Guest Post from Dad!

Now it feels like I am back—

Cold,rainy and on a bus where the windows are closed and with no chance of chickens-

In Nicaragua its always hot  and bright with a great probability of chickens—

I visited  not really knowing what to expect but for the joy of seeing my little girl

I found that and much more as Nicaragua is a beautiful place with very friendly people-

It surprised me from the beginning –I walked off the plane and into the airport and

Found a huge Christmas tree with all the lights and trimmings---

Our hotel the first night was across the street from the airport and so

I got introduced to Nicaraguan traffic---fast busy crowded---

Next day we took two buses –first to chinendega and then onto corinto

Not so fast but busy and crowded---

We spent the first 3 days in corinto-her home town—

Was able to see my daughter work at a pool hall tournament

That she had organized with her fellow workers-

Was amazed to watch her take the microphone and with great ease

Go into her talk about aids-how its transmitted and the proper use of condoms-

Talk about coming to the realization she isn’t a little girl anymore real quick—

I also loved walking around Corinto and getting stared at a lot and listening

To people yelling out kati Kati kati to her as we walk—my daughter the celebrity

I learned in corinto that we have it all wrong when we walk by someone

We know and say hello ---there you say hello when you intend to stop and

Talk—but if you are just walking buy and are not stopping and just greeting them

You just say Bye—which makes sense

So bye Corinto and then onto Masetepe-

We stayed at a really nice Hostel—which is basically a B and B(bed and breakfast) here-

Air conditioning-two beds-tv with cable-hot water shower and free breakfast—25.00 a night

We went to la laguna de apoyo-a lake formed by a nearby volcano-

Quite beautiful---got our picture taken together-

I almost slid off the mountain-now you know where the awkward gringa gets her awkwardness-

It was very beautiful-if you ever come to Nicaragua make sure you bring some kind

Of panoramic camera—well worth it-and there is some good shopping here

Also got to meet Kates initial host family-they were so happy to see her and me too-

I got to thank them for taking good care of my little girl-then onto Granada

Granada is probably the most touristry city in Nicaragua-

It has great colonial era type of building-many interesting cathedrals-

A nice park with food and souveneers along with artist both in the park and

In some of the surrounding buildings –a dormant volcano Mombacho

And a street I found while wondering around-that is about 20 blocks long lined

With stores on both sides selling just about anything you want-where you will probably be

The only gringo on the street—this is also where you start being followed by little kids

Begging for your change-you are not suppose to give them any because there is no way

To know where its going-I saw a child of about 14 sniffing glue(a big problem here I am told)

Walk up to what looked like 9 year olds-engage in a conversation and then the kids took money from

Their pockets and gave it to the older boy---so as hard as it is to resist its probably a good idea—

The week I was there was the days prior to the feast of the Immaculate Conception so

Every night of the week –there would be a statue being paraded around town with a band –

Till late(one time it was 1 am and fire works) and the next morning they were at it at 530am—

It’s a really fun and safe city---If you go to the volcano don’t walk down like I did-its only about 5 miles

But its all on a very steep incline and your thighs will hurt for days to come—unless you like this

So I really loved Nicaragua and had a great time with my not so little girl—

Only negative was never did get to ride a bus with chickens!!!!

Dad in Nica

 "Your dad is cool. He is just a cool guy."
That's pretty much what everyone who met my Dad had to say about him. While I was running an HIV themed pool tournament or giving the pre-test counseling for HIV tests, he was just wandering around, chatting with people. While I was in my close of service training in Granada, he was exploring Volcan Mombacho making new friends with people from all over the world.

But don't worry; we had lots of time to hang out together and for him to really get to know "my Corinto". We went to the beach and ate fish with its head and eyeballs still on. He walked the beach looking for shells and other gadgets. One cockroach came out while we were staying at my house, but he did get to see multiple lizards and ants. I think he was impressed by the work that we're doing here; the HIV events and testing and all of the relationships that I've made.It's just such an amazing thing to be able to introduce our families here in

It's just such an amazing thing to be able to present your family from home to your family here in Nicaragua. My Dad got to meet my host family in Corinto, everyone I work with from Peace Corps and local Nicas and he got to meet my host family from training in Masatepe. He got to experience the Nicaraguan buses, the pedicabs of Corinto and the mototaxis of Masatepe. 

