Queridos amigos Nicaraguenses

Queridos amigos Nicaraguenses, 

Dear Nicaraguan friends,

Well, I'm back home in the United States! My flight was good, but I miss you all! Also, I forgot a couple things, and I was wondering if maybe you guys could gather them up and ship them to me? I don't know how it slipped my mind, but it seems like I left little pieces of my heart all over Nicaragua.

There's a giant piece of my heart at my neighbor's house. Just yell for them, or just try to break into our house, and they will be out there like a pack of wolves. I don't know where Jonathan will be, but most likely Mitchi and Kailee will be chatting on the porch and Miriam and Miguel will be just inside watching a soap opera. So if you could just stop by and get the part of my heart I left with each of them, that would be great.

On the way to Miriam's you'll walk right by Merced's house. Be sure to chat with her and her mom, Gregoria. I'm pretty sure I also left a part of my heart with them.

Right before you get to Merced's though, you'll pass by a guy selling aguitas on the corner by la Iglesia de San Juan. You can recognize him by his distict "El Agua" yell- what does it sound like? I'll tell you: home. That's what it sounds like. So be sure to tell Luis we say hi.

Also, if you could round up all the English students, I think they each have a little piece of me with them. You should be able to ask them for it in English... but just in case, I would be prepared to speak Spanish too.

I also need you to stop by the church, and get the pieces of my heart from those members. Don't worry, once you step in the door they'll come and great you with open arms and smiles. But while you're on your way there, you'll pass by a fairly poor neighborhood, and there will most likely be a half a dozen kids playing with a torn up soccer ball, or spending hours racing 5 cent plastic toys that their parents saved up for. Their names are Jordan, Jeremy, Ashley, Justin, Raymond, Isa, and sometimes Ana will be there too. They might try to chase you, but it's okay, because once they catch you (and they will catch you) they just want to give you a hug and ask you for the hundreth time how to pronounce their name in English.

Also if you have time, just wander over by the Cathedral, and there will be some schoolboys playing soccer. If you have a couple seconds, just jump in and play with them for a bit. They might have some of my heart, and if you're playing for long enough Freddy will show up, he for sure has some of my heart. Freddy is ten years old; he lives on the streets. Tell him to go back to his parents- and that I know he's lying to me when he says they live in Managua- but check really quick to make sure he's been practicing the break dancing moves that he learned from Charlie.

You'll also have to hike out to the finca, stop by the pupusas place, and Erika's, swing by la Isla de Ometepe, San Jacinto, Ceiba, Tamarindo, and every other community we worked in and every single crowded bus. It seems like there are pieces of my heart scattered all over Nicaragua, and it will probably take awhile for you to gather them up and send them back to me. I need them back because without them I just miss you guys too much, so I'll wait...

In the meantime, I'm gonna blast Dom Omar and string up my hammock in a sauna and pretend I'm still in Nicaragua.

Love,

Amanda

Con amor,

Amanda (la que manda)

Hold on to your funnels! It's gonna be a bumpy ride..

The past couple days we have been packing up our beloved casa amarilla, and Monday was the day to move all HELPs equipment into storage for next years team!

We got everything piled up by the door, and then we realized we didn't really have a plan for how to actually get the stuff to storage.

So, we waved down two local Nicaraguans riding on their cart pulled by a horse, and asked if we could pay them to help us transport our stuff. They agreed, and we loaded everything up. We made 2 trips and got everything moved.

One of the things we had to move was a giant soilet funnel, that we never used. And we don't know what to do with it. It's been the elephant in the living room for long enough, so we decided just to throw it in storage. Maybe next year's team will find a creative use for it.

Megan and THE funnel.

  

Here's a bunch of videos for your casual perusal.

All this packing is making me think about how different things will be when I get back to the US.

Here's a quick list of some of the things that will be different back at home:

Everyone (or mostly everyone) will speak English, and therefore understand what I'm saying.

I will not be able to talk about people loudly in English right in front of them, unless I want them to hear and understand what I'm saying.

There will be air conditioning everywhere, not just at the bank.

The cupboards will close. 

There will be a washing machine, dishwasher, and dryer.

