Week 3 in Nicaragua has come to a close. Pretty wild. The time has flown by, but looking back to the first day we arrived seems forever ago.
My schedule has been pretty much the same for the past few weeks: a lot of spanish class and a few technical sessions. Today though, we finally made our first school garden with about 10 students from 5th and 6th grade. As exhausting as it was, it was really nice to interact with the kids in a positive way. It was very gratifying to see how excited they were about the garden and really just playing with us gringos. They also have much better machete skills than I do and can climb trees really well. I have put some pictures up of the garden and the kids.
As for other things in Nicaragua, life is good. I'm still enjoying it all. I go this Sunday (not tomorrow but a week) to visit a volunteer somewhere in Nicaragua and get a glimpse into that life and a new place in Nicaragua. I am pretty excited about that.
I will try to update and will continue to add photos to my Picasa Web Album.
adios
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Dia de Independencia
Today was the Central American Independence Day. Events started this morning at 7, with all of the students from the different schools marching in front of the church. After a few speakers, the best students in the city were presented and then all of the schools paraded around town for about 2 1/2 hours. It was pretty entertaining, especially the bands and dancers from each school.
This afternoon, the other two PC trainees in Masatepe and myself went with one of the host moms to a couple of miradores close to Masatepe. I've put some pictures up that you can look at by clicking the thumbnails in the new "My Picasa Photos" gadget above this post. I finally was able to get some good views of Nicaragua. The first one we went to, in Nandasmo, overlooked Laguna Masaya and the Volcon Masaya. The second one, in Catarina, was nicer and had pretty incredible views of Laguna de Apoyo, the city of Granada, and even Lago de Nicaragua. It was also my first experience in a mototaxi.
As week one comes to a close, everything is still going well here. My family is great, I'm still enjoying the food (I've had chicken feet twice in two days), and my spanish is slowly improving. I haven't gotten sick yet, nor have I had any big encounters with any large, tropical insects - although there is a spider that lives in my sink and a couple of lizards that live in my room.
Also, I have found shaved ice in Nicaragua. They shave the ice by hand. I would've bought one today but I didn't have any money on me. I will let you know how they are next time.
This afternoon, the other two PC trainees in Masatepe and myself went with one of the host moms to a couple of miradores close to Masatepe. I've put some pictures up that you can look at by clicking the thumbnails in the new "My Picasa Photos" gadget above this post. I finally was able to get some good views of Nicaragua. The first one we went to, in Nandasmo, overlooked Laguna Masaya and the Volcon Masaya. The second one, in Catarina, was nicer and had pretty incredible views of Laguna de Apoyo, the city of Granada, and even Lago de Nicaragua. It was also my first experience in a mototaxi.
As week one comes to a close, everything is still going well here. My family is great, I'm still enjoying the food (I've had chicken feet twice in two days), and my spanish is slowly improving. I haven't gotten sick yet, nor have I had any big encounters with any large, tropical insects - although there is a spider that lives in my sink and a couple of lizards that live in my room.
Also, I have found shaved ice in Nicaragua. They shave the ice by hand. I would've bought one today but I didn't have any money on me. I will let you know how they are next time.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
I have made it to Masatepe
Today is day 3 in Masatepe, Masaya, Nicaragua. Things are going great. My host family is wonderful and I haven't felt any earthquakes yet - or seen any lava. This is going to be a quick post because I need to go study more Spanish for tomorrow but I have included some picture. There will be more to come.
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Three more days...
Three more days of waiting for something that I have been looking forward to for almost 17 months. Three more days to hold on to the image of Nicaragua that I have painted in my head from the many videos, blogs, and books I have read and replace it with reality. Three more days to indulge myself in all things American - movies, popcorn, popsicles, Alabama football, food, hot showers. It is a bit surreal that I will be leaving this soon. The past month or so has been rather busy - getting paperwork in order, buying things I (think I) will need, moving out of my apartment, organizing things at home, etc. - but now all I really have to do is wait (and pack, no big deal though).
A rough schedule of my first week in Nicaragua:
Tuesday morning (Sept 4th) I fly out of Birmingham to Washington, D.C. where I will spend less than 24 hours for a sort of "pre-orientation." Here I will get to know the other 27 or so people that will be part of "Nica 60", as our training group is called.
Wednesday morning at 7 our flight leaves for Managua, Nicaragua, via Miami. The first three nights in Nicaragua will be spent at a hotel in Managua for a more comprehensive orientation, with a few crash courses in what to expect out of the pre-service training.
Finally, on Saturday morning, I will travel to my host family's home where I will be living for the next three months. I believe this will be somewhere around the city or Jinotepe, in the departamento of Carazo or Masaya. On Monday, training begins.
¡Adiós!
I can't forget to thank Denise, Jonathan, and my parents, as well as everyone who came to Good People last Saturday for my going away party. It was a great time and I will miss you all!
A rough schedule of my first week in Nicaragua:
Tuesday morning (Sept 4th) I fly out of Birmingham to Washington, D.C. where I will spend less than 24 hours for a sort of "pre-orientation." Here I will get to know the other 27 or so people that will be part of "Nica 60", as our training group is called.
Wednesday morning at 7 our flight leaves for Managua, Nicaragua, via Miami. The first three nights in Nicaragua will be spent at a hotel in Managua for a more comprehensive orientation, with a few crash courses in what to expect out of the pre-service training.
Finally, on Saturday morning, I will travel to my host family's home where I will be living for the next three months. I believe this will be somewhere around the city or Jinotepe, in the departamento of Carazo or Masaya. On Monday, training begins.
Additionally, I've updated the "Contact Me" page with some new information about my address and what not.
Also, if you want to receive email updates from my blog, use the "Join Site" button on the right.
I can't forget to thank Denise, Jonathan, and my parents, as well as everyone who came to Good People last Saturday for my going away party. It was a great time and I will miss you all!
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