Matagalpa, Nicaragua

07/18 - 07/21
   A few of us Nica 61ers met up in Matagalpa for the weekend. Matagalpa sits up in the North-Central region of Nicaragua in a valley surrounded by a beautiful mountain range. The city itself is home to a little over 100,000 people and is known for the coffee-growing industry of the region. So far, this has been my favorite destination of Nicaragua. Although it is a bustling city, the area is great for outdoors recreational activities.
   Our first full day in Matagalpa, we went on a hike up one of the mountains that surround the city. We literally started walking from our hostel in the center of town near the Cathedral and continued up a steep hill through neighborhoods as the walk gradually changed from pavement to dirt roads. After about 30 minutes, we found ourselves at the base of the mountain ready to begin the "real" hike. Completely out of breath (I gave up on running every morning in Diriamba a few weeks ago), all I could think was, "We aren't done yet?". I was immediately regretting my choice to go out the previous night with the other volunteers. Later, I found that it was all worth it. The hike was absolutely beautiful, with sites of rivers and miniature waterfalls. Once we arrived at the top, the views of the city tucked inthe valley of green mountains was taking and definately worth the suffering.

   The following day we went to Cascada Blanca which is a massive waterfall that is about a 45 minute bus ride from the bus station in town. The entrance fee was about $2 USD and you walk down constructed paths that lead you to this waterfall in the middle of the tropical forest. The path you follow leads you all the way around to a cave that sits behind the waterfall. EVERYTHING you have on you gets soaked from this walk but it is so worth it. We made sure to take turns leaving valuables with others further up on the trail. Most of us found little boulders to sit on while letting the freezing cold water crash onto our heads.

   While waiting for the bus, which consisted of us waiting for 2 hours, soaking wet and freezing on the side of the highway, we noticed a sloth walkind across a telephone wire on the other side of the street. We were able to get within three feet of him and take a ton of photos of him having lunch. Fun fact: "sloth" in Spanish is "perezoso" which also means "lazy".

   For dinner that evening we went to an Italian restaurant that had AMAZING pizza! Easily comparable to what I could find in the States. I may seem crazy to mention this but I've only had pizza one other time since I've been in Nicaragua and it was horrible. Finds like this make us overly excited!

IST

-7/5/13 - 7/10/13
   IST stands for In-Service Training. It was five days at a hotel/resort on a beach on the Pacific coast with my Nica 61 group as well as other business volunteers who have been here for more than five months. We had air-conditioning, hot water (almost forgot what that felt like), a buffet with American food such as bacon and pancakes (none of this I have had since being in the U.S.), and beautiful views of the beach from our patios. But we were there for trainings, so the majority of our time was spent in an overly air-conditioned conference room. We did receive a lot of useful technical information that we will be able to utilize in site. Not only this but we were able to exchange ideas with other business volunteers which will prove to be helpful in the future.

Some pictures from IST:

   On the way back to our sites, a couple friends and I decided we weren't quite ready to stop being pampered so we went to see a movie in the air-conditioned theater in Managua. We watched World War Z in 3D in the VIP theater! Yes, Managua has theaters that have VIP rooms in which you watch your big screen movie in the comfort of a leather Lazy-Boy recliner. Not only this, but they have a server in the theater who comes around and brings you a menu with an assortment of snacks from the theater as well as food from restaurants in the area. I bought a bag of skittles just for the fun of it. Overall, this movie trip costed about 150 cordobas which is equivalent to about $5 USD. I know this may not seem like much but my Peace Corps budget does not accomodate this luxurious experiences. I won't be doing that again for at least another six months.

First Time "Out of Site"

As a volunteer we are allowed 3 "Out of Site" nights per month. Unfortunately, these cannot be rolled over if they are unused one month so volunteers usually make sure to use them up each month. What is considered "Out of Site" is anytime you are spending the night anywhere other than your city/town that you have been placed to live and work during the two year service.

- 6/21/13 

   A few volunteers from my group, Nica 61 (We are the 61st group of volunteers to be placed in Nicaragua, anytime I mention "my group" this is who I am referring to)  decided to celebrate another volunteer's birthday and our first night out of site, in the city of Leon. It is considered one of the most important cities of Nicaragua and well known for it's colonial architecture. I met up with a couple friends in Managua and we caught a bus together up to Leon. The drive was full of beautiful green scenery with volcanoes in the background. We spent the weekend checking out the sites and going out at night. During the cathedral tour we ran into the cast from the show "Pit Boss". My friends were extremely excited about this and took some pictures, while I had no clue who these people were. I always hated those reality TV series. 

