Somoto, Nicaragua -March 23, 2003
On February 27th I left New Brunswick with a group of 10 Canadian high school students. After taking a 10 hour bus and 3 different airplanes we arrived, happy & tired, in Managua, the capital of Nicargua. I felt quite comfortable as Managua is one of the safest capitals in Central America(although not that safe compared with Canadian standards).
We enjoyed a quick tour of the city and an information session at the Canadian embassy. There we learned that Nicaragua is the poorest country in the Americas, due, in part, to government corruption, the Contra/Sandinista war and environmental degradation.
From Managua we went on a daytrip to Granada, the oldest colonial city in the Americas. We toured the museums, strolled by beautiful Lake Nicaragua(the only freshwater body in the world to have sharks!)and atefabulous food. As in many other parts of Central America, the buildings here are often painted bright glorious colors and the staple foods are gallo pinto(beans & rice) and tortillas.
The next day we journeyed to the town of Esteli, located 3.5 hours (by bus) North of Managua.We spent the afternoon there touring CECALI, a local medicinal plant organization. The tour was fabulous and we delighted in eating a lemon the size of a person's head!
That evening we arrived in Somoto (pop. 6,000) where I will be living for the next 4 months. It is a very peaceful & friendly town, surrounded by mountains on all sides and located only half an hour from the border of Honduras. That evening the students met with the Nicaraguan Youth Group who hosted a wonderful cultural night complete with traditional dancing, guitar playing and dancing with us!!
For the rest of the week we attended various workshop to learn about all the projects that have been organized through Movemiento Communal Nicaraguense (MCN) where I am now working (and also, Falls Brook Centre where I worked in Canada). The next day we attended a workshop on the project that I will be working on. It is called the Kitchen Gardens Project and here is some background on it:
The majority of the rural population here only grows beans & corn, and so the aim of the project is to assist in diversifying the agricultural products that are grown. Thus, the project emphasizes planting fruits & vegetables(to integrate more vitamins & minerals into people's diets) and medicinal plants(as medication here is very expensive). An additional benefit of the project is that it helps to improve the self esteem of participants, who are primarily single mothers. The thing I like best about it is that it only works with people who are willing and interested in participating. Also, all the products are grown organically and there is no premise of 'Western superiority'.
In the afternoon we (the Nicaraguan & Canadian youth) played soccer in a huge gravel field, interrupted at times by pigs, cows and cars meandering through the game. The next day we attended a workshop on Fuel Efficient stoves which help to reduce the amount of smoke that people breathe in (by installing chimneys) and cut back on the use of wood to fuel the stoves(due toimproved efficiency). In the afternoon we helped to construct 4 stoves in one of the communities, during which we had a few messy mud fights.
On Tuesday, March 4th we attended a workshop on how Solar Panels, Solar Dryers and Solar Ovens are made. These are installed in rural communities to cook food and power lights (50% of the population doesn't have electricity). The following day we spent the night in another community where we helped to construct water cisterns and latrines, and planted trees for their tree nursery. In the following afternoon we attended a piñata breaking party for kids & I got to show off my dancing skills in front of all the community!
On Friday, the last day I spent with the Canadian school group before they returned to Canada, we went on a hike to see ancient pterogliphs(drawings carved in rock) and visited a Rosquilla- making business (famous 'mountain' cookies made of corn). Finally, we attended a seminar on landmines, which are very prevalent here due to the Contra/Sandinista war. One of the neatest things about the project is that landmine survivors from opposite sides of the war are now working together to provide information about the landmines. Also, the Solar panel workshops & construction are run by landmine survivors. It made me cry.
That evening we had a huge goodbye fiesta.
Anyways, I'm gonna end it here although I could write pages more. I am having an amazing time & am really enjoying my stay. I think I have learned more here in the last few weeks than I have learned in years & have also met some truly wonderful people.
Saludos,
Alix
We enjoyed a quick tour of the city and an information session at the Canadian embassy. There we learned that Nicaragua is the poorest country in the Americas, due, in part, to government corruption, the Contra/Sandinista war and environmental degradation.
From Managua we went on a daytrip to Granada, the oldest colonial city in the Americas. We toured the museums, strolled by beautiful Lake Nicaragua(the only freshwater body in the world to have sharks!)and atefabulous food. As in many other parts of Central America, the buildings here are often painted bright glorious colors and the staple foods are gallo pinto(beans & rice) and tortillas.
The next day we journeyed to the town of Esteli, located 3.5 hours (by bus) North of Managua.We spent the afternoon there touring CECALI, a local medicinal plant organization. The tour was fabulous and we delighted in eating a lemon the size of a person's head!
That evening we arrived in Somoto (pop. 6,000) where I will be living for the next 4 months. It is a very peaceful & friendly town, surrounded by mountains on all sides and located only half an hour from the border of Honduras. That evening the students met with the Nicaraguan Youth Group who hosted a wonderful cultural night complete with traditional dancing, guitar playing and dancing with us!!
For the rest of the week we attended various workshop to learn about all the projects that have been organized through Movemiento Communal Nicaraguense (MCN) where I am now working (and also, Falls Brook Centre where I worked in Canada). The next day we attended a workshop on the project that I will be working on. It is called the Kitchen Gardens Project and here is some background on it:
The majority of the rural population here only grows beans & corn, and so the aim of the project is to assist in diversifying the agricultural products that are grown. Thus, the project emphasizes planting fruits & vegetables(to integrate more vitamins & minerals into people's diets) and medicinal plants(as medication here is very expensive). An additional benefit of the project is that it helps to improve the self esteem of participants, who are primarily single mothers. The thing I like best about it is that it only works with people who are willing and interested in participating. Also, all the products are grown organically and there is no premise of 'Western superiority'.
In the afternoon we (the Nicaraguan & Canadian youth) played soccer in a huge gravel field, interrupted at times by pigs, cows and cars meandering through the game. The next day we attended a workshop on Fuel Efficient stoves which help to reduce the amount of smoke that people breathe in (by installing chimneys) and cut back on the use of wood to fuel the stoves(due toimproved efficiency). In the afternoon we helped to construct 4 stoves in one of the communities, during which we had a few messy mud fights.
On Tuesday, March 4th we attended a workshop on how Solar Panels, Solar Dryers and Solar Ovens are made. These are installed in rural communities to cook food and power lights (50% of the population doesn't have electricity). The following day we spent the night in another community where we helped to construct water cisterns and latrines, and planted trees for their tree nursery. In the following afternoon we attended a piñata breaking party for kids & I got to show off my dancing skills in front of all the community!
On Friday, the last day I spent with the Canadian school group before they returned to Canada, we went on a hike to see ancient pterogliphs(drawings carved in rock) and visited a Rosquilla- making business (famous 'mountain' cookies made of corn). Finally, we attended a seminar on landmines, which are very prevalent here due to the Contra/Sandinista war. One of the neatest things about the project is that landmine survivors from opposite sides of the war are now working together to provide information about the landmines. Also, the Solar panel workshops & construction are run by landmine survivors. It made me cry.
That evening we had a huge goodbye fiesta.
Anyