For those of you who live too far away for me to catch up with you in person and show you pictures... I have finally finished putting up a bunch on picasaweb. I know there are a lot of them, but when you get the chance- check them out! I hope they give you a little bit of an idea of where I was living, where I was working, the kids who I was surrounded by every day, the family who took me in as if I were their own daughter, all of the beautiful places I got to travel to, and some of the volunteers who I became friends with.

Enjoy!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/michaelawipfler

Missing Nicaragua

The saying sounds so cliche, so cheesy... but it's so true, that at times we don't know what we have until it's gone. Though we try to appreciate things in our day to day lives, we realize how connected we are to some people and things, how much they mean to us and how happy we were when we are with them, it sometimes isn't until they are more than a phone call or walk away that we realize their impact on our lives. I tried so hard to soak in every day with my students and with the families in the community who made me feel so at home, but there is absolutely no way to spend enough time or take enough pictures to make up for the time that will eventually be spent apart from each other.

I knew I would miss them all. When I bawled my eyes out my last few days, I realized how truly hard it was going to be to leave, not knowing when I'll get back to visit. My first few weeks here at home I have been so busy and focused on transitioning back, starting work, catching up with friends and family, that my mind has been preoccupied and taken away from thoughts of Nicaragua. But now all of my emotions and thoughts on them are catching up to me and I'm finding myself missing them more and more, thinking of them more often and looking back on my pictures.

Don't take the people in your life for granted. Soak up the time with them and make the most of it. Thankfully, I can look back and feel as thought I passed a ton of time with the families, made the most out of the time I had with each of my students every day, and accomplished enough in my every day work over all, that I can smile knowing there wasn't more I could have done to make my time more worthwhile or fulfilling.

for those of you who were not able to access the photo albums that I posted on facebook, I have finally been able to post some of my pictures on picasaweb albums!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/michaelawipfler

despedida

Three short weeks ago I was packing up my backpack, saying my goodbyes to volunteers and to Granada, crying from my going away parties and mentally trying to prepare myself for a transition back to the States.

For many reasons, I cut my volunteer stint short in Nicaragua and decided to come back home for a few months. Already having a job here waiting for me made my transition back easier, but even three weeks later... my Central American life is at the forefront of my mind.

Though I didn't feel all that connected to the house that I lived in or the small city that had been my home for more than five months, I created an unbelievable bond with my students and two families in the community that made it so difficult to leave. Heading in to my last week there, I thought that I'd have an easier time with all of my 'lasts' and goodbyes, knowing I was headed back to see family, make more money with the intent of traveling more, to catch up with friends, etc.

Not the case.

There was a going away party for me and other volunteers at our house before heading off to salsa dance the night away; at school, there was a going away party instead of classes with dance performances and a pinata; in the community where I worked, there was another going away celebration with all of the kids who I had become so close to over the months. It was a week full of laughs and smiles, of dancing and singing with the kids... and a LOT of tears. As my kids pointed to the tears rolling down my face, asking why I was crying, I tried to explain that I was leaving and would likely not come back. (Though I plan on returning some day soon to visit, I couldn't get their hopes up by telling them when.)

The handful of children who I created extremely tight bonds with made sure to sit on my lap that week, every chance they could. As I walked around the classrooms or school yard, I'd feel a little hand grab mine, and hold it tightly. I got more hugs than I thought was possible, and a pile of drawings and going away cards from nearly each student at the school.

It's hard to believe that this experience has already come and gone, that my life there is now just a memory.

My goodbyes were harder than I thought, and because of this and the impression that this experience has left on me, I WILL be back...

So long, farewell Nicaragua.... nos vemos otra vez, algun dia... pronto...

9 days of paradise

  I have just returned from a nine day adventure to the other side of Nicaragua, where the land looks different and is untouched, where the culture is completely different: creole and mesquite.

  I felt as though I was in a different country with: rolling hills and so much land that is not developed, driving eastward and coming across only a handful of farms; the people spoke creole and mesquite, had a jamaican kind of accent when they spoke english, and few spoke great spanish; the food they cooked was different and what they were able to grow and support wasn't like that of eastern Nicaragua; there were no tourists, only me and the three others who I was traveling with... in both of the small towns where we were, and on all of the Cayos Islands. The culture and traditions... everything was different, which was in part why I enjoyed it so much. Minus, of course, the 16 hour bus ride there... and back. Ouch.

  While out on the Cayos, I realized how incredibly lucky I am (once again) to be here. I slept on the white sand beaches under a bright moon and a sky full of twinkling stars, listening to the waves as I fell asleep. I woke up at sunrise to see the entire sky brilliant oranges, pinks and reds and went swimming dozens of times every day in the crystal clear blue water. I walked these untouched islands and collected perfect conches, sea urchins and other wonderful sea treasures. I laid in the sun, read my book, wrote in my journal and passed a lot of time just thinking (a lot). I talked to the locals who are 'keeping' the islands, and the fishermen who come from the mainland to stay on the islands for days at a time in order to catch enough fish to sell back in the markets.  

  It was an incredibly unique experience, in a place where so few travelers (or any non-locals) have seen and enjoyed.

  More to come later...

  But at least now you know I'm alive and well, and am continuing to make the most of my time here!!

  Also- if you care to see more pictures and don't have a way to access facebook (since this has been the only way I've been able to post pictures online for some reason), send me an email and I'd be happy to send you the links to my albums!  

 Part of the mural I did in the preschool classroom...   other pictures to come. And mural #2 is already underway! yahoo!!

  One of the perks of living in a different country is not only to live a different lifestyle, to be surrounded by a different culture, to be speaking a different language... but also, is to meet other travelers from all over the world and to learn about their pasts, their reason and motivation for being here. Since I have arrived, I have met dozens and dozens of volunteers and backpackers from Argentina to New Zealand, Holland to Madagascar, all with a different past and a different story and reason for why they have ended up in this part of the world. Getting to know people fascinates me. I have connected with my kids at school because I strive to get to know as much about them as I can- about their every day thoughts and their goals, their family and their past. I have been taken in by a family in the community where I work, as another family member because I have spent countless hours at their house after school, every day, every week since I arrived. I have made connections to some of the volunteers here, have made deep friendships that I know I'll keep for the rest of my life... to others my age who are from Germany, France, Spain, Australia because all of us came here for similar reasons and therefore already have one thing in common... but we're also sharing such intense experiences together and end up sharing more with each other than I would with someone at home (after knowing them for only 2 months). The backpackers and other travels that I have met while I'm exploring other areas of Nicaragua and the other countries here in Central America are all so interesting- many of which you get to know their entire life story in just a few short days.  Each relationship that I have created here... whether it is with my kids at school and their families or the volunteers here and other backpackers, each has influenced me in some way. I hear stories and share some of my own, and end up taking a piece of that experience with me. Even if it's not a direct lesson or pointer, it's the conversations or experiences of others that triggers my own thoughts, challenges my point of views, my goals, my purpose. Through all of this, I am finding out more who I am.

