Work is my life, my life is my work

This phrase has never been more true for me than it is right now.  I think I realized this while watching my team of students graduate high school one by one and win awards for their leadership.  I was beaming with pride.  There was no other place I would have rather been there at that moment.  It was all so gratifying to see their faces light up when they saw me in the audience and yelled "hola Kate!"  I started to think back on my own high school graduation and how I have changed since that day.  It made me think about how much these kids have in front of them and how honored I am that I got to make a dent in their lives. After the ceremony there was a dinner for the teachers which turned in to a night of cervezas and dancing on the school basketball court to cumbia music.  I don't think I've ever had so much fun with people who are all practically twice my age, well accept my counterpart Silvia who is 30.  She is my rock here in Nica.  She's the one that calls me on my birthday and checks in to see if I make it back from my travels safely.

Silvia and I with our students

Before coming to Nica my job was something separate than my passion, a paycheck, a challenge and in the end a burden because I just wasn't happy.  Not that my co-workers weren't my friends or anything like that, but I found myself trying to make a separate life outside my day to day corporate self in a suit at a desk because it just wasn't enough to keep me happy.  My work has always been what drives my decisions and my moves in life.  When I stopped judging myself by how much money I made or how prestigious my title was and just let it all go, I found myself here.  Truly happy.  Although some days are rough and the work isn't always a steady flow, I am very happy with what I'm doing here in Chinandega.

Here I am me.  No blow dried hair or dry cleaned suit because I feel like I have to or because that's how one "should dress" in corporate America.  I am accepted and liked for who I am naturally and it feels good!

The Nicaraguan people are also starting to really get to me, in a good way.  I have never been so loved and taken care of by the people that surround me who are not my direct family.  People truly look out for each other here.  These people are so open and secure enough in themselves to just hand out affection like its no big deal.  I find myself walking arm in arm with my counterparts(Silvia again) and sitting right next to my host brother(as if he were my real bro) while looking at Facebook because these people are so comfortable with touch and affection.  It's a relief to me, as most of you know, a very affectionate person, to not have to hide or move my arm away when it touches someone else's.  Giving and receiving affection here is just normal, a part of life, which I believe we tend to over think in the U.S.  We constantly worry about what other people think, how the other person will react or what others will assume when they see affection.  I hope I'm making sense right now.  Would love to hear your comments on this...

I guess is what I'm trying to say is that I'm more myself here than anywhere else.  The importance of my work has become personal and I couldn't be enjoying it more.  

What continues to blow me away is the way these people give and give and give.  On several occasions young girls have become enamored with me on a public bus and tried to gift me their bracelet or another object.  I kindly refuse, but when I see the hurt and rejection in their eyes I get confused.  I have come to the conclusion that they take direct pleasure out of giving to others, which our society lacks on so many levels.  There is usually an incentive behind our giving, not always, but I feel a majority of the time this is the case.

Even though I live in a big city, I get the small town feel every day.  I run in to people I know everywhere.  I went to fix my bike tire today, to much mountain biking to the beach, which led to a hole in my tire and since they see my face so often, the owner fixed my tire for free.  I've been gifted food, clothing and much more by the people of my community and it never seems to end.

On top of Chinandega I have the small community where I surf, Coco Loco in Manzana.  Here I know the kids by name and the local surfers have become my friends.  Everyone knows everyone and I love the days I spend out there where life slows down compared to the hussle and bussle of Chin city.

I've been bonding more with my host family over decorating for Christmas.  Fun fact is I strung lights on our Christmas tree in a sundress and then got up the next morning to surf, Feliz Navidad?  It so does not feel like Christmas here weather wise, yet Chrsitmas music plays in every store and fake trees are in almost every house. Last night I made homemade egg nog and sugar cookies to share a little bit of our American culture here with my family and friends.  We sat in the living room by the Christmas tree and passed my guitar around.  Turns out we didn't know how to play many Christmas songs ha ha.

Last but not least surfing has become a huge part of my life here.  When I found out I was headed to Nica a little light bulb went off in my mind "surf territory!".  I had no idea that I would get placed 15 mins form the beach and 30 mins from some world class waves.  I also didn't realize that I would find surfer's paradise my first weekend in site.  With the help of some friends I finally encountered my first surf board and can't seem to get enough of the sport.  I have never felt such complete bliss as when I'm out on the Pacific chillen for the next wave.  Yesterday I surfed alone for the first time, but don't freak mom it was more towards low tide than high and the waves weren't that big.  The only souls in site where Roco and Ocita, dogs from Coco Loco who came down with me to hang on the beach and guard my stuff.  There was no one but me and the open ocean and it was paradise.

So I said good-bye to my board for a few weeks to head back to the States for the holidays which couldn't have been a better decision as work was winding down.  Nica becomes very tranquilo over the holidays so I'm taking advantage of the vacation time.  I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone and accomplishing the following....

Eat Eegees no matter how cold it is

Run the river walk with my dog Bella

Stuff my face with Mexican food(uh hum Annie)

Drink XX w/ line

Hike 7 falls, the day after x-mas tradition

High school reunion

Cut my hair

Basketball game and scream for the Wildcats like I'm back in college

Frog and Firkin

Eat Salmon and asparagus, at the same time

Drink on 4th like the good ole days and hit up late night mexican burritos

Jam out with Danny

Ride Annie's horse, please?

Dance with the ladies! 

Drink wine like its my duty con mi madre

An outdoor excursion with Steve 

Shoot guns and ride quads with Dad

Pedicures and some live music with momma

Oh and Clay I guess I'll hang out with you, ha just kidding dude!  You can drive me around in your car, I mean my car!

