WF Nicaragua Travel

Like Lisa, I am also on Nica time and writing about the past (Thursday). I was going to write about San Juan del Sur… but everyone has that covered! And p.s…. surfing was awesome

Anyways - - USA might not have won on Sunday, but Wake Forest won on Thursday in the WFU vs. NicaHope game! Soccer is extremely popular down here and NicaHope has 3 separate teams. They thought it would be fun to organize a game between us and their girl’s team. We had no idea what to expect… but we were all up for the challenge. I think we all went there thinking we had the intimidation factor on our side just because we are a pretty large group of Americans, but when we showed up - we realized they were taking this pretty seriously. They already had the field lined and goals in place (which was pretty shocking) and they also had uniforms! We also even had a referee (or at least someone who blew the whistle when necessary).

After a little 2 minute warm-up and a little team huddle… we were ready to play! The fact that the NicaHope team ranged anywhere between the ages of 13-15 and most of them didn’t even have on what we Americans would consider “appropriate footwear” did not stop them from putting up a good fight. We started out with a lead of 1-0 after Jason scored a goal… and then finished out with a win by the score of 3-2 (with the other 2 goals scored by Stephen). Even though the boys carried us in scoring…everyone did amazing, especially for most of us not having played much soccer. Although for me personally, I think it was a good decision for me to give up soccer for other sports in which my height actually gave me an advantage. Also the fact that I wanted to catch every ball that went by me instead of kicking it did not help my game! [I got called for at least 3 handballs..whoops! haha]

Overall, I think everyone had lots of fun it was a really fun game for both teams. We all left extremely sweaty and tired, but we also made it out of there injury free!

Goo Deacs!

After waking up in what seems like paradise (Los Pinos Hotel), we all loaded the bus for El Volcan Masaya. National Park! Once we got to the park we went to the visitor center and learned a lot of interesting stuff about volcanoes, lava, and the Nicaragua geography. We got dropped off next to a huge crater, which was beautiful! It was constantly emitting gasses/steam so it looked really pretty. Our tour guide (who spoke English - which was very nice) then took us on our hike to the bat cave. This hike wasn’t quite as intense as the one on Ometepe Island, but it definitely had some steep hills! I was a bit worried about this bat cave - not only about the bats, but the fact that both tour guides wasn’t over 5 feet made me a little nervous that I wouldn’t fit in the cave and I would get stuck! Thankfully, I worried for nothing. The cave was awesome, large enough, and we got to see a lot of bats. I should also add that we all looked really cool with our hard hats and flashlights =) Our tour guide made us all turn of the flashlights when we got to the end of the cave, which was fun and eerie!

We left the cave and then hiked a little more up to the top of a mountain. This view was absolutely breathtaking! We stood on the top of the mountain and over looked another crater, 2 lakes, and beautiful landscapes. This was probably my favorite part of the day.

Then we walked/slid down the steep side of the mountain and regrouped back at the van. The last activity we did at the park required us walking up 138 steps (yes, we counted) … pretty exhausting but totally worth it! At the top of these steps was a huge cross that was built by the Catholics. It is where they forced the Indigenous people to covert to Catholicism, and if they refused, they were thrown into the crater. It was a cool thing to see, until the wind blew really hard and we inhaled all of the gasses from the crater. This burned the nostrils, and was not a pleasant thing for those people who had asthma!

Overall, El Volcan Masaya was beautiful and an awesome experience! We then headed to Grenada… but someone else can post and share their experience there!

Good bye for now and I miss everyone in the States! =)

After asking 100 questions in class, and sharing my fear of bugs, I am finally ready and truly excited! I fly out tomorrow afternoon with 6 other classmates and Dr. Miller. I can’t wait to get down there and begin this journey!

My sister sent me a card with a quote that I thought I would share because I think it applies to our trip to Nicaragua - I know it helped me in focusing and getting ready =]

“Every time you reach out and touch a heart or a life, the world changes; with every kindness and service, seen or unseen, God’s purposes are accomplished and nothing will ever be the same again.” - The Shack