  I am more confident that I can achieve my goals in life if I just put my mind to it...

  Though I'm 23 and have plenty of life left, it's too short to take every day for granted. My experiences here are enriching my life, probably more than I even realize at this moment. The people I meet here are influencing me in some way or another, they're adding something to my life and who I am.

  I know myself more now, than ever before... and for this, I am realizing what makes me happy. Taking time for yourself, taking time to explore you and allowing others to 'help' you do so (directly or indirectly) is an incredibly valuable lesson...

Counting down the days...

  Finally, in four weeks (or three weeks and five days if you really want to get serious), I'll head to the Managua airport to pick up Isaac and Vanessa. For two weeks, they'll be here with me in Nicaragua, being the first (and maybe only) people to see first hand the life that I have been living here. I am not only incredibly excited see them because I miss them terribly, but am anxious to finally be able to share this experience with my family, with two of my best friends. For both of them, it will be their first time ever traveling like this and I feel lucky to be able to lead them through the two weeks, visiting different places in and around Granada. What a great experience for the three of us... I can hardly wait!!

Leaving my mark...

  So, it has been a while since I've been on here to catch everyone up on my day-to-day life. After a few long weeks with things being stressful and frustrating at school, with other issues of things at home, and what was supposed to be a relaxing weekend in Leon that turned in to me getting my bag stolen, I decided to take a step back from everything. I have disconnected myself these past few weeks, putting my computer away and finding some other way to rewind at the end of my long days. Thankfully, after a few weeks of my mind running crazy, I am feeling more at peace... and can connect back to the world at home that continues on without me, without feeling as though I want to go back.

  But now- I have climbed out of my slump and am back in my normal routine. On top of that, though I have been really busy and have had long days, I have been so happy finally being able to have my own personal artwork (not teaching a class), as part of my responsibility each day! La Esperanza has recently built a new school in an incredibly poor community at the foot of Volcan Mombacho and the director of my program asked if I could put my creativeness to use and make the pre-school room colorful. Finally, after three months of being here (and thinking that I was going to be doing this stuff from the start), I have had the ability to express myself a bit through doing this painting, to use this as an outlet to de-stress and clear my head, to put to use my creative mind and to make this passion of mine a part of my work here.   It's wonderful to finally have the materials and space to do all of this, to have this opportunity for personal reasons while at the same time, hopefully creating an inviting place that will bring a smile to every child's face that walks in to that class.  Though I was required to paint the alphabet and numbers, and this wasn't all that challenging, I enjoyed simply painting... leaving my mark. For as long as the walls of this school stands, my artwork will be there. 

  

"When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude"

  I sat down yesterday, after a bad day, and began writing in response to this quote... A lengthy page filled with my thoughts on how little we take with gratitude and how much we take for granted: the little differences between my life here and life at home, what the people live here without that we don't think twice about in our regular day-to-day lives, that people come in to our lives and sometimes we don't realize how interesting they are or how connected and attached you've gotten to them- until they're not there anymore. Though I could (and did) analyze all of this, I opted not to (yes- i deleted the entire thing) in hopes that this simply just triggers your thought process... makes you step back...

  Too often we get caught up in our routines and it's only a big change (whether a death, traveling, a change in job or where you're living, etc.) that makes us actually look around...

A trip to the dentist...

  A small cement building in the corner of the church yard, no air-conditioner or fans, no nice sitting area with magazines to keep you occupied, no secretary to keep things in order, no educational posters on cleaning teeth that hung on the wall or advertisements for toothpaste, no filing cabinet that held the paperwork in folders for each patient- in fact, no paperwork at all, no smell of toothpaste or cleaning products from keeping things sanitary... but a small sign that hung outside: "Denista".

  Every Monday will be dentist day at 2:00, where we'll bring kids from Elba Zamora to get their rotting teeth pulled and the remaining teeth 'cleaned'/taken care of at the local, well-known dentist from Granada.  To have dental work done here, is a luxury, for most people can not every afford a trip their entire lives.  This, of course, explains why people are not ashamed of the silver (or sometimes gold) metal that lines their two front teeth when they smile. So on Monday, we took six eager and excited children, ages 8-10 years old, to the dentist for the first time.  Though I didn't expect something like my dentist's office in Maine, I was still shocked at the sight of this little building and the filth that covered the floors and counters.  With two dentist chairs in one room, one small cabinet on wheels for the tools, and a dusty fan blowing the hot air around the small space, the dentist went to work on all six of the children.

  Before even looking in their mouths, the dentist filed each other kids in to the room to give them not one, not two, but three injections of Novocain in their mouths just in case he would need to pull some teeth later. They sat there for 15 min., letting the inside of their mouths, cheeks and lips become numb... laughing at each other as they tried to smile, speak and feel someone else probe at their face. Next, it was extraction and cleaning time... yikes! The dentist put on a pair of gloves and, from each kid, pulled the baby teeth that were turning black and put fillings on the other teeth with cavities... all without cleaning a single tooth, without changing his gloves or exchanging the used tools for newer, more sterile ones for the next child. And he spent no more than 15-20 min with each child, 'examining' their mouths and doing whatever 'needed' to be done, not explaining to them what was happening...

  What started off as an exciting trip to the dentist, quickly turned in to nervousness and tears as they watched each other walk out of the room with a piece of bloody gauze in their mouths, dried tears on their faces, with their heads down. I spent the afternoon holding each child, comforting them and telling them how brave they were, playing tic-tac-toe with them in the dirt to distract them from the lingering pain in their mouths and telling them stories from home.

  On our walk home, we gave each of the kids their own toothbrush and small tube of toothpaste, gave them a lesson on brushing their teeth and informing them on why this was so important. Thankfully, these small gifts, put smiles back on their faces...

