Rain in Estelí
Trip to Miraflor Nature Reserve
Angela, our housekeeper and friend
Thirst quencher in Condega
Excursion to Duquale
Buenas! I have been wanting to write another blog post for some time now. In fact, I did write one a short time ago, but decided not to send it because it was a little bit of a downer. The gist of it was that we are in the thick of the “constantly tired” phase, with everything requiring a great deal of effort. With exhaustion comes a challenging array of emotions and behaviors. It ain’t real pretty. We totally anticipated this stage of transition; however, somehow knowing it would come and actually being IN it, doesn’t take the difficulty out of the BEING IN IT. Thus, we press on, knowing that this is an important and unavoidable part of the process, and that in due time we will transition into a new (and, hopefully, easier) phase. However, that day is not today.
We continue to persist and each day things get a little easier. Another reason I haven’t written is because there are very few opportunities where the kids are asleep, I don’t have Spanish homework, and have enough brain cells left to compose a semi-articulate letter. As for today, well, I am procrastinating the homework, and we will see how it goes.
We have been living in Estelí now a little over a month. We are all doing well, still feeling very happy and privileged to be here. We have gathered all the necessary things for living: composting worms, plastic containers and duct tape. What more do ya need? Life for us is becoming routine, but is far from feeling normal. The following will outline some of the basics to give you an idea of how life is taking shape for us here in Nicaragua.
Daily life:
Angela:
I mentioned in a previous post we have a housekeeper. We hadn’t planned on hiring a housekeeper, but through a series of events (something I may write about sometime later) we decided it was the right choice. Her name is Angela and she is an enormous wealth of information as we try to assimilate into this culture. I don’t know how we would be making our way without her. Not only does she keep our house clean and cook a little for us, she is our cultural consultant, nanny, and my personal language cheerleader and friend. I try not to get too ahead of myself, but I already find myself dreading having to say good-bye to her at the end of the year. Michael and I wonder, on occasion, what she may say to her family and friends about us.
Worms:
Yes, we have worms and I don’t mean the parasitic type (thank goodness). We have red wiggler composting worms and they are very happy and multiplying rapidly. I have mentioned before that the food here is very fresh and very local and mostly (as far as I can tell) organic, and we are loving this aspect of being here. However, it was totally throwing me off balance to be tossing all the scraps of this amazing food into the garbage. Thus, I asked around, was informed of a NGO agricultural project that sells composting worms, took a trip out to the farm, rigged up a container to house them in, and voila! We are composting again and my equilibrium has been restored. :-) In the process, I shared with my teacher and some others about what I was up to, and they are interested in learning more about it, so maybe they can compost in their homes too. Who knows, maybe I can start a trend, and this may evolve into something. I’ll keep you posted.
School:
I have mentioned the girls are in school all day and that it is all in Spanish. Thus, they are indeed picking up the language. To my amazement, they understand most of what is being said to them. However, they are yet to be able speak it themselves beyond individual vocabulary words. Jordan (Mikayla) will come home with stories: “he said this, and then she said that” and “then she was mad about this . . .” I am thinking, “how do you know what they are saying?” Somehow she knows . . .
I, too, am at the girls’ school. I volunteer teaching English 3 times a week. The girls like having me there and it is great language practice for me. Although the content of my lessons consists mostly of simple English vocabulary taught through silly songs and games, (“hokey pokey”; “head and shoulders, knees and toes”; “Simon says,” and the like) I have to explain the game or song in Spanish so they know what I am asking of them. Its great practice for me and a little less intimidating than when I am trying to talk to adults.
Being at the girls’ school affords me the opportunity to see what goes on there. This is a good thing, in general; however, it also gives me cause for regular panic attacks. To say that they are more lax about safety issues would be an understatement. In fact, I am quite sure if OSHA from the States paid a visit, they would shut the place down. There is no amount of Yoga breathing that can help me take it all in without wanting to scream. Instead, I focus on breathing and save my ranting for when we are home. Let me give you a few examples of what I mean. There is a rusted chunk of metal hanging off the wall near the sand box (that is more dirt than sand). Part of the swing set is broken, and it sits on a potholed concrete slab. There is a rain catch gutter right next to the walkway (just begging for someone to step in and turn their ankle or, worse, break a leg). We occasionally find pieces of broken glass lying around on the ground where the kids play. They let them climb the trees during “patio” (recess). The “patio” area floods when it rains and remains flooded with large puddles for a few days (a potential mosquito breeding ground). The students help themselves to the same (unfiltered) bottle of water. The other day, the kids were playing with a dead bird! AY!! They took a field trip to a candle-making factory in the back of a pickup truck! (And NO, they did not have me sign a permission slip beforehand. I didn’t even know about it until after they had returned.) I think you are getting the idea. I just have to breathe deeply and let it go. I constantly remind the girls to watch where their feet are. They take their own water (but the other kids help themselves to it). I tell them to wash their hands before they eat (if they actually do it, I would be amazed), and I tell Jordan not to climb TOO high in the trees. Again, I just try to brrrreeeaaatttthhhheee! I do some intercessory praying too. :-)!!!
