WF Nicaragua Travel

Beyond scavenging the dump for recyclables such as plastic, which provides a source of income for the residents of La Chureca, many people own livestock that graze the dump.

After the fun and rejuvenating adventures of ziplining (once right into the tree) and hiking this weekend, I was ready to do some hands on work. Today we walked through the dump in Managua and I was amazed by the amount of people living side by side with the toxins and waste. The piles of trash went on for miles and is made of over 50 years worth of compacted trash. One thing that really caught my eye was the amount of used medical supplies such as syringes and IV’s that were scattered throughout the dump. They were not safely disposed of and instead were laying sprawled out providing many hazards to those who walked though the dump daily. Despite the condition of living there, the people were very friendly and open to talking with us. It was definitley one of the most eye opening experiences I have had on this trip and it makes me feel very fortunate to live a neighborhood as safe as mine. Later we went to a local school and painted a building then mixed and poured a concrete pathway to the computer lab. Although mixing the concrete was tough, seeing the progression of the pathway was a great feeling. The pathway was constructed to prevent dust from blowing into the classroom, which causes them to close the windows and thus end class early due to heat exhaustion. It was so amazing to see the end result of our labor and know that it will be appreciated and improve the student’s environment for learning.

After visiting the city dump this morning, we split into groups to work on various projects with Nica Hope. I headed over to one of the local schools to help out with the feeding program. The goal of the feeding program is twofold: get the kids back in school by bribing them with food, and provide a (semi) nutritious meal for children that usually go hungry. Every day children from preschool up through about 6th grade file into the cafeteria. Today lunch consisted of pasta, half a slice of wheat bread, some white rice, and a fried piece of soy mixture. In addition, their beverage is either a soy of cornmeal mixture, to provide extra nutrition. Jason, one of the Nica Hope staff, explained that the feeding program receives rice, beans, corn, oil and soy from the Nicaraguan government, as well as fortified rice and some other foods from the US. All of the workers at the feeding program are volunteers, generally mothers of children at the school.

After the feeding program we joined the group at a different school and helped mix and pour concrete for a new walkway. Needless to say we were all quite dirty, and ready for a good shower.

We are all still having a great time! Miss everyone at home!

Liz

This morning we started out our day by actually visiting the Managua dump, also known as La Chureca. It made the dump we saw in Chinandega look like just a small pile of trash. Here we carefully walked through mounds and mounds of garbage that has been piling up for at least the past fifty years. We had to watch every step to avoid stepping on used needles from hospitals, bones from carcasses, broken glass, and even cow pies from the livestock that are constantly feeding there. Unfortunately some of us (aka myself) weren’t so apt in dodging the cow pies. Our visit continued as we passed through the nearby homes (made of salvaged supplies– old tin roofs, tarps) that surrounded the dump. From our health classes and visiting various clinics, we have learned that one of the main causes of death comes from respiratory disease. After spending only an hour there, our whole group was having troubling breathing from inhaling the fumes from not only the fresh trash being brought in but also the trash that was self-combusting. Despite all of these tangible hardships, it was so evident how happy and welcoming these people were.

Later, the group split up into three separate groups: teaching handwashing to a local children, helping with a feeding program at a nearby school, and working to improve another school by pouring concrete and painting buildings. As the afternoon progressed, the group joined together again as we all worked side by side mixing concrete, carrying it in small buckets, and finally spreading it out to form a walkway. It was great getting to see everyone participating and not minding getting a little dirty in the process!

Now, we’ve all come back “home”, are showering, and getting ready for another non-Nicaraguan dinner: chinese?

Miss yall and love yall (those of you i know…),

Haven

Today we began working with Nica HOPE, an organization that operates near the city dump in Managua. We visited two of the schools they work with, and got an idea of what their feeding program is like. They encourage kids to attend school, and the free, fulfilling lunch is one incentive for them to go. Another thing that Nica HOPE does is to help kids make and sell jewelry. It’s a little pricier than other jewelry we’ve found here, but the quality is better and it’s a good system for them to make some money. We found out about all the projects we’ll be doing this week, including teaching hand washing and putting posters up, buying and installing dry erase boards in the classrooms, patching up a concrete wall, and helping with the jewelry and feeding programs. It should be a great weekand we are all excited to start working!

