Kaitlyn and I recently completed a big project which was a fair to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS. We spent about four months planning and organizing the event, working alongside another organization in Nagarote. Kaitlyn, two young women, and I were able to gather various organizations together to create an educational and fun experience for the community. We focused mainly on young adults, but received participation from all ages. The result was the first annual AIDS Day fair for our town.
Below are some pictures of the fair!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
AIDS Fair
People taking free HIV tests at the fair.
Young people learning how to use condoms. We received a very large donation of condoms and ended up giving out thousands.
CILIAS, one of the national organizations that participatedin our fair. The had all kinds of educational materials, including
the wooden penises in the picture, and sold crafts made by
people living with HIV/AIDS
One of my incredible posters of the fair's schedule.
Kaitlyn's volleyball team competing at the fair.
The two of us next to the stand that we shared with the organization who helped us organize the fair. Yes, we did
wear our Peace Corps t-shirts on purpose.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Elections!
November has been the month of elections for us in Nicaragua. First, of course we were able to watch Obama win, which was bittersweet because we were so far away from home. Everyone in our town was happy to hear that Obama won and I think it changed some perspectives that people have of Americans. One guy told Alex, "I really didn't think he could win. I thought Americans were too racist." Another girl on my volleyball team commented, "The United States is finally making some changes. If they can change, maybe there is hope for Nicaragua too." I think it was really inspiring for the people here to see the Americans make such an important and historical decision. Hopefully, the Peace Corps budget will increase too :)
On another note, the municipal elections were held a week after ours. They are to elect the new mayors of each town. In Nicaragua, the mayor plays a pivotal role in each town and who is elected is a huge deal. There are two main parties, the Liberales and the Sandinistas. Currently the Sandinistas are in power and after the elections in Nagarote, it looks as though it will continue. However, there has been a lot of violence related to the elections and police have all been on patrol with tear-gas, face masks, the works. Many people are enraged by the results because they think there was fraud all over the country so the Sandinistas could remain in power. It is a very controversial and touchy subject so we have tried to lay low. There is going to be a recount of the votes so we will see what happens. It was interesting to see how much passion people have for the elections here. Work and school were canceled for two days for the elections and people as young as 16 are able to vote. People waited in line for hours. After the Sandinista were declared the winners, there was a HUGE parade through the street. Our town is pretty evenly divided so while half of them celebrated the other half got angry and cried "Fraud!" Travel in the capital has been dangerous because that is where the violence is most prevalent. We will keep everyone updated as the votes are recounted to appease the other party.
Lastly, we are finishing up the school year with final exams, pictures, and graduation ceremonies. We will be posting pictures of these events shortly. Sorry for the delay in the update. We are really looking forward to coming home for Christmas and can't wait to see you all :)
On another note, the municipal elections were held a week after ours. They are to elect the new mayors of each town. In Nicaragua, the mayor plays a pivotal role in each town and who is elected is a huge deal. There are two main parties, the Liberales and the Sandinistas. Currently the Sandinistas are in power and after the elections in Nagarote, it looks as though it will continue. However, there has been a lot of violence related to the elections and police have all been on patrol with tear-gas, face masks, the works. Many people are enraged by the results because they think there was fraud all over the country so the Sandinistas could remain in power. It is a very controversial and touchy subject so we have tried to lay low. There is going to be a recount of the votes so we will see what happens. It was interesting to see how much passion people have for the elections here. Work and school were canceled for two days for the elections and people as young as 16 are able to vote. People waited in line for hours. After the Sandinista were declared the winners, there was a HUGE parade through the street. Our town is pretty evenly divided so while half of them celebrated the other half got angry and cried "Fraud!" Travel in the capital has been dangerous because that is where the violence is most prevalent. We will keep everyone updated as the votes are recounted to appease the other party.
Lastly, we are finishing up the school year with final exams, pictures, and graduation ceremonies. We will be posting pictures of these events shortly. Sorry for the delay in the update. We are really looking forward to coming home for Christmas and can't wait to see you all :)
Sunday, October 12, 2008
The New Veterans
This month we've been busy with assuming the new role as veteran Peace Corps volunteers. It seemed only yesterday that the two of us arrived here. However, we were forced to do a lot of reflecting on last year and recognize how far we've come once the new group of trainees arrived last month. Since then we've been occupied every week with giving workshops, hosting trainees in our house, and answering all the same questions we asked a year ago. The one year mark seems to be bringing about a lot of changes in outlook, and a lot of reassurance. We're able to quit worrying so much about where we need to be, in terms of language ability and assimilation, and focus more on the relationships we've made and the activities that we enjoy most. As many people told us at the beginning, the second year of service appears that it will be easier and even more enjoyable than the first.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Estelí Trip
Mountains?!
Agave
Shunpei contemplating suculents at La Casita
Where the valley meets the mountains
Independence Day
Folkloric Dance 
The original 5 independent countries of Central America. 