I honestly could not have asked for a better trip. My Dad got to see exactly how I live here, while mixing in a lot of relaxation, beautiful views and a couple of spa treatments. It's going to be extremely difficult to say goodbye tomorrow, but we'll be seeing each other in 6 months. I will be looking forward to that.

Snippits from a Fantastical Trip

Justine and Scott came to visit-here are a few little bits and blurbs from our truly amazing journey.

Nov. 6th
back on our own private island again and just like the first 2 times I came here, there is no one else here. The magical volcano watches over us; its top covered with clouds.

Obama wins! We watched as the polls closed from a bar/restaurant in granada, setting up camp with mojitos and cards.
Nov. 7th
We are now living in the trees with the monkeys, the butterflies and the birds. A decent hike through the jungle takes us to our treehouse dorm, complete with howler monkeys prowling outside our windows and a wire bridge leading to the yoga platform. I think I could always live in a tree.
From way up here the land looks calm
Nature becomes a peaceful psalm
My mind wanders to other days
Contemplating my moves and stays.
Nov. 9th
free concert in Leon-Perrozompopo and Fulanito de Tal-awesome chill and entertaining. Musica breaks language barriers. You do not need to understand everything that is being said to appreciate the beauty of it.
Nov 10th
Arrived at Surfing Turtle Lodge by speedboat and then by horse and carriage. We boated through the mangroves, making our docksite at a private farm where our horse and carriage awaited. The poor horse dragged us, our bags and our driver through the jungles of Leon until the jungle opened up to the beach!
Nov....something I have lost track of time

The night sky with all of its sparkling coolness fell down on us. We saw shooting stars over and over again, dipping in and out of the sky. Our toes warmed by the bonfire, our finger nails filling with sand; we watched as Jupiter shown bright for most of the night. The shooting stars turned into burning scratches across the sky, exploding at the end. The waves crash causing the plankton to activate its glowing-ness. As I splash the water over my body, as it drips down from my neck to my legs, the planktons glow. I become a shimmering specimen of the sea. Bits of sparkle get caught in my bathing suit and the moment lives on. It was a night of cosmic happenings.

YOLO***

Creepy Crawlers

{Heads up: this story gets kind of gross pretty fast. Read on with caution.}
I just killed a spider about the size of my hand. I was sitting in my hammock chair watching Law and Order...just a normal lazy relaxing Sunday. I glanced over to the wall when I saw it. It had a massive bulb of a body and long hairy legs. If you know me well, then you know that large bugs that move quickly really freak me out. Having been here in Nicaragua for almost 2 years, I have learned to put my fears aside long enough to kill them and sweep them out of my house. And that is exactly what I did. I wanted to use something that would kill it automatically and not allow it a second chance to get away, so I grabbed a frying pan. Good thing my window was closed because someone would have thought there was a stranger or a bear in my house that I was trying to scare away. I crept up on the 8 legged creature, lined up my fingers on the handle remembering my softball days and took a swing. BANG! It was dead. Its body juices oozed out on my wall and its legs curled up into themselves and fell onto the floor. It was disgusting. Still shaking, I swept the gross thing out my back door to hopefully be eaten by a dog or washed away by the rain. Hopefully these bugs will think twice about entering my house. Don't mess me with bugs.

Sopa de Pollo con Albondigas

I love that word: Albondigas. It is so fun to say. It means “meatballs”. I love this word as well, but more because I love to eat meatballs. Today at the comedor, we had chicken soup with albondigas. These albondigas were different than ordinary meatballs that I had eaten before. Since my grandmother makes the best meatballs in the world, you have to make a pretty good ball to compete with hers. These were more of a dumpling than a meatball, but they were the consistency and shape of a ball of meat. They are made of maseca (cornmeal), pulled chicken, tomato, peppers and onions, all mixed up and formed into balls, which are then dropped into the soup. They actually taste pretty good. Aesthetics clearly is not an important aspect of the balls. They look like mud balls with bits of stick and bark sticking out everywhere. 

But the taste is what is important here. The soup itself comes with these strange looking but tasty albondigas, yucca, quequisque, carrots, chicken, squash, tomato, peppers, garlic, onion, sour orange juice, mint and cornmeal. It is delicious.  