When I am not at the girls school I am attending my own courses in Spanish at a nearby language school. I receive about 10 hours a week of one-on-one conversation and grammar. I study at home as well. I really enjoy it, but it is hard work.
I am also trading English lessons for Spanish lessons with one of the teachers I met in language school. Knowing how to speak English is a sought-after commodity here and, at this point, it is the only thing I have to offer until I get better at speaking Spanish. Thus, despite the fact that I am the last person who should be teaching anybody English—here I am.
Weather:
We are in the rainy season here, but that does not mean we are cold. In fact, just the opposite. It is very tropical and humid. Every afternoon, there is a torrential downpour, and you just hope you are not walking home from the market when it hits. The mountains are greener than green. The vast amount of unfettered rainforest is an inspiration for our environmental conservation efforts and causes. It would be sad to see all this land become stripped bare so that Americans could have more cheap produce or meat. Unfortunately, this seems to be the direction we are headed.
Travel and Fun:
Despite all the ways being here is challenging, we are having the time of our lives. We would not trade this experience for anything. The best way to let you know how great it is being here is to list some of our favorite things.
* Weekend day trips to Condega, Ducuale, (both nearby towns), and Miraflor (a nature reserve area)
* Popcicles (pronounced, pope-see-cles) They are made with milk, fresh coconut, and sugar YUM!! and cost only $.10
* Cheap, delicious, cold beer
* Food venders come to the house. We do a lot of our shopping just outside our front door.
* Salvadoran fast food. The neighbors are from El Salvador and set up a pupusa kitchen in front of their house.
* Playing cards as a family. Seeing Devyn behind a hand of cards is the cutest.
* Dancing in our living room to our favorite artists (in English) till we are dripping wet. A terrific release and exercise workout.
* All the global soccer in the world is on TV and the best pro team in Nicaragua is here in town.
* Pan dulce (sweet bread), again, delivered to our front door
* We don’t have to clean our own house. (Oh, what a rude awakening returning will be!) ;-)
* Tons of family time (sometimes too much, but mostly it’s a good thing)
* Making new friends
* Constructing a whole sentence in Spanish and being understood (This one is mine, in particular. My language victories are small. I have to celebrate the small steps)
* Michael is getting to do the reading and studying he has always wanted, and is having a ball.
* We are out of our normal “rat race”. There is no flying around to soccer practice, dance class, school events, church activities, business meetings, committee meetings, and the like.
We have tons of thoughts, reflections, and opinions about socio-political, religious, and economic issues relevant to the reality in which Nicaragua finds itself, but given that this is a “family-oriented” publication, we’ll leave that to your imagination. (I’d be happy to email you directly if you’d like to talk politics!) :-)
Well, this is already more than anyone wants to read in one sitting. I will sign off with a short list of some of the things we have learned in our short month and a half.
THINGS WE HAVE LEARNED:
* When the woman at the market gives you a slight smile and slow head nod if you ask her whether those beautiful peppers in her basket are hot, take her word for it.
* Fill up a bucket of water when you have water, so you can flush the toilet when you don’t.
* If you are not really sure what someone has said to you, don’t say “si” (yes)—or you may be sorry.
* DON’T ever let Devyn drink a whole pint-sized glass of pineapple juice in one sitting EVER again.
* When leaving the shower, make sure your feet are dry before you walk across the slippery tile floor. AND, while taking a shower, do not touch the showerhead that is electrically wired (to flash heat the water). (Water does not conduct electricity, but metal, indeed, DOES!) ;-)
* When standing on the sidewalk, watch for ants. The ants here bite. It must be quite a hilarious sight for the locals to watch 4 tow-headed gringos jumping up an down, yelling and screaming their heads off while slapping at their legs.
* The mosquitoes here prefer white meat.
Until next time, vaya pues!
-Kelli