Thanksgiving at the Ambassador's House

It's going to be almost impossible to recap all of the events over the last two weeks since Thanksgiving, but I'm going to do my best!  I'll start off with a bang, Thanksgiving dinner at the Ambassador's house!  Twenty-five of us volunteers were invited to the Ambassadores humble home to enjoy is pool, each others company, pool side bar service,  and of course a lavish meal of real American Thanksgiving food.  Here is the shot of the table that was set out on the patio sporting beautiful crystal that always seemed to be full of wine.

Cheers to self-refilling wine glasses!

Thanksgiving weekend was spent with some of my best girlfriends here hanging by one of the most beautiful coves I've ever seen, located just north of San Juan del Sur.  We practiced yoga on an enormous pavilion over looking the bay and I got a chance to surf some new waves.  The place we stayed, Aqua Resort, was a real treat and an all out vacation for me.  Although this place is not cheap it was amazing and completely worth every penny! We had our own cabin amongst the monkey infested trees hovering just over the beautiful bay.  

Yoga Pavilion

The following week was spent back in our training towns of Masaya where we spent those first 3 memorable months of service here in Nica.   We returned for a week of intensive spanish class to hash out some of the difficult and technical issues that come with learning a foreign language.  I also got to reconnect with my best gal Nica friend Irma and check out her life at the University of San Marcos.  

Tuesday of that week was spent in Managua at the National Business Competition that I have been talking about.  My group of Noni's Tea met me at the Holiday Inn to present their product along with the best of the best from all over Nicaragua.  I was extremely proud of their hard work in the weeks leading up to the competition.  Although we did not place, the experience was awesome and brought us all very close.

After our week of training we headed to the colonial city of Leon to enjoy the weekend before yet more training the following Monday.  Leon's baseball team was conveniently playing my Chinandega team on Saturday so a bunch of us settled in behind second base with some beers to hoop and holler along with the Nicas.  On Sunday I took advantage of our proximity to the volcano of Cerro Negro, which you can actually board.  Yep, get a lode of my piece of equipment, ghetto! What you see here is a piece of wood with a rope attached at the end, which equals absolutely no control.  There were other tour groups around us wearing matching protective suits, but I'd like to think our method of old worn out knee and elbow pads was more Nica-fide.  I wasn't expecting much from the experience, maybe a few laughs and some good views, but I was surprised to find that one can actually really mess themselves up on the volcanic gravel if they fall.  You can work up some serious speed and the gravel just starts flying at you.  I was emptying gravel out of my sports-bra at the end and looked up just in time to see my buddy Jake completely eat it at the end.  

last time I tuck a t-shirt in to yoga pants

Play Ball!

The rest of the week in Leon we all had a chance to reflect on the work we have done with our total of 7 months here in Nicaragua and share with the group.  I was pleasantly surprised with the array of projects that my group is working on and gathered some ideas of my own.  At night we all bonded over trivial pursuit, cards and playing the guitar.  We ended the week and a half of the group being together with the celebration of Purisima.  This is the celebration of the Virgin Mary and the immaculate conception of baby Jesus.  Basically there are fireworks, live bands, and huge crowds of people going door to door tric-o-treat style as everything from food to jewelry is being given out.  Instead of saying tric-o-treat, the people sing and shout the phrase "Quien causa tanta alegria"or basically "who causes so much joy". It was an interesting site to see everyone pushing and shoving their way to the front to grab the gifts.  It was an interesting juxtaposition of selfless giving and selfish taking, which had me standing towards the back not wanting to receive anything.  The tradition was really interesting although I felt as though participating would be inappropriate since I am not here to take from these people.

Since the next day was a holiday in Nicaragua I couldn't pass up the invitation to go deep sea fishing with one of the judges of my competition and someone who has become like a second father to me here. We spent all day out at sea only stopping to visit a deserted island to play some frisbee and then head back to shore to fillet our fish!  I'll leave you with a photo of the sun setting on a great few weeks of traveling....

My Mackerel compared to Jose's Needle fish

Bay of Corinto

Marathon on Ometepe Island

A year ago this past Sunday I would have been dragging myself out of bed in the dark in freezing cold Philly to run the annual half marathon.  This year I traded my half marathon for a 12k on a tropical island in the middle of the largest freshwater lake in Central America.   Let's review, 30 degress vs 80 degrees, beautiful volcano vistas vs dirty Philly streets, beautiful freshwater lake vs polluted Schuylkill river.  Not a bad trade!

The two volcanoes of Ometepe

The island of Ometepe is actually the creation of two volcanoes, one active and one dormant, emerging from lake Nicaragua.  You have to take a ferry ride of about an hour to reach its shores.  When I set foot on the island it was clear that the atmosphere had already changed to much more tranquilo. My first night there we hopped in a jeep with my buddy Zac's host family and headed to the other side of the island where my good girlfriend Noelle resides in Altagracia.  It just so happened to be Altagracia's fiestas patronales which is basically the celebration of the anniversary when the town was founded.  Matt, Noelle's man friend from the states was also visiting which was a real treat meeting him.  We also ran in to Noelle's friend who she studied abroad with in Argentina thus adding Hank and Liz to the group.  We proceeded to join in on the festivities which in my opinion were really well done considering the props you see below came to the island on a ferry.....

Thursday night's gang

The equivalent of a Nica rave

The next day Noelle's host family insisted that we all celebrate Noelle's birthday together at Ojo de Agua which is a beautiful natural spring.  Her family treated us to lunch and cervezas as we chilled in the spring's cool waters.  The island had a perfect vibe of welcoming foreigners, but yet not too touristy which was refreshing.  You could buy a coconut to drink its water and then find a nice local with a machete to chop it open to eat the meat after.

Ojo de Agua

The next day on the island was a mix of trying to catch a bus to hike a waterfall that just never came, typical Nica transportation and exploring our options on the island.  We ended up finding ourselves in Charco Verde which is a natural reserve where one can visit the lake's shores and see the lagoon for which it is famous.  We took a little hike where we encountered some monkeys and an amazing view of the lagoon and the far off main land of Nicaragua.

Lagoon at Charco Verde

Pre-race night rolled around quickly and the eleven of us running bunked up in a funky hostel in the port town of Moyogolpa where my buddy Zac lives.  The highlight of that night was the beautiful sunset over lake Nicaragua.

Sunset at the port

Race day was like unlike any other organized racing event I've been to in the states, but lets face it, I am in Nica on an island in the middle of an enormous lake.  The race that was supposed to start at 7 am finally commenced sometime after 9 when they finally drove everyone out to the various starting lines in cattle trailers.  I'm not going to lie and say that I rocked it, because quite frankly my lack of training and constant dehydration here led to a slow race.  The course was approximately 7 miles of Nica back country with cows in the road and motos zooming by handing us water bottles.  I did get to run by the larger volcano Concepcion during the race where a few volunteers camped out to snap photos of us running in front of it.  Over all it was a lot of fun and we raised some good money for Zac's youth group in the Moyogolpa community.  Looks like I'm going to have to start training nice and early for the Jinotega half marathon coming up in February.

Volcano Concepcion

These next couple of weeks are jammed packed as I head to Managua to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with an Embassy family and then a yoga/surf retreat in San Juan del Sur.  I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and can't wait to see you all in the states in about 3 weeks!

En Vivo! (Live on TV)

Apart from the presidential elections life has continued to be eventful here in Chinandega.  This past week my highschools have been administering their final exams which means my job in the schools is winding down.  I am still diligently working with my one group that will be advancing to the national level of the Business Competition in Managua on November 29th with their business plan Noni's Tea.  We met each day this week to revise their financials and better their business plan.  Many consecutive days infront of the computer working with my kids scored me shoulder rubs and braided hair :)

A highlight of the week was my appearances on a local TV talk show with two of my students!  The program addresses social issues within Chinandega and the neighboring region of Leon.  It was quite an experience for me and my students to be able to explain my project and our work together over the past several months.  It was also great publicity for their product!  The link was previously posted on Facebook by one of my students, but you can also access the video below.  Feel free to fast forward over the commercials and music videos, but I think they give you a taste of Nica culture if you're interested.  Please excuse the audio as it is of Nica quality.  Also note my over use of the word "entonces" which is pretty much a filler word equivalent to "umm" for when I get nervous.  Enjoy!

Video of Live Interview

Despite how busy I may seem there is plenty of time for reflection.  When I got to thinking the other day about my work and my time here I realized that I have been living in Nica for 6 months as of November 11th!  I can not believe how fast time is flying by, but I couldn't be happier with my work and  progress thus far.  Every day is completely different from the previous and new experiences continually pop up on my radar.  I continue to expand my spanish vocabulary as well as my views on the world and our development.

I feel very lucky to be able to escape almost every weekend to the beaches of Chinandega to surf.  I actually bought my first surf board for a whoopin $20!  It's a beater, but she'll do for now!

Nica Election Controversy

As you may know this past Sunday were the Nicaraguan Presidential Elections.  The Sandanista candidate Daniel Ortega will serve five more years as Nicaraguan's leader.  I am not writing this post to give my opinion on the elections and their outcome, but to simply inform you on what has transpired over the past week.  To show my unbiased, I am attaching several articles that will allow you to understand more about the controversy of the elections that took place and form your own opinion.  If you would like my insight please email me and I will be glad to discuss, but this blog will remain neutral.  I want to share this information with you because I feel that it is important that America is well informed on what is going on in a country where we have played a great part in their history.  My presence here in Nicaragua also has made me well aware of the example that I as an individual and we as a country set for developing nations.  The first article below was brought to my attention by a fellow volunteer and I believe it is very well written so please take the time to glance over why we should care about Nicaragua's political state.

Why Nicaragua Matters to The U.S.

The recent elections has provoked celebration as well as violence amongst the Nicaraguan people.  Read below to find out why.

The Facts about the Elections

Nica Culture at it's finest!

This past week has been a cultural experience to say the least!  Last Wednesday November 2nd Nicaragua celebrated dia de los muertos(day of the dead) while canceling class and shutting down businesses.  Since I did not have any work on my plate with classes being cancelled due to elections, I decided to partake in the activities.  I have to say that Nicaraguans do not take this holiday as serious as their Mexican counterparts up north.  Those of you from Tucson have seen the parades, flowers, skeletons and the amount of food which makes dia de los muertos so famous.  It is similar here in the fact that Nicaraguan families will visit the graves of their deceased loved ones to clean, decorate, and lay flowers on the grave.  Some families will burn candles, sing songs and even bring a priest by to say a prayer.  Of course if you forget you're own priest there are several wandering through out the cemetery along with the "cleaning boys" who can be hired at a moments notice to tidy up the tombstone.   A traditional food that is sold throughout the streets is Bunuellos, which are much like fried donuts made of yucca.  My site mate Lindsey and I decided to make our way to the cemetery and along the way found ourselves purchasing the donut like treats and some flowers to place on a yet to be determined grave.  As we walked through the cemetery we decided we would look for the most intriguing grave to place the flowers on, but on our way we ran in to several community members we knew and had to awkwardly explain ourselves since we obviously do not have any relatives in the Chinandega cemetery.  We thought we had finally found our favorite tombstone which was elaborately adorned with a white arch and just as we were about to place our beautiful bouquet, the real family actually walked up!  We made some quick comments on how beautiful the gravesite was and ran off to place our flowers on an unmarked grave figuring we would dedicate them to all the unknown graves who would not be receiving flowers from family that day.

