To my beloved friends and family,
Since training has yet to get very intensive, I've had a lot of time to keep you updated. I promise I actually did go to Nicaragua, there are not computers at every corner, and I am spending time outside of the ciber. But since I've got some time, I figured I'd write about my first weekend in Masatepe. Someone's got to be at least a little curious, or, at the very least, people can use it as yet another reason to not study for midterms.
There was an earthquake last Friday near the coast. It was a 5.1 on the Richter scale, (Tim, is that good?), and we felt it all the way over in Masatepe, which is a couple hours' bus ride away. It was kind of exciting to feel the ground and house shake, and to be able to say I've experienced an earthquake, but what devastation did it leave in it's wake? You'll have to research that one on your own, because I don't know. I just added that last phrase in to keep the rhyme going.
For the first week it was a nightly routine to play with the kids in the street in front of my house. There's always about 10 out there just hanging out anyways, ranging in age from 6 to 12, and having an older person play makes it all the more exciting. But they do not take competition lightly. As it should be. Life's too short to lose or "play fair". Sharing can beat it too. OK, so they do play fair and share, (rhyming's in my blood), but there have definitely been some heated arguments, of which I understood very little. We play whatever strikes their fancy that particular evening, be it fútbol, kickbol, or noche y día, a think-fast, tag-type game.
However, lately this has become a less frequent occurance because, as I´m sure will surprise everyone, I found the soccer ballers. They play on and extremely slippery cement court with a relatively flat ball, but it is an absolute blast and I could do it all day everyday. I just discovered the court a few days ago, but I go out there every chance I get. Some of the guys hit it up just to run around and hang out, but most are pretty good. I go with fellow Trainee and next-door neighbor, Kati, who I have to give props to because she is always the only girl playing. It's also a great way to integrate into the community because they see us out there and get to know us and realize that we're here for a good while, and not just a week or two. The last time we played, we went til dark and got to chat with the guys afterwards and learned all the nicknames they have, very few of which are kind. One guy assumed we were German because we play soccer, which I found hilarious, but most enjoy the opportunity to practice their English. They call me chele and her chela, the Nica word for gringo. My host family finds it quite amusing how much I play, partly because I come home drenched in sweat everyday.
On Saturday Carlo took me to Jinotepe to buy soccer cleats, (which they call tacos, oddly enough), and a short-sleeved button-down because I'm supposed to wear them when I'm working and I die in the long sleeves. They didn't have cleats anywhere in my size, because Nicaraguans aren't as big as Nickaraguans, so we then travelled to Diriamba, found a cheap but decent pair, and bussed home. I really liked Jinotepe. It reminded me of being in Mexico. I also am head-over-heels in love with the Latin American bus system. It's cheap, quick in comparison to the US, it's exciting to ride because it passes slower cars on two-lane roads and barely stops for passengers to board, and its refreshing to think that public transportation is actually utilized in parts of the world. Sunday Carlo and I went with Kati, who lives with his mother, on a 5 km hike to the laguna at 5:30 in the morning. It was extremely steep and a bitch to get back up, but the lake was very cool and there are some great views. The best part, however, was definitely when I decided to go off the path and explore the ruins of this huge mansion that belonged to the former, US backed, Nicaraguan president Anastosio Somoza. It was super cool to see a huge, fancy builing in ruins in the middle of a jungle-like area. It had a very Tomb Raider like feel.
But don't worry guys, I didn't forget about the fact that I have access to a flat-screen, either. I watched most of the Bears-Packers game, and watch telenovelas nightly with Doña María and Salvadora. It gets dark, I come in, we watch Truiunfo del Amor, I shower and eat, and then we watch India: Una Historia de Amor. They help me practice my Spanish, and it helps me connect with the women of the house. But these novelas are ridiculous. I get excited when I finally understand whats going on with certain characters because I came in late in the show, and EVERYONE has a baby that the father doesn't know about or thinks is his own, but isn't. And the ones that aren't in that situation are seducing someone for their money or betraying their son/friend/spouse. It's quite entertaining.
This has, by far, been my longest blog. I had a lot to say. I'll come home and everyone will just be like, "Yeah, Nick, no one wants to hear about Nicaragua. I didn't actually read your blog, but your mom told me all about it. Shut up." Oh yeah? Fine.
Love you all muchísimo,
Nick
p.s. I think it's stupid to italicize Spanish words in documents in English and I refuse to do it.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Como va a ser mi vida por los próximos tres meses
To my beloved friends and family,
I have finally arrived in Nicaragua. I wrote this blog to the sound of trumpets and Elvis Crespo at a dining room table while a 2 year-old imitated me with his pen and paper on a beautiful day with the perfect amount of breeze. (For the rekerd, this computer dusnt have spell check for English that I can find, so any misplelings shud be overlukt.)