Butterflies and Sexual + Reproductive Rights

Last Monday we dressed up at butterflies and paraded around Corinto dancing, singing and promoting Sexual and Reproductive Rights. It was actually not embarrassing at all, just fun. I loved being a butterfly. We decorated a trailer with balloons, streamers and tons of colorful posters celebrating our Sexual Rights. A DJ mounted the trailer with us and as the tractor pulled us around town, he played popular reggaeton and Latin music hits. We bumped and grinded and gyrated (just kidding…we danced) to the music while Xiomara gave mini charlas on the importance of knowing your rights. She spoke about each individual right and about teen pregnancy here in Nicaragua. Yesterday an article came out in one of the country’s newspapers saying that 27 out of every 100 pregnant women are teens. 27 % of all babies born are carried by teenage girls.

Anyway, we made our way through the streets with our butterfly masks, doing a vuelta in the park and ending in front of the office of Asociacion Huellas Juveniles (ASOHJUV-Youth Footprints Association). That was where Carolina explained what ASOHJUV is and then she passed the mic to me…uh oh. For some reason whenever I have a microphone in my hand, I automatically think I’m being really cool and smooth…like all the time. So I got up there and did a comical game show host act, calling up volunteers to participate in a dance contest and to answer questions about sexual and reproductive rights. We handed out diplomas of appreciation to the school that participated and the Casa de la Mujer (Women’s House) to thank them for their support. Then the tractor pulled us back to the hospital, dropping off our DJ and a few of the students along the way. This morning I was a bit worried because we did not have the students nor the music confirmed. It looked like it was going to rain and our posters were not sticking to the trailer. Then all of a sudden, it just got pulled together. It turned out to be a fantastically fun and successful event. And who gets to say that they dressed up as a butterfly and danced on a float for their work? Yup…Community Health Workers, Kids and Peace Corps Volunteers; that’s who.

New House!

This awkward gringa has moved yet again, finding a new neighborhood to terrorize with her awkwardness and her gringa-ness. The owners of my other house decided to make the space that I was renting out into an office, so I had to move. I ended up finding a more expensive, but nice place 3 blocks away from my old house. This new place has a lot of pros and cons to it, but overall I’m happy!

Pros:

-Bigger-I don’t have to share the kitchen, living room and changing area-they all have their own spaces

-I have a separate area to wash my clothing so I don’t have to do it in the shower anymore

-Nice sea foam green color (sea foam green sounds better than mold green right?)

-HUGE backyard with mango tree, chile pepper plant and space to run and play

-My backyard also comes with fun little iguanas that like to climb the metal poles and play hide and seek

-No drunk men yelling vulgarities at me when I enter my house

-Neighbors are extremely friendly-I’ve already been regalared cake, a picture of a saint, a pair of wooden prayer beads, some candy and I’ve been promised a fish (to cook, not as a pet)! My neighbors have totally welcomed me into the neighborhood and I now have my bean and cheese lady, my coconut bread man, my fruit lady and my friendly neighborhood fritanga (street food) friend.

Cons:

-My street is used as a cut through for all of the 18 wheeler trucks. They leave the warehouses and pass by my house starting at 5 in the morning and go until midnight. The noise that trucks make is such an obnoxious noise.

-I have cockroaches and mice…ugh.

-The first 5 days I was allergic to something in my house, but it seems to be gone now…we shall see.

-More expensive

Roadblocks Made of Sticks and a Moto

Tranque: in English tranque is basically a roadblock due to a protest. Usually you do not know there is a tranque until you are 100000 cars backed up in a traffic jam. Setting up these tranques is a way for the protesters to be heard. Here in Nica, tranques are put on usually by taxi drivers, sugar plantain workers, ex-military members etc…They are awful. (the tranques, not the people) Who knows how much money is lost during these tranques due to trucks not able to deliver their products or people not able to get to and from work. Unfortunately and out of the blue, I and a few friends got stuck in a tranque that was set up between Chinandega and Leon. This was our only way to get to Leon so we headed out in the car of a friend, not knowing what we were about to encounter. We started out great; classic NSYNC and Backstreet Boy songs playing, AC blasting in our freshly washed unsweaty faces…we were completely oblivious to what was to come. And then we hit it. Bumper to bumper to bumper traffic for 20 or so kilometers (on our side of the tranque, plus another 20 Ks on the other), they were mainly 18 wheelers attempting to deliver their goods. We alternated between sitting in the hotbox of a car and standing outside in the shade, jumping back in everytime a car inched forward, hoping that they had come to an agreement already. We played that sitting and standing game for 2 hours and then gave up. We decided to hop in a pedi cab to see how far we’d make it. As we were 3 people with 5 bags on a hot day, traveling uphill, we did not make it very far before our driver basically asked us to get out and walk. Finally after walking the majority of our triciclo ride, we paid our man, grabbed our bags and continued walking. And walk we did-3 kilometers (yes, that is only a little over a mile, but when you’re carrying 2 heavy bags under a hot sun on a day when you’ve already been in traffic for almost 3 hours and have switched modes of transportation 3 times, 3 K is a lot). So we continued walking until we hit the tranque. I had never seen, nor crossed a tranque before, but in my mind I pictured massive walls of people angrily shouting and waving burning sticks so as to actually block the road. Instead we came to a couple of people holding signs, some taking naps in the shade, while some small branches and a motorcycle were used to block the road. It almost seemed comical as I stepped over the branch to cross the tranque. This is why it took us 3 hours to get 8 kilometers? With a shady spot to rest up ahead, we continued on, hoping to find a bus on its way to Leon or Managua that would drop us off. With what seemed to be our first stroke of luck all day, the second we got to the shade, an empty bus pulled up. Acting in true Nica style, we used our bags and our butts to worm out way onto the bus and into seats. I don’t remember pushing any old ladies out of the way, but honestly it had been a really long day. Anything is possible. And we were on our way. We passed by hundereds of trucks, cars and bikes stopped on the other side of the tranque. We later found out that the private car that we had left Chinandega in was still parked in the line of traffic waiting to cross the tranque 10 hours later. And he was nowhere close to crossing it. My boss spent 16 hours on a bus waiting to get back home. 2 people died during the tranque: one due to an ambulance not being able to get out of traffic and to the hospital quick enough and one who lost control of his bike in the commotion of the traffic and rode off a bridge. The tranque definitely was effective in getting the attention of the company owners, the government and the entire country, but at what cost?

San Jeronimo

 As I was readying myself for bed at 8 pm (yes…I’m an old lady) tonight I heard a musical commotion outside my door. My house is usually pretty loud, but this was uncharacteristically loud and it was live music. I opened my door to find a hundred or so people crowded outside. The sides of the street were lined with people clapping, screaming and dancing to the music. They were celebrating the saint Jeronimo. A statue of the saint is carried around to houses whom have set up altars in honor of said saint. The altars are extremely ornate, made of red satin cloth, small overly be-jeweled statues and millions of Christmas lights or candles. The saint is followed by a band with an emphasis on its brass section and the saint itself is a small simple statue carried on a chair made of flowers, leaves and palms. This is all mounted on a square wooden structure complete with handles for its 4 carriers to hold on to. The 4 men and women carrying the saint bounce up and down to the music, spinning in circles for about 30 minutes until it is time to pray. The saint then enters the house and is placed on the alter where he will stay for a day or two. Now that the partying has calmed down a bit, the praying starts. Someone with a microphone starts the prayers. The group of prayers is smaller than the dancers, but it is still an impressive group. They pray for twenty minutes and then continue on with their normal nightly routines. Attached here are some pictures from the night…I apologize for the darkness, but you get the idea of how festive the celebration is! (I tried to upload a video too, but my internet is too slow.)

Volcano Updates

So this is a short update article that was written on The Nicaragua Dispatch on September 12, 2012 about the latest happenings on the volcano. The latest that Peace Corps has told us is that we will be out of our sites still until Monday at the earliest.
"San Cristóbal Volcano’s initial cooldown on Sunday and Monday may have been a fake out. Nicaragua’s largest volcano registered three more minor explosions on Tuesday afternoon shortly after 3:30 p.m., according to Civil Defense.

The Nicaraguan Institute for Territorial Studies (INETER) also registered a sudden flurry of minor seismic activity in the area surrounding the volcano.