On Thursday I was walking back from the post office where I had just picked up a birthday care package from Aunt Kim(Thank you!!!!!) when a judge from one of my competitions offered me a ride home in her truck.  Reina and I got to chatting and turns out she is in charge of all the concessions at the Chinandega baseball stadium.  The professional baseball season has just officially started here and its a huge deal!  Reina invited me to attend the Leon vs. Chinandega baseball game that night and got us the best seats in the house, for free!  The game started off pretty all American with a few cans of beer and a hot dog when the electricity simply went out in the middle of the second inning.  I was thinking about how a back up generator would have been convenient, but that just doesn't exist here so instead the band played right on through and the Nicas did what they do best for entertainment, set off fireworks!  At one point I thought the grass was going to catch on fire, but we pushed through a half hour of darkness to make it in to the fifth inning only to experience the same incident all over again.  I couldn't help but laugh hysterically and be proud of the Los Tigres fans that surrounded me for their loyalty.  All in all it was a great experience and Chinandega beat Leon 5 to 3.

Friday we celebrated my site mate Lindsey's host cousin's birthday.  I know what you're thinking, there have been way too many birthday celebrations, but this one is quite different.  So for this particular birthday Lindsey's family decided to kill a Peliwee for the celebration.  What is a Peliwee you ask?  Well it is a cross between a goat and a sheep. This animal has a delightful flavor when marinated and grilled!  The whole process of buying, slaughtering, and then preparing the meat is a party in itself.  I choose to join in after the slaughtering.  After consuming massive amounts of Peliwee meat right off the bone along with tortilla, salsa, and beer the real party began.  It's a tradition in Lindsey's family to dress up, dance, and sing to entertain and EVERYONE participates.  I should preface this by stating that Lindsey's host sister is a dance teacher and there fore has a plethora of ridiculous costumes on hand.  We cleared out the main entrance to the house which was also decked out in blown up condoms instead of balloons(Lindsey is a health volunteer) and backed up one of the taxis from her mom's taxi business to blast the ranchero music.  The first performance brought tears to my eyes as one overweight short host cousin stuffed our makeshift balloons in his shirt and went as an older lady while another skinny birthday boy dressed as her old decrepit husband with no teeth.  They continued to dance with each other in a very inappropriate and vulgar manner for the crowd's enjoyment! At one point someone handed them each a Peliwee leg bone to sing in to. The next act was Lindsey and I singing to rancho music and the way it works is you start out singing and anyone can put just about anything on you from the costume box.  So by the end of the song I looked something like the picture below with a blown up condom as my microphone.  You can just imagine the rest of the night....

Lindsey y yo bailando

The opening act

Cookin the Peliwee Nica style on old tire rims with a grill on top

I bet you can't guess what I did Saturday?  yes!  another birthday celebration, but this time at my house!  It was my host bro Jose's 25th Birthday so we cleared out the living room for dinning(which later became the dance floor) and cooked a massive pot of Paella!  I was ecstatic when I saw my host bro and his girlfriend lug in pounds of shrimp from her dad's shrimp farm!  We all ate a mid day meal of paella and started the party by teaching my bro and Nica friends how to play drinking card games such as horse race and Kings.  I have to say my grandma was the life of the party asking me why I wasn't bringing her rum shots like everyone else and why we aren't friends on Facebook? seriously grandma?  Cake was not necessary as Jose prefers his rum....

Pot looks way bigger in real life

Jose's birthday cake

My entire familia, host mom is to my right, bro and girlfriend are to my left, sister is kneeling in front

Lindsey and I shakin our booties for the second time this weekend

Today was election day here in Nicaragua.  I escaped the mess by heading to the beach to surf, but returned in time to see the city break out in chaos as Sandanistas rallied in the streets.  At around 11 pm 66% of the votes were for Daniel Ortega foreshadowing a Sandanista victory.  I watched as my host brother and friends grabbed their FSLN t-shirts and flags and joined the cars and motorcycles flooding the streets honking and screaming.  I sat on the porch with my host mom and sister watching even young kids rally and carry on.  Do they even really understand what they're cheering for?  Ortega did a very good job of targeting youth in his campaign, but it really scares the heck out of me that these are the future leaders of this country.  I try to avoid this topic of discussion with my family, but on this particular night we ended up talking about the lack of education, but we are not in agreement on why it is lacking in this country.  It's now 12:30 at night, the fireworks are still blasting off and the Sandanista theme song is ringing in the streets.  Truly an experience to be here in Nicaragua for yet another Sandanista victory.

Work hard, Play hard and then throw a Nica b-day party!

I don't really even know where to start.  These past two weeks have been some of the most fun and stressful of my service here so far.  Let's start with the fun stuff!

Cocktail Party!  So all these business competitions that I have been rattling on about eventually amount to one large national competition in Managua where all the top teams from each department compete with their business plans.  How does Peace Corps pay for this you ask?  Well we throw a ridiculously large party!  This years theme was a masquerade!  Over the last few months I've been selling tickets to other volunteers, Nonprofits that I work with and community members to this extravaganza that we put on at the Holiday Inn in Managua.  We had well over 200 people including several members of the US Embassy.  I mentioned in my last post how my host sister and mom took me dress shopping, well this is what I ended up with.  Not too shabby eh?  Note that I am extremely sweating from the ridiculous amount of salsa dancing that Julian and I just performed.  There were hired performers, but Julian and I in our buzzed state figured we were up to par and just joined in.

Julian and I sweating just a tad

I was really impressed how well my fellow volunteers cleaned up.  I'd say we are a pretty decent looking bunch after hot showers and some primping in state of the art hotel rooms.  We had a great time on the dance floor and took advantage of the beautiful pool for the rest of the weekend.  It had been about a month since my entire group had gotten together so this was quite special.  We did a little birthday cake and sushi dinner with the group for an early b-day celebration as well.

