Guitarras Zepedas

As many of you know, I play guitar. Others might know that I´ve been planning to purchase a guitar in Nicaragua since we first learned we were coming down here. It´s not that Nicaragua is famous for it´s guitars, it really just stemmed from the fact that I didn´t want to lug a full-size guitar all the way down here.

Well, it turned out to be a very good decision. Every Nicaraguan guidebook makes note of the Zepeda family, Nicaragua´s oldest family of luthiers (guys who build guitars). They have a workshop on the outskirts of Masaya, the artisan capital of Nicaragua. So, about a month back Jess, myself, and a few other volunteers made a trek out there to check out the guitar shop as well as the enormous and beautiful craft market. Some of you might remember the picture of us in sombreros...that´s Masaya. It turned out to be a great day. After a few hours of searching we came across the very humble workshop manned only by the family and a few extra hands.

The way things work there is like this: Sergio Zepeda´s (the main luthier) wife shows you around the workshop and takes you to a wall with several different sample guitars. You choose the look you like best and build from there. You have a ton of choices to make, customizing your guitar exactly how you´d like it. There were so many options, I would doubt if two of the same guitars have ever come out of that place. I spent about an hour and a half that Saturday pointing, drawing, gesturing, choosing, and constantly asking, ¨What if...¨

After you´ve made your choices, the luthiers go to work and PRESTO! In 4 weeks you´ve got a handmade, completely custom, very high quality guitar for literally a 10th of what you´d pay in the states.

I made a quick trip down to Masaya this past Friday to pick mine up, and I couldn´t be happier! The results are below. Sorry I don´t have better or more close up pictures, but I´m sure you´ll be seeing this guitar in a lot of pictures from now on.

Isn´t she a beauty?!

World Wise Schools Entry #1

Hello Mrs. Lyttle’s Class!

Thanks for the great letters. It’s great to learn about all of you and the adventures you’ve been on. Hopefully we can continue to share our experiences with all of you while we’re in Nicaragua. Below are the answers to the most popular questions you wrote to us. After that, please look for a special assignment we’d like the class to complete. Thanks again, and we look forward to hearing from you!

Why did you choose Nicaragua?
In fact, we had no role in the choosing of Nicaragua. With Peace Corps the volunteer can give a geographic preference in the world (for us it was Latin America) but the final decision comes down to the staff at Peace Corps. They make their choices based on previous language experience, technical skills, and needs of the in-country programs.

Is the island of Omotepe an extinct volcano?
Yes….and no. Let’s put it this way: the volcano of Omotepe is not on the list of potentially dangerous volcanoes in Nicaragua, which means they aren’t expecting it to erupt any time soon. On the other hand, the Peace Corps volunteer that lives on the island has come out of his house a few times to find 2 or 3 inches of ash covering everything, almost like a snowstorm. So, Omotepe is not necessarily active, but it’s definitely not extinct.

What are some other Peace Corps sites in Nicaragua?
There are currently more than 160 Peace Corps volunteers in Nicaragua and we’re working in pretty much every department, except the two autonomous regions on the Eastern Coast. Our volunteers are in the biggest cities and villages of 200 people…and everywhere in between!

What do you eat?
Food is very expensive in Nicaragua right now. Therefore, the majority of the people here only eat rice, beans, and corn tortillas. Occasionally they supplement with eggs. It’s sad to here, but the majority of people living in the country only eat 1 or 2 vegetables or fruits a week. There are a ton of organizations working in Nicaragua to improve that horrible statistic, but the reality is farms need to export all of their products to countries like the US to make enough money to survive and really can’t afford to keep much of their products in country. We’re very fortunate to have lived with families with incomes large enough to eat a healthier diet, something more similar to what we eat in the States, but that is definitely not the norm. More on food later…

What’s the deal with the LEGO piece?
Honestly, that’s the only one we’ve seen in Nicaragua. We haven’t ever seen a child playing with LEGO pieces. Sadly, we left the LEGO piece at the dump. Sorry, everybody…

Why did you join the Peace Corps in the first place?
Before we met each other, the two of us independently wanted to do something like the Peace Corps. When we realized it was a common dream, we started working towards getting in, and here we are today! We both wanted to experience another part of the world, and more than on a superficial level. We both wanted to learn another language. We both wanted to learn to live a simpler lifestyle. Mostly, we both know we want to spend our lives helping people, and this is a great way to jumpstart that career.

How is your Spanish? Did you forget English?
Our Spanish is coming along just fine. When we came in to Peace Corps we had a language ability of 3 (out of 10). At the end of training we were both 5’s. We are learning more everyday by reading newspapers, watching TV in Spanish, and just chatting with our family and co-workers. Our goal is to both be level 9’s or 10’s when we leave. No, we haven’t forgotten English, but we try to speak it as little as possible to improve our Spanish.