Tuesday belches, which caused a cloud 300 meters above the crater, were much smaller than Saturday’s eruptions. Authorities still believe San Cristóbal is calming, but the preventive alert remains in place for Chinandega as they monitor the volcano’s continued grumblings."
http://www.nicaraguadispatch.com

Ashes Ashes We All Go to Granada

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-19533933

So the excitement continues here in Nicaragua. Today the volunteers of the Northwestern region of Nicaragua were evacuated due to volcanic activity in Nicaragua's biggest and most active volcano, San Cristobal.

According to earthquake-report.com, the volcano erupted 3 times this morning throwing up gas and ash 1,500 meters into the sky. The eruption mainly affected the families living within 10 km of the volcano, but many other pueblos nearby are seeing blackened skies and receiving ashy rainstorms. The eruption is being monitored by the Nica government and to me, it seems like things have calmed down a bit. About 3,000 people from the area have been evacuated, as well as nearby peace corps volunteers. We have been moved to a safe location, where Peace Corps is taking very good care of us. These couple weeks have definitely been a time where I think to myself, "I'm definitely not in Massachusetts anymore..."

This Has Nothing to Do With Nicaragua...

But they look delicious...Oh how I miss chocolate.

Homemade Kit Kat Bar

Every now and then, you come across a recipe so ridiculously indulgent and unabashedly excessive that you simply must prepare it immediately. A perfect example? This recipe for homemade Kit Kat bars, adapted from Paula Deen, and loaded with peanut butter, chocolate, and butterscotch chips.

About This Recipe

YIELD:	Makes approximately 32 bars
ACTIVE TIME:	45 minutes
TOTAL TIME:	2 hours, 45 minutes
THIS RECIPE APPEARS IN:	Edible DIY: Paula Deen's Homemade Kit Kat Bars

Ingredients

• 75 Club crackers
• 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup butterscotch chips

Procedures

1. 1
   Line 9- by 13-inch rectangular baking pan with one layer of Club crackers (you may need to break some to fit).
2. 2
   Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat. Add graham cracker crumbs, dark brown sugar, milk, and granulated sugar. Bring to boil. Boil for five minutes, stirring constantly. Remove pan from heat. Pour half of butter mixture over crackers in pan. Smooth surface with spatula.
3. 3
   Arrange another layer of Club crackers over butter mixture. Pour remaining butter mixture over surface. Smooth surface with spatula. Arrange a third layer of crackers over top.
4. 4
   Combine peanut butter, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips in small saucepan. Melt over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Spread evenly over crackers.
5. 5
   Cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate two hours. Cut into 2-inch bars. Bars will keep for two weeks, stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator
   .

4th Annual Career Fair

 Last week, after a good amount of work(our whole team) and a few stressful days(me), we put on a Career Fair for the 11th and 12th grade students from my town and a nearby town. 6 high schools came-about 400 ish students-to learn about local universities and options for their futures. 6 universities from Chinandega and Leon, the Naval Base, the Casa y Clinica and our new Association Youth Footprints came and set up informational tables with banners, posters and demonstrations. One university even put on a demonstration of how to hook someone up to an IV, which included sticking a needle in one of their classmates and actually inserting a saline solution into his vein.

The morning of the event, I have to say, was stressful for me. As I have learned, Nicaragua and Latin America in general, runs on their own time. People always talk about "Nica time". Basically what that means is that an event scheduled to start at 9 am, could start anywhere from 9 am to 10:30am. People usually are not in a rush, which fits into who I am perfectly! Except when I'm running a big event; then I like things to be on time...I like people to be on time. A few people arrives at 8 am as we had planned to begin setting up, but the majority of our work team did not arrive until 10. The fair was planned to start at 9. Anyway, I was definitely worried. Luckily-since we were starting so late, and unfortunately-because we wanted them there- neither the mayor, nor the health center director, nor the director of all the schools were able to come. We pushed on without them though...jumping over small troubles with our donated bus, not having enough lunches and then having one too many and wishing and hoping that all of the students came. 