After flying into Managua and being separated from real Nicaraguan life for 3 days, they finally judged us on our Spanish-speaking abilities and sent us into the country. They sent me, and 3 others to Masatepe, a town of roughly 30,000 and no white people. I am staying with a family far more well-off than I ever expected when I signed up for the Peace Corps. Doña María Gertrudis, her aunt Salvadora, her husband Carlo, and their 3 boys all live with me. Fabian (who's first name is actually Leikar, after the Lakers) is 9, Jeanfranquito is 2, and Agdel is almost 1. Jeanfranquito doesn't really speak Spanish, more a mix of baby and Spanish, but tries to talk to me nonetheless, and appears to love having me beacuse he has boundless energy and is trapped in the house with his aunt and a baby most of the day. He enjoys having a new jungle-gym, and I must concede that I enjoy being his play-thing. Doña María works in the bank not far from the house, amd the house is above a little place in which the local kids can come play Playstation on 4 different TVs, which Carlo own's and operates, as far as I can tell. It's a very nice house, has a flat screen and cable, and I have my own (albeit tiny) room and bathroom. Cold-water showers are tough, but you learn to deal.
The other cool thing is that, because a lot of kids come by the house to play video games and the houses are close together, all the neighbors come around and hang out every evening to chat and watch the really little kids. Today some people waved me up to their house to watch Nicaragua play Belize in the Central American cup that's going on right now. And 2 days ago, my first evening here, I played jacks and "estop" (essentially Scattergories but even better and only requires a pen and paper) with some young girls from down the street. As it turns out, Nicaraguan children know their shit, and I got destroyed.
I'm in class for most of the day. It's a Spanish class for most people because the Peace Corps makes it very clear that the key to integrating and being accepted by the community is speaking their language. But because I'm in the advanced group, we talk about specifically Nicaraguan phrases and customs and train for our service. Today we went to the health center to meet the director and walked around town to get a feel for it.
So far it has been great, but its only been 2 days, and I'm guessing it will get far more challenging. I also am guessing that when they send me to my site of service, it will be a bit farther from my comfort zone. I'll let you know how that goes though. Still working on getting pictures up.
I love and miss you all.
Nick
p.s. Shout out to Andrew Martinez because he said it would make him happy.
I have finally arrived in Nicaragua. I wrote this blog to the sound of trumpets and Elvis Crespo at a dining room table while a 2 year-old imitated me with his pen and paper on a beautiful day with the perfect amount of breeze. (For the rekerd, this computer dusnt have spell check for English that I can find, so any misplelings shud be overlukt.)
After flying into Managua and being separated from real Nicaraguan life for 3 days, they finally judged us on our Spanish-speaking abilities and sent us into the country. They sent me, and 3 others to Masatepe, a town of roughly 30,000 and no white people. I am staying with a family far more well-off than I ever expected when I signed up for the Peace Corps. Doña María Gertrudis, her aunt Salvadora, her husband Carlo, and their 3 boys all live with me. Fabian (who's first name is actually Leikar, after the Lakers) is 9, Jeanfranquito is 2, and Agdel is almost 1. Jeanfranquito doesn't really speak Spanish, more a mix of baby and Spanish, but tries to talk to me nonetheless, and appears to love having me beacuse he has boundless energy and is trapped in the house with his aunt and a baby most of the day. He enjoys having a new jungle-gym, and I must concede that I enjoy being his play-thing. Doña María works in the bank not far from the house, amd the house is above a little place in which the local kids can come play Playstation on 4 different TVs, which Carlo own's and operates, as far as I can tell. It's a very nice house, has a flat screen and cable, and I have my own (albeit tiny) room and bathroom. Cold-water showers are tough, but you learn to deal.
The other cool thing is that, because a lot of kids come by the house to play video games and the houses are close together, all the neighbors come around and hang out every evening to chat and watch the really little kids. Today some people waved me up to their house to watch Nicaragua play Belize in the Central American cup that's going on right now. And 2 days ago, my first evening here, I played jacks and "estop" (essentially Scattergories but even better and only requires a pen and paper) with some young girls from down the street. As it turns out, Nicaraguan children know their shit, and I got destroyed.
I'm in class for most of the day. It's a Spanish class for most people because the Peace Corps makes it very clear that the key to integrating and being accepted by the community is speaking their language. But because I'm in the advanced group, we talk about specifically Nicaraguan phrases and customs and train for our service. Today we went to the health center to meet the director and walked around town to get a feel for it.
So far it has been great, but its only been 2 days, and I'm guessing it will get far more challenging. I also am guessing that when they send me to my site of service, it will be a bit farther from my comfort zone. I'll let you know how that goes though. Still working on getting pictures up.
I love and miss you all.
