More Weekend Charades - With Pictures

[Pictures are back! Woohoo!! More to come shortly... And why hasn´t anyone left a comment in more than 3 weeks?! We´re starting to get lonely.]

Jess and I took Astro for his first swim this weekend. We made our way out to the Canyon on the first clear day after 3 rainy ones. The trees and fields in Somoto are all starting to turn green. Although we are officially entering the “winter” season, this past week has been the closest to the spring we experience in the States. Hopefully you can see how green the mountain south of our house is getting. I decided to post two pictures: The first is the mountain right after a few hours of rain. The next is the same mountain the following afternoon. Pretty beautiful, huh?

So, we made our way to the Canyon, which includes 2 crossings of the Rio Coco (Coconut River). The Rio Coco is the driving force creating the Somoto Canyon. It continues on from here to become the official border between Nicaragua and Honduras for about 450 kilometers and finally drains into the Carribean Sea. The Rio Coco is the spiritual focus of Nicaragua’s indigenous cultures. It’s said to have mystic powers: any one who swims in it leaves the river fluently speaking the native tongue! Here´s the Rio Coco after the canyon.

On our previous trips to the Canyon the Rio Coco was a quiet meandering stream, still about 50 feet across, but easily crossable with convenient stepping stones. This time, it was a whole other story. Several campesinos (country folk) warned us the river was impassable due to the rains, but we were egged on by the more adventurous cattle drivers. We figured if they could drive a couple mules, 3 cows, and baby calf across the river, we could surely make it with two people and a dog. So, we began.

The water was muddy and the current strong, so every step was careful and slow. We had a couple of false starts, but managed to follow the path taken by a couple fishermen. By the time we were halfway across, we had water up to our stomachs and were taking a half step down stream for every step across. I held Astro out of the water (the current was too strong for the first timer) and Jess carried our backpack with lunch and water.

We made it across the first bend in the river without incident, and the second bend was easier, although a little deeper. Finally, about 45 minutes after leaving the highway, we made it to the boat launch into the canyon. We congratulated ourselves with refried beans and honey rolled in pancakes (delicious) and granola. Despite the roughness down river, the canyon entrance was calm and without much current in the pools along the shore.
To get Astro accustomed to the water (he was a little shook up from the previous episodes) we threw sticks further and further away from shore. Slowly, but surely, he started to come around, and after an hour his initial fears were a thing of the past. Instead of heading further into the canyon like we normally do we decided to just relax at the boat launch for the morning.

Around noonish we made our way back across the river, which seemed just as strong as earlier in the day, and caught a cab to Somoto. It was a good days workout for everyone, and we’re pretty sure Astro hasn’t gotten that much exercise in a single day during his whole 5 month life.

Earlier that weekend we made our way to Ocotal, a local department capital, to do some banking as well as explore the town. We found a beautiful grocery store that boasted foods we have seen since the States. I know a grocery store doesn’t sound that exciting, but we spend a good hour there. First of all, they were giving away free samples. You can’t pass that up. Then we found peanut butter, a very rare thing in Nicaragua. Jess and I bought 2 jars and that constituted one of our biggest expenses this month: 155 córdobas, or about $8.00. We also came across real chocolate milk. We didn’t even make it out of the store before finishing off the carton. This place also had an incredible variety of soups, which come dried in a bag, not in a can. We didn’t buy any, but made plenty of mental notes about future meals we can prepare. All and all a very successful trip!

Email questions and answers!

Matt,
Just wanted to let you know I'm as fascinated by your answers to the kids' questions as I'm sure they are. It's a great way to learn about a country most of us will never have the opportunity to visit. Keep up the good work. A couple of questions from me- What's a typical work day like for you? What's a typical day like for a 10 yr. old child?
-Alice Galvin


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Hi Alice! Thanks for the email!

My work day starts at about 8. I get to the health center in the center of town and we organize the day for about half an hour. Before 9 we have a vehicle available that drives us to one of the rural communities outside of Somoto. Some take 20 mins to reach, others 1.5 hours! All of it on dirt roads that you could never even ride a bike on. In the mornings we give health talks to pregnant mothers and brigadistas (volunteer health promotors in every community). In the afternoon we give a different talk to youth groups of about 20 to 30 teenagers. We usually get back to Somoto by 4:30. Jess teaches English 3 or 4 nights a week, so I´m usually at home cooking dinner. At night we sit on the porch and talk to neighbors, watch a movie at the house of a family we know, or go for a walk with Astro.