   One night out on the town was especially my favorite because we found a bar that played great salsa music. I was able to find someone who could dance really well and this made me extremely happy. I hadn't gone dancing once since I've been here even though I hear salsa music everywhere I go. The few times I've asked people about places to dance, they have warned me not to go there because that is where "vagas" go. The translation means "lazy" but Nicaraguans use it more broadly to describe someone who is up to no good, such as: a drunken man wandering the streets, a woman who goes out with different men, etc. So, when people tell me that only "loose" women go to these places, I figure it's best to avoid them. This has become really irritating for me because I really miss dancing and it served as a huge stress reliever back home. 

-6/28/13

   Found a great kid's library in my city. I was able to chat with the owner, who was really interested in my work here, and he offered to let me use his space for trainings that I plan on doing in the future. The library has a couple side rooms that would be perfect to give trainings to small groups. Also, I discovered that this library had the whole Harry Potter series in Spanish and I decided to make it a personal goal to read the series before I leave. As of right now, I am already halfway through the second book, "Harry Potter y la cámara secreta"!

-7/4/13

   Happy 4th of JULY!!! I was lucky enough to celebrate with a few other volunteers that are living in the region. We had ourselves a potluck where were wore red, white and blue; listened to American music; and ate American food such as: burgers, mac & cheese, no-bake cookies and drank the Nicaraguan equivalent to Budlight called Toña. It was AMAZING! At the end of the night we all passed out in hammocks (a.k.a spare mattresses) that were strung up around the house.

   

The New "Chela" in Town

To begin, “Chela” means white girl in Nicaragua. If you happen to be a white girl visiting or living in Nicaragua, you will learn this word quickly. Men in Nicaragua love to give “piropos”, which means cat-calling. They do this in a few creative ways which includes hissing, blowing kisses (the worst is the long, drawn-out kiss that sounds more like mmmmmuuuuuuaaaaaahhhhhhh versus muah) and of course “Hola Chela or Chelita”. The best is when they say “Hello” or “Beautiful” in English.  When I first experienced this, it didn’t bother me much. I have always been good at blocking things out. But after a few months of this, and of course it has gotten worse now that I am in a bigger city, it gets to you after a while. It’s like a constant stressor in the back of your mind. I find myself always conscious of it and I try to avoid walking by groups of men. Definitely one of the cultural differences I will have to learn to cope with during my service.

Of course, my first week in site I already had a great streak of luck beginning with my name tag falling into a puddle in the gutter that was full of (definitely toxic) blue-greenish water right before walking into my first school . I couldn’t help but laugh at myself because that would happen to me! The next day, I had a mototaxi take me to my school that is on the other side of town. My host mom told me that it costs 7 cords (Nicaraguan currency) to get a ride from a mototaxi in town. So, naturally when we pulled up to the school I gave him 7 cords. He claimed that is costed 10 and I told him no. At this point, I’ve lived in Nicaragua for 3 months. I know how people always try to charge me more because they think I’m a tourist and they know they can take advantage of tourists. I was not going to let him do that so I told him he was crazy and went about my way. Once in the school I asked another teacher how much it cost and they said from the other side of town where I came from, 10 cords was normal. I felt so guilty! I’m sure that driver will make a point not to pick me up in the future. The crazy white girl who underpays taxi drivers, hahaha! I told myself that if I saw him again in the future I would give him the 3 cords I owe him.

My first week in town I found a used bike shop that recently opened and bought a bike! The first I’ve bought since I was a kid. Now, I have a quicker way of getting around town.

I started running again. Although, I now go a little later than I did with Mama Tere back in Masatepe. Instead of 4.30am, I now go at 5.30am. I run on the highway that leads to Managua which is actually a nice run now that the rainy season has started and everything is green, even if there is a lot of traffic that goes by. Unfortunately, I still have very little endurance but hopefully that will change with time.

I attended my first baseball game in a nearby town with a fellow volunteer. Baseball is the big sport here in Nicaragua other than soccer. Unfortunately, we were only able to watch about 20 min of the game before it started POURING rain. Of course, seeing as how I am from the desert, I was not used to this and loved every minute of it.

Something I found funny when I first came to Nicaragua was the way Nicaraguans greet each other on the street. Instead of saying, “Hola” (hello) they say “adios” (bye) which is a quick way to greet someone as you pass them by. The funniest part is when kids like to practice their English and mock you at the same time by saying, “bye” in English because you’re a gringa. They find this extremely hilarious, especially if you reply back in English. I’ve become accustomed to both greetings but experienced a new one recently.  One day, I was walking by a group of kids when I noticed that they were giggling and making these weird sounds. Suddenly, I realized that they were pretending to say “adios” in Chinese. It took me a minute to realize what they were doing and that they were directing it at me. They found it extremely hilarious and all I could think was, “Do I really look like I am Asian?” It wouldn’t be the first time someone has thought that I had some Asian heritage. But the fact that these kids assumed I was Asian and were trying to mock me like they usually do with the “Bye” in English really caught me off guard.