Nick
p.s. Shout out to Andrew Martinez because he said it would make him happy.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Inicio
To my beloved friends and family,
I wasn't 100% sure I´d actually get around to writing a blog even though I told almost all of you I would, but alas, it has come to be. (Disclaimer: This is not an exciting blog yet. It is merely an update as to the happenings of my life since departure from Sacramento for the curious. The interesting ones with information about Nicaragua will have to come at a later time.)
I flew into Arlington, VA on Tuesday, hung out in a hotel for the evening, and began the staging event the next day. It consisted of meeting all the other volunteers going to Nicaragua, 45 in total, and briefing us in safety and what to expect before the real training began. Everyone is going in either the same program as me, reproductive health and HIV education, or maternal and child health, which are apparently fields dominated by females because my group consists of 37 of them and only 8 of us reppin' the dudes. We were set to leave that night when 3 inches of snow got our flight cancelled. Of course I had packed for Nicaraguan heat, and was completely unprepared for the frigid weather wonderful DC so generously offered me. It turned out to not be all that bad, however, because I got to go out and see the Smithsonian Natural History and American History museums the next day, as well as try some of the most delicious beers of my life at a place that has a selection of over 300.
We finally left for the airport at 1:30am on the 14th, and got into Managua around 1:00pm. Because of the delay, plans for training upon arrival were changed. Initially, we were going to go to Grenada for a 3 day training retreat before we were separated into groups of 4 or 5 and sent to the towns we will train in for 3 months (we begin the the job VERY well trained), but now we are going to have that retreat in a hotel across the street from the airport before going to our training towns. It feels amazing to be here. Not only to arrive in country, but also weather-wise. It's about 90 degrees, sunny, bearable humidity, and has a nice, cool breeze. Hope the rain is good too, though.
Until this point, I forgot I even owned a camera, but now that I'm actually here, I'll start snappin' away and hopefully figure out a way to upload them. I've been talking to volunteers that have already been serving in Nicaragua for a while, and I'm getting more and more excited to get to the heart of both my service and the country. (Reading back over this, that sounds super cheesy. And I don't like it. But I'm not gunna change it.)
Like I said, the delay has left me without much to report, but I figured at least my family will be glad to hear that I'm here and happy. If you guys have any questions you want answered in the next blog, or requests, concerns, comments, compliments, good jokes, or just feel like telling me how much you love me, feel free to leave a comment on this. I'll try to check facebook, but family takes the priority on this one so I might not always have time to check it.
I love you all so much and hope everything is going well.
Nick
p.s. SO EXCITED!!!
I wasn't 100% sure I´d actually get around to writing a blog even though I told almost all of you I would, but alas, it has come to be. (Disclaimer: This is not an exciting blog yet. It is merely an update as to the happenings of my life since departure from Sacramento for the curious. The interesting ones with information about Nicaragua will have to come at a later time.)
I flew into Arlington, VA on Tuesday, hung out in a hotel for the evening, and began the staging event the next day. It consisted of meeting all the other volunteers going to Nicaragua, 45 in total, and briefing us in safety and what to expect before the real training began. Everyone is going in either the same program as me, reproductive health and HIV education, or maternal and child health, which are apparently fields dominated by females because my group consists of 37 of them and only 8 of us reppin' the dudes. We were set to leave that night when 3 inches of snow got our flight cancelled. Of course I had packed for Nicaraguan heat, and was completely unprepared for the frigid weather wonderful DC so generously offered me. It turned out to not be all that bad, however, because I got to go out and see the Smithsonian Natural History and American History museums the next day, as well as try some of the most delicious beers of my life at a place that has a selection of over 300.
We finally left for the airport at 1:30am on the 14th, and got into Managua around 1:00pm. Because of the delay, plans for training upon arrival were changed. Initially, we were going to go to Grenada for a 3 day training retreat before we were separated into groups of 4 or 5 and sent to the towns we will train in for 3 months (we begin the the job VERY well trained), but now we are going to have that retreat in a hotel across the street from the airport before going to our training towns. It feels amazing to be here. Not only to arrive in country, but also weather-wise. It's about 90 degrees, sunny, bearable humidity, and has a nice, cool breeze. Hope the rain is good too, though.
Until this point, I forgot I even owned a camera, but now that I'm actually here, I'll start snappin' away and hopefully figure out a way to upload them. I've been talking to volunteers that have already been serving in Nicaragua for a while, and I'm getting more and more excited to get to the heart of both my service and the country. (Reading back over this, that sounds super cheesy. And I don't like it. But I'm not gunna change it.)
Like I said, the delay has left me without much to report, but I figured at least my family will be glad to hear that I'm here and happy. If you guys have any questions you want answered in the next blog, or requests, concerns, comments, compliments, good jokes, or just feel like telling me how much you love me, feel free to leave a comment on this. I'll try to check facebook, but family takes the priority on this one so I might not always have time to check it.
I love you all so much and hope everything is going well.
Nick
p.s. SO EXCITED!!!
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