For a 10 year old in the city, the day starts around 6:00 with breakfast. School starts at 7:00. They have class until about 11:30 and then they head home for lunch. A different group of students use the classrooms in the afternoon. Students get a choice of the morning or the afternoon, but the morning is way more popular. The afternoons are usually spent at home or in the street doing the same things kids in the states do. Some are lucky enough to have TV´s and others go to the video game houses mentioned in the blog.
This schedule can be very different for rural families, where kids might have to walk 2 hours to and from school everyday, as well as take care of younger brothers and sisters.

Nica Profile 1: Adriana Corrales Espinoza - with picture

Adriana (10) on the left and her sister, Ena Sophia (5) on the right.

Do you listen to American Music?
Yes. I like the Black Eyed Peas.

Have you heard of Harry Potter?
Yes. I have seen all the movies, but haven´t read the books.

What types of books do you like to read?
I like to read Adventure books.

Do your teachers give you homework?
Yes.

Do you like doing homework?
Eh, mas o menos. (more or less).

What is your favorite subject in school?
Natural Sciences

What do you like to do in your free time?
I like to play computer games. I also have a Nintendo GameCube. Matt and I play Mario Sunshine.

What do you eat in a normal day?
Breakfast: Corn tortillas, eggs, refried beans, coffee with milk
Lunch: Grilled Steak or chicken, white rice, fried plantains, mashed potatoes, salad, fruit juice
Dinner: Ham sandwich and water

Do you eat fruits, vegetables, or candy?
Yes, but I like fruit the best. We have a mango tree and lemon tree in our backyard. We also have an avocado tree.

What are your chores?
Feed the dog, go out to buy milk or cheese, take care of my sister.

What is your favorite holiday and why?
December 31st. I like when we explode the ¨Año viejo,¨ or old year. In this tradition every block in the city dresses up a doll like an old man. The dolls are about the size of a grown person. They dress him up in a sombrero and put him on a stick. He is filled with explosives. At exactly 12 o´clock PM we light the fuse and he explodes. It´s like saying goodbye to the old year and hello to the new one.

What a weekend!

Jess and I are finally starting to develop somewhat of a concrete weekly schedule, so look for a detailed account of our current work activities sometime soon. Also, I know Mrs. Lyttle’s class is patiently waiting a response from their interviewee. It’s on it’s way!

Today I thought I’d recount the spectacular weekend we had. On Saturday Jess and I went with a local nature guide and friend, Edith, to a beautiful farm on the top of a mountain. This farm raises cattle for a cooperative of farmers and agriculturalists in the area. The mayor of Somoto is the current administrator of the farm, so he goes up the mountain every Saturday to make sure everything is in order. This week’s trip also involved a yearly vaccine for all of the cattle.

We left at 8:30, traveling in a pick up truck. Peace Corps actually prohibits us from riding in the backs of trucks, do to the obvious safety concerns. However, it’s nearly impossible to go anywhere or accomplish anything outside of the community without breaking this rule. So, we choose our battles, use discretion, and cross our fingers that our bosses won’t find out. Probably not that smart of an idea to write that on a blog that anyone in the world can read, but oh well…

The farm would only be about 45 minutes from Somoto if the road were paved. Even less if it were flat. However, neither are the case in this situation and we found ourselves traveling for a good hour and a half to get to the top of the mountain. I don’t think we’ve described the majority of the roads here, but let’s just say you’d never be able to pass in anything less than a 4 wheel drive, extremely high truck. The most popular vehicles here are Toyotas, with the Land Cruiser and Helix in the 1 and 2 spots. The Helix is a beautiful extended cab pick up truck that really is as mean as it looks. They don’t sell them in the States, but there’s probably more than 100 just in Somoto, alone.

Anyway, upon reaching the farm, the Mayor and the local workers began the vaccination process. You’ll see some pictures of that below. Jess, Edith, and I saddled up and explored the farm. Yes, we saddled up. It was my first time on a horse in at least 10 years, about the same for Jess. However, we’d both seen enough Western movies (just watched Silverado last week) to look authentic. I even got mine up to a gallop a couple of times. That was scary.

Edith told us all about the ecology of the area. We think of Nicaragua and Central America as a land of tropical rain forests (of which there are plenty), but once you get high enough in the mountains the foliage looks a lot like it does in New York or New Jersey. There are pine trees, oak trees, and your basic run of the mill grasses. There are also some strange plants, like this cactus that grows all over the rocks.