What kinds of fruits and vegetables are available?
If you live in a place with plenty of water it’s not uncommon to see avocado, lemon, banana, or mango trees. For instance, our family in Somoto has both a lemon tree and an avocado tree in their backyard. Basically, any of those tropical fruits that are really expensive in the supermarket in the States are just falling off the trees down here. It works the other way, too, however. Apples are very hard to find here, and they are easily twice as expensive as avocadoes.

How’s the weather?
Hot and dry. Right now it’s considered Summer in Nicaragua. There is virtually no rain and daily temperatures are in the 90’s. In May “winter” starts. That means rain everyday for about 2 hours and temperatures in the 80’s. That’s really all there is to it.

OK, that’s all we have time for right now, but if we missed a really important question feel free to send it to us again! On to the assignment:

We would like to start a section of our blog called “Nica Profile.” In this section we plan to interview a Nicaraguan every few weeks and post their responses and a photo on the blog. We would like Mrs. Lyttle’s class to come up 10 interview questions we can use. The questions should cover personal likes and dislike, family life, work stuff, and Nicaraguan culture. We’d like the class to vote on the best questions and then email them to us in both English and Spanish. Think you can do it?! Well, then get to work!

This weekend´s project: hanging up the basketball hoop!

Week Two Report

Our host family´s dog, Brandy. There really wasn´t any particular occasion...

Things are going well in Somoto. Jess is forming a girls basketball team with some local 10 year olds. Through her work she was able to meet up with a Nicaraguan whose been playing and coaching basketball for some 20 years and just so happens to be available weekly to help her out. Tonight (Sunday) they had their first ¨practice¨with 5 girls and only one basketball. I hung out for a while, but anyone reading this blog should know that I do more harm than good on a basketball court. It was clear there was a lot of enthusiasm from the girls and I´m sure the next time they meet there will be twice as many players. Let´s just say I´m purty durn proud of Jess!

This Saturday we went to Esteli with another Madriz-based volunteer. Esteli is the largest city in Madriz and boasts almost all of the accomidations of Managua. Better yet, it´s only 1.5 hours by express bus from Somoto. In Esteli I continued my quest for a cowboy hat, however, after about 3 or 4 stores, it was clear that my head is about 3 sizes bigger than any Nicaraguan. So, the search continues (sadly)...

Esteli also has a satellite Peace Corps office. It´s basically a bathroom and a couple computers where volunteers in our area can go to relax, do some research on the internet, or pick up and drop off stuff for other volunteers. Probably the greatest thing about the PC office in Esteli is the floor to ceiling bookshelf filled with cheesy airport novels. Since reading is a big part of our lives, it was great to come across this treasure trove. I walked out of there with Dan Brown´s Angels and Demons and Jess took the 5th Harry Potter book.

Speaking of books, I´m just about finished with a really interesting historical account of the 1980´s in Nicaragua. As many of you know, and probably as many of you remember, the Sandanistas, a Nicaraguan political group based in Communist ideals, overthrew a 40 year dictatorship in 1979. After a strong victory with virtually unanimous support from the Nicaraguan population, the Sandanistas began an 11 year experiment/revolution. From as early as 1979, and all the way through the defeat of the Sandanistas in the 1990 presidential elections and beyond, people have viewed this decade in Nicaragua with wonder, praise, disgust, disbelief, confidence, fear, and a million other emotions. The effect of the Sandanistas on Nicaragua, and really the Western Hemisphere, is still being disputed as to whether it was an inherently ¨good¨thing for the people of Nicaragua. It´s a facinating story in and of itself, but it´s also particularly pertinent right now because the unofficial leader of the Sandanistas and President during the 1980´s, Daniel Ortega, won the Presidential Elections in 2006 after failed attempts in, well, every national election since 1990. Depending on who you talk to, Ortega won with somewhere between 32 and 37 percent of the vote, while the other pletheura of parties came in somewhere near the low teens and twenties.

Being volunteers, we´re not supposed to really publicly discuss our political opinions, especially about in country politics, but we certainly are allowed to learn as much about the political process here. I´ve been trying to talk to families about their ideas and experiences during the 1980´s and how it compares to the current situation in Nicaragua.

I´d love to talk more about it here, but I´ll let all of you reading with particular interests in history to head over to wikipedia or some other research site to check it out first. If any particular questions come up that I can help answer (which can include asking your question to a Nicaraguan and translating the response here) please let me know.

¡Adios!

One Week Down, 103 To Go!

¨La Concha¨in Somoto. Located in the Center of town

Well, we’ve completed our first week in site without any major glitches. We’ve been able to learn our way around town, find the best internet cafes, etc. We’ve even begun (and potentially ended) our hunt for a house of our own. All in all, we are very happy.

In relation to work (Matt) I have been bouncing around different organizations in town trying to figure out who’s got what projects going on and where I can offer the most help. One of the biggest tenants of Peace Corps is that every volunteer needs to be sure the work he or she is doing is sustainable past their departure. Also, it’s important to note that we should not be doing a job a Nicaraguan could be doing. Some might say the opportunities left can be counted on one hand, but once a volunteer gets comfortable in their community and creative with their ideas it’s easy to fill your work day.