Saturday, June 8^th, 2013 – I got together with a group of volunteers and we hiked the Mombacho Volcano! It was a 3 hour hike and the whole time we were practically walking up and down stairs. The scenery was beautiful and felt like you were completely submerged in the jungle. The weather was kind of cold (because of all the recent rain we’ve had) but once you started hiking it was perfectly fresh! We were able to see some great views of Nicaragua. Definitely want to do it again before I leave. The next day I could hardly walk my body was so sore.

Saturday, June 15^th, 2013 – Today I was planning to spend the morning at the beach with a fellow volunteer but we decided to stay home because it was rainy and chilly. Later that morning, I experienced my first earthquake! I was in the kitchen with my host sister when all of the sudden she ran to the living room and picked up her daughter and my mom started freaking out as well. I didn’t understand what they were saying and noticed the shaking right as I made out the word “temblor” which literally means, “tremble” but I immediately understood what was going on. We gathered together and my host mom kept saying, “sangre de Cristo, sangre de Cristo” which literally means “blood of Christ” and I couldn’t help but smile during the whole ordeal. They were freaking out and I was loving it. I literally saw the road moving up and down outside while the water in the kitchen was splashing out of the pila (which is basically a Nica sink). The whole scene made me want to laugh but I didn’t for fear of being rude. I found out later that is was a 6.5 magnitude and luckily there was no serious damage throughout the country. Apparently, the rainy season is more susceptible to these types of natural disasters. Nicaragua has granted me a lot of first experiences and I’m sure there will be more.

Starting all over…

   Now, that I am a volunteer I have been assigned what they call a “site” which is where I will be living and working for the next two years. I live in a small city of about 60,000 (approx. 30,000 live in the urban area). I have access to internet at internet cafes that they call “cybers” and have cell phone service throughout the city. I am using an extremely cheap phone ($12 to be exact) with a SIM card that was provided by Peace Corps. They have all the volunteers and staff on a family plan so that we may contact each other at any time. I do have running water but it is not consistent so it is certain that I will be taking many bucket showers throughout my service. I have to wash all my laundry by hand which loses it’s novelty quite quickly, especially in the wet season when it takes days for your clothes to dry and then they end up smelling musty and you have to do the process all over again. 

   It is required to live with a host family for the full-term of service which I originally thought was a bummer but it does have its benefits as well. They will help me integrate into my community and will probably prove to be a huge resource. Not only this, but I’ve heard that many volunteers who live alone usually end up spending lots of time with a family that lives nearby for company.  They say the requirement is for security reasons, meaning you are less likely to be assaulted or robbed by the locals if they know you are part of a Nica family versus being some random white person in town. My family is great. They are very nice, open-minded and easy-going. My host family consists of my host mom and two host sisters that are in their 20s. The oldest, who is actually 24, has a 7 month year old daughter who is adorable (even though I usually don’t like kids). I live on the outskirts of town so it takes me 25 minutes to walk to the center of town. They have mototaxis that I can take in town but all those nice rides can add up quickly and seeing as how my living allowance is minimal, I plan to invest in a bike and/or do a lot of walking. The city itself has a small town feel but has a lot of the amenities of a big city. There are plenty of businesses in town that will be great for potential side projects. Also, I live about a 40 min bus ride from the beach!!!! Something I’ve always wanted. I definitely plan to hit the beach every chance I get. 

   I am working in four high schools and working directly with seven teachers. Two of the schools and two of the teachers worked with the previous volunteer that lived here, whereas the rest are completely new to the entrepreneurship curriculum and have not worked with a Small Business Volunteer. This means I will be spending a lot more time with the new teachers. Good news is that only the follow-up schools will have the chance to participate in the local, regional, and national business plan competitions. The new schools will have the opportunity to participate next year. This takes some pressure off and I was relieved to find this out. For the first few weeks in site, my job is to organize my schedule with the schools, observe classes, as well as introduce myself to community leaders and local businesses. Basically, work on integration  while figuring out what my community's resources and needs are. 

   When I received my site assignment I was a little disappointed because it wasn’t very exotic and it didn’t seem like it was going to be the idealized, living in the middle of nowhere, rough experience that Peace Corps is famous for. I've now realized how cool this city is and how there is still plenty of opportunity. Just because it is a bigger site, it does not mean that I won’t be of use to the people here. Plus, living in a central area makes it a lot easier for me to travel to other parts of the country!!!

From Trainee to Volunteer!

