Nicaraguan Thanksgiving

This past weekend (Canadian Thanksgiving weekend) April and I traveled back to Managua for some relaxation and a good ole Turkey dinner! On Friday we were given the address of the home we were going to stay at for the weekend (the same place we started our trip at). That was about it, we were on our own after that with only the advice of “Make sure you take a micro-bus and not a full size one!”. Weŕe actually impressed that with our limited Spanish and the written instructions we were able to – 1. take a taxi from our house to the bus terminal, 2. find a micro-bus headed for Managua, 3. make sure we got off the bus at the right place in Managua, 4. grab a taxi to bring us to our home, and 5. convince the guard at the house that the regular house sitter said we could spend the weekend there. After a trip to store where we bought some peanut butter and whole wheat bread we finished the day with a movie and some sandwiches.

We continued our impressive string of communication with taxi drivers and got ourselves to Esperanza Cafe for lunch and some internet time. That is where our string of ¨luck¨ ran out. First my credit card wasn't accepted so we had to part with the last of our cash. Then walking in the drizzling rain we couldn't find an ATM that would accept my debit card until we had walked a couple km's on one of the busiest roads. Then with money in hand we some how couldn't find a taxi that wasn't already full. Along the way it began to downpour and we took cover under someone's patio area. This was about the last straw with me and well me being me decided that we should just walk home. Now we were walking up a huge hill (think of the escarpment access roads in Hamilton, ON) and its getting dark. No sidewalks just shoulders. Luckily for me I married a smart woman who calmly said we should stop; no sooner did we stop and an empty cab came to take us back to where we were staying.

Finally Thanksgiving Sunday! Steve Holtrop and fam picked April and I up and off we went for the festivities. About 30 Canadian teachers and missionaries had come together at one of there homes. It was a true blessing from God to gather like that. Everyone brought an item for the feast – a Full Turkey Dinner with all the trimmings and desserts. All except buns, you see the day before when we were in the rain with no money trying to find a cab, we were supposed to have bought rolls and butter. We made a judgement call and decided that getting home safely was the first priority with rolls a close second. That afternoon we got to see first hand how amazing the support community was for missionaries like us and felt safe and welcomed.

To be honest it was a hard weekend. I think it took an event or Holiday such as Thanksgiving to drive home how real this is, how far away we are from friends and family. We feel like the rookies or newbies here in Nicaragua, just trying to see where we fit in. Its an akward feeling, like that first day at your new job, or school. All part of this on going “stretching” process.

Thought you might want to know some Fun Facts that we have gathered along the way:

• The rain has not stopped for almost 3 days.
• 1 – times we both have been sick
• 0 – days we haven't had rice and beans while in Leon.
• 100 – times we almost have been hit by a car, bike, autobus, etc.
• Driving your pick up truck around town with 5 foot speaker stacks blaring hip hop or salsa music is accepted and encouraged.

Trip to the Beach

A couple days after we arrived in Nicaragua we ventured out on a bus to the beach with the instructions "just get on the bus and it will bring you to the beach"...in Spanish. Enjoy our first attempt at posting a video.

Leon On a Bike

It’s been over week since we last posted and we have received some threatening emails from a certain friend that thinks we need to post more often. So here you go...
After a long Spanish exam, a filling rice and beans lunch and a reviving nap, Kevin and I headed out on mountain bikes with David, the school director, and another Spanish teacher. At first we were kind of nervous about what it would be like navigating through busy Leon streets, but we’re still alive so I don’t think it was too bad. On top of that it has been about a year since we have been on bikes and we weren’t sure if we would be able to keep up to David, a former 3 time Nicaraguan mountain bike national champion...(his brother is currently the reigning champion and Kevin got to use his bike designed for clip in bike shoes, needless to say Kevin didn’t have those nifty shoes).
Anywho, David took us to the outskirts of the current Leon to see where the original colonial city of Leon existed until the revolutionary war against the Somoza dictatorship. During the war Somoza destroyed the city with canons and guns forcing the city to rebuild at its current location. There are many legendary tails of the old colonial city even that of buried treasure and a loaded Spanish man that protected his wealth riding through the city on his white horse, killing all those who stood in his way.
There is a stark contrast between the rich and poor of Leon. Until yesterday we were in a bubble living among the lower to lower middle class Nicaraguans, then to cycle through the streets on the outskirts of Leon where the rich have built their sanctuaries, it was a jolt into reality. Some of these homes could rival the beautiful homes on the lakeshore in Burlington/Oakville. Then on the other side of a wall is a community of people who do not live in concrete homes, who do not have tile floors, who do not have iron fences.
The other Spanish teacher cycling with us is involved in a community program that works to sustain the social/educational aspect of children to give them support, supplies and hope as they grow up. We were welcomed into one of the homes to meet a family who designs and creates children’s toys among other items and travels to surrounding towns to sell them in the marketplace. I was riveted by the experiences of this family and the lives that so many Nicaraguans live.
We ended our excursion with a jaunt on the Pan-American Highway and entering back into the busy, central core of Leon cycling down streets we had not yet walked, but now plan to in the next few days. Every day we find out something new. Every day we explore a new place and try to talk to new people...although our Spanish is still excruciatingly limited. Hmmmm...today sounds like a good day to find someone else to suffer at the other end of our conversation.