Marching 
The boss 
The kids at one of my schools, my teacher, and the boss.Time
Hey everyone! I know it has been awhile since you have heard from us, but we thought we would give a mini-update onh how things have been going lately. I guess the theme of this post will be time.
The most interesting thing is that on August 29th we celebrated one-year in country with our group in San Juan Del Sur. It is hard to believe that we have already been here a year. Day to day life seems to move pretty slowly, especially in the heat, but before we know it another month has passed. We offically now have about 14 months left of our Peace Corps service. On the one hand, that number seems pretty daunting knowing that we are going to be away from our homes for so much longer even though we have been gone a year already. On the other hand when we think of all things that we still want to accomplish, it doesn´t seem like nearly enough time.
On another note, the new group of volunteers from our sector arrived on September 5th! We are no longer the newbies and it is our job to help train the new group and show them the ropes of Peace Corps. Because Alex and I live so close to Managua, Peace Corps has recruited us to do alot of work with the new group and we will be having several Trainees visit our site on Tuesday to learn how to make a Vivero (tree nursery). It is hard to remember that this time last year, we were the scared trainees, trying to figure it all out.
My Birthday... yep I will be spending my second birthday in Nicaragua! By then end of my service, I will have had three birthday´s here. When you think about how much you grow and change in three birthdays, it boggles my mind to think about how different I am now than when I first came here and how different I may be when I am finished my service. When I entered Peace Corps, I was in my early 20s, ready for an adventure and when I leave Peace Corps I will be 25 and ready to start another chapter in my life.
On Dec 21st, in 99 days, Alex and I will return for 2 weeks to celebrate Christmas with friends and family! We are really looking forward to seeing everyone and can´t wait for these days to fly to help with some of our homesickness.
Finally, to end this rambling post, a little bit about friendship. True friendship stands the test of time and distance. Being here has enabled us to really reflect on our relationships with other people, both in Nicaragua and at home. We know that distance, time, and different life experiences can make it difficult to keep up friendships but I believe that when all is said and done, that at the end of this journey, your true friends will be waiting for you at the other side. We miss everyone and strongly encourage keeping in touch. We love to hear about your lives and adventures back home so please keep us posted. We love you and will hopefully see you in December!
Just a friendly reminder of our address down here because our box has been empty for months and months....
Kaitlyn Fitzpatrick
Alex Fuller-Young
Apartado Postal 366
León, Nicaragua
America Central
The most interesting thing is that on August 29th we celebrated one-year in country with our group in San Juan Del Sur. It is hard to believe that we have already been here a year. Day to day life seems to move pretty slowly, especially in the heat, but before we know it another month has passed. We offically now have about 14 months left of our Peace Corps service. On the one hand, that number seems pretty daunting knowing that we are going to be away from our homes for so much longer even though we have been gone a year already. On the other hand when we think of all things that we still want to accomplish, it doesn´t seem like nearly enough time.
On another note, the new group of volunteers from our sector arrived on September 5th! We are no longer the newbies and it is our job to help train the new group and show them the ropes of Peace Corps. Because Alex and I live so close to Managua, Peace Corps has recruited us to do alot of work with the new group and we will be having several Trainees visit our site on Tuesday to learn how to make a Vivero (tree nursery). It is hard to remember that this time last year, we were the scared trainees, trying to figure it all out.
My Birthday... yep I will be spending my second birthday in Nicaragua! By then end of my service, I will have had three birthday´s here. When you think about how much you grow and change in three birthdays, it boggles my mind to think about how different I am now than when I first came here and how different I may be when I am finished my service. When I entered Peace Corps, I was in my early 20s, ready for an adventure and when I leave Peace Corps I will be 25 and ready to start another chapter in my life.
On Dec 21st, in 99 days, Alex and I will return for 2 weeks to celebrate Christmas with friends and family! We are really looking forward to seeing everyone and can´t wait for these days to fly to help with some of our homesickness.
Finally, to end this rambling post, a little bit about friendship. True friendship stands the test of time and distance. Being here has enabled us to really reflect on our relationships with other people, both in Nicaragua and at home. We know that distance, time, and different life experiences can make it difficult to keep up friendships but I believe that when all is said and done, that at the end of this journey, your true friends will be waiting for you at the other side. We miss everyone and strongly encourage keeping in touch. We love to hear about your lives and adventures back home so please keep us posted. We love you and will hopefully see you in December!
Just a friendly reminder of our address down here because our box has been empty for months and months....
Kaitlyn Fitzpatrick
Alex Fuller-Young
Apartado Postal 366
León, Nicaragua
America Central
Monday, August 25, 2008
Fiestas Patronales
Our massive patron saint holidays ended in the beginning of August after a solid month of festivation. The central event in all of this celebrating was of course the much anticipated bull fighting/riding. Although the reality was just, or more, as entertaining as we could have hoped for, it was not exactly what we expected.
I always envisioned bull fighting as we see it in the movies, where a handsome Spaniard is dressed in an elegant suit, wielding a intricate sword and a deep red cape. I always imagined bull riding as we see it on ESPN, where professional cowboys from Texas tactfully evade the wrath of a purebred monster. Our events were nothing like either of these.
Our town's mayor's office rebuilt a brand new bull ring for this year's festival, complete with grand stands for the fans, a box for the mayor and his cabinet, chain-link fence and zinc roof to protect the spectators, and a well designed containment area for the bulls. Watching the construction over the months increased the excitement greatly, as we observed the amount of planning, care, and resources put into the event center.
The first day came and we were sure to be there, along with some PC friends that we invited to experience the famed Nagarote spectacle. The stands were overfilled with people from the community, as well as others that had come from a great distance away, including a good number of family members that were visiting from places like Miami, Los Angelas, and Houston. The queen of the festivals entered on horseback, followed by a parade of cowboys and cowgirls dressed in their finest hats and spurs. The made a round of the ring while fireworks exploded overhead, then dismounted their horses and found their places in the mayor's box. Next came the brave young fighters, and here is where Nicaraguan bull fighter begins to differ from tradition.
At least 200 men enter the ring, ranging from the ages of 12 to 50. All of them ready to face down a bull, some with the help of a great deal more alcohol than others. Soon a cowboy leads the first bull from the containment area into the ring and with the help of others, ties the bull head to a pole near the middle. However, the danger begins as soon as the bull enters, since it is only being led by one rope. In more than a few instances the bull immediatly charged once it caught sight of the swarm of men. If everything went according to plan, the bull was pacificied enough to stand still while it's head was tied to the pole, ropes tied around its torso, and men wrestled one another for the position on top of the bull. Once aboard, usually the bull started bucking while still tied to the pole. This created the chance of the man being crushed between the bull and the pole, but somehow I never saw this actually happen.
The real fun begins once the bull is let loose. After all of the pulling, smacking, tieing, kicking, shocking, and general terrorizing of the bull, it is thoroughly emotional. The question is how the bull will express itself, which does actually vary. At times the bull will be so terrified and exhausted that it will simply trot around the ring while all of the men scramle up the sides as it comes around. Most of the bulls we saw were more animated. It turned out that this day was when they displayed the most bravo bulls of the area. In less than an hour we witnessed a compound fracture to the arm, a broken collar-bone, massive loss of teeth, concussion, and a person's leg get stepped on by a full-grown bull. Or course, even more close calls and death defying acts occurred than actual injuries. In short these men were not risk-adverse people. More injuries seemed to fuel the enthusiasm for the whole thing, and fuel our own enthusiasm for being on the other side of the fence.
I always envisioned bull fighting as we see it in the movies, where a handsome Spaniard is dressed in an elegant suit, wielding a intricate sword and a deep red cape. I always imagined bull riding as we see it on ESPN, where professional cowboys from Texas tactfully evade the wrath of a purebred monster. Our events were nothing like either of these.
Our town's mayor's office rebuilt a brand new bull ring for this year's festival, complete with grand stands for the fans, a box for the mayor and his cabinet, chain-link fence and zinc roof to protect the spectators, and a well designed containment area for the bulls. Watching the construction over the months increased the excitement greatly, as we observed the amount of planning, care, and resources put into the event center.
The first day came and we were sure to be there, along with some PC friends that we invited to experience the famed Nagarote spectacle. The stands were overfilled with people from the community, as well as others that had come from a great distance away, including a good number of family members that were visiting from places like Miami, Los Angelas, and Houston. The queen of the festivals entered on horseback, followed by a parade of cowboys and cowgirls dressed in their finest hats and spurs. The made a round of the ring while fireworks exploded overhead, then dismounted their horses and found their places in the mayor's box. Next came the brave young fighters, and here is where Nicaraguan bull fighter begins to differ from tradition.
At least 200 men enter the ring, ranging from the ages of 12 to 50. All of them ready to face down a bull, some with the help of a great deal more alcohol than others. Soon a cowboy leads the first bull from the containment area into the ring and with the help of others, ties the bull head to a pole near the middle. However, the danger begins as soon as the bull enters, since it is only being led by one rope. In more than a few instances the bull immediatly charged once it caught sight of the swarm of men. If everything went according to plan, the bull was pacificied enough to stand still while it's head was tied to the pole, ropes tied around its torso, and men wrestled one another for the position on top of the bull. Once aboard, usually the bull started bucking while still tied to the pole. This created the chance of the man being crushed between the bull and the pole, but somehow I never saw this actually happen.
