutrition and we mixed in some vegetables with that rabbit demonstration. But um, it was uh, it's hard to try to change people's habits.

[Assistant] You know, that's a part of it. What one eats is part of one's culture.

[User] Right, right. Exactly. Exactly. And they were very big on rice. Very big, you know.

[Assistant] Probably white polished rice.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] That's right. And because you know, the way. They lived off the land and they would come in on a Saturday because that was market day and buy stuff that the farmers brought in. And then they would, they buy enough, you know, like we do, for a week until the next market. The thing is, they would, um, most of the time resort to making the most simple things, you know, back in their own homes, you know? So we were trying to get them to eat a little bit more nutrition and we mixed in some vegetables with that rabbit demonstration. But um, it was uh, it's hard to try to change people's habits.

[Assistant] You know, that's a part of it. What one eats is part of one's culture.

[User] Right, right. Exactly. Exactly. And they were very big on rice. Very big, you know.

[Assistant] Probably white polished rice.

[User] Right. And when CARE sent me down a big thing of cornmeal, they fed it to the animals. They didn't know what.

[Assistant] People don't eat that, right?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right, right. Exactly. Exactly. And they were very big on rice. Very big, you know.

[Assistant] Probably white polished rice.

[User] Right. And when CARE sent me down a big thing of cornmeal, they fed it to the animals. They didn't know what.

[Assistant] People don't eat that, right?

[User] Right. So I started showing them how to make cornbread, you know, because that was a Southern dish. And they loved it.

[Assistant] Did they? Oh good.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right. And when CARE sent me down a big thing of cornmeal, they fed it to the animals. They didn't know what.

[Assistant] People don't eat that, right?

[User] Right. So I started showing them how to make cornbread, you know, because that was a Southern dish. And they loved it.

[Assistant] Did they? Oh good.

[User] Yeah, they loved it because it was something different and it was something in a way they were familiar with, but they, you know, just never developed their bread making.

[Assistant] Initially that came ready ground in a big bag.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right. So I started showing them how to make cornbread, you know, because that was a Southern dish. And they loved it.

[Assistant] Did they? Oh good.

[User] Yeah, they loved it because it was something different and it was something in a way they were familiar with, but they, you know, just never developed their bread making.

[Assistant] Initially that came ready ground in a big bag.

[User] Big sack, yeah.

[Assistant] But then did they ever get into growing corn for their own consumption?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, they loved it because it was something different and it was something in a way they were familiar with, but they, you know, just never developed their bread making.

[Assistant] Initially that came ready ground in a big bag.

[User] Big sack, yeah.

[Assistant] But then did they ever get into growing corn for their own consumption?

[User] They did. They did grow corn, but they didn't. I don't think they ever grind it for cornmeal. And they fed it to their animals, a lot them did, because it was a low-grade corn.

[Assistant] Well, you'd have to have a mill. And if you didn't have a mill.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right, right. And exactly. And they had, in some of the areas they had. I'm trying to think of where that was, but they an innovative mill where the horse would walk around in circles. Walk around in circles and grind the corn.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah.

[User] Yeah, they did have that. I remember that now. I don't know where in the world that was. But uh, it's hard to remember now after 50 years.

[Assistant] Sure.

[User] You know, the Peace Corps was one of the great experiences. I consider it one of the great experiences in my life, you know, wouldn't trade it for the world. But you still, you get older, you can't remember everything.

[Assistant] Yeah, but we do remember a lot. So there's a few details.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, they did have that. I remember that now. I don't know where in the world that was. But uh, it's hard to remember now after 50 years.

[Assistant] Sure.

[User] You know, the Peace Corps was one of the great experiences. I consider it one of the great experiences in my life, you know, wouldn't trade it for the world. But you still, you get older, you can't remember everything.

[Assistant] Yeah, but we do remember a lot. So there's a few details.

[User] A lot more than we do of the, you know, the stuff we do here in the United States that, you know, just comes naturally, natural for us. I went back, you know, as a Crisis Corps volunteer.

[Assistant] Oh, you did?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] You know, the Peace Corps was one of the great experiences. I consider it one of the great experiences in my life, you know, wouldn't trade it for the world. But you still, you get older, you can't remember everything.

[Assistant] Yeah, but we do remember a lot. So there's a few details.