I am officially assigned to the Centro de Salud (Health Center), which serves as the primary health care center for the community. Remember, Nicaragua has universal health care, and while there are plenty of private practices around, the majority of the population use the free services offered at the Health Center. Also, the Centro is an extension of the National and State Health Departments, responsible for local educational outreach. That’s partly where I come in. I work with the Health Promoters who spend their days visiting rural communities, established community groups (taxi drivers union, pregnant mothers club), and anyone else who will listen to a talk about how to live healthier. Most topics revolve around reproductive health, disease transmission, and hygiene and community health.

I was able to give my first “solo” charla (the Spanish word for group talk) on Thursday. The topic was HIV/AIDS and the audience was 19 12-15 year old kids. We were in a little town in the mountains around Somoto called Uniles. I had a great time and I think the kids did, too. This particular group is being trained to pass on the information to their peers and family, so they all have a real sense of responsibility and involvement. Even still, the kids separate themselves (just like they do in classes in the States) into those willing to participate, those to shy to participate but eager to learn and, of course, the troublemakers. All in all it a productive hour and a half, and it helped me orient myself to the world of giving charlas solo.

In other news, Jess and I met up with another Peace Corps Volunteer and HWS grad on Saturday. Raul is currently a small business volunteer in Honduras, and lives only 20 minutes or so from the Nicaraguan border. If you’ve looked at a map of Nicaragua you know Somoto is only about 30 minutes from the Honduran border. So, thousands of miles from the shores of Seneca Lake, we had a HWS reunion with people from two different countries, and it only took an hour to get there! It was great to see Raul, who will be finishing out his service in July. We’ve already made plans for him to make another trip so we can visit the famous Somoto Canyon.

HWS Latin America Club Inagural Meetiing

Somoto´s Central Park. Paradise!

Address

Hello!

We are still searching for a house, but we did secure a mailbox! Our new address for everything is:

Jessica Werder and Matt Lyttle
Apdo # 08
Somoto, Madriz
Nicaragua

I´d like to take this time to say thank you for all of the great cards and notes we´ve recieved. We´ve heard from so many people, and I´m sure there are many more notes that were sent and lost in the system, so thank you!

(Happy Belated Birthday Peggy Bunnell!)

¡Bienvenidos a Somoto!

Yes – I am feeling much better J. I think that my already sensitive stomach just doesn’t deal well with Nica bugs (plus I would advise against drinking Managua’s tap water – that was just a bad late night decision; I don’t know for sure if that’s what caused it but it seems like an awfully odd concidence).

We have both officially started ‘work’, though I think it will take some time for both of us to figure out exactly what that means. The main program with which I am going to work is a program that focuses primarily on youth and issues of sexual and reproductive health. It has been a very successful three year program which will lose its funding in December. So, I find myself wondering what the best (and in true Peace Corps mentality, most ‘sustainable’) approach to work will be – to spend my time with this project only to find myself out of funds and out of work in December, or to branch out into the community and initiate some of my own projects. We’ll see. Madriz (the department in which we live) just organized an HIV workforce this month, in recognition of the growing problem in Nicaragua. I hope to contact the director of this program and see if I can help out in any way.

Matt finds himself in a slightly different situation. He volunteered to take over a project that the former volunteer had started in conjunction with a group of Irish University students. The group built a health post last year in an outlying community, and they hope to construct another one this year. It sounds like he is going to be the liason between the group and local contractors for much of the project which should be fun for him. Other than this, he is exploring ideas for working with the University (brand new and very small) population in town and thinking about other projects.

All in all we are doing well and are excited to start our two years here. We started our search for houses today, though it seems like it is going to be a slow and rather round-about process. Nothing is particularly direct in Nicaragua, and it appears that renting a house will follow that pattern. There are few houses in Somoto that have ‘For Rent’ signs and when you encounter one that does, there is no direct route to encounter the owner. The process involves speaking with roughly every neighbor to arrive at consensus about who owns the house, and then with multiple people in the street to arrive at a consensus as to where the person lives. After that, you look for their house, realize that they don’t actually live it, but in Managua, and proceed to look for the house of their brother, cousin or other relative once-removed to see how to get in touch with them. As with everything here, it will be a learning process.

Jess´s family in El Rosario. This is us saying ¨¡Adios!¨

Swearing In is a Success!

It’s official, Jess and I are bonified volunteers of Peace Corps – Nicaragua! We swore in yesterday in a ceremony officiated by the U.S. Ambassador, Paul Trivelli. Our training families and colleagues at Peace Corps were there for the ceremony, not to mention a bunch of the local TV stations.

We’ve been celebrating and enjoying a few final hours with our fellow Nica 46’ers, but slowly but surely people are pealing off for their sites. Jess and I were planning to head up to Somoto Saturday, but she’s managed to come down with something fierce and has been virtually bed-ridden today. We’re going to give it a try tomorrow morning on the 9:45 express bus, so we’ll see if she’s feeling better.

Here are the three Santa Teresa Trainees and their families.

Here´s El Rosario.

And here are all 18 of us!