The real fun begins once the bull is let loose. After all of the pulling, smacking, tieing, kicking, shocking, and general terrorizing of the bull, it is thoroughly emotional. The question is how the bull will express itself, which does actually vary. At times the bull will be so terrified and exhausted that it will simply trot around the ring while all of the men scramle up the sides as it comes around. Most of the bulls we saw were more animated. It turned out that this day was when they displayed the most bravo bulls of the area. In less than an hour we witnessed a compound fracture to the arm, a broken collar-bone, massive loss of teeth, concussion, and a person's leg get stepped on by a full-grown bull. Or course, even more close calls and death defying acts occurred than actual injuries. In short these men were not risk-adverse people. More injuries seemed to fuel the enthusiasm for the whole thing, and fuel our own enthusiasm for being on the other side of the fence.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Fiestas Pictures
The parade
Ready
Go
Our Patron Saint
The Queen of the Fiestas
Musical Entertainment
Monday, June 30, 2008
More Fun Nicaraguan Celebrations
This previous week marked the beginning of our town's month long June festivities. Every area of the country has a designated month-ish period where they celebrate their patron Saint. Our month is July, and our saint is Jacob. Anyways, all the stories and descriptions of the fun to be had as told to us from our fellow Nagaroteños has placed us under intense anticipation.
Last Tuesday was the first of the celebrations and we were sure not to miss it. It turned out that this fiesta was actually not, in fact, celebrating of our own patron saint, Jacob, but saint John instead. For all those not well-acquainted with stories of the Christian saints, including myself, Saint John was beheaded. This is important because the celebration memorialized exactly that aspect of his story.
¨
"La Carrera de Patos" is the festival whereby our town of Nagarote remembers Saint John. A string is strung across a street at a height of about ten feet. A duck is tied by the feet, upside-down, in the middle of the rope. The neck of the duck is greased. The farmers from the surrounding rural area ride into town on their horses and line up at one end of the street. One at a time the men take turns galloping down the street, reaching up, grabbing the ducks neck, and attempting to tear off its head. This process could last for one attempt, or fifty. I was told that the older the duck is, the more difficult to tear off its head. My observations supported this belief. Once a rider is successful at removing the head, the lucky winner takes off on a sprint around the block, followed in hot pursuit by some of his rivals. When the winner returns he is awarded the duck and a bottle of spirits. Usually one or two more ducks are strung up before the fun is over in that location, whereby the gang moves on to another neighborhood where the event is repeated.
Needless to say, this was quite a mind blowing experience for us to kick off July. I'm not really sure how this could be upstaged. However, everyone assures us that the real good stuff is yet to come. Late July brings horse shows, discotech parties, carnivals, and of course bull riding. More updates and pictures of said events to come.
Last Tuesday was the first of the celebrations and we were sure not to miss it. It turned out that this fiesta was actually not, in fact, celebrating of our own patron saint, Jacob, but saint John instead. For all those not well-acquainted with stories of the Christian saints, including myself, Saint John was beheaded. This is important because the celebration memorialized exactly that aspect of his story.
¨
"La Carrera de Patos" is the festival whereby our town of Nagarote remembers Saint John. A string is strung across a street at a height of about ten feet. A duck is tied by the feet, upside-down, in the middle of the rope. The neck of the duck is greased. The farmers from the surrounding rural area ride into town on their horses and line up at one end of the street. One at a time the men take turns galloping down the street, reaching up, grabbing the ducks neck, and attempting to tear off its head. This process could last for one attempt, or fifty. I was told that the older the duck is, the more difficult to tear off its head. My observations supported this belief. Once a rider is successful at removing the head, the lucky winner takes off on a sprint around the block, followed in hot pursuit by some of his rivals. When the winner returns he is awarded the duck and a bottle of spirits. Usually one or two more ducks are strung up before the fun is over in that location, whereby the gang moves on to another neighborhood where the event is repeated.
Needless to say, this was quite a mind blowing experience for us to kick off July. I'm not really sure how this could be upstaged. However, everyone assures us that the real good stuff is yet to come. Late July brings horse shows, discotech parties, carnivals, and of course bull riding. More updates and pictures of said events to come.
Friday, June 20, 2008
New Pictures!
Here are a few cute pictures that we wanted to share with you! :)
Baby turtle at Playa Coco.
Alex and his family at San Juan Del Sur!
Me and some of my students celebrating mother's day at a school party!
Yes, I am on a horse.
Beautiful view of the cathedral and Mombacho from Granada.
Baby turtle at Playa Coco.
Alex and his family at San Juan Del Sur!
Me and some of my students celebrating mother's day at a school party!
Yes, I am on a horse.
Beautiful view of the cathedral and Mombacho from Granada. Enjoy the pictures!
June Update
Hello everyone! Yes, we have been bad and have failed to keep a steady update once again. We apologize and we hope this post will curb your craving for some more info.
Alex's Family Visits: Alex's family (parents, Zoe and Ashton) came to visit for about 10 days at the end of May. This time we rented a car so we had a little more freedom to travel about the country. We started our trip at a small beach south of San Juan Del Sur called Playa Coco. We rented a beautiful house and we pretty much had the beach to ourselves. Next, we traveled back to Nagarote to show off our site. After that we headed down to Granada. We went to the Masaya market, spent time at Volcan Mombacho doing the hike and canopy tour, spent the day at the Laguna de Apoyo, and Volcan Masaya (it was very difficult to breath with all of the sulfur). We ended with a final night in Managua. It was a great trip and it was really wonderful to see people from home again. If anything it made us more anxious to go back to the states and see everyone else that we are missing!