Though some days I feel unmotivated to go to school, to deal with the chaos that each day brings, there isn't a day that goes by where I don't feel lucky to be here or appreciative for this wonderful adventure that I am living. Still, I get frustrated when I spend 45 minutes walking to school, only to find that classes have already been let out or that they'll be released in an hour, that the teachers never showed up or that I only have 1 out of 8 students who came to school... but I can always count on having these frustrations wiped away when I go to the community after school for reading group. 'Reading Group' is something that La Esperanza started doing in order to give children the opportunity to read outside the classroom. For two hours, every day, we bring books to the homes of some of the children who go to school at Elba Zamora.  For us volunteers, this gives us time to just hang out with the kids, play around and read books casually together, to meet the families and really become a little more connected to the community in which we work.  We have gotten rejected by some families saying 'we don't want the gringos coming to our house', but we also have a family who has really taken to us and makes us feel at home. This one family consists of 4 or 5 mothers, the grandmother and grandfather, one father and roughly 15 children... all living in 4 little shacks. When we arrive every day, we're greeted with 15 hugs and we're always given a refreshing drink and something to eat (which is huge since they have little money).  On top of that, we've been invited by them to visit their uncle's finca to collect mangos, avocado, lemons, oranges, bananas and coconut... and then this past Sunday they threw a going away party for one of the volunteers, in which they cooked so much food, bought a pinata filled with candy, they played music and we danced all day, they set up games that we played throughout the afternoon, and they sent us home with hand picked flowers. I feel lucky to be here, to be traveling, and feel even luckier that I have had the chance to meet this incredibly kind family who has really taken us in for it has given me a chance to really be part of, and see, this culture and a great opportunity to become close to some of the locals.

Clase de Arte

I finally have the art program up and running at my school; teaching the 2nd and 3rd graders every Friday and the 4th, 5th and 6th graders every Wednesday.  Though they know the schedule, they ask every day if they can have art and get extremely excited when the day finally comes that I say yes. For them, it's a break from the boring classes they are usually sitting in, something challenging but fun for them and a time to play with new, fun materials.

Last week, each student in my 4th, 5th and 6th grade class got a large sheet of paper with a circle drawn in a random spot on each piece (that I had put there), in which they needed to transform this in to something larger, incorporate it in to some realistic or abstract painting. I wanted to challenge their creativity, to get them to use their imagination. The only rule I had for them: no paintings of flowers or suns (because these are the only things they ever draw if they get their hands crayons or colored pencils). I went to class with two examples, an abstract drawing and a drawing of a frog in which i made the circle in to part of a design on the frogs back. I thought that this would give them a jumping off point to go in two different directions... but after explaining the exercise, I was given 25 blank stares. An art project that I thought may be a simple one, definitely wasn't. These 10-16 year were working hard, excited to be painting and so proud once they had finished... but their works of art looked like those of a 1st grader. Never before had I realized so much how these fine motor skills are something learned, something that takes practice in order to perfect, that creativity is something that develops with stimulation to that part of the brain. 

  I learned a lot about some of the children in terms of where their imagination went and how that transfered to their painting.  I'm realizing, through doing this art program, that Art Therapy may be what I pursue...

MISSING from school: my favorite student.

  The past three weeks, I have gone in to school with my fingers crossed, hoping that Harbi has come to school.  My favorite student, the cutest 1st grader, my hardest worker, has been missing from school. Finally, after two weeks, I asked the ayudante at the school why he hasn't been coming and if she knew if everything was ok at home. "He's probably not continuing," she said so nonchalantly. Though this is quite common and I shouldn't have been so shocked, I'm pretty sure my jaw dropped to the floor because still, I don't understand why any child would suddenly just stop coming to school... or why the parents would allow that to happen... or why the teachers wouldn't inquire about this either.  When I probed more at Vanessa, the ayudante, about this situation... all she seemed to muster up when I was obviously so worried about his well-being was "who knows why... but it's not really important."  NOT IMPORTANT?  So here I am... two months in (p.s. can you believe that?!)... and still I am shocked at the lack of motivation from these kids to learn, the lack of structure and organization in the school... and the statistic that just under 10% of kids actually finish grade school. Ten days or ten months... I don't think this is one of those things that I'll come to accept and understand.

  Two months in: started with nine kids and I'm already down to five... though I do have two kids reading and a few more on their way; I have started an art project on Fridays with all of the classes at Elba Zamora and am about to revamp the tutoring 'classroom' with some of my own artwork; I have tried to put together a futbol team for a high school girls, but that has been a slow process and I'm still in the midst of trying to get something started (yes, even after six weeks. welcome to central america)... but in the mean time am playing pick-up with a bunch of kids every Monday and Wednesday after school.  

  At this point, as you could imagine, I have gotten pretty close to the kids who I am working one-on-one with. Though I am obviously not leaving them for another several months, even thinking about having to say good bye to them at some point makes me sad. I have bonded so well with all of them and have created a type of relationship with each of them that is so unique, to both them and me. When I walk in to school each day, I am still greeted with the same excitement and enthusiasm as I was within the first week... and every day I have my kids (and others who I do not work with) chomping at the bit to sit down to work with me.  I am pretty sure they are more excited about just spending time with me than actually having to do work because yes, they are such big complainers and whiners when it comes to having to focus on reading or doing math... but even still- it's a wonderful way to start my day, knowing that I am wanted there (because I already know that volunteers are much needed there)...

Ometepe

During the last weekend of Semana Santa, I traveled to Isla De Ometepe (a large island in Lake Nicaragua, formed by the lava of the two volcanoes) with Hannah, Dan and Tom (Dan and Tom are friends from St. Lawrence University who recently came down here to do some volunteer work as well, for a few weeks).  With only two full days on the island, we went with a very specific mission: to hike Volcan Maderas.  

  On Friday we left Granada, caught a crowded bus to Rivas, from Rivas to San Jorge and from San Jorge we took an hour long ferry ride to the island. In total, almost four hours to simply get to Ometepe.. but even when we arrived, our travels did not end. We arrived on one side, where Volcan Concepcion is.. but we needed to get to the other side of the island, to stay near Maderas. Transportation on the island is far from convenient. There are few taxis and only 2 buses that run from one side to the other every day... therefore, we were left to hitchhiking. Thankfully, being with two guys, this was a fairly safe maneauver. In the back of a pick-up truck, we enjoyed the wonderful breeze and appreciated being off of our feet in the middle of the hot day. Unfortunately, the guy who we got a ride with was not going all the way to our hostel, so we hopped out and took a taxi the rest of the way. Never in my life have I ever driven with someone who drove so slow. Now, maybe it was due to the fact that there were four of us packed in to a small car with all of our backpacks and therefore the vehicle was weighed down a bit... OR the fact that the car was nearly falling apart and every time we drove over a tiny pebble, i felt as thought I was about to drop through the bottom of the car... OR because the muffler was dragging on the ground... OR maybe it was a combination of all of those things, why we were not traveling more than 20 mph on the main road.