   Last night in my training town of Masatepe, I come home to find my family surprised me with a goodbye cake. I was so touched because I know the money they used to buy the cake could buy a week’s worth of food but they seemed to enjoy it as much as I did. It was delicious and so fresh that the plate it came on was still hot. My host sister found it hilarious to wipe cake all over my face. I found it funny that tradition has made it all the way to Nicaragua as well. After hanging out with the family and gorging myself on cake, I went to hang out with my fellow trainees who were having a karaoke party at a host family’s house. We tried to sing a bunch of old Mexican Ranchera songs which I’m sure the neighbors didn’t enjoy as much as we did. Perfect way to spend my last night in Masatepe. 

   Thursday, May 23^rd I woke up at 4am to finish packing (BIG SURPRISE, once again I find my procrastinating self in the same situation) and still found myself running late for the 7am bus.  I ran out of the house dragging all my bags and barely saying goodbye to the family. I knew I would see them the following weekend to grab the last of my things so I didn’t feel too guilty.

In Managua, we were put up in this nice hotel that had a pool and hot water!!!! I realized I hadn’t taken a shower with hot water since I was in the U.S.  The little things we take for granted back home. At this point, I’ve been in Nicaragua almost three months and EVERY morning I still have that debate with the shower. I stand there, turn on the water and have that minute or so where I’m literally talking myself into getting under the ice cold water that is running before my eyes. You’d think after so much time here I’d grow accustomed to it but that hasn’t happened yet. 

   Friday, May 24^th, 2013 I was officially sworn-in as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nicaragua. This means that I successfully met the requirements during training to continue with two years of service. The ceremony itself was held in the Hilton Princess hotel in Managua which is very extravagant, especially for us volunteers. They provided refreshments and cake! We all cleaned-up quite nicely and put on our finest for the ceremony. Of course, later that night we went out to a club in Managua and celebrated. There was a lot of dancing and minimal drama which is the way I like it. 

   The next day we all got up late and tried to recover from the night before. A group of us went to lunch at an awesome sushi joint and then saw a Star Trek 2 in an air-conditioned movie theater. It was so surreal. We were all gringos, speaking in English and enjoying the amenities that we are accustomed to when at home. All day I felt like I was back in the U.S.  We all agreed how it was the perfect way to soften us up before we go through the hardest part of our service (which Peace Corps claims to be the first 3 months of service). Still, it was a nice break before heading out to do the big kid’s work! 

-             Almost forgot to mention…… the morning after the night out (when still feeling the remnants from the festivities of the night before) I noticed that my waitress serving me breakfast had a shirt that said, “I like to stab big balls with large needles” in English. I almost fell out of my chair laughing. The worst part is that she, more than likely, had no clue what it said. A few friends and I text each other whenever we see a Nica (short for Nicaraguan) wearing a ridiculous shirt in English. 

       Some photos of Masatepe, a family member making nacatamales (which are delicious), and the recycled American school bus that is used in Nicaragua for public transport. We are usually squeezed in there like sardines with no air-conditioning and they throw our luggage on top. Fun times!

Volunteer Visit

So I meant to post this weeks ago..... I am already slacking on the blogging thing. Forgive me!

Part of our training program has all of the SBD (Small Business Development) trainees visit a current volunteer in their site during week 5 of our training. I was sent to a town on the west coast, in the department of Managua and stayed with a SBD volunteer who has been here since last summer.

When I arrived at my volunteer's site we immediately changed and headed to the beach with a couple other volunteers and another trainee. It was a short bus ride away from my volunteer's site and it was lined with little huts where fishing boats came in, cleaned their fish and sold it right on the beach. We went to this pier where the infamous ex-dictator of Nicaragua, Somoza, used to park his yachts. It is partly collapsed in the middle as a result of the revolution. A group of Nicaraguans were watching us as we swam out, climbed up the ramp and jumped off the end of the pier. As white people, we already get a lot of attention in this country. To top it off, most Nicaraguans can't swim very well, if at all, so I'm sure they thought we were crazy to be doing this and were waiting for us to start drowning. Overall, I was grateful to spend a day on the beach.

I spent the rest of the week basically job shadowing my volunteer. She explained to me that her site was a "new site" meaning they had never had a PC volunteer living and working there before her. It didn't take long for me to realize that being a new site meant that is was a lot more challenging to do her job. She has five schools in which she is teaching the Entrepreneurship class. One of them EXTREMELY challenging, to the point where she and her counterpart walked out of the class 10 minutes early because the kids were not paying attention to a word she was saying. This scared the crap out of me because I am already nervous about managing a classroom. BUT...... most of her other classes went quite smoothly for Nica standards and the kids were engaged and participated a lot. This  made me realize that no matter where I am sent. I will find that each school in which I will be teaching will be different from the other. Some easier and some more challenging. I was able to take note of a lot of her teaching techniques that I will be sure to utilize when I arrive in my site.