Domingo, 23 de Septiembre

Hello all,
Another week has gone by and I´ve turned a landmark with 3 weeks under my belt in my training town. After 3 weeks we change language instructors and locations of classes to my casa for another 3 weeks. It still seems like I just got here and I have so much more to learn...which I do.
Spanish is coming along but Ive got A LOT more to learn. Our youth group is not doing so well, as its hard to get youth to commit to times and meetings each week and it seems it always rain at the time of our meeting. Since everyone travels by foot, rain and mud stop kids from coming to our meetings.
Im starting to get into the slow pace of life here. Yesterday I awoke at 5am (like normal) and made my way to the ¨kitchen¨about 6:30 to find Rosario making rosquillos (a pastry like food typical of Nica). I had my coffee, which is sooo good because they buy the beans fresh, toast, and grind them themselves, then helped make rosquillas. It was a big family affair, making 10 dozen or so and having to fire up the big horno (oven) out back. This oven is a huge dome that is literally fired up with wood and flames and is not used all that often because of the wood thats needed to use it. Spent the rest of the morning cleaning my room and washing my clothes and shoes, which takes an extraordinarily long time when a newbee like me is trying to wash clothes by hand without runnig water. Its very gratifying work and even though our families are supposed to do it for us, I enjoy helping out and having something to do.
Spent the afternoon lying in the hammock reading a book and hanging out with all the people that come in and out of the porch of my house.
Later on that evening, my Peace Corps friend and I decided to cut each others hair...a new experience for both of us. I figured it cant be that bad. Im living pretty basic here and rarely see a mirror, so I really wasnt too concerned with how it looked, just wanted some of it gone!
More about life here,I enjoyed the tranquility the other afternoon of sitting on the porch doing my homework and watching my host father husking corn in preparation for the daily tortillas and the soft sound of spanish-nica music coming from the kitchen.
But I also have many days of constant noise, dogs barking, roosters crowing, babies crying, everyone screaming. Its hard for an only child like me to get used to all this noise and people, so I savor the tranquil days.
Ive been running in the mornings on the muddy back roads behind my house. It rains almost every afternoon and the mud is seriously thick. I feel like Im always dirty! But its worth it for the amazing views (if theres not too many clouds) of the lush green highland hills I get every morning. I always pass a few cows and horses (which also pass my house several times a day) and if I time it right, I pass the morning milking that occurs down the road, right in the middle of the road...no stantions present here! Speaking of milking, I got the chance to milk a cow here during spanish class, by hand of course. Another day of spanish class, we spent coming into town and having to ask directions from people on the street and navigate ourselves around.
We had 2 days of technical training last weekend that felt like a retreat! The group of trainees (about 25 of us) started out on Sunday with a 2 hour hike to a waterfall where we swam and the brave few jumped off rocks and 40 foot high trees! The nica boys jumping were fearless and the few peace corps people that did it put me to shame with adventure. I chickend out at the last minute and could only watch my friend jump.
After our waterfall hike, we were taken to this beautiful and peaceful reserve that was also an organic farm and nursery. We had some ¨charlas¨about greenhouses and how to make organic pesticides. The next day we vaccinated chickens, helped transplant veggies, played with some cows, then moved on to another farm where we learned about dairy goat and cow production and management here. Very interesting for me to learn about the differences here. All hand milking of course. I was surprised to learn about their sanitary protocols for milking, which were good, and their regular use of the California Mastitis test!
We also learned how to make organic fertilizer and compost, then all piled into the land cruisers (and I mean piled in...I couldn´t feel my leg at the end of the trip) and bumped along the pot-hole filled dirt roads, stopping for some cows to cross every once in awhile, and made our way back home.
It was a long tiring weekend but lots of fun and learned a lot. Upon returning home, I decided to take the plunge and ask my host parents if I could feed the starving dog in my house that is nursing and not being fed. She is skin and bones and relies soley on food scraps, which she has to compete with 3 other dogs to get. We also dont eat much meat here, so she rarely gets protein. I just couldnt watch here suffering, so I went to town and bought dog food and have been feeding her ever since. I, of course, didnt want to offend my family, but they seemed to be alright with it and now I have a new friend that wags her tail and follows me everywhere!
Im gaining a little more independence here. Today was my first day that I came into town by myself and feel really good about it. The other day was not so successful. I took the bus to a training class and I got smashed in the middle of the bus and by the time the cobrador could get to me to take my money and ask where my stop was, we had passed it. So I tried to push my way to the door to get off at the next stop, dropping my wallet on the way and luckily the kind Nicas stopped me and returned it to me, then the bus miracously stopped. It had broken down 2 blocks before my stop! How lucky is that. Of course, I didnt realize where I was when I jumped off the bus and had to frantically ask people in my terrible spanish.
So, theres been lots of ups and downs here and I imagine it´ll be like that for my entire service here in Nicaragua. One things is for sure, its a different experience everyday and Im not so sure I´ll ever fully get used to it.
For know, I am trying to stay positive, learn as much as I can, and enjoy the little differences, like the banana licuados (yes...finally found my beloved licuados last week), the beautiful scenery, the kind people, and being able to be outside all the time.