  Anyway- we arrived. Finca Magdalena, a hostel planted at the base of Maderas and in the middle of an organic coffee farming area, with a lovely view of the lake and the other volcano.  We settled in to our rooms, hung out outside playing cards and reading, ate dinner and headed to bed early to make sure that we had enough rest for a big hike the next day. From other people at the hostel, and other volunteers, we heard that the hike was going to take us roughly four hours to reach the top and that it wasn't a very easy hike with the steepness and mud that made the one trail slick. With this in mind, and knowing that we also wanted to hike down in to the volcano to see the lake in the crater, we figured that this was going to be an all day adventure.  So, on Sunday morning we woke up early and ate a good breakfast and headed off on to the trail around 7am. Within the first hour we stopped at a few lookout points, since these were the only places where you could see beyond the trees, out over the island and the lake. The view was gorgeous and we were excited to get to the top to see what fabulous view was awaiting our arrival. Thankfully, the volcano is covered and therefore we were protected from the sun (both from the trees and all of the clouds that hovered mid-way up the volcano)... though because we in the wet forest, this also made for quite a bit of humidity (and yes, a few very sweaty gringos).  Though not many flowers, it was still nice to see so much green.. and on top of that, we were able to see a few different types of monkeys, numerous kinds of birds, and two different kinds of snakes!  

  At 9:30ish, we got to the top. Out of all of the hikes I've ever done, this was by far the most anti-climactic arrival at the summit. All of us had expected some spectacular view, a large area where you'd be able to sit down and enjoy the scene... but instead, we could see nothing because of the thick forest still at the top, and the 5ft in diameter space at the top simply wasn't enough space for five of us to sit and leave space for any other possible hikers.  I climbed a tree and got a quick glimpse of the lake, and just enough to take a picture... but still, we decided, it was a beautiful hike. From there, we hiked another 5 minutes down in to the crater to see the lake and hang out for a bit since we now, had plenty of time on our hands.   We took our time hiking back down, stopping to chat and enjoy each lookout point, figuring out what other things we could do to fill our day since we were going to be back several hours before we had planned.

  All-in-all, the hike took us five and a half hours and was certainly not as strenuous as we thought is was going to be... but wonderful none-the-less. 

  For the rest of our time in Ometepe, we explored the small towns that were close to our hostel, we played many card games and watched the sun set over Volcan Concepcion, and had many good conversations and laughs over meals consisting of gallo pinto and fresh, organic coffee. Yum.

El Salvador? Check.

A little sight-seeing + a little bit of beach time = a relaxing semana santa (and a nice little tan).

  This past week was vacation, a week of no school because of Semana Santa and for me, that meant a whole lot of time to travel.  Having nearly 11 days, I decided to leave Nicaragua, to check off another country in Central America.  On Friday, April 3rd, I traveled 12 hours, crossing two borders, arriving in San Salvador just before dark.  El Salvador being know as a pretty dangerous place ("Famous for: guns, gangs, and surfing" -Lonely Planet), and being the least traveled country in all of Central America, I went on this adventure with four other volunteers. We were smart about our travels and never felt unsafe and really had a wonderful vacation.

  Our first full day in El Salvador was spent in the capital, exploring the streets and checking out a few museums and churches. We traveled from one end of the city to the other seeing: one of the largest parks and memorial walls for the 25,000 who lost lives in the civil war, the museum of popular art with great exhibits from Latin American artists (exhibits ranging from photography to abstract, multi-media pieces of work), an archeology museum, the national university, and two famous churches- one of which is where Oscar Romero is buried.  Though we had a lot fun and enjoyed walking the streets, eating at local pupuserias (one of the local foods... basically a tortilla filled with cheese and/or beans, and meat. i fell in love.), and observing the people around us- noticing the differences between here and Nicaragua, one day was enough for all of us in this large, busy city.

  Sunday afternoon, the five of us split up: three of the girls took off for the mountains while Hannah and I headed straight for the coast. We noticed a small note in the Lonely Planet, while researching our trip here, about a small town with beautiful beaches and plenty of places to stay... AND off the beat and track for the usual tourist. What could be better. While in San Salvador we saw less than a dozen other tourists and we thought that once we headed to the coast that we'd be overwhelmed by all of the other gringos but maybe, we thought, this could be avoided by going here.. to Los Cobanos.  So, we took two different buses to arrive in Los Cobanos; when the bus abruptly stopped on the road that suddenly came to an end, in the middle of this tiny little village, Hannah and I looked at each other with puzzled looks on our faces. Was this the same Los Cobanos that we read about in the Lonely Planet that supposedly had plenty of places to crash for a few nights? We got off the bus and stood there: to our right- five small comedores, to our left- two places to rent cabanas and one hotel... that was it. It wasn't being in a small town (if you can even call it that) that bothered us, or being the ONLY tourists here but rather... where we were going to sleep. It being the weekend and Semana Santa, there were many families crowded in the camp grounds/cabanas and an overwhelming amount of drunk locals. With our backpacks on, we approached a guy who stood at the gate of the first cabana and asked if we could see one of the rooms. The man spoke, but his words were slurred- we couldn't understand him, but he was having a hard time deciphering what we were trying to get across as well. For US$25 (EXPENSIVE!! four times more than we usually pay for a good hostel), we could have stayed the night- but the place was foul. Though we said we would talk it over and return, we had declined his offer to stay there before it was even really give to us verbally. Crossing our fingers, we walked 50 yards further down the street to the only hotel in this area, hoping that it wasn't too out of our price range. Not sure we could afford this beautiful place overlooking the ocean, we asked to see a room anyway; clean, own bathroom with shower, clean bed with sheets, AC and a nice private sitting area out front... $35 a night. Very excited about our decision, more comfortable and safe and anxious to get in to the water, we quickly changed in to our bathingsuits and headed to the beach. WOW- I had never seen so many people at one beach and in the water. Literally about 200 people sat in the shade under the trees along the edge of the beach, and waded in the warm pacific water. First of all, remember that we are, by far, the only gringas here.. and our idea of going to the beach is a little different than those of the local people. Here, they are a bit more conservative but also don't really have the money to buy bathingsuits and so 98% of the people are in their everday clothes: jeans or shorts, t-shirts or tank tops, swimming in the ocean. Knowing this and having it right in front of our eyes, Hannah and I wondered about walking down in our bikinis to swim and lay down on the beach, in the sun. We hesitated, but this is what we were here for. With our books and towels, we headed to the sand. The moment we stepped off the deck, it was as though we yelled to get everyones attention and demanded that all eyes stay focused on us. No joke, 170 pairs of eyes starred at our white, half naked bodies. We were feeling slightly uncomfortable being the center of attention, but made light of it, laughed and went about our business as though no one was watching. After swimming, we placed our towels in the sun and picked up our books. Several times, Hannah and I peeked out from behind our books to see if we were still being watched... though a few had lost interest in us, the majority still gazed in our direction as though they were waiting for us to perform, do something crazy... but I guess just observing us reading, laying in the sun was enough entertainment for the rest of the afternoon.