There will be traffic laws.

I will have a car.

I will not have to apply bug spray nightly.

Megan will have internet on her phone outside the house. 

There will be hot water, from the tap, which we can drink.

There will be more than one brand of ice cream (not that I don't love Eskimo... I think I'm just ready to move on).

There will be carpet.

Not a single child will yell every single English word they know at me as I walk down the street.

There will be FDA regulations.

There will be price tags on everything, and Nicaraguans and white people alike will pay the same prices.

The roads will be paved and maintained.

There will be a culture of punctuality.

I will be able to take out the trash more than 20 mins before the garbage truck comes, because the stray dogs won't get to it. 

But in other ways, living in the US is still really similar to living here in Nicaragua.

In Nicaragua a hungry child's stomach growls just as loud as a child's in the US. 

The loss of a loved one hurts just as bad.

A smile still brightens someone's day.

Friends and family still gather on porches for late night laughs.

There's love here too,

And leaving a people that you love is just as hard.

I will miss you, Nicaragua! More than you know!

The Art of Using a Machete

A foreigner's guide to the uses of a machete.

Harvesting.

In Nicaragua, there are a variety of savory fruits, some of which are familiar to those sold in the US, some of which are not. However, all types of fruit: Mamones, Tamarindos, Bananas, Mangos, or Plantains can be harvested with a quick swipe from a machete. Other vegetables are often harvested with a machete, especially corn. This swift tool is essential for a successful Nicaraguan harvest.

Pruning.

Every once and awhile we see a couple of men in the local parks using their machetes to cut down the grass and weeds that grow. Machetes are also used for the pruning of public as well as private or personal trees and/or bushes. Keeping Nicaraguan parks and homes looking nice and well-kept is just one use of a machete.

Clearing Large Areas of Land.

During our soccer project, we arrived to find the field overgrown with weeds and sagebrush. But before we had a chance to worry, a local schoolboy used the school machete to clear the field of debris*. In no time, we had a field free of bushes and weeds and we were ready to play. However, clearing a soccer field requires a little bit more technique than maintaining the grass at a local park. When clearing a field, one must swing the machete around the head and then down to whack away the brush, then the arm crosses over the face to bring the machete around the head again. This may seem complicated, but once you watch a native Nicaraguan, you will realize that it really looks quite easy and elementary. Elementary to the point, in fact, that even elementary children help out with these activities. 

An even larger scale of clearing large areas of land using a machete is the example of clearing ground on which to build a classroom. The particular land that we cleared this morning, for example, was overgrown with thick, tall weeds, many large bushes and even some small trees. As I watched the local Nicaraguans who volunteered to help us work, I came up with a step by step list of the proper Nicaraguan Machete-wielding technique for larger projects like this one.

A local Nicaraguan, selecting his stick...

1. Find a large nearby tree.
2. Remove your shirt and hang it on said tree (unless, of course, you are a woman, in which case, it is acceptable for you to skip this step).
3. Find a branch from your tree that is about .5-.75 inches in diameter and about three feet long.
 4. Cut it down, and using your machete, clear it of any leaves or smaller branches.

... and clearing it of branches.

5.Holding your stick in your left hand, and your machete in your right, use your stick to push a group of plants away and to the left of your body- exposing the part of their stems closest to the ground.
6. Choosing whether or not to use the around-the-head technique previously described, whack at the stems with your machete. It should take only a few swings and about thirty seconds to clear a couple square feet of ground.
7. Using your stick and machete as a giant pair of tongs, move your pile of debris to the collective pile.

Clearing roads.

Nicaragua is in the middle of Central America, and therefore prone to tropical rainstorms. As a result, trees often fall onto roads or pathways and it is important to clear them in a timely manner. Naturally, the only way to do this is with a machete.

Digging.

Nicaraguans are known to use their machete's even for digging. The blade of a machete perfectly facilitates straightening and smoothing the walls of any hole. This is especially useful when the hole is going to be used for a soilet, or for the foundation of a school made of bottles. These Nicaraguans are not using their machete in this picture, but they are sure to have it ready and accessible leaning up against a nearby fence post.

Building an awning.