So now that I've covered how we are paying for the national competition let's take a step back to the regional level of the competition.  I am living in Chinandega which surprise surprise is the capital city of the Chinandega department, which puts me basically in charge of planning the regional competition where teams from all over the department come to compete.  I have spent the last few weeks running around in circles finding venues as my first one fell through, confirming judges and making sure everything is in order for the big day.  All in all everything worked out really well and competition day went smoothly with very few hiccups!  I'd say all the hard work paid off when the results of the competition came through.  If you recall a few posts back I had a local level competition where a group with the product of Noni's Tea won first place.  Well they also took second place last Thursday at the regional level, which means we get to move on to the national level!  I am seriously so freaking proud of these kids!  Their presentation was flawless and their finances stellar(duh).  I wouldn't expect anything less from my kids.  We spent several hours the day before the competition rehearsing their presentation.  I felt like I was back in high school with them as we became restless and they broke our serious streak by demonstrating their version of yoga poses while we downloaded ridiculous music to sing along to.  They keep me young, this is for sure!  My other team that was competing in the competition took third place and I am also very proud of them.  Unfortunately their product of melon jelly will not be advancing to the national level, but we identified two investors in the Chinandega community who want to help get their business off the ground, success!!!!  This for me is the number one goal for my students.  I would rather have my students identify investors and real life opportunities than focus just on winning a competition.

We're going to the national level!

Still winners in my eyes!

So in hind site, the regional competition wasn't as stressful as it was fun, but a lot of hard work that really did pay off.  I felt like I had a lot of people to please and it all ended up working out.  It could be described as party planning on steroids, which I admit I kind of like the challenge.  I also made some great connections to business owners in my community whom I think will be assets to my service here over the net two years.  Speaking of business connections I finally had a formal interview at an NGO called Pro Mujer where I hope to sign a contract to work with them over the rest of my service, more to come here.

The best part yet was the day after the competition when Lindsey, my site mate, and I celebrated Halloween/Our Birthday's!  Lindsey's b-day is 2 days after mine on Nov 1st and we both decided we love Halloween and ourselves just too much to not celebrate!  So while I was stressing about my regional competition some how I found the time to co-plan and host another party the next day.  There is just no better way to let loose and celebrate victory than with rum, pumpkins and good friends!  Two of my really good friends traveled from afar to be present for this night along with all the other volunteers of the Chinandega region.  My brilliant costume idea was to dress as a tourist which wasn't all that hard here.  A skin tight hawaiian dress paired with a fanny pack, clip on water bottle and safari hat did the trick!  I felt like the party was a good mix of volunteers, my Nica friends and family.  After flip cup and a pumpkin pinata(2 of my fav things) we headed out to a club to dance the night away.  My salsa teacher showed up to help us show off our moves and my host brother came just in time to see me completely hammered on the dance floor and drive me home!  

Birthday girls with Darwing our dance teacher

My Biz Group compadres who made the trek(Sam and Kelli)

The birthday weekend didn't end there!  Saturday a group of us spent poolside enjoying liters of cerveza and recapping the shenanigans of the night before.  Lindz and I did a group birthday dinner Saturday night and recovered for the real day on Sunday.  I spent my birthday morning at the intramural soccer league finals game.  My friend Walter's team made it to the finals so we were there to support as the game went in to over time and then on to penalty kicks.  Team La Colonia ended up winning with Walter bringing it home with the final point!  The rest of the day was spent poolside with margaritas and ceviche.  That night my Nica family and friends helped me cut a tres leches cake and serenade me with my own guitar.  I got a pair of green wooden artisan earrings and a pink bracelet from my host family and a wooden artisan toucan from my brother's girlfriend Nahima which came all the way from Rio San Juan where she works. We all then made our way out for some more dancing, as if I could ever get enough!  Jose, my host bro, taught me a new word this weekend, vacanal, which is used to describe people who like to party.  Yo soy vacanal along side my host brother so its all good.

Last but not least, my english youth group made my birthday special as well tonight.  We played a few games and ate cake.  I was given deodorant spray(hint hint?) and a leather bound address book.  Over all I feel very loved by the people around me in my life here in Nicaragua.

 Walter and Trophy

Birthday Serenade

My kids teach me a thing or two

I told myself that I was NOT going to practice english with ANYONE because I am here to speak the native language and I have no experience teaching and there fore have no business claiming I can help people learn english.  I am here to teach business and speak spanish.  I also didn't want to hinder my spanish progression by speaking too much english, selfish I know.  Well turns out I have a weak spot for youth.  A teacher in my large public school approached me one day and asked if I would practice speaking english with a group of students she had formed.  These students have one main goal, which is to attend a university out side Nicaragua and preferably in the U.S.  How could I say no?  I was hesitant at first, but when I met the kids who are all around 16-18 I knew this wouldn't be our last encounter.  Then and there I made it more of a personal goal to teach these kids more about life outside Nica and make this experience more of a cultural exchange.

Tonight I walked the ten minutes from my public school with Raquel (the teacher) to her house to meet up with the 6 students and chat at a rather advanced level of english.  I could tell that the students were excited and before I could ask why they claimed they had a surprise for me.  While Raquel set up a TV  the students proclaimed that they had done a ton of research on Arizona and wanted to present to me in english what they had learned about my state.  I have to say I was very flattered they took the time to research my home state.  I watched as images of hamburgers, cardinals jerseys, and the grand canyon flashed across the screen.  I was thoroughly impressed with the work they had done.  Those of you who know Tucson also know how big Tubac is and believe me I got the whole run down of the history there.   Of course I had to explain about the whole cowboy and indian thing we got goin on.  I was trying my hardest not to laugh when super models posing in Steve Nash's jersey popped up.  It was a great opportunity to share American culture with these kids and in turn I felt like we accomplished more than just speaking english, but the cultural exchange I was aiming for.  I was told by the students that people in Arizona are the nicest people in the U.S., not sure what their source was, but I believe it!  Apparently it's just part of our culture.