Or this stuff that looks like a fern. It’s called “Barba de Viejo,” or, “Old Man’s Beard.” It’s very soft and could almost work in a Santa costume during Christmas.

Anyway, we had a few hours to explore before the vaccination was done. We saw some beautiful views, that’s for sure. It was a little sad that Astro couldn’t come, but we had no idea what it would be like so we erred on the side of caution. Don’t worry, though. He’ll be getting up there as soon as we have a free Saturday.

Sunday we experienced our first downpours of the rainy season. The rain was deafening, the streets were flooded, and the lightening was huge. The next day our coworkers described it as a “refreshing spring shower.” Hmm…. I guess we’ll see if it gets worse.

We passed the day at home cleaning and organizing. Astro appreciated the attention.

Answers to the Class

The Public Library of Somoto

Mrs. Lyttle’s Class: Thanks so much for your second series of letters. We will be interviewing a few Nicaraguans later this week to complete our first Nica Profile. We wanted to take some time today, however, to answer some more of your questions to us. Here it goes!

What kinds of books does the library have and what can I contribute?

First of all, it’s great to see all of you so excited about helping out down here. On top of that, to hear you passed your Playpump goal proves what a great group of kids you are. In terms of library books, the librarian specifically asked me for atlases and encyclopedias, or educational books. I think they are looking for the kind you’d find in the Adamsville library when you are looking for information about a specific country or specific theme, like Dog Training. They also have story hours for younger kids, and I’m sure Mrs. Lyttle can help you find the right kind of picture books for those guys. They also asked for books in English, as well in Spanish, so a good mix would be great! Also, used is fine, as long as it isn’t too gross.

What kinds of technology are in Nicaragua?

Almost everyone here has cellphones, which aren’t prepaid like in the States. You have to go to a store to buy minutes on a regular basis. It’s actually a better way to save money, because you can still receive calls and text messages, you just can’t send them without “saldo”, or money in your account. Internet on every corner in cyber cafes, but rarely in houses. People have MP3 players built into their cellphones, but nobody has Ipods. Video game systems can be found in “Casas de video juegos”. There are 2 or 3 in every town and you can find all of the 10-15 year old boys there after school. The pride and joy of every Nica family is their “equipo,” or stereo. The massive systems with speakers the size of a small child are all the rage down here. The more lights and buttons, the better!

What kinds of American businesses are in Nicaragua?

You can find Burger King, McDonald’s, Subway, Quizno’s, Pizza Hut, and Dominoes in Manaagua and other really big cities. Towns like ours (which is about the size of Bridgewater) only have family run restaurants. There are only a few different grocery stores and the biggest chains are owned by WALMART. They have different names, like Palí and La Union, but they carry the same brands as WALMART. Other than that, we really don’t see any American run companies other than charity organizations. They have, however, heard of Harry Potter!

How do you get paid?

First of all, we don’t get paid. We get a stipend which is calculated to have us pretty much break even at the end of every month. One student wrote that it was 4,000 dollars a month, but in actuality it’s 4,000 Córdobas. That works out to about $200. We have a bank account and we just go there monthly to get dinero. There are even some ATM’s scattered about.

What kinds of jobs do people do?

People here are employed in 1 of 4 ways: 1. The Government 2. Non-Profit Organizations 3. Family Businesses 4. Unemployed. Unfortunately, about 40% of Nicaraguans are unemployed, which means there’s a lot of work to be done by the NPO’s. I think if Jess and I were to live in Nicaragua after Peace Corps we’d either work for a non-profit or own a little hotel/restaurant on the beach.

Why don’t the Nicaraguan Police stop the Nicaraguan Postal Service from stealing mail?

Another unfortunate aspect is that people really don’t get paid that much at all. A nurse might make $100 a month. A teacher less than $100. Police and government workers might do a little better, but not much. That’s one of the results of high unemployment: people will take whatever pay they can get. It also means that people with do whatever they need to do to survive. Most likely the Postal Workers (who are government employees) sell all the nifty stuff they take out of packages to earn a few extra bucks. The police could care less, because they’re looking for their own ways to get ahead. It’s a lot tougher to be honest when honesty can’t pay the bills.

What is the food like? Do you get bored of rice and beans?