Today we enjoyed another day off after a week of developing relationships and teaching healthy lifestyles with the wonderful people at the “Villa” in Chinandega. We went to Granada and took a kayaking tour around many of the islands in Lake Nicaragua (some of which are on sale starting at $50,000 if you’re interested). We then took a 45 minute Land Rover ride on the bumpiest most boulder covered “road” known to mankind (I kid you not) (and by “road” I mean a path not covered by tree growth and vegetation). Our destination was a zip lining course high among the trees and howler monkeys in the deep woods of Granada. Zip lining was a great time and a great way to experience Nicaragua’s beautiful countryside. Tonight we will sleep well and rise early for the start of a week of working in Managua’s dump.

These pictures are from our hike on the Island of Ometepe - June 13th (making up for days without internet access)

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! =)

Hola!

As previously noted, we are back in Los Pinos, the best place ever, even though everyone in Chinandega seems to think we have been living in luxury all week (not true) with our air conditioned rooms and buses.

In an attempt not to be redundant, here are a few highlights of our week in Chinandega after the weekend excursion to Ometepe.

We typically ended our nights with an intense mafia game before sleeping with our friendly critters in a summer camp style room (squeaky bunk beds for everyone!), and in the morning embarked upon our day in the hottest city in Nicaragua. We spent a lot of time in a village called Villa Catalina where throughout the week we got to play with a bunch of rowdy kids, then teach these same kids about handwashing, and get to know many of the families living in the Villa. Half of us helped with a nutrition seminar one day while the other half rode with an ambulance. Today we watched a pinata get batted down since a nino had a birthday, as well as learn how to make pastels and empanadas.

The time we spent in the Villa was amazing as we formed relationships and learned valuable information about the lifestyles and traditions of the Nicaraguan people. The families welcomed us into their homes with open arms and were so honest and kind (and not to mention patient with my broken Spanglish).

It has been an intersting, incredible, and eye opening week and I am excited for what the next two weeks will bring!

Hasta luego, Diana

Saludos desde Nicaragua!! We’re back at Los Pinos/home (just in case you haven’t already gathered that…) and loving the hot showers after a week in Chinandega and a weekend in Ometepe. So, rewind to 7 days ago and Molly, Haven, and I were engaging in activities very unfamiliar to the average American. Ometepe is beautiful, don’t get me wrong…but Finca Santo Domingo’s cabinas certainly made for some great/interesting memories. Room 10 (affectionately known as the Hobbit Hole) was buried under the kitchen and looked fine at first. However, after an amazing dinner of kebobs (and slightly more questionable mango juice…see picture), things looked a little different.

Coming back, we had to find a Nicaraguan to open our door (embarrassing)…and then couldn’t get the air conditioner working either. We settled in and explored a whopping 10 by 8 room with oddly colored walls and satin toilet seat covers….and bed bugs. I’m pretty sure the entire island of Ometepe heard us screaming upon that discovery, and the Nicaraguans sitting outside our door were laughing when we finally emerged to go see if there was another room. We moved across the street to cabin 12. No air conditioning, no bed bugs, no problem. We did a quick monkey check (apparently they are native to the area and occasionally end up in the cabins) and finally were ready to go to bed when Molly realized that the bed was broken. Not slightly but the entire wooden frame was cracked through. Oh well. Nicaragua’s all about those experiences and relationships, right?!?!

The rest of the weekend was relaxing as we hiked to a waterfall, spent time in Lake Nicaragua, and went to a quinceañera (only after a very open invitation from the hotel’s manager). However, as we boarded the boat to head back to the mainland, I think Molly, Haven, and I were all ready to say “Adiós” to the Hobbit Hole.