Eventually, I calmed down when things started to run smoothly. The first school came; in perfectly straight lines, they listened to the national anthem and to the introductions given by Xiomara and Carolina. While there are a few things I would change for next year, overall the event was a huge success pulled together by the whole community! We were donated music and a sound system by the Catholic Church, lunches by a local comedor and a local port worker union, the bus by the port and the time and effort of 6 universities, the fuerza naval, 6 high schools, 9 youth volunteers and a visit from the Peace Corps office. Overall it was a great event! 

Worries About Angry Waves

At home we do not worry about earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes...they are not on our radar, unless they happen somewhere else in the world. Then we see, read and hear about them on the news. We put on charity events and post words of encouragement on our blogs, twitters and facebooks. Here in Nicaragua, though, these things are a reality.

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/08/27/world/americas/el-salvador-earthquake/index.html

Last night I was sitting on the beach with a friend, talking about the extra-largeness of the waves. Usually we do not have waves that are really surf-able, but last night, they were massive. We talked about tsunamis and how terrifying they are. Anyway, I had an extremely long week at work and an a fantastic sunday in the sun, followed by a goodbye party for a friend...I was exhausted. I was asleep in minutes and did not wake up until my alarm went off the next morning. I checked my phone and saw 3 missed messages from an unknown number. I then saw that I had a text saying "Kate-TSUNAMI WARNING...." My heart started to race as I read the text, thinking it was a joke from a friend. We were just talking about it the night before; it has to be a joke. Then I saw it was signed by the director of Peace Corps Nicaragua. I immediately called her and she filled me in. There was a 7.3 magnitude earthquake right off the coast of El Salvador. Because of the great magnitude of the earthquake, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center had issued the warning last night and had since then been canceled. I packed a runaway bag anyway, just in case, and headed into the city to get some work done and use the internet to research tsunamis. Apparently they are now able to predict the majority of tsunamis that actually occur, some a few minutes before they happen and some a few hours. According to PBS, "75 percent of warnings that resulted in costly evacuations turned out to be false alarms." I have to say; I would rather the government spend tons of money evacuating people for no reason, than lose an entire state, city or in some cases, country. 
So...things should be back to normal (they actually were never not normal), but to celebrate the non-tsunami, I am treating myself to internet, a lactose free latte and a piece of black forest cake for breakfast. Things to learn before the next tsunami warning: how to out-swim a tsunami, how big does a boat have to be to escape a tsunami and if I were to build a cave underneath the ocean, would I be safe?

I Am An Alien

"You're like a little alien!", my friends said to me, quoting the hilarious movie Mean Girls. They were referring to the fact that I, having been in Nicaragua for 20 months, had no clue what an Instagram was and why so many people were writing phrases with the number sign (#) in front of it. #ImAnAlien (Did I use that correctly?) Things at home have changed drastically in some cases-technology: everyone has an IPhone or an IPad or a Ipod or a ipid, iped or ipud...which all have Apps that help you lead your life in a "less chaotic manner". In JP, Whole Foods took over the local latino food store, Hi-Lo, that had been there for 46 years. Bobby Valentine is now leading the Red Sox...not to victory, instead of Tito. And about half of my high school graduating class is now married and/or having children and/or buying houses! Damn. Things have definitely changed at home. But a lot of things stayed exactly the same. It was still incredibly amazing to see my family and friends. I walked in the door at 2 o clock in the morning after a really really long day of traveling and my dog, Scarlet, still recognized me! I passed out in the bed that was still really comfortable to begin my vacation in Weymouth.
I did so much while I was home. People here ask about my vacation and I cannot stop talking about it. I'm going to list off the activities because I like lists and if I were to write a paragraph for each activity (which I easily could) this blog would turn into a book.
             1. Date Night with Friends and Sister at Local Dive Bar-oh how I miss friends, beer options and Boston sports
             2. 5$ Wine Night with Sister- lots of catching up-Madeline has a pretty great life right now if you ask me.
            3. Wedding #1!!! Kevin and Chrissy-so beautiful. It was a destination wedding to Cohasset, MA in a gorgeous old inn. What a night.

            4. Wedding #2!!! Courtney and Mike-also so beautiful. Mike is a friend from playgroup, so it was great to get to hang out in our fancy clothes by the ocean with friends from day 1-literally we were friends in the womb.