I'm not exactly sure what hit me, but I was touched.  That's the first time that someone here had taken a genuine interest in knowing more about me and where I come from.  Of course tons of questions about Arizona followed along with Pizza and a huge debate about whether Real Madrid or Barcelona is the best soccer team.  I found myself having a really good time talking to the kids about their likes and dislikes about life in Nicaragua.  We discussed their personal goals and how they plan to achieve them.  I realized how much I really love working with youth in my day to day job as well.  There is something about talking to a untarnished mind with big dreams.  They look to you as though you know everything and hold the key to the rest of the world outside Nicaragua.  All I really want to do here is have a positive impact and there is no doubt in my mind that my time spent with the youth in Nicaragua will be my largest footprint.

Fall

Fall is my favorite season and October my favorite month.  This is proving to be true here in Nica as well.  I love how people start ordering their starbucks hot instead of iced and a chill works its way in to the night air the same way apple cider and all things pumpkin finagle their way in to your diet.  Although I'm picturing the leaves changing to rich autumn colors before they fall to the ground, I'm finding a whole new meaning to the word Fall, RAIN FALL!  October is the rainiest month of the rainy season.  It's been on and off tropical rain storms here in Chinandega since last Tuesday.  This is the first time that I've experienced 48 hours of constant torrential downpour in my life.  As many problems as the rain creates, it also cools this heat zone down to a breezy 75 degrees which I'm totally embracing.  Five straight days with out sweating unless provoked is a nice change.

These last two weeks have been extremely busy with work, but in a very good way!  I feel as though the past several months of working with my students and counterparts amounted to a very successful local competition between my three high schools here in Chinandega.  This last Friday the seven winning teams from my three highschools came together to compete with their business plans/products to determine who will advance to the regional level coming up in two weeks(more work for Kate).  Despite the fact that the location of my competition was revoked at 3 pm the day before the competition and a tropical rainstorm cancelled classes all week when I was supposed to be prepping the students, I'd say everything turned out just fantastic!  I got feedback from my judges(business owners in the community) and project manager that the students had amazing presentations and most importantly had a real handle on the reality of how to start a business.  This my friends is my primary goal.  I just want my students to walk away with the knowledge and enthusiasm needed to start a business and a better life for themselves, if they so chose.

My winning team and counterpart with Tea made of Noni (provides several health benefits)

My most creative group with flowers made from recycled bottles

These gals gave an amazing presentation for a Drink made from Yucca

I made a huge effort to involve my community in the competition by inviting several business owners as well as the local TV channels to cover the event.  Well my invitation led to a live interview on the Wednesday morning Channel 9 news.  I felt very out of place sitting cross legged on a green polyester couch with a microphone positioned awkwardly in my left hand.  I wasn't sure where to look, at the several cameras or my interviewer.  I had asked my interviewer to speak slowly and clearly, but when we got started she ran her mouth just like a typical news reporter, leaving me blinking wide eyed in complete shock when we started the question and answer segment.  Unfortunately I don't have this memory recorded, but I was interviewed a second time for a written piece which they did record.

My second interviewer was very nice, but the camera man was a handful.  When I asked her to speak slowly and clearly he must have taken that as an invitation to speak to me in his horrible broken english, possibly thinking I might understand him better?  He was more of a distraction and talked over me during my interview.  I have attached the file so you can see for yourself.  Nevermind that I look like a wet rat from the rain and the camera is shooting up from ant's eye view, holly chin!  The best part is the camera man had the nerve to ask me out to dinner via email after he sent over this link, ha ha, yea right!

http://www.sendspace.com/file/le46uy

One of the perks of being involved in the Small Business Project in Peace Corps Nicaragua is the fact that we throw a huge cocktail party in Managua that practically every volunteer in Nicaragua attends.  We rent out a space at the Holiday Inn and invite the U.S. Embassy as well as NGOs to raise money for our national level of the Emprendedurismo Competition.  I told my host mom and sister about the occasion and they insisted that we go dress shopping for the event!  Now here is my chance to reveal the Nica style which is oh so very distinct!  Just think taky 80s or ghetto fabulous, it really can go both ways.  Picture rhinestones, obnoxious bows, lots of spandex and bright colors and you're on your way!  Usually women strut around in jeans made out of material that is 50% spandex with their thong hanging out the back and a belly flopping over the front.  Shirts range from flowy maternity looking tops to too tight tube tops, neither of which are flattering.  Gladiator sandals and platforms are all the rage right now.  Please note that I am stereo typing and that there are women that do not dress like this, for example my host mom and sister.  But you have to imagine how the majority of the clothes following this style would lead to a challenge when dress shopping.  I haven't done any shopping here to date, but the first experience was unforgettable.  Every dress I tried on was either skin tight or frilled out!  No surprise each time I tried on a dress they wanted to observe my ass first and foremost before assessing the dress as a whole. Story of my life.  At one point I actually tried on a yellow and black frilly dress which reminded me of a bumble bee, that was my mom's favorite, of course.  You well get to see in my next post what dress I settled on.

This weekend I also had a chance to bond more with my host bro on Saturday night when we all went out Salsa dancing.  The usual group is me, my site mate Lindsey, Jose my bro, his GF when she's in town and his amigos Walter, Guillermo, and William(my cuz) who have become like brothers to me as well.  Walter is also teaching me how to play my guitar, which is a long slow process I'm finding out.  Jose likes to remind me all the time how I should be practicing just so he can make fun of how much I suck.  Tonight I learned La Bamba!  This was my absolute favorite song when I was about 5, could never get enough.  Growing up an hour from the border of Mexico may have had a slight influence.  Speaking of Mexico, I discovered a mexican restaurant where I can get Chilaquiles with salsa verde!  All is good on the food front.  I find myself craving beans and tortillas more than ever!