Transportation Strike: In May we also suffered from a two-week transportation strike. The bus and taxi owners were fighting for a discount on gas since the prices have sky-rocketed. This meant that we could not leave our site. Like the majority of Nicaraguans we rely on the public transportation system to get around. Fortunately, Nagarote has access to many things such as a supermarket and bank. Other volunteers were stranded in their sites with little access to food or money. Luckily, the government issued discounts to taxi and bus drivers and transportation is back to normal.
Hurricane Alma: This hurricane hit while we were in Granada with Alex's parents. We only noticed a significant amount of rain. It hit the department of Leon fairly hard and many people had roofs ripped off their homes and fallen trees. Luckily the damage was significant but they have predicted about 27 hurricanes/ tropical storms this year.
Work and Schools: We have been VERY busy this month working in our schools and getting secondary projects started. I (Kaitlyn) have completed tree-nurseries and gardens in all of my schools and am now working with teachers to help make their classes more participatory. Alex has started co-teaching with his teachers and has also completed tree-nurseries in all of his schools. He also started a community bank with the teachers in his NERPE. We have both been working with the mayor's office to give enviornmental workshops to the 8th graders at the high-school. This project started out well, and the kids were intelligent and responsive. Unfortunately, as things often do here, this project fell apart when we lost the involvement of the mayor's office environmental commission. We have also worked a little with a local NGO to help educate families that live in rural areas about making family gardens and the importance of nutrition. My volleyball team is still going strong and we are planning an all day volleyball workshop for next week. Lastly, we are participating in a fair this weekend to help raise money for a eco-friendly community center with the local sister-city project Norwalk. Overall, we have experienced both successes and frustrations with our projects so far.
Okay, well I hope this information gives you a better picture of what we have been up to this past month. We are really starting to get into the swing of things and anticipate getting some more projects off the ground soon. In July we have a mid-semester break and I (Kaitlyn) will travel home to the USA for a week and Alex will spend some getting to know more places in Nicaragua, such as Volcan Consiguina. We look forward to hearing from everyone and hopefully I will see some of you when I come home to the states! Nos Vemos.
Alex's Family Visits: Alex's family (parents, Zoe and Ashton) came to visit for about 10 days at the end of May. This time we rented a car so we had a little more freedom to travel about the country. We started our trip at a small beach south of San Juan Del Sur called Playa Coco. We rented a beautiful house and we pretty much had the beach to ourselves. Next, we traveled back to Nagarote to show off our site. After that we headed down to Granada. We went to the Masaya market, spent time at Volcan Mombacho doing the hike and canopy tour, spent the day at the Laguna de Apoyo, and Volcan Masaya (it was very difficult to breath with all of the sulfur). We ended with a final night in Managua. It was a great trip and it was really wonderful to see people from home again. If anything it made us more anxious to go back to the states and see everyone else that we are missing!
Transportation Strike: In May we also suffered from a two-week transportation strike. The bus and taxi owners were fighting for a discount on gas since the prices have sky-rocketed. This meant that we could not leave our site. Like the majority of Nicaraguans we rely on the public transportation system to get around. Fortunately, Nagarote has access to many things such as a supermarket and bank. Other volunteers were stranded in their sites with little access to food or money. Luckily, the government issued discounts to taxi and bus drivers and transportation is back to normal.
Hurricane Alma: This hurricane hit while we were in Granada with Alex's parents. We only noticed a significant amount of rain. It hit the department of Leon fairly hard and many people had roofs ripped off their homes and fallen trees. Luckily the damage was significant but they have predicted about 27 hurricanes/ tropical storms this year.
Work and Schools: We have been VERY busy this month working in our schools and getting secondary projects started. I (Kaitlyn) have completed tree-nurseries and gardens in all of my schools and am now working with teachers to help make their classes more participatory. Alex has started co-teaching with his teachers and has also completed tree-nurseries in all of his schools. He also started a community bank with the teachers in his NERPE. We have both been working with the mayor's office to give enviornmental workshops to the 8th graders at the high-school. This project started out well, and the kids were intelligent and responsive. Unfortunately, as things often do here, this project fell apart when we lost the involvement of the mayor's office environmental commission. We have also worked a little with a local NGO to help educate families that live in rural areas about making family gardens and the importance of nutrition. My volleyball team is still going strong and we are planning an all day volleyball workshop for next week. Lastly, we are participating in a fair this weekend to help raise money for a eco-friendly community center with the local sister-city project Norwalk. Overall, we have experienced both successes and frustrations with our projects so far.