            5. Red Sox- They actually won the game my Dad and I went to! Cody Ross hit a walk off home run to take the game away. There still is nothing better than a summer night at Fenway doing the wave and singing Sweet Caroline, whether they win or lose.
           6. Camping down the Cape with Mom and Aunt-we did everything that we always do and have been doing for the past 20 years: P Town, beaches, Cape Cod Baseball League (although now the players are a lot younger than I am so I cant really pretend that Im dating any of them), Nickerson lake beach, campfires, chatham...it was fantastic.
          7. Night and Day out with College Friends- Lunch turned into afternoon turned into dinner turned into after dinner olympic watching turned into sleepover
          8. Brooklyn/NYC Trip with Dad- Went to visit a grad school with my Dad and check out NYC...have to be honest...I like Boston better, not just because our sports teams are better. Great trip though.

          9. JP visit with Dad-checked out my old watering and discount clothes shopping holes in JP
         10. Bloody Marys with Reb and Laura to North End Debauchery with Mad and Corey
         11. Breakfasts and Lunches and Dinners with Grandmothers and Aunts
         12. The main thing that was missing though, was my youngest sister, Emma, who was, at the time, volunteering in the Smokey Mountains as a summer park ranger/bear keeper/search and rescue team member/teacher of all things naturey. It was home sweet home, but it did feel a bit strange with her not being there.


I did a lot. I also did a lot of nothing on my couch while watching the Olympics, sports and other tv when I figured out which channels were which (I only have 40 channels in Nicaragua-at home theres about a million) I walked my dog a lot-I cried to her once too;she listened and then cuddled with me-I saw childhood friends, high school friends, college friends, after high school friends...I have to say honestly it was the best vacation Ive ever taken and I spent it in Weymouth.

King of Corn

To celebrate 4th of July, we eat corn on the cob. For Thanksgiving we eat cornbread. During summers we make corn salsas and eat corn grilled on the BBQ. As the number 1 corn producer in the world, the US really knows and loves corn. BUT you have not seen anything or anyone love corn so much until you have been to the Chinandega Corn Festival. It is a yearly event that kicks off Chinandega's patron saint celebrations and a fundraiser for one of the Catholic churches. The church grounds are filled with tents, a stage and tons of tables and chairs. I went with a couple of peace corps friends and Muriel, a friend from my site. Other than having a very cute child talent show (filled with Ruben Dario poem readings, songs about how much they love their mothers and folkloric dances), there was a TON of food and drink made out of corn. Here is a basic list and description of the dishes that were offered:
                   FOOD
                      Indio Viejo-originated from 500 years ago, this dish is a corn stew made with corn flour, tomatoes, baby corn, onion, peppers, aciote, mint, sour oranges and usually chicken or beef (we make this in the comedor for the kids all the time and I absolutely LOVE it.)

                             

                      Tortilla with cheese-pretty basic and a staple for all Nicaraguan diets. Tortillas are made by hand on an iron hot plate.
                      Grilled chicken and meats
                      Tortilla Soup-My friend Nelson got this soup and it was delicious. The soup has strips of tortilla, avocado, chicken, tomatoes, lime, corn and cheese.

                                

                      Fish Soup
                      Tamales-Pretty simple dish made with corn flour and water to form a rectangular gelatin like substance which is wrapped in and steamed in a banana leaf.
                      Atol-A tasty hot desert made with corn flour, water, cinnamon, sugar, and vanilla.

                 DRINKS
                      Chicha- This drink is called the Coca Cola of Corn and is a bright bright pink color. I personally am not a huge fan of the flavor, but people here love it. I've usually seen it being sold in the corner stores in plastic bags. Nicaraguan "chicha de maiz" is made by soaking the corn in water over night. On the following day it is ground and placed in water, red food colouring is added, and the whole mixture is cooked. Once cooled, sugar and more water is added. On the following day one adds further water, sugar and flavoring. Although fermented chicha is available, the unfermented type is the most common. (wikipedia)

                                        

                      Pinolillo- Cornmeal and Cacao based drink- It is said to be the official drink of Nicaragua.
                      Tiste- Very similar to pinolillo, but I think has a bit more sugar and more cacao.
               