[User] A lot more than we do of the, you know, the stuff we do here in the United States that, you know, just comes naturally, natural for us. I went back, you know, as a Crisis Corps volunteer.

[Assistant] Oh, you did?

[User] To El Salvador, after two big earthquakes in 2001. And I helped in construction because I had construction ability and, uh, it was interesting to see how some things have changed, but some things remain the same. You know, the Salvadoranians were not much different than the Colombians. And the thing I thought was really impressive was that the quality of volunteers was still very high and they were still very enthusiastic.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah, those things remain the same.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] A lot more than we do of the, you know, the stuff we do here in the United States that, you know, just comes naturally, natural for us. I went back, you know, as a Crisis Corps volunteer.

[Assistant] Oh, you did?

[User] To El Salvador, after two big earthquakes in 2001. And I helped in construction because I had construction ability and, uh, it was interesting to see how some things have changed, but some things remain the same. You know, the Salvadoranians were not much different than the Colombians. And the thing I thought was really impressive was that the quality of volunteers was still very high and they were still very enthusiastic.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah, those things remain the same.

[User] But a lot of the stuff was reminiscent of Colombia.

[Assistant] So when you were up there trying to, um, work more nutrition into people's diets and getting a co-op for the tomato growers and getting a library going, um. At any point, did you have the sense that, um, you were doing something that another Colombian could do just as well? Or did you have the sense that it needed to, that your work could be done uniquely by an American?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] But a lot of the stuff was reminiscent of Colombia.

[Assistant] So when you were up there trying to, um, work more nutrition into people's diets and getting a co-op for the tomato growers and getting a library going, um. At any point, did you have the sense that, um, you were doing something that another Colombian could do just as well? Or did you have the sense that it needed to, that your work could be done uniquely by an American?

[User] No, I didn't. I think that what we came to realize was that Colombia, uh, was not developing very rapidly at the time because there was no interest in those people with the knowledge and the people without the knowledge, you know, to, you know, the people that there was not people. It was. When we came down, there was someone from Switzerland that was doing some work in that village. But I think that the Peace Corps, that was one of the contributions they were making, was that they were giving the people in all these villages all around Colombia the opportunity of a person with a different perspective.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah.

[User] To show what a little bit. A little bit. Not a great deal. I have to admit it's not you're not changing the world, but a little bit of innovation that they could carry on when we were not there.

[Assistant] That's right. So yes, yes. And your counterpart, you already explained you're so very busy that he didn't. He really didn't have the time that you did to devote in such a very local focus.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] No, I didn't. I think that what we came to realize was that Colombia, uh, was not developing very rapidly at the time because there was no interest in those people with the knowledge and the people without the knowledge, you know, to, you know, the people that there was not people. It was. When we came down, there was someone from Switzerland that was doing some work in that village. But I think that the Peace Corps, that was one of the contributions they were making, was that they were giving the people in all these villages all around Colombia the opportunity of a person with a different perspective.

[Assistant] Yeah, yeah.

[User] To show what a little bit. A little bit. Not a great deal. I have to admit it's not you're not changing the world, but a little bit of innovation that they could carry on when we were not there.

[Assistant] That's right. So yes, yes. And your counterpart, you already explained you're so very busy that he didn't. He really didn't have the time that you did to devote in such a very local focus.

[User] Right. And he would leave a lot, you know, he would be gone. I don't know whether it was because of the work schedule or because, you know, I thought he was just goofing off. But, you know, and he was going back into Medellin, all the executives and all that. And so I think that the fact that we were there in the village 90 percent of the time, you know, and we were trying, you know, different things, you know. And just our presence was a big contribution to the life of Colombia because they had never known anyone to come into their village and live.

[Assistant] That's right. And this is what an American is like?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] To show what a little bit. A little bit. Not a great deal. I have to admit it's not you're not changing the world, but a little bit of innovation that they could carry on when we were not there.

[Assistant] That's right. So yes, yes. And your counterpart, you already explained you're so very busy that he didn't. He really didn't have the time that you did to devote in such a very local focus.

[User] Right. And he would leave a lot, you know, he would be gone. I don't know whether it was because of the work schedule or because, you know, I thought he was just goofing off. But, you know, and he was going back into Medellin, all the executives and all that. And so I think that the fact that we were there in the village 90 percent of the time, you know, and we were trying, you know, different things, you know. And just our presence was a big contribution to the life of Colombia because they had never known anyone to come into their village and live.