Jess and I try to eat a ton of fruits and veggies, as well as cook all sorts of different meals because, yes, we do get bored of rice, beans, and tortillas. Nicaraguans, on the other hand, aren’t very adventurous when it comes to their food and would much prefer some gallo pinto to some fancy schmancy chicken francais. Things we’d consider gross in the States are perfectly normal down here, pretty much out the necessity to use every part of the plant or animal. You name it, they eat it, and they’ll tell you it’s “rico,” too!

Are Nicaraguans shorter than us?

In general, Nicaraguans are shorter than us gringos. This is mainly because the majority of Nicaraguans are descendants of Native Americans living in the area. They are called mestizo because they are a mix of Native and Spanish blood. You can almost guess someone’s economic status by the way they look, as those directly descendant from the Spanish, who look Eurpoean, have always had the economic, cultural, and educational advantage. There’s a town near us called Cusmapa that’s about 70% indigenous population. People of pure indigenous blood look very similar to the Native Americans of the States. Sadly, Cusmapa is one of the poorest villages in the country.

Do Nicaraguans know English?

English proficiency is very low in Nicaragua. All Nicaraguans took a little of it in school, but hardly anyone here can speak it fluidly. However, all the Nicaraguan jokesters love to shout out, “Hello, my friend!” when we pass. At the ladies they shout, “Marry me, my love!” Sometimes it’s funny, most of the time it’s annoying.

How are dogs treated in Nicaragua?

Nicaraguans view animals as tools. That’s not to say that perspective is bad, but when someone makes their living farming, working the land, and doesn’t have access to machines, it’s the animals who do the work. Therefore, they treat animals like we treat a car. You take care of your car, as cheaply as you can, to make it last for as long as you can. When the car gives out, you buy a new one. So, people here don’t form bonds with their animals: a horse is for transportation, a donkey is for carrying wood, a cow is for meat and milk, and a dog is for protection. That isn’t to say that people don’t have family pets like we have family pets, but it’s really only those than can afford to. Don’t worry though, we’ve budgeted to take good care of Astro! Maybe some day all of you can meet him when we come back to the States!


We had a few unhappy letters since we didn’t answer all the questions last time. I’ll do my best to answer more in the next blog! Also, sorry about the lack of pictures lately, we will do better.

Life in Somoto

Clowns are just as scary in Nicaragua...5 year old birthday party

Things are falling into place for us in Nicaragua. Each day is a bit more routine. Work is still a bit of a mystery at times, but projects are starting to come together. For me, this means that I have started to fill up my weeks, day by day, with small projects to pass the time while I am assessing how I can best help out here.

Today, I had my first practice with Somoto’s first ever (as far as I know) girls basketball team (yeah for 10 year olds!). And on Friday, I start teaching sexual and reproductive health at the high school. Basically, what this means is that I am going to return to the states with an interesting mix of Spanish vocabulary – sports and sex.

But in more exciting news – we have a house! And its cute! Matt likes to describe it as ‘El Castillo’, to people who are looking for us. The exterior architecture is not exactly typical Nicaraguan, but it works, and it appears sufficiently fortified to keep us safe for two years. We have a nice little sala/living area which houses our plastic table and chair set, our bookshelf and our most prized possession – the rocking chair gifted to us by the former volunteer here in Somoto. There are also two small bedrooms with toilets (yes – we are fachenta (snobby/rich/stuck up) in PC terms because we live in a department capital and don’t need to use a latrine) and a small cooking area.


Me in the ´Kitchen´

We also have a back patio of sorts which is convenient because……we got a dog! Before all of you naysayers out there start asking questions and being negative – yes, we can bring him home and yes we intend to. We have very recently experienced the sadness of leaving a pet behind (though to a wonderful new mom – thank you June!) and we didn’t want to go through that again. So we looked into the laws and costs, and it is perfectly possible to bring a pet with you to the states, as long as it is up to date on its vaccines. So, we have our beautiful Astro (he came with the name – I have no idea how or where they came across the Jetsons, but anything is possible in Nicaragua) to keep us safe and keep us company for the next two years. He is currently 4 months old, which is convenient because he’s already potty trained and can be left at home alone for a couple of hours at a time. And, he’s absolutely adorable.


Astro


Matt and Astro in the Sala


Matt and Astro in front of the house

So, all in all, our life is quite nice here in Somoto. We are enjoying ourselves, dealing with the horrendous heat, and learning more everyday. Hopefully soon we’ll have enough vocabulary and local knowledge under our belt to dive into some serious projects.