Okay, well I hope this information gives you a better picture of what we have been up to this past month. We are really starting to get into the swing of things and anticipate getting some more projects off the ground soon. In July we have a mid-semester break and I (Kaitlyn) will travel home to the USA for a week and Alex will spend some getting to know more places in Nicaragua, such as Volcan Consiguina. We look forward to hearing from everyone and hopefully I will see some of you when I come home to the states! Nos Vemos.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Updates
We have been neglecting our duties of consistently updating our blog . Below follows some random updates on our activities.
It is very hot, the hottest part of the year here in Nicaragua. We have also been informed by a fellow volunteer that our town is in a small, geographical area that is the hottest of the entire western part of the country according to a climate map she saw...Yay. Mid-day naps on the hammock are vital in order to recharge for the rest of the day. At times a smell emanates from my body that resembles that of an overheating engine.
Last month we attended an "In-Service Training" session where we convened with all of the volunteers from our sector, as well as our counterparts (Nicaraguans we work closely with in our town). We spent three days receiving further technical training to use in our service, and of course catching up with our friends. Personally I did some catching up with my friends in another way, by finally catching a gastrointestinal infection (the last one of our group to do so) and spending the final day of the training session in a stupor in the Peace Corps office.
We have finally gotten into a work routine in our schools. We are both teaching classes about the environment and natural science, using our incredible guide books that contain a plethora of fun and participatory lessons. We have also created school gardens in our schools, and very soon will be creating school tree nurseries as well. Environmental Education volunteers have it easy in the way that all the kids living rural areas tend to love the subject of natural science and doing interactive activities outside.
Last Wednesday I spent another great afternoon platicar-ing (chatting) with a rural family next to one of my schools. They gave me my first bowl of iguana soup, which is delicious, like chicken but even better.
At the moment the country is enduring a transportation strike. This is a dire issue considering how many people rely on public transportation (buses, taxis, etc.) in order to travel to work everyday. The entire economy is in a gridlock as the drivers are trying to force the government to lower the price of gas. There are rumors it could last a month. A difficult situation and impossible to place blame on anyone. For now we are content to pass the time in our community as everyone is trying to stay positive and treat it as a long vacation.
In two weeks my family will be visiting, the last of the family visits for now. Looking forward to others making the trip down here. Although the dollar is crashing, know that the Cordoba is actaully doing worse, and the exchange rate has gone up by almost 1% (19.14) since we've arrived here. Although this does not bode well for the economy of Nicaragua, hopefully it might entice some of you to take a vacation.
It is very hot, the hottest part of the year here in Nicaragua. We have also been informed by a fellow volunteer that our town is in a small, geographical area that is the hottest of the entire western part of the country according to a climate map she saw...Yay. Mid-day naps on the hammock are vital in order to recharge for the rest of the day. At times a smell emanates from my body that resembles that of an overheating engine.
Last month we attended an "In-Service Training" session where we convened with all of the volunteers from our sector, as well as our counterparts (Nicaraguans we work closely with in our town). We spent three days receiving further technical training to use in our service, and of course catching up with our friends. Personally I did some catching up with my friends in another way, by finally catching a gastrointestinal infection (the last one of our group to do so) and spending the final day of the training session in a stupor in the Peace Corps office.
We have finally gotten into a work routine in our schools. We are both teaching classes about the environment and natural science, using our incredible guide books that contain a plethora of fun and participatory lessons. We have also created school gardens in our schools, and very soon will be creating school tree nurseries as well. Environmental Education volunteers have it easy in the way that all the kids living rural areas tend to love the subject of natural science and doing interactive activities outside.
Last Wednesday I spent another great afternoon platicar-ing (chatting) with a rural family next to one of my schools. They gave me my first bowl of iguana soup, which is delicious, like chicken but even better.
At the moment the country is enduring a transportation strike. This is a dire issue considering how many people rely on public transportation (buses, taxis, etc.) in order to travel to work everyday. The entire economy is in a gridlock as the drivers are trying to force the government to lower the price of gas. There are rumors it could last a month. A difficult situation and impossible to place blame on anyone. For now we are content to pass the time in our community as everyone is trying to stay positive and treat it as a long vacation.
In two weeks my family will be visiting, the last of the family visits for now. Looking forward to others making the trip down here. Although the dollar is crashing, know that the Cordoba is actaully doing worse, and the exchange rate has gone up by almost 1% (19.14) since we've arrived here. Although this does not bode well for the economy of Nicaragua, hopefully it might entice some of you to take a vacation.
Dad and Kara Visit!
Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay in posting once again, but we have been fairly busy. Recently, Dad and Kara came to visit and we had a blast touring Granada, zip-lining through the canopy at Volcan Mombacho, and hanging out at the beach at San Juan Del Sur! Here are a few pics for you to enjoy but Kara has most of the good ones on her camera so bug her or check out facebook! We miss you all and please keep in touch!
Sister love :)
Kara and Alex enjoying the Nica beverage of choice: TONA
Hanging out with Dad and Kara in San Juan Del Sur!