  Thankfully, the rest of our days on the beach were not like the first. In a cove next to the one we were staying on, we found a hidden gem of El Salvador: a long, beautiful, white sand beach, completely undeveloped with hardly anyone on it. For three days, we had this beach to ourselves which was so relaxing and much needed.  On top of sunbathing ourselves, reading and swimming all day, we met some locals at our hotel who ended up taking us to the third largest procession, in the world, for Semana Santa. It was cool to be in a different city in El Salvador, to be shown around by locals, and to see the several hundred people that crowded the streets to see the salt and wood-shaving artwork that covered the street before these works of art got trampled by the procession.

  Though we were only able to see three different parts of El Salvador, and we had wished that we could have explored the mountains more, we enjoyed what we saw despite what the lonely planet had to offer for what it was famous for. The people that we came in contact with, were incredibly friendly... almost more so than here in Granada. The food, we all fell in love with. Even though San Salvador was a huge city, it wasn't as dirty as I expected and it had so many pretty parks and was surrounded by mountains. And of course, how can you complain about any vacation where you get to enjoy the ocean and the beach....

  

One month!!

  April 2. Can it really be that I have already spent 5 weeks here? Now that I'm finally settled down, I have found my place in both my work and at home, in the community and with the other volunteers, I feel as though I've been here for longer. On the other hand, I feel as though I just arrived last week, nervous and unsure of what this whole adventure would bring.

  Already, I have been able to accomplish so much in five weeks, and get excited about what that means I'll be able to get done in my next several months here. I have been tutoring 6 kids on a regular basis, all of whom started with simply learning the alphabet with me and their colors, telling time and their numbers. And this week, for the first time, two of my students are beginning to read!! It's amazing to see their progress and it's more rewarding and exciting than I ever thought. To see their smiles on their faces that they have actually accomplished something; for once, they are proud of themselves and, for many, it's the first time that anyone has believed in them, encouraged them and pushed them to achieve any sort of goal. It's amazing what a little time and attention, some structure and discipline can do for these young kids.... it's just a shame that there isn't more of that in the classroom, and I'm only able to help six.  

  On top of that, I have planned out and will set up an art program in my school for Friday's in each of the classes. Since I need and want to continue tutoring, and I'm the only volunteer who is interested in integrating art in to their curriculum, I'll only be able to devote Friday's to this project, a half hour with each class, but I guess it's a good start and can always expand if there is more interest among other volunteers!  All of this will start after semana santa (the week vacation that we have this next week, before Easter)... so I'll make sure to keep you all posted on how it goes.

  Then, there is this soccer project. I am completely on my own for coaching and trying to put together a team, for communication with the teachers at the school and trying to coordinate practices. I have met with some volunteers from Futbol Sin Fronteras (Soccer Without Borders), and am trying to get them to donate some equipment for me since all I have is one lousy soccer ball.  I expected all of this to be a slow process, but it has now been two and a half weeks and I've hardly made any progress. Though it's frustrating and I have no one assisting me, I can't give up...

  Whether has been getting progressively hotter here... it has been reaching 95-100 every day with little breeze, so you can imagine how nasty I feel at the end of a long day. Soon though, at the beginning of May, the rainy season will start and things will start cooling off around here while also becoming much more green. Yahoo!!

  More to come later, about my travels down to the southern part of the country, that I had last week...

Futbol "practice"

  I came here knowing that there would be the possibility for me to coach soccer or to try and start some sort of program for kids within the schools that this organization teaches at.  I was going to give myself a few weeks to get settled in my own routine, to really feel as though I could focus my energy on getting to know my kids, get adjusted to life here, etc. before launching in to this soccer project. After my first day, the orientation, I learned that there were basically no organized sports for any of the children at any of the school; and once seeing the schools, this came as no surprise to me, as none of them truly have school yard to even play in at recess let alone hold a sports practice (not to mention the fact that if they can’t even control their kids in a classroom, i’d hate to see any attempt at a structured practice). Before I even began thinking about the possibility of starting a team for girls in the rural area right outside of Granada, I was approached by another volunteer asking if I would be able to travel out to Juan Diego (one of the schools farthest away from the city) to meet some girls who were interested in playing.  Though I wasn’t yet even settled in my life here and felt a little overwhelmed by what had just been put on my plate, I knew this was a great opportunity for me to get a start on this project. 

  I have officially been here for two weeks now and have already settled in with my eight students who I am tutoring every day, I had a meeting out at Juan Diego with several girls who seemed enthusiastic about starting a team and, on Friday, I traveled out to the school again to play around and have a ‘practice’.

  When I talked to the girls during our meeting, I thought that I had 12 girls committed to playing twice a week for one hour. I assumed that this was reasonable, seeing as though at home, this would be asking for hardly any dedication from my players. As with many things here, I quickly learned that the words ‘team’ and ‘practice’ hold very different meanings here than at home.  With a gallon of water in my backpack for them to have since there is no water at the school (as well as my own water bottle), my dictionary for all of the soccer terms that I was going to need to look up, a bag of four [ratty] balls, and my 10 cordobas to get to and from soccer.. I traveled an hour out to Juan Diego on Friday.  We decided on 2:30 and so at 2:25 I arrived, ready to see what this ‘practice’ was going to bring. I thought that this would be a good chance for me to really meet the girls, to have them warm up and play around a bit without too much instruction, so that I could see where I really needed to begin with them once we figured out a more routine schedule. At 2:45, 11 girls came to the field, still in their school uniforms (blue skirts and white blouses, white socks and black dress shoes), ready to play. With smiles on their faces: “tenemos 25 minutos!”. Twenty-five minutes. That’s all I had with them, before they had to return to class. I had NO idea that I was showing up in the middle of their school day, during their ‘free’ period, rather than for the hour that I had requested at the end of their school day. Miscommunication #1. At this point, I had to make due with what I was given and so I instructed the girls to get in to groups of 2 or 3 and to pass the ball around for a few minutes before playing a small pick-up game. The girls got themselves in to groups, took off their shoes, and began. Balls were flying across the field, over the barbed-wire fence, into the bushes, hitting other girls in the back of the head. Girls were screaming, laughing at each other, chasing after balls, sitting down when they felt like they needed a rest. I had to take a deep breath and take this for what it was, let go of whatever expectations I had coming in to this.  The 20 minutes after our ‘warm-up’, passed quickly as the girls played a game of kick and run. Though I tried to get one incredibly small part of the entire field, the boys (who were playing their own pick-up game of soccer) continuously ran through the middle of our game, teachers and other students walked freely in between all of the girls as they tried to play... so it would have been nearly impossible to have any sort of instruction or demonstrations, organized plays or even direct passes to one another even if we wanted to.