[Assistant] That's right. And this is what an American is like?

[User] And they all thought I was half crazy too. Somewhat anyway. [coughs] I'm having terrible congestion.

[Assistant] I'm glad we've got the water here. Do you want to take a little break? No? OK.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right. And he would leave a lot, you know, he would be gone. I don't know whether it was because of the work schedule or because, you know, I thought he was just goofing off. But, you know, and he was going back into Medellin, all the executives and all that. And so I think that the fact that we were there in the village 90 percent of the time, you know, and we were trying, you know, different things, you know. And just our presence was a big contribution to the life of Colombia because they had never known anyone to come into their village and live.

[Assistant] That's right. And this is what an American is like?

[User] And they all thought I was half crazy too. Somewhat anyway. [coughs] I'm having terrible congestion.

[Assistant] I'm glad we've got the water here. Do you want to take a little break? No? OK.

[User] I'm fine. So the only thing. I don't know.

[Assistant] So did your Spanish keep getting better? Obviously, it must be getting better and better the whole time.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] And they all thought I was half crazy too. Somewhat anyway. [coughs] I'm having terrible congestion.

[Assistant] I'm glad we've got the water here. Do you want to take a little break? No? OK.

[User] I'm fine. So the only thing. I don't know.

[Assistant] So did your Spanish keep getting better? Obviously, it must be getting better and better the whole time.

[User] Oh, definitely it was, especially after I got into El Carmen because I lost my partner. And so once you stop talking to someone in English, you're on your own, you know. You have to speak Spanish, or you don't speak.

[Assistant] Yeah, you might. So it sounds like you went weeks without speaking English, right?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] I'm fine. So the only thing. I don't know.

[Assistant] So did your Spanish keep getting better? Obviously, it must be getting better and better the whole time.

[User] Oh, definitely it was, especially after I got into El Carmen because I lost my partner. And so once you stop talking to someone in English, you're on your own, you know. You have to speak Spanish, or you don't speak.

[Assistant] Yeah, you might. So it sounds like you went weeks without speaking English, right?

[User] Oh yeah.

[Assistant] After you were alone up there?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Oh, definitely it was, especially after I got into El Carmen because I lost my partner. And so once you stop talking to someone in English, you're on your own, you know. You have to speak Spanish, or you don't speak.

[Assistant] Yeah, you might. So it sounds like you went weeks without speaking English, right?

[User] Oh yeah.

[Assistant] After you were alone up there?

[User] Yeah, sure. And uh, I don't know. I had a good time. I have to admit that I had a good time. I enjoyed the Colombian people. I enjoyed their teasing me about my Spanish and, um, you know, about the expressions I picked up and I used at the wrong time.

[Assistant] And they'd find that funny.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Oh yeah.

[Assistant] After you were alone up there?

[User] Yeah, sure. And uh, I don't know. I had a good time. I have to admit that I had a good time. I enjoyed the Colombian people. I enjoyed their teasing me about my Spanish and, um, you know, about the expressions I picked up and I used at the wrong time.

[Assistant] And they'd find that funny.

[User] Because our lives were pretty simple, too, you know, and they didn't have much to entertainment.

[Assistant] You came and provided that.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah, sure. And uh, I don't know. I had a good time. I have to admit that I had a good time. I enjoyed the Colombian people. I enjoyed their teasing me about my Spanish and, um, you know, about the expressions I picked up and I used at the wrong time.

[Assistant] And they'd find that funny.

[User] Because our lives were pretty simple, too, you know, and they didn't have much to entertainment.

[Assistant] You came and provided that.

[User] Right.

[Assistant] And you were this sort of gets us back around to where we were at the end of the last tape, where you would go into town and have a few beers with the guys and they were trying to get you to drink aguardiente. But then, you were just about to say the other thing that they made, and the tape shut off. It wasn't aguardiente, it was?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Because our lives were pretty simple, too, you know, and they didn't have much to entertainment.

[Assistant] You came and provided that.

[User] Right.

[Assistant] And you were this sort of gets us back around to where we were at the end of the last tape, where you would go into town and have a few beers with the guys and they were trying to get you to drink aguardiente. But then, you were just about to say the other thing that they made, and the tape shut off. It wasn't aguardiente, it was?

[User] Oh, uh.