Alex and Kaitlyn :) Don´t you miss us?!?!?!
View from the top of Volcan Mombacho!
Hiking at Mombacho!
View of Mombacho from Granada!
San Juan Del Sur!
Doing what we do best... hanging out at the beach!
Sister love :)
Kara and Alex enjoying the Nica beverage of choice: TONA
Hanging out with Dad and Kara in San Juan Del Sur!
Alex and Kaitlyn :) Don´t you miss us?!?!?!
View from the top of Volcan Mombacho!
Hiking at Mombacho!
View of Mombacho from Granada!
San Juan Del Sur!
Doing what we do best... hanging out at the beach!Hope you enjoyed the pics! Keep in touch!
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
A Change of Pace
Just wanted to share another quick story of the nature of our new home.
As we’ve mentioned in earlier posts, we’ve been attending our assigned schools for about two months now. We’ve been spending this time observing class, getting to know the teachers and students, and creating a work plan for the next two years. At the same time we’ve started to assist an NGO with their reforestation project. The immediate needs of this task were to survey the families in my schools’ community, which gave me a great opportunity to get to know everyone.
My first day of surveying was very successful in my mind. After classes I managed to introduce myself and survey a total of ten houses in about and hour and a half, get back in time for a late lunch, and work on other things in the late afternoon.
My second day of surveying was very different. This time I recruited a few of my students to act as guides for the afternoon, enabling me to execute my task even more efficiently and also get to know the kids better. As I did not yet know, only one of these two goals would be met. By including the children on my journey, I thereby put myself at the whims of the Nicaraguan pace of life, and I would later appreciate this folly…but not yet.
A Peace Corps volunteer is constantly forced to deal with contradictions. One of the most central of these in my experience has been the inherent contradictions in our supposed purpose in Nicaragua as volunteers. Peace Corps states that our intentions are to promote positive cultural exchange (requiring being sensitive to cultural norms), while at the same time helping to generate increases in the opportunities for improvement of people’s lives. At times balancing these two goals can prove difficult.
In my view United States citizens tend to be a very driven people, efficient and “professional” in their work. Indeed, these are in many ways very admirable and beneficial traits. Although PC volunteers tend to be very unique people, they are surely products of their culture and I am no different in this way. Along with our flexibility and hunger for cultural difference, we intend to work hard to produce tangible results for those we serve. Enter frustration.
My afternoon with my three chavalos (young boys) began at the house where two of them lived. Naturally it would be a longer visit, but I hoped I could keep it to around fifteen minutes as I was shooting to visit at least an equal number of homes I had the day before. As I was an honored guest, I was immediately seated and provided with refreshments. I was then presented every personal item the boys owned before I was able to talk with their parents. Thirty minutes.
A major delay was met on the way to the second house. A mango tree. Mangoes are a trendy snack in the US. In Nicaragua they may be considered a reason for living. Mangoes trees are planted everywhere, the fruit is taken from the tree still green the first week they appear, everything stops to enjoy the sweet, sweet, sweeeeeeeeet…..what happened? Sorry I was eating a mango. Another half hour spent under the mango tree chatting and mostly suckling.
Second house was that of the third boy, who lived with his elderly aunt. This women’s slow speech made her easy to understand, but further pushed me from my goal. Chairs, refreshments, chatting, mangoes. This was a very typical type of visit to a home in rural Nicaragua. Sitting, a bit of conversation, a lot of long silences that are at first very awkward for gringos. After forty-five minutes I forcefully and offensively pried myself away, but not before having my backpack stuffed full of tamarindo fruit from their tree.
At this time it was getting more towards dinner instead of my late lunch. I resigned myself to only achieving two introductions for the day, but my chavalo guides insisted one more. Already drained by the sun, concentration on language, and fading blood-sugar level, I was met with the opposite extreme of a Nica home visit. Instead of slow and inconsistent conversation, I was met by a barrage of greetings, instructions, questions, advice, etc. from a super-humanly gregarious family. My brain already asleep, I simply smiled and nodded for another forty-five minutes. Sensing my fatigue, they released me for my long ride home, but not before filling my backpack with yet more tamarindo fruit from their own tree.
Three houses in a total of over four hours.
Initial frustrations have led to deeper understandings and appreciations...and resignation. Our own concept how to approach “work” does not always coincide with others’ here. People do not walk into someone’s house, give them their name, and start firing questions at them all in the name of efficiency and progress. Relationships are everything and work is not done before relationships are forged. Indeed, “There is more time in life”.
As we’ve mentioned in earlier posts, we’ve been attending our assigned schools for about two months now. We’ve been spending this time observing class, getting to know the teachers and students, and creating a work plan for the next two years. At the same time we’ve started to assist an NGO with their reforestation project. The immediate needs of this task were to survey the families in my schools’ community, which gave me a great opportunity to get to know everyone.