  The girls seemed to enjoy it, but at the end I felt frustrated and defeated. I had traveled out to coach soccer but there was little coaching that was actually done. I had no field and no equipment, I felt bad that they were playing in their skirts and bare feet and responsible for not providing them with the right clothing and gear, the interferences and distractions were far too overwhelming, and I was upset because I felt like I was merely a supplier of balls more than anything else- and did not really get to accomplish anything.

   I needed this weekend to think about everything, about all of the glitches that I came across on Thursday and Friday, and to re-evaluate whether or not it will be possible to work something out with this particular school. Though I plan on pursuing this project of starting a girls soccer team (and hopefully assisting in the start of a league in Granada), I will need other volunteers to step up to the plate to assist me... for this is FAR too big of a project to take on alone.

"I love you baby"

With a headache, runny nose and body aches, I dragged myself out of bed to get ready for work. Having been sick for the past few days, I haven’t been able to each much, so I already was feeling as though I was running on empty on my walk to the bus station. My ten minute walk every morning is overwhelming and chaotic... not the typical ‘walk’ you may think of in the States.  I walk through the crowded streets that are lined with vendors, people calling out what they’re selling and for how much, retail workers trying to get the attention of people passing by to come in to their shops, and of course there are the dozens of men who whistle and hiss at us gringos as we walk by. The sounds, after a while, all blend together as I keep my pace, trying to dodge everyone coming in the opposite direction... and its only the ‘i love you baby’ comments, in broken English, that seem to catch my ear. The smells are overwhelming and often times sickening: rotten vegetables that are squished throughout the street gutters, the immense amount of trash that fills the streets and sidewalks, the raw meet that hangs in the sun all day from some vendors’ stands, the body odor of hundreds of sweating bodies, stale urine from drunken homeless men who pee freely throughout the city, horse poop, and the pits and remanence of fruits that lay on the ground waiting for some emaciated dog to come by and munch on.  And this morning, on top of all that, I spotted a blind man, using a cane to guide his way, coming in my direction and so without much though I took a few steps to the side in order to give him plenty of room to get by without  having to inch his way in to the street where the cars were flying by. He seemed to be walking in a straight line, and I seemed to be out of his way, but at the last minute when he was conveniently right in front of me, he ‘fell’ in to me... it was obvious that it was intentional, and I realized this even more when he did it to two other girls who were several paces behind me. It amazes me how aggressive guys are here, how they’ll do anything to get a hang on a gringo.  My only other experience with this was when I was in Kenya, but even then, the men were not as aggressive.. for when I opened my mouth and they realized I could speak swahili, it was almost as though it became less fun of a game for them. Here, it doesn’t matter if you speak spanish, if you ignore them or shoot them some nasty look... they’ll continue to shout comments, put their hands on your arm or waist. Yuck.

  Anyway- I hopped on my usual bus and sat down, my legs sticking to the lovely pleather seats. Ten minutes later, I arrived at school, feeling lethargic and not ready to deal with all of the chaos that goes on at Elba Zamora. I spent more than half of my day actually looking for my kids. Though it’s usually hectic, I can walk around the small school yard and find who I’m looking for within a few minutes.. but today was harder than usual and I definitely didn’t have the patients for it. I struggled to get through four tutoring sessions; yawning and constantly blowing my nose, my children looked at me strangely and continuously asked what was wrong with me.

  Half way through the day, a volunteer group helping out with the organization ‘Give a Kid a Backpack’ came to distribute Jansport backpacks to a bunch of the kids. Since they didn’t have enough bags for everyone, the teachers had created a list of who they thought were the most in need of a new backpack. Many of these kids were carrying their books to school in ripped plastic bags, or dragged their mangled backpack through the school yard to class by the one remaining shoulder strap. Twenty-five kids were brought in to an empty classroom and were given these brand new backpacks that were also filled with 4 new notebooks, colored pencils, half a dozen pencils, pens, and a ruler. If you saw the materials that these kids had, you would understand how big of a deal this was. Usually, each kid has one pencil that they cherish and make sure to hold on to, and they use small notebooks that barely stay together through the entire year. It was wonderful to see the kids faces as they left the room with these new bags, to see the excitement in their eyes.  Again, I realized how fortunate I am to live such a luxurious life at home back in the US. One of my students, Harbi, came running up to me wanting to show me everything and it was so amazing being able to share this experience with him.  On the hand, it was sad to see the look of disappointment in the other kids faces who did not receive a new backpack... and I understood completely why they were confused. “Why didn’t I get a backpack? Mine is broken..” One my kids asked me. It was all she could focus on, no matter how many times I tried to get her attention on the math problems were were trying to complete. All of these kids come from such poor communities and have so few possessions, that I can imagine how difficult it would have been to choose the kids for this. This entire experience, from the outside, was incredibly bittersweet.

New weight loss and exercise program= 'Nica' life

This weekend was full of adventures even though I remained in Granada.  Though there are plenty of places to travel to for entire weekends in Nicaragua, and surrounding countries, a bunch of the volunteers and I decided to stick around here to enjoy some of the things that this area has to offer.

On Saturday morning, a handful of us woke up  around 9; ate breakfast and made ourselves a lunch that we were going to take with us, got dressed and lathered ourselves up in sunscreen, packed our bags and took off for Laguna de Apoyo. In the hot, late morning sun, we walked for an hour and 45 minutes down a long dirt road, through several different small, poor communities, through a family's farm, and down a large hill.  We were sweaty and hot, our ankles covered in dirt and shoulders already showing the strength of the sun, when we arrive at the beautiful lake at 11:30. Laguna de Apoyo is a lake located north of Granada, and though there is a touristy side of it, we chose to walk so that we could enjoy a peaceful afternoon at a small, hidden beach on the opposite side of where it is developed. Being the only ones there all day, we were able to spread out our blankets and not have to worry about bothering anyone (or having anyone bother us). We swam in the refreshing, clear, blue water all afternoon, read, took naps and chit-chatted with each other until we all agreed that we had gotten too much sun and it was best to take off for our venture home while there were a few clouds in the sky.  After walking two hours home, we were all beat from the day in the sun and from walking, so we showered and didn't do anything more than lounge on the couch all evening, singing along with Linda as she played the guitar.