You may be wondering what you will do with the trees that you clear from the road. One option is to build an awning. Using your machete, you can hack away at one end of the log so that when you stand it up vertically, it forms a Y. Then with two of these Y logs, you can lay one across top between them. Once you have the basic frame for your awning, you can make the roof with either giant leaves, cardboard, sheets of tin, or a combination of the three.

Herding animals.

When herding animals with a machete, you do NOT use the blade. However, you can use the flat side of a machete to drive a horse or cow (or child) in the direction you want it to go. This does not hurt them and is the same as using other nudging methods, and since your machete is almost always easily accessible- herding animals is another use for your ever-handy machete.

Other.

There is no reason to limit the uses and abilities of this marvelous tool. Machete's can be used for almost anything, and if you're not carrying one with you all the time, you're miss out! Machetes have many miscellaneous uses, such as: mixing cement, hanging hammocks, or even cutting the top off of a plastic bottle.

Storing your machete. There are three common ways to store a machete when not in use. The first is to lean it up against a tree or fence post as previously demonstrated in the photo under the "Digging" category. The second is to whack your machete into a tree, fence post, or log. Then just leave it stuck inside the log.

The third option is to simply leave it lying flat on the ground. This is the preferably option if you are going to be leaving your machete there for a long period of time. This way, you don't have to watch to make sure nobody runs into it.

You can buy your own machete at a local Ferreterria (hardware store).

You can also find the tourist versions for sale in the Cathedral Park** for 300 Córdoba (but the lady can be talked down to at least 250).
[Information on how easy it is go get said purchased machete through customs is not yet available]

Have fun with this indispensable Nicaraguan instrument!

*It is important to remember that anyone, at all ages can use a machete. This vital tool should be utilized by all genders, ages, and capacities.
**The Cathedral Park is currently under construction. But don't worry, all the park vendors just moved their stands to the cancha by the 23 de Julio mural.

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day... Give a family an opportunity to raise chickens and feed them for life.

Yesterday was the last day of our Chicken project in the rural community of La Ceiba.

For this project we surveyed 20 families (picked by the local mother's counsel) and from them picked the 8 most needy and willing to participate.

Then they had to attend three workshops. The first was on nutrition, then I taught the second one on saving money, and a vet guy taught the third one on how to take care of chickens.

Me teaching about saving money. Only one of the families had any kind of money saving plan.

Then came the fun part, la entrega. We gave each family 3 hens and 1 rooster, as well as enough feed for the next couple days. I'll admit, I'm not the most graceful chicken-passer ever... but I get the job done.

The next fun part is going to happen after we leave.
First, the eggs that the hens lay are going to supplement the health of every family member- and every family selected has a child in elementary school.


Second, there will be even more extra eggs that the family will be able to sell for supplemental income (none of the main providers for the families selected has a permanent job).

And third, as part of the contract these families signed to be a part of the project, they have promised that once they have baby chicks, they are responsible for donating three pairs (one boy and one girl) to three different families on our needy list. So eventually, this project will have positively influenced almost 40 families.

PS. 900 blog views! Let's see if we can make it 1000 before I leave :)

¡¿¡¿ Quién Causa Tanta Alegría ?!?!

Today is a holiday in Nicaragua: La Purísima. Short for La Purísima asumpsión de la virgen María.

In English: Virgin Mary's Super Pure Assumption to Heaven.

Pretty much all week there have been more fireworks than normal (everyone sets off fireworks all the time here. I don't understand it... But I think it's great). Then, at noon today everyone and their mother set off about 50 million all within 10 mins of each other. It was crazy! But it was also really cool to see everyone on the streets celebrating at the same time... it was kinda like New Years... but it was in the middle of the day.

Then at 600 the exact same thing happened- only more fireworks!

Apparently, in the central square there's a gritería or a big shout, but it was raining. Everyone goes in when it rains, so we didn't bother going down to the centro. But, we chatted with our neighbors and they taught us about what would happen next.

Are you ready for this?

It's like Halloween- except religious- and you don't dress up! [Which is really quite a shame... we've been waiting for a good reason to break out our Virgin Mary costumes...]
It's fantastic.