My first day of surveying was very successful in my mind. After classes I managed to introduce myself and survey a total of ten houses in about and hour and a half, get back in time for a late lunch, and work on other things in the late afternoon.
My second day of surveying was very different. This time I recruited a few of my students to act as guides for the afternoon, enabling me to execute my task even more efficiently and also get to know the kids better. As I did not yet know, only one of these two goals would be met. By including the children on my journey, I thereby put myself at the whims of the Nicaraguan pace of life, and I would later appreciate this folly…but not yet.
A Peace Corps volunteer is constantly forced to deal with contradictions. One of the most central of these in my experience has been the inherent contradictions in our supposed purpose in Nicaragua as volunteers. Peace Corps states that our intentions are to promote positive cultural exchange (requiring being sensitive to cultural norms), while at the same time helping to generate increases in the opportunities for improvement of people’s lives. At times balancing these two goals can prove difficult.
In my view United States citizens tend to be a very driven people, efficient and “professional” in their work. Indeed, these are in many ways very admirable and beneficial traits. Although PC volunteers tend to be very unique people, they are surely products of their culture and I am no different in this way. Along with our flexibility and hunger for cultural difference, we intend to work hard to produce tangible results for those we serve. Enter frustration.
My afternoon with my three chavalos (young boys) began at the house where two of them lived. Naturally it would be a longer visit, but I hoped I could keep it to around fifteen minutes as I was shooting to visit at least an equal number of homes I had the day before. As I was an honored guest, I was immediately seated and provided with refreshments. I was then presented every personal item the boys owned before I was able to talk with their parents. Thirty minutes.
A major delay was met on the way to the second house. A mango tree. Mangoes are a trendy snack in the US. In Nicaragua they may be considered a reason for living. Mangoes trees are planted everywhere, the fruit is taken from the tree still green the first week they appear, everything stops to enjoy the sweet, sweet, sweeeeeeeeet…..what happened? Sorry I was eating a mango. Another half hour spent under the mango tree chatting and mostly suckling.
Second house was that of the third boy, who lived with his elderly aunt. This women’s slow speech made her easy to understand, but further pushed me from my goal. Chairs, refreshments, chatting, mangoes. This was a very typical type of visit to a home in rural Nicaragua. Sitting, a bit of conversation, a lot of long silences that are at first very awkward for gringos. After forty-five minutes I forcefully and offensively pried myself away, but not before having my backpack stuffed full of tamarindo fruit from their tree.
At this time it was getting more towards dinner instead of my late lunch. I resigned myself to only achieving two introductions for the day, but my chavalo guides insisted one more. Already drained by the sun, concentration on language, and fading blood-sugar level, I was met with the opposite extreme of a Nica home visit. Instead of slow and inconsistent conversation, I was met by a barrage of greetings, instructions, questions, advice, etc. from a super-humanly gregarious family. My brain already asleep, I simply smiled and nodded for another forty-five minutes. Sensing my fatigue, they released me for my long ride home, but not before filling my backpack with yet more tamarindo fruit from their own tree.
Three houses in a total of over four hours.
Initial frustrations have led to deeper understandings and appreciations...and resignation. Our own concept how to approach “work” does not always coincide with others’ here. People do not walk into someone’s house, give them their name, and start firing questions at them all in the name of efficiency and progress. Relationships are everything and work is not done before relationships are forged. Indeed, “There is more time in life”.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Volcan Telica
On our latest adventure, Alex and I took a hike up to volcan Telica in the middle of the night! It is a special full moon hike that they have about once a month. We hike to the top all night and then stay up top in a small campsite area for a few hours until sunrise and then hike down. After that we stop at a place with boiling mud pits and finish up the trip with lunch at a cozy comedor the next day. The whole trip lasted about 13 hours without sleep! It was fairly difficult to climb because the trails were made of really loose dirt and rock so I slid fairly often. However, it was an AMAZING view at the top as you look out over all of Nicaragua and the other volcanoes in the ring of fire. Here are a few pics from our trip but my camera ran out of batteries so I did not get that many. Enjoy!
Olena, Alex, Me, Shunpei, and Regina right before we started the hike. 
Alex and me at the top. Notice the long-sleeves... it was FREEZING and windy at the top. It was hard to believe that we were still in Nicaragua.
View of Volcan Telica from the small base just before we climbed to the VERY top and looked in...
Small base camp, huddled around the fire around dawn before we climbed back down.
Olena, Alex, Me, Shunpei, and Regina right before we started the hike. Notice how clean and happy we are!
Yay, we are sitting at the top of the volcano, right at the edge of the crater! Unfortunately, we did not see any hot lava but we did see a lot of smoke and steam.
Alex and me at the top. Notice the long-sleeves... it was FREEZING and windy at the top. It was hard to believe that we were still in Nicaragua.
View of Volcan Telica from the small base just before we climbed to the VERY top and looked in...
Small base camp, huddled around the fire around dawn before we climbed back down.
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