I can't complain much about the 'Nica' life...  Though school gets out early and is often canceled, it is frustrating BUT it also means that I get to visit wonderful places like Laguna de Apoyo or explore other places around Granada on my time off...

My lovely little children...

Public transportation is not as available or convenient as I thought it might be down here; it really consists of taxis that are far too expensive, and less than a handful of buses that run up and down one of the many main roads. The buses are old, rundown school buses, painted in different colors, usually packed with people to the door. Though you may flag them down on the side of the road and they open the door for you, they do not come to a complete stop; the ‘conductor’ hops out, running alongside the bus, waiting for you as you run to the door, he gives you a boost, and on they go...

  On Wednesday, a few volunteers and I had missed the bus that we needed to take around 9:00 and instead, hitch-hiked. Often times, because of the lack of public transportation, you’ll find that people are flagging down random pick-up trucks so that they can hop in the back and get a free ride. Here we were, five gringos in the back of this young man’s truck... what a lucky ‘Nica’ (the slang word that is often used instead of Nicaraguan).  After arriving at school at 9:00, we hung around in the school yard for nearly an hour before they rang the bell and kids were supposed to head to their classes. Since the kids don’t listen well, this time becomes absolute chaos; literally having chase kids down to grab their arms and drag them to their classrooms, pulling kids out of the closet in the tutoring room- as they try and steal all of the stickers and art supplies, and finding the others who have found various hiding spots around the school so that they don’t have to go to class. It takes at least ten minutes before things are ‘settled’ and class actually begins.

  Wednesday was my first day for tutoring. I have five children who I’ll be taking every day, or every other day, to try and get them up to speed with the rest of the children in their class.

  Harbi, the cutest little first grade boy.. but the poor guy doesn’t know any of the alphabet or his numbers. I spent an hour with him on the first 5 or 6 letters of the alphabet, trying to get him to memorize them and be able to pick them out when not in order. I would go back and forth between a and b several times, asking ‘what letter is this’ ‘a is for? arbol, etc.’ ‘a makes this sound..’, etc. and he continuously would get other letters in the alphabet: ‘u!’ ‘s!’. It was sad, and I realized within that first hour of school, that I was truly going to have my work cut out for me.

  Angela is in second grade and though her teacher told me that she could read, write and do math, she doesn’t even know how to spell her own name. She has been placed in 2nd grade because she is 8, but she is at a pre-school or kindergarten level. Along with Harbi, she hardly knows the alphabet and only knows numbers 0-9, beyond that she is completely lost. Because she is so shy, she gets to attention from the teacher and therefore sits back in class and doesn’t learn anything. Part of my goal with her is to, not only have her learn the alphabet and her numbers, but to bring her out of her shell a little bit, as she is an incredibly sweet little girl.

  Oreste, also in second grade. He is my one student who is so eager to learn and always comes to me with the biggest smile on his face. When doing something good, he loves to give me a high-five, and is always up for a challenge. His attention span is bigger than the other children, and so it is easy to get a lot done with him. I’m sure that i’ll see the biggest improvement with him by the time I leave here... or so I’m hoping!

  Rosa Esmerelda also called hell child #2, by the other volunteers and the audante. She was pawned off on me in hopes that I’d be able to get through to her. Her ADHD is out of control, she hardly listens, has no real desire to sit down and learn for even an hour, and could really care less about school. She comes from one of the poorer communities around the school, and is always showing up with dirt all over her face, with ripped and dirty clothing, and yesterday she came to me with a full bloody leg after she had itched her bug bites to death (and of course with so little first aid stuff at the school, I had to clean it all up with one small cotton ball.. and afterwards was not able to wash my hands because there is no water at the school!!). She’ll be a challenge, but I’m ready to take her on and be the first volunteer to really get through to her. Wish me luck!!

  And my last student has refused to come to school this week, so we’ll see what happens when Monday rolls around. Should be interesting!!

  Those are my children that I’ve taken under my wing thus far, and that is my life every day from 9-2. It is so much fun, but I face new challenges with each of the kids every day. For the next several months it will be rewarding to see progress with them, and fun to get to know each of the children at this school a little better.

1st "full" day at Elba Zamora = chaos

My morning began at 6:30 with a shower: cold and with absolutely no water pressure. Though the coolness of the water felt nice, I knew the moment I stepped out, I’d begin sweating... before it even hits 9am, the temperature usually reaches 85 degrees, and so you can imagine what it is like mid-day!  After showering and getting dressed, I ate a bowl of yogurt and fresh watermelon for breakfast. I left the house around 8:00, with one other volunteer too meet the ‘ayudante’ (a high school or university student who works at the school, mostly to assist volunteers, since they grew up in the area of these small schools and know the kids quite well) of Elba Zamora. At 8:45, we were still waiting for Vanessa (thought she’s not quite as lovely as my sister Vanessa). Welcome to Elba Zamora, the school that has absolutely no structure. From what I hear from other volunteers, this is something that will happen to us often; we will travel to the school every day (walking 45 min or talking a 15 min bus ride for about 25 cents), but will find that school has been canceled, or teachers did not show up, at least once a week. One volunteer had worked there for nearly two months and never had a full week of work... so this will definitely take some getting used to!

The walk there was long and dusty, and there is no room for daydreaming or letting your mind wander in any way... for you’re constantly jumping off the side of the road as cars come whizzing by. Since there are no sidewalks, it becomes a car-dodging game... pedestrians do not have the right of way. By the time I got to school, I already felt covered in a film of sweat and my white feet were covered in dirt. 

As soon as I stepped in to the school gate, the other volunteer (her name is Manon) and I were surrounded by little kids asking us for our names, giving us hugs and grabbing our hands to lead us to their classrooms. Though school starts at 7 am, we aren’t needed until 9ish. I thought that when we would arrive, the children would all be in their classrooms... but it was the complete opposite: it was as though the entire school ground was their playground and there was no such thing as a structured class. The kids ran around the school, played on the playground, went in and out of all the classrooms.. it was a free for all. And no, it was not recess.