So everyone wanders around town and they approach the houses that they can see an altar to the Virgin Mary inside. They they say/ yell, "¿¡Quién causa tanta alegría?!" Which means, "Who causes so much happiness?"

Then the people inside either say, "¡La asunción de María!" or "¡La concepción de María!" Which means either the ascending of Mary into heaven or Mary's conception. And then the people in the house give the visitors candy. And then the trick-or-treaters (I mean... quiencausatantaalergria-ers) say, "¡Viva la Virgen!" And they move onto the next house.

There's also some rule about how sometimes the people sing... but I don't understand that rule quite yet.

But we went to Merced's house to get the dinner she cooked for us, and I thought I would try out this Nicaraguan version of trick-or-treating.

It totally worked. 
Here's a picture of me standing by their altar just inside their house.

Then, while we were waiting for Merced to bring out the dinners, their house got attacked by a swarm of quiencausatantaalegria-ers, children and adults alike. I grabbed my camera and got a quick video.

It was a beautiful thing. 

After we had dinner, Michti, our neighbor, came over and as a joke, yelled, "Quien causa tanta alegria?!" into our house. Playing along, I grabbed a bag of candy we had nearby and give her and her cousin a piece. Then all of the sudden there was a swarm of kids yelling "Qiencaustantgria!" and sticking their hands through our gate. Luckily, we video documented part of the experience. It's sideways though. 

I said, "Oh no," because at that point the giant ziploc bag that was about 40% full was completely empty.

So I stopped pretending to be catholic so I could give candy to cute Nicaraguan children (and their parents... ??) But it's still a really fun holiday. Our neighbors say that everyone saves their best fireworks for midnight tonight... So that'll be fun.

Happy Purísima!!

Going Postal in Nicaraguan Customs

When I decided to stay 2 1/2 months longer in Nicaragua, I tried to get another volunteer to bring my laptop and my textbook for an independent study class with her. Unfortunately that plan fell through. So instead, my parents shipped it to me through DHL. There's a DHL office here and León so the idea was that they would call me when it got there and I would go pick it up. So I went to the León DHL and made sure they had my Nicaraguan cell phone number.

My parents sent it on June 20th and I tracked it online. Salt Lake City... Panama... Managua, Nicaragua... Customs Delay...Customs Delay...Customs Delay...Customs Delay...Customs Delay...Customs Delay...
 
Eventually, a MONTH later, my parents got an email saying that the contact information wasn't up to date so customs wasn't able to contact me, and therefore wasn't able to let my package through. So they gave them my cell phone number, and a couple days later I got a phone call from DHL.

I made the guy on the other end of the line speak super slow just to make sure I understood him. He said that I had to go to Managua and pick up some paperwork that goes with my package and then go to the customs building and get my package. It was either that, or wait for the paperwork to be mailed to León, I would have to fill it out, then it would have to be sent back to Managua and then my stuff could be sent to León. Luckily, I was already going to Managua the next day to pick up our next wave of volunteers! So I clarified where the DHL office that I needed to get the paperwork was, and that from there I could go straight to Customs.

So our Nicaraguan friend Jorge and I drove to Managua the next day (1.5-2 hour drive). We got to the DHL office and successfully got all the paperwork I needed. But the DHL man mentioned that Customs was closed for the day. What? Yep. It's closed. Apparently, it's only open in the mornings. Great. But that's okay. I was that much closer to my laptop (and Psychology textbook...)

That Saturday I made another two hour trip to Managua, and arrived at the Customs building around 930 with my paperwork in hand.

But they wouldn't let me through the front gate. I had to get there early early in the morning, then when they open at 8 they give everyone a number, and then they only help those people for the day. And people start lining up at 4, so they recommended I get there early.

At this point, I was not too happy. Another trip to Managua? I wasn't really feelin it. So I decided to go explain my situation to the León DHL and see if they could still get it shipped to León (since that's where it was supposed to go to begin with). So I went and I was telling Mr. LeónDHL my whole entire story when he interrupted me and said, "Wait, you mean you never got an email?" (Only in Spanish, of course). I never did. So he handed me a business card for the DHL office in Managua. He told me to call them, because I should've gotten an email when the package first arrived in Customs.