[Assistant] Oh, now I'm putting you on the spot. You had said something about rum. I think you were saying that they made it.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right.

[Assistant] And you were this sort of gets us back around to where we were at the end of the last tape, where you would go into town and have a few beers with the guys and they were trying to get you to drink aguardiente. But then, you were just about to say the other thing that they made, and the tape shut off. It wasn't aguardiente, it was?

[User] Oh, uh.

[Assistant] Oh, now I'm putting you on the spot. You had said something about rum. I think you were saying that they made it.

[User] De Caldas was the famous rum in Colombia, but in Medellin there were a few restaurants. There was a Swiss bakery that was very popular because they really had great pastry, you know, and you certainly didn't get that in the village, at your site, we called it. There was one Chinese restaurant in Medellin that we went to because that really did give you, you know, some vegetables and, you know, as well as all the other stuff, the pasta and all that. But Colombia, I mean. Medellin was such an international town, city, that we got to know Germans and French people and all that, and so there was a mixture of them and they were there for different reasons, not like us. They were there with money backing them so they would have parties. And, you know, we would go to their parties.

[Assistant] They'd invite you. Very pleasant.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Oh, uh.

[Assistant] Oh, now I'm putting you on the spot. You had said something about rum. I think you were saying that they made it.

[User] De Caldas was the famous rum in Colombia, but in Medellin there were a few restaurants. There was a Swiss bakery that was very popular because they really had great pastry, you know, and you certainly didn't get that in the village, at your site, we called it. There was one Chinese restaurant in Medellin that we went to because that really did give you, you know, some vegetables and, you know, as well as all the other stuff, the pasta and all that. But Colombia, I mean. Medellin was such an international town, city, that we got to know Germans and French people and all that, and so there was a mixture of them and they were there for different reasons, not like us. They were there with money backing them so they would have parties. And, you know, we would go to their parties.

[Assistant] They'd invite you. Very pleasant.

[User] Right, right. And so and then there were, you know, some other people that were there that were doing, you know, some hands-on work like teachers from England and So I don't know. I liked going to Medellin mainly because of what, you know, mainly because of what you could eat. But I wasn't really wild about exclusively hanging around with the other Americans, you know, other Peace Corps volunteers. I like seeing my buddies from my group. But just to go and hang out with the rest of the Peace Corps volunteers was not my cup of tea.

[Assistant] More interesting things to do. Did you have, um, people coming out to your village to check up on you or to see if you needed any help? Did Peace Corps staff come to visit you?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right, right. And so and then there were, you know, some other people that were there that were doing, you know, some hands-on work like teachers from England and So I don't know. I liked going to Medellin mainly because of what, you know, mainly because of what you could eat. But I wasn't really wild about exclusively hanging around with the other Americans, you know, other Peace Corps volunteers. I like seeing my buddies from my group. But just to go and hang out with the rest of the Peace Corps volunteers was not my cup of tea.

[Assistant] More interesting things to do. Did you have, um, people coming out to your village to check up on you or to see if you needed any help? Did Peace Corps staff come to visit you?

[User] There's a Peace Corps leader there. We had a Peace Corps leader who was from either the first or second group, the first group or our group. And when the first group made changes or something like that, they switched them around or they left because they were terminating service. Then we had someone from our group. And in fact, my Peace Corps leader was just here in town a week ago, and I hadn't seen him in 50 years, but he was chosen from, you know, the group. A number of my friends were made leaders. So they had a jeep and they traveled from one site to another to see what they needed, what people needed, how things were going. You know, nothing, you know, and nothing great. You know, it was a visit and a connection with the outside world.

[Assistant] And what about doctors? Did you have to go into Bogota or something to get checked out?

[User] Usually we had to. No. Or Medellin, the big cities. There was Barranquilla on the coast and there was Cali on the west coast and there was Bogota and there was Medellin. And so everyone had access to one of those places to go.

[Assistant] And were you required to come in for vaccinations and stuff?


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] There's a Peace Corps leader there. We had a Peace Corps leader who was from either the first or second group, the first group or our group. And when the first group made changes or something like that, they switched them around or they left because they were terminating service. Then we had someone from our group. And in fact, my Peace Corps leader was just here in town a week ago, and I hadn't seen him in 50 years, but he was chosen from, you know, the group. A number of my friends were made leaders. So they had a jeep and they traveled from one site to another to see what they needed, what people needed, how things were going. You know, nothing, you know, and nothing great. You know, it was a visit and a connection with the outside world.