                            

                                         the crowds eating and drinking CORN

                            

                                     Lindsey, Muriel and I at the festival

                   
                   

FOTOS

Me with Carolina, a friend from Chinandega

Lindsey and I at khareoke

Fundraising event-we walked around the city asking for donations by challenging them to some tough brainteasers and games.

Host sister, Guiselle, from training dancing during a Family Day event-she is the tall girl in the back row furthest to the left.

View from Magnifico Rock, Rivas

Muriel's Bday party-Following birthday tradition, they threw flour in her face to make fun and celebrate the fact that she's getting old. 

A man participating during an HIV fair in the park.

My first attempt at cooking lobster! Turned out pretty tasty and only cost 2 dollars for a pound of just caught lobster.

Kids playing in front of the library, Casa y Clinica  and Comedor.

Awful Gringa

I have been an awful blogger recently. I am so sorry for that. One very short post, about roosters, is all I have written in the past 2 months. That is pitiful. I guess I've been focusing on and counting down until...I GO HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I of course have been working and playing a lot, but I've mainly been thinking about home. I dream of playing with my dog at least once a week and I have not seen my dad, grandmothers, aunt and most of my friends in over a year. I clearly cannot wait. But here are a few interesting things that I have seen, learned, heard or experienced in the past 2 months. I've been here for over a year and a half and things  continue to surprise me.
---Remember being in college? Poor, busy with classes...your diet tends to suffer. Many college students rely on Ramen noodles to get us through finals, bad break-ups and massive house-arrest snow storms. Here though, Ramen is served on a platter. Literally. I was at a restaurant in Masatepe the other weekend when I saw the waiter walk by with a serving platter. Sitting in the middle of the platter was a single Cup O Soup, acting like it was some kind of gourmet dish.
---Did you know that you can be allergic to sweat? Here, you can. I am. I am actually allergic to my own sweat. By the way I live in the hottest part of the country, so I am constantly sweating. I was getting ready for bed the other night when I realized that I had been scratching my body-arms neck and face mainly, all day long. I took a bucket shower, put some hydrocortizone cream on and went to bed. The next day...it was worse. I had a series of red bumps all over my neck and chest and the burning and itching was so bad I could not concentrate on my work. I went to my doctor friend who told me that I could be, in fact, allergic to my sweat. Apparently if we do not drink enough water, our sweat becomes extremes acidic. This imbalance was causing my body to react in violent itching fests. I am now on an anti allergy pill for the weekend and have been drinking as much water as I can without drowning myself. Hopefully this will be the end of my allergy to myself and we (my body and I) can live in peace.
---The atlas that we have in our library has Weymouth, Mass on the map. Pretty cool. Also, today and yesterday some working men have been installing a ceiling in the library. Now we do not have to worry about falling water or dust. Continuing with the upgrades in the library-Jenny and Jason came down here for their honeymoon (I was lucky enough to be able to spend a little time with them!)-part of what they asked people for as wedding gifts were donations for organizations here in Nica. Lovingly, they decided to donate that money to the Casa y Clinica, the library and the Comedor Infantil. With that money we will be putting in a reading corner in the library, hopefully complete with 2 bean bag chairs. We will also be donating a small portion of it as a prize for the winners of a Soccer Tournament being put on in a week. Thank you so much to everyone who donated to this awesome cause!! A small amount of money can go a really long way.
---Ever been sitting in your house wishing you had some cake, but do not have the ingredients to make your own? People sell cake on the street here. They go door-to-door selling slices of cake! For 15 cordobas (less than a dollar)! Genius.
I promise there will be more to come very soon. 
P.S. Let me know if there is anything else that you would like to hear about!

rOOOOOOOOOOOOsters

 

You may remember at the beginning of my service just how much I hated roosters. They kept me up all night long and basically ruined my life. I wanted them all dead. (I realize that the death penalty is pretty harsh for a noise violation, but it was really bad.) 

Anyway, I had another funny encounter with a gang of roosters on the bus the other day. I was on my way home from Chinandega, when we stopped on the side of the rode to pick up this señora. I notice that she has a large pan with her...full of roosters. FULL OF ROOSTERS. If it had been full of eggs, that would make sense. But it was full of roosters- I tried to count them. I got to about 14 rooster heads that I could see. To be honest, I think there may have been more. 

This is Nicaragua: the land of lakes, volcanoes and rooosters.