So then I called the number, and talked to Ms. ManaguaDHL and told her my entire story. Then she explained that the email didn't really matter anymore, and that because I picked up the paperwork in Managua I also had to pick up my package in Managua and there was no way around it.

So I talked to my parents and we considered telling DHL just to take it back to the US, but that would cost $130. So this morning, I got up at 300 and Jorge, Marcie and I headed out again to Managua. (We had to go today, because today is the last day my visa is valid. I expect "Happy Illegal Immigrant Birthday" presents tomorrow).

So we got to the customs building at 630, and we were about 30th in line. By 800 the line was over 100 people long. During the next four hours this is what I did:

I was let through the gate and lead to another line.

I pretended to understand the instructions the guy was yelling at everyone in line (we were in a giant hallway and there was a weird echo and he talked fast).

I was led to another line, and once I got to the beginning of that line, a receptionist checked my paperwork. Then I had to go get my passport photocopied and come back and wait in line again and get my paperwork re-checked.

Then I waited in the waiting room for my number to come up on the screen, when it finally did (Number 32! Whoohoo!) I went up to the receptionist and I was told that because I was a foreigner I had to fill out some more paperwork and get copies of that. So I did, then I waited in line to see the receptionist again.

She very very very quickly gave me directions. This is what I understood: Go through those doors... get in line... find DHL...so find your package and get in line. So I went through the doors and found myself in a giant warehouse filled with different sections for each shipping company. So I found DHL, and a very polite man there directed me to the line I was supposed to wait in before finding DHL. And he also told me that my package was already in general customs because it was from so long ago.

So I waited in the line, for an hour. It was during this time that I became very stressed out and flustered. So then I couldn't speak Spanish very well. So when the lady next to me started talking to me, I could understand her, but I couldn't respond very well. Halfway through one of my responses she asked me if I even spoke Spanish at all. Then I tried to explain that I thought I did until I had to go through all these hoops to get a package.... My attempt to explain that idea was not successful. So in the end I just said, "No. No hablo español." And then she left me alone.

Once I got to the front of the line, a lady went with me to get my package at the DHL. I tried to explain that I knew it was already in general customs. But she didn't listen to me. So we went to DHL and they told me again that it was in General  Customs. Then we went to general customs and I SAW MY PACKAGE. So then they ripped it open and inspected everything and recorded what was inside. (She was very quizzical about my Psychology textbook... Yes, I'm smuggling knowledge into Nicaragua) Then they wrapped my package all back up and took my paperwork and told me to go back to the waiting room.

So I waited in the waiting room until they had typed up and processed all my paperwork, then the receptionist called my name and I came up and signed some papers. Then I had to take a stack of four receipts with me back into the warehouse place and find my package again. So I found it, and then the guy from general customs filled out some paperwork and then told me that I could leave with my package. I asked if he was serious. He said he was. So I grabbed my package and speed walked toward the door. A little further down the hallway when a security guard stopped me I considered making a break for it. But the 8ft barb wire fence surrounding the Customs building stopped me. But it was okay, because all he needed was my second receipt. And then I gave my third to a security guard at the gate and I was officially OUT of Customs by 1145.

And that is the story of getting my package that my parents sent to me in June.

Nicaraguan Perfume

Last week our volunteer, Bryce, went home. But before he left, we threw together a business seminar. We partnered with an organization that works with entrepreneurs in the area, and one of their representatives spoke for 20 mins or so, and then Bryce taught pretty much an overview of everything that we taught in his normal business class, and I translated.

This is Jamee, preparing to sit through the seminar. This is me,  reviewing my Spanish Business vocabulary, like "Impending Event sales close technique" or describing in detail PF Changs drink menu.

Me, probably trying to explain a concept because I don't know the word for it in Spanish.

Overall, it went pretty well. None of the people that we invited came, but there were still almost 20 others that our partner organization invited. They were all excited and willing to participate.

One guy who was there is a chemist who's just starting his own line of perfume. He gave me a whole bottle for free, and it actually smells really good! And I never wore perfume before, but now I might just have to order it from Nicaragua...