[Assistant] And what about doctors? Did you have to go into Bogota or something to get checked out?

[User] Usually we had to. No. Or Medellin, the big cities. There was Barranquilla on the coast and there was Cali on the west coast and there was Bogota and there was Medellin. And so everyone had access to one of those places to go.

[Assistant] And were you required to come in for vaccinations and stuff?

[User] I don't. I don't think so. We had, I think, we had two conferences where everyone came. [tape break]

[Assistant] Second tape. And I think we lost a bit of our conversation because we didn't realize that the tape had run out. So but we were talking about medical care and you were saying.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] I don't. I don't think so. We had, I think, we had two conferences where everyone came. [tape break]

[Assistant] Second tape. And I think we lost a bit of our conversation because we didn't realize that the tape had run out. So but we were talking about medical care and you were saying.

[User] Yeah, I had, I do not remember. Except for the fact that I had to go in for this tonsillectomy. The next time I ever saw a doctor, and it was a Colombian doctor, and they recommended him from Bogota, from the Peace Corps office in Bogota. Because I was, I don't know what the symptoms, to tell you the truth, were. But he determined that I had this rheumatic fever.

[Assistant] My goodness.

[User] And that, um, he was concerned about it. And so I had to go to him, back to him, a second or third time. But it cleared up. And so it turned out to be nothing. Other than that, I never saw a doctor. You know, I mean, there was a doctor in my village. He lived there and I would talk to him and he was always trying to practice his English on me. But he, I don't think he ever treated me. I might have gone to him for a cold or something like that, and he'd give me a prescription. There was a little pharmacy in my village. But other than that.

[Assistant] So you were pretty healthy? The occasional cold or something.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Yeah. The climate didn't seem to affect me that much, even though it was damp.

[Assistant] Dysentery didn't?

[User] I might have had dysentery one time. the whole time I was in Colombia.

[Assistant] Wonderful.

[User] But you know, I made sure that I drink purified water and boiled water.

[Assistant] Careful. You were careful. I think what we missed, I think this tape recorder ran out of tape on that side and we weren't aware of it, but you were saying some very, I thought, important things about what are the limits on what a Peace Corps volunteer can realistically expect to accomplish.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] I might have had dysentery one time. the whole time I was in Colombia.

[Assistant] Wonderful.

[User] But you know, I made sure that I drink purified water and boiled water.

[Assistant] Careful. You were careful. I think what we missed, I think this tape recorder ran out of tape on that side and we weren't aware of it, but you were saying some very, I thought, important things about what are the limits on what a Peace Corps volunteer can realistically expect to accomplish.

[User] Right.

[Assistant] Yeah, something being more important than the project itself.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] But you know, I made sure that I drink purified water and boiled water.

[Assistant] Careful. You were careful. I think what we missed, I think this tape recorder ran out of tape on that side and we weren't aware of it, but you were saying some very, I thought, important things about what are the limits on what a Peace Corps volunteer can realistically expect to accomplish.

[User] Right.

[Assistant] Yeah, something being more important than the project itself.

[User] That's right. It was the little, um, minuscular something that you might have contributed without even knowing it. But because we're Americans in a, you know, an advanced society, supposedly at that time even, even more so maybe. But the little contribution you might make by saying, you know, you might boil your water, you know, instead of drinking right from the. You know, you might find out you're not having so many colds or what have you, you know?

[Assistant] Yeah. So your children might not be having dysentery.


[System] Act as an information elicitation agent for oral history.

[User] Right.

[Assistant] Yeah, something being more important than the project itself.

[User] That's right. It was the little, um, minuscular something that you might have contributed without even knowing it. But because we're Americans in a, you know, an advanced society, supposedly at that time even, even more so maybe. But the little contribution you might make by saying, you know, you might boil your water, you know, instead of drinking right from the. You know, you might find out you're not having so many colds or what have you, you know?

[Assistant] Yeah. So your children might not be having dysentery.

[User] That's right. And I think that that was as much. The fact that we were living in a village where U.S. citizens had never lived before. Might once in a while come in with other, you know, somehow get to a village like mine. Very questionable, except for the fact that they did have these ceramic factories here.

[Assistant] Oh, people would come in to.