Surfing is still going well.  I'm in search of my own board right now.  Yoga still rocks my world daily.  I'm back in the groove of running and shooting for a 18k on November 20th.  Shout out to my girl Annie for completing the Chicago Marathon last weekend, you're amazing!

http://www.sendspace.com/file/le46uy

Vaga

I was called Vaga by my host family for the first time this last weekend.  I knew it was coming.  I think I pushed it over the top when I left a sticky note on my door to tell my family where I was.  Vaga translates to someone who is out of the house a lot.  It can be construed as negative if the person is constantly out partying, but since I work hard during the week, I'll go ahead and be proud of my vaganess.  My host mom says its part of being a youth, and since she is a partner in a construction firm, I'm gonna go ahead and say she's a smart lady!

The vaga in me started two weekends ago when my Small Business Training group met up in Leon to celebrate our buddy Ben's birthday.  The fourteen of us together after almost a 2 month hiatus was a recipe for ridiculous amounts of fun.  We danced Friday night away in the colonial city of Leon and then took the party to the beach the next day to chill, well sort of.  I knew I loved these guys, but I think I realized that weekend how well we all get along and how much I miss them!  I can't wait for more reunions!  The social event of the weekend was Ben's Pinata which was actually a reincarnation of our fellow volunteer Matt in his famous awkward kneeling position from a photo we took on our first day in Nica.  The group was in hysterics when Chalin presented his precious gift.  We proceeded to beat Matt's twin until people were practically crying from laughing so hard.

Matt and twin

BIZ 56 reunited

This past week has also been a busy one in preparing for the various business competitions coming up in my institutes.  I have mentioned in the past the course I'm working with in high schools here, but I'll do a recap.  Basically I'm teaching Entrepreneurship in three institutos where all of the high-school seniors have to write a business plan all while learning a skill set to survive in a economy where there are no corporate jobs, but ample opportunity to start your own business.  I'm really loving the job so far and the competitions have got the kids really excited about their work over the past school year.  I'm really proud of my students and the teachers I work with for all the hard work that they have put forth since I arrived.  After a long week of searching for sponsors, looking for judges, revising business plans and holding pre-liminary competitions, I had a chance to let loose.

It all started about a month ago when my site mate Lindsey and I met a group of Columbians working for an Engineering firm here in Chinandega.  After visiting their home country for a few weeks they returned with a bottle of Aguardiente, which is a typical Columbian licorice flavored alcohol.  After finishing her off we headed to Chinandega's largest discoteca Dilectus.  Much to our surprise there was also a beauty pageant being held at the club and intermingled with dancing were spirits of tacky dresses parading around on stage.  Quite the entertainment, only in Nicaragua!

Saturday was a whirl wind of a women's rights meeting at La Casa de Mujer and a community bank meeting, which was followed by a birthday celebration for a fellow volunteer Tony.  By late afternoon we were off to the beach in Leon for the sunset and bar hopping.  Then up again at 5:30 the next morning to shred some waves at Coco Loco.  If there is one thing that I don't mind getting up at the crack of dawn for, its the beach.  My friend and fellow PC Volunteer Peter joined me, my new columbian friends, and our local Nica friend Erlin on the waves of Nahualapa.  I thought to myself while chillen and waiting for my next wave, not a bad way to spend a Sunday morning.

My new Columbian friends in Leon

Turns out the Columbians love to surf

 I thought I was coming home to relax on my Sunday afternoon when my host brother told me to hurry up and change because my cousin's birthday party was taking place at grandma's house. Sin shower(overrated) I sported a narly sunburn and beach hair to join 20 odd people at grandma's house around the corner.  Not 15 minutes after I sat down to a plate of carne asada, my host bro Jose started shoving shots of rum under my nose.  Well they proceeded to get me nice and liquored up and then grandma started quizzing me on how much I love Nica.  She also demanded that my family come to celebrate Christmas here in Nica, hear that mom?  Three bottles of Plata rum later and we were off to yet another dance party with my host bro, his girlfriend, my cousin, his girlfriend, Walter, Guillermo, my site mate Lindsey and one tired chela(white girl). Despite my tiredness I pulled myself together to practice my salsa moves.  And thus the creation of Vaga in my life.  But let's be honest, it's always been that way! When have I ever really sat still?  Now I just have the appropriate word to describe it! Vaga!

Coco Loco

Coco Loco to me is a little piece of heaven.  I spent last weekend, which is also my second weekend at this lovely little place, lounging and taking in the deserted beaches on Nicaragua's Northwestern pacific shores.  Not 45 minutes in a taxi from my city brings you to a paradise that will be my home away from home over the next two years.  Canadian owners Ben, Jamie, and Lindsay have become really important in my Peace Corps experience here.  Coco Loco is a surf eco-lodge with a handful of cabanas close to the beach and a real community feel.  They employ local Nicaraguans from the tiny community and also have their nonprofit arm Waves of Hope that draws volunteers mainly form the U.S. to come spend 3 or more months working in the community.  Waves of Hope teaches english to the village's youth and adults, hosts soccer leagues and organizes surf camps for those kids who are neglected and abused at home, and helps with community gardens for the locals and teaches environmental sustainability.

The for profit arm is Coco Loco where people come from all over to indulge in some of Nicaragua's best surfing and practice yoga on their huge pavilion over looking the ocean.  To reward us Peace Corps Volunteers these beautiful people have let us come and stay at their all inclusive resort for less than half the price a normal customer would pay.  They stuff us with good food and make us feel right at home.  This past weekend they gifted me a basil plant because I said I was having a hard time finding it in the market.  They realize that like them we are giving our lives over these next 2 years to selflessly help our communities and there fore they reward us with a place for some R&R at an affordable price.