I entered the 2nd and 3rd grade classroom, and immediately got thrown in to teaching math. This particular classroom held roughly 15 students, but if you were to have stood outside and listened in, you would have guessed there were twice as many students inside. The teacher stood in front of the classroom and spoke, but kids were in and out of their desks, they were hitting each other and mocking out the teacher... she had absolutely no authority and it was amazing how anything ever gets done. In all honesty though, not much does, and it’s incredibly sad. Math books were given to each of the kids, but they were given little direction before they were on their own to complete ‘lesson 4’. After a few minutes, I walked around and looked at each kid’s notebook- not one had a single answer written down. I quickly realized that they couldn’t read the questions and therefore couldn’t write any answers down... day after day they are given these work books, but all they do is copy the question down, they don’t learn a single thing. I took the 2nd graders under my wing and read each question aloud and walked them through the problems one at a time. Even that wasn’t as easy as it sounds; many of these kids, who are in 2nd and 3rd grade, can’t count to 100 and even simple addition or subtraction is beyond them... so completing the problem “what number is ten more than 500” was nearly impossible, as I had to start from square 1. So, after more than an hour, we completed six problems... and that was the day. The kids were sent home early, at 12 instead of 2 but I couldn’t tell you why.

For the next several weeks I have decided that instead of working inside the classrooms, I will be taking students out of the class for one-on-one help with reading, math, etc. Though all of the kids could use assistance, it would be nearly impossible for me to do that all on my own. The only way I will get any progress from any of the students, is if i take the ones who need it the most. For example, sweet, little Elsa could hardly even count to ten and when I pointed to the number 6, 8 or 9 she couldn’t tell me the difference, and thought that 500 was 1,000...  tomorrow, I’ll be taking her for a half hour to tutor her a bit so that I can get her up to speed with some of the other kids in her class.

Already, A huge eye-opener. I now realize how much patients this will take but how much they really need volunteers. Though we need to respect the teachers and not try and take over, I am hoping that we can make a bit of a difference with a few handfuls of kids in terms of tutoring them to get them to where they should be (or where the rest of the class is), actually taking the time to teach them. It was sad to see how little these kids learn in school, and I realized so quickly why only 30% of kids actually finish school through the 6th grade.

I am glad I am here. I am hoping to make a bit of a difference. I know that I can not change the school system or the way that Elba Zamora is run, but I have hope that if I can encourage these kids to want to learn, to make it fun and interesting, to praise them when they do well, that I may be part of the reason why even just 3 more kids from this small school continue their education...

Fun fact (but not so fun)

School is 'required' for kids here in Nicaragua from K-6... only 30% of kids actually make it through... and it takes those 30% approximately 8-10 years to actually complete seven years.

We certainly don't realize how lucky we are to have the education system that we do- we take it for granted. Today was orientation day for me, which consisted of being taken to six of the eight schools so that we could see all of the different areas that the volunteers here at La Esperanza work in. Though we traveled to six different schools, two of them were not in session... they had been cancelled for no reason. It will be extremely rare to have a full week of work, from what I hear; schools are closed because of rain, because only 2 teachers were there instead of 3, etc.

The school that I'll be working at is called Elba Zamora, the smallest out of all eight schools, with only three classrooms (one for pre-school, one for 1st and 2nd grade, and one for 3rd and 4th). When we visited today however, there wasn't anyone there because of some 'teacher workshop', so I will have more to tell tomorrow once I actually get a feel for where I am, who I am working with, what I'm doing, and what the kids are like.

From being in Kenya, I know bed bug bites when I see them. I guess I’ll take the small, red, round markings on my arms, legs and chest as a ‘welcome’ from the little critters that have been dwelling in [what is now] my bed.

Anyway- yesterday’s travels from Portland to Boston, Boston to Houston, Houston to Managua and from Managua to Granada, is almost a blur. Though I took a sleeping pill on Friday night so that my anxiety about this adventure wouldn’t keep me up, I woke up on Saturday still exhausted. The abundance of emotions that have come over me over this past week became so draining that it wore me down until I felt like I had nothing left. 

My flights went smoothly, and I finally arrived in Nicaragua at 9:30ish. Stepping off the plane was sensation overload; though I was expecting all of these changes, the heat (it was 84 degrees when I arrived), the smells, the language, everything... became overwhelming. I was excited to finally be here, but still so nervous and anxious to get my visa, find Felipe (the driver who would be waiting for me with my name on a sign), get ‘home’ safely, and to see this house that I’ll be living in for the next several months. Many times, I felt as though I needed to hold back my tears... and managed to do so until my head hit my pillow last night.

My house is a lovely place, large and very open. I’m here with 14 other girls (yikes!) but thankfully it is spacious enough that it doesn’t quite seem like there are that many of us here. I share a bedroom with three other girls, only one of which I have met yet. Everyone seems extremely friendly, but since I am not quite comfortable here, I have been more quiet than my usual self. It is definitely going to take me a few weeks to really feel at home here...

Granada itself is a BEAUTIFUL place. The city is colorful, as every building is painted a vibrant color. As my mailing address said, I am just a few blocks from the lake, and am also just a few blocks from the center of town, the market, the bank, and right next door to the office of La Esperanza.

This is just the short of it- but I think it’s time for me to go mingle with everyone, to stop being the new girl who can’t yet disconnect herself from her friends and family at home...

Later, when I’m heading to bed, I’ll fill everyone in a bit more on my first day here...

In just one week, I’ll be calling a small house on Calle Libertad, in Granada, Nicaragua my new home.  

Yes, I am embarking on yet another adventure, but this time not to Africa. My love for traveling, my fascination with other cultures and people, and my drive to do volunteer work in a developing country drove me to search for a long- term volunteer opportunity abroad. Finally, at the beginning of this year, I found a non-profit organization in Nicaragua that was looking for volunteers to work in six different primary schools in small villages right outside of Granada. After applying and having many conversations with the director, I decided that I’d take this wonderful opportunity to fulfill one of my biggest dreams in my life thus far.

I’ll be working mostly with kids who are in Kindergarten- 4Th grade, teaching English, assisting teachers with generating creative lesson plans (this is lacking since teachers have limited education themselves, therefore integrating any sort of creativity in to plans is not a priority for them), and running an art program at the school. On top of that, the director of the program has asked and suggested that I set up a community art project in which I will design and help paint murals on some of the school walls. If you’re thinking this couldn't be more up my alley, that’s exactly what I was thinking, it’s why I committed so quickly, and only gave myself four weeks to pack up everything and head off!

Though the thought of traveling, living abroad, and doing volunteer work has always excited me, the emotions are overwhelming now that this dream of mine is becoming reality.  I have decided to create this blog so that all of you can follow my adventures, keep track of what I am doing and how my experience is, see pictures of where I am living and working, and hear about my excursions outside of Granada and Nicaragua on my long weekends and school breaks.  Since I will have Internet access fairly accessible, I am hoping to post something on here at least once a week... so keep your eye out.  Being gone for so long this time, I opted not to put the responsibility on my father of sending out my mass e-mails, and figured this would be the most convenient for both you and me!

I hope you enjoy following me on my adventures throughout Nicaragua and the surrounding countries! Wish me luck!