Something else that took me by surprise was an art show at a Fundacion Coen that was held to showcase and support local artists. I was very impressed by the amount of talent that was represented in my region. I felt like I was perusing a New York City up and coming art exhibition as I took in the paintings of beautiful Nicaraguan landscapes and markets. I think this display of creativity took me off guard since this country is plagued with people who refuse to think outside the box. I was very proud to feel a bit of progress in the right direction with in my community. It gave me the satisfaction that with time there can be change in the way Nicaraguans think. Afterwards my friend Lindsey and I joined our new friend Eugenia who is the director of the nonprofit for a great meal under a traditional rancho style hut, while the table of Argentineans bought us drinks! What a treat!
My favorite painting from the show - Anciano con Lena (Old man with firewood)
Taking it back to reality though I’ve had some pretty hot days with the humidity making it hard for my clothes to dry and contributing to some rather uncomfortable bus rides ending drenched in sweat. I don’t think I’ve gone in to much detail about Nicaraguan buses, but its quite a riot. Many buses are completely pimped out as they are individually owned by their driver. The buses are typically retired American school buses that make their way down here and seem to run just fine well past their U.S. shelf life. They will pack the buses until there is literally no room to breathe or even sweat for that matter. I usually exit my usual Monday morning bus to my one of my institutes dripping. I’m reminded of how beautiful I must look when my students comment how much Profe is sweating. Never the less Monday’s are one of my favorite days as I share a nice typical Nica lunch of either marinated meat or a tasty stew with my counterpart Silvia sitting outside gazing at Volcan San Cristobal as it puffs smoke in to the blue sky. This Monday was Sopa de Mariscos with shrimp, crab and fish. These are the days I really like Nica food.
Another reminder that I’m not in the U.S. was when my iPod quit on me and there is no real solution to that problem except to wait until I come home next. What? No Apple store with people waiting to serve you? Bummer huh?
On the other hand, and much more important than an iPod is my new host family. They are awesome and everything I ever wanted from a Nicaraguan family. I have a host mom Patricia and Host sister Sandra(26) and host brother Jose(24) who are a lot of fun and very sociable. Sandra introduced me to Mondongo soup on Sunday, which is cow stomach in a vegetable stew, god bless her. Last night Jose’s friends came over and I got a guitar lesson in Spanish! We shared our favorite artists and compared music industries in the U.S. and Nica. My host mom works in management for a large construction company and Jose is just starting up his own software engineering business. Sandra is just about to finish her degree in engineering as well. Sandra is also 3 months pregnant, with no father figure in sight, which is not uncommon here. So in 6 months there will be another girl in the house! It’s so great to be able to sit down and have an educated conversation about life here in Nicaragua with my family and share some of my traditions, like brownies!
As I mentioned, I have wi-fi and the other perks, like running water through out the house and having pet dogs makes life just that much better. My family was sweet enough to paint my room before I moved in and have made me feel right at home. I also have confidence that they don’t think I’m too crazy because apparently they had a gal from Holland live with them for a year way back when.
Sunscreen and bug spray, two things I can’t live with out and seem to go through at an increasing speed! The sun is strong and the mosquitoes are plenty during the more intense months of the rainy season(Sept and Oct). I have to say that I really don’t mind the torrential downpours that sweep in and cool everything off. Heaven forbid, but I’ve actually come close to feeling a chill in the air at night.
Work is going well as I plan for my student’s business competitions at the regional and local level. Tomorrow I will visit micro loan recipients from Fundacion Leon to see how their businesses are going. Each day I reflect on what my work means here in Nicaragua. I find myself contemplating about what type of impact I want to make here and exactly how I am going to make that happen. There is still so much to learn about my community’s needs and what my skill set can offer. I came across the following quote in some reading materials I had on community development and it made me realize how much I do enjoy this life I lead, right here, right now.
Socrates believed that it is through this kind of
thinking [critical thinking, reflective thinking] that
people shape their lives.
He felt people need to think
about what they do and why they do it,
about what they believe and why they believe it.
He said that a day should never pass without such
questions and that a life without such questions
is not worth living.
— Boostrom, Robert.
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