It is here at Coco Loco I had my first chance to surf in Nica and it will definitley be a huge part of my life going forward.  I can't help but feel completely tranquilo when I'm surrounded by the people that make this place happen.  I love that the dogs and cats can run around freely. At night the lightning bugs come out and the lighting display over the ocean is breathtaking.  If any of you come visit me, Coco Loco is a must!

http://www.elcocolocoresort.com/

It's not uncommon to run in to Erlin right around dusk as he drives is cattle along the beach back to their pens for the night.  He always comes back to let us ride his horse along the beach and chat as the sun sets.

These beaches are literally untouched accept for the few Nicarguans that have raised their families on that beach for ages.

The view from the restaurant where we chill and eat food cooked form their garden.

Our cabana

Newest member of the Coco Loco family, ocita!

Doesn't this picture just make you want to buy a ticket to Nica right now?  Do it! I'll be waiting!

My Chinandega

I have finally found the time to take photos of my new house so you can all see where I reside here in Chinandega.  Yes, my house is purple, I hate purple, but in this case I think I can deal since the family is so incredibly awesome.

 The living room is the first room you walk in to from the front door.  Sofas are a rarity in Nica.  Most people have plastic or wooden chairs so I am feeling very lucky.  Last night I curled up in a sofa chair to drink liters of beer and watch a movie with my 24 year old host brother Jose and his friends.  The next photo is of Ralph, our six month old puppy.  He likes to steal the family's underwear/ intimates and drag them all over the house.  Last night he came running in to the living room with my bra in his mouth while all the guys just starred uncomfortably until my host brother asked if it was mine, oh Ralph.

 I absolutely love this kitchen!  My host sister Sandra and I both love to cook so we spend most of our quality time here.  Please note that there is a microwave and a wine rack, two things that signify a well equipped kitchen here in Nica.  We also have an oven, which I de-flowered after several years of no use, by cooking the family brownies.  They were a big hit!

This is the hallway that leads from the living room and kitchen to all the other bedrooms.  That light you see pouring in through the arches is straight from the good ole outdoors.  A lot of houses here are open air since it never really gets cold.  Along the right had side their are flower beds where I have my basil planted.  Sargo and Ralph are also featured.  My room is at the end of the hall where it the house breaks out in to an open air patio where we dry our clothes and I get a breeze!

That's my yogi toes matt drying behind the jeans!

My room is a mess right now, but you can see that one wall is all dark wood shelving and closet space, which is unheard of here!  I'm standing in one corner of my room which leads around a wall to my own bathroom.

I live just four blocks from the central park and Santa Ana Iglesia.  I swear I'll take pics of the inside next time.

The central park is littered with jungle gyms and brightly colored stands that sell food.  You can barely see San Cristobal Volcanoe in the distance due to the fog that sets in after the rain.

This is one of the three open air markets where I get a majority of my fruits and veggies!

Hopefully all these visuals give you a better context of what I'm writing about in my blog.  This last week was definitley more play than work as Nicaragua celebrated their independance also known as Fiestas Patrias.  Basically all my classes were cancelled for the entire we in honor of the parade that takes places featuring all the high schools in the city.  The students were too busy practicing their marching and musical instruments to learn a single thing.  As frustrated as I got with the lack of progress on our business plans, I had a great time marching and representing one of my schools in the parade.  I marched with Filemon Rivera, which is a small semi-private high school.  The Director who I am close with made me a traditional Nicaraguan shirt to wear and match the rest of the teachers.(See below).  Does the yellow church look familiar?

 Here we are marching through the central park next to the yellow church of Santa Ana.  Ahead of me are my students who are dancing a traditional Nicaraguan folklore dance in traditional dress.

Here I am with my counterpart Silvia who is actually a doll despite that look on her face.  We work closely and Monday's are our days to eat out together.  She is one of my favorite people here.  She is working towards a bachelor's degree right now on the weekends while teaching and raising two beautiful children solo.  After we marched through the hot sun for about 3 hours the director treated all of us to a grand lunch of Albondigas soup.  Albondigas translated to meatballs, but its tradition here to make a soup with meatballs made of maza and chicken while an array of veggies accompany the mmeatballs in a rich broth.  Needless to say this is one of my fav Nica meals!

Due to the lack of classes and businesses being closed I took the opportunity to take a mini vaca to the beach with several volunteers to Coco Loco and see some of my best girlfriends from my months of training in Masaya, but that's the next post.  The night of the parade is also a popular night to go out so my host brother and his friends invited myself and my site mate Lindsey to a night out of dancing and rum.  We had a great time and found ourselves at an On the Run at 3 am eating Ramen Noodles, go figure but they are a huge hit here!

All in all not too much more to report on accept that life is good, really good.  Everything has gotten 100 times better since I moved in with my new family who obsesses over my funny quirks and teaches me knew things everyday.  Just yesterday my host brother almost had a heart attack when he saw me walking around the house barefoot, heaven forbid!  Nicas just don't walk around barefoot, even in their own house, I don't have an answer so please don't ask.

Not too much else to report on accept that there is a lot of rain, everyday after hours of blazing sun, around 4 en la tarde the storm rolls in.  Please note that I have changed my Acuweather gadget on the right hand side of my blog to reflect the weather here in Chinandega.  Please also note the temperature listed under "real feel" which takes in to account how one actually feels with the ridiculously high percentage of humidity in the air.  So when it says its 85 degrees F in Chinandega with a "real feel" of 109 F you can start to feel bad for me and then send me a care package, just kidding, but not really.  Some of my shoes have started to mold and even my pillow is affected by the massive amounts of humidity in the air.  Oh the random challenges that pop up from living in a new environment, gotta love it!  I thought it was hilarious tonight watching my host bro and sis fight over the amount of bleach I should use while washing the mildew out of my pillow.  It was quite the debate and a spectacle to watch three 20 somethings try and wash a down pillow.  Later on my sis asked me if I was bored here in Nicaragua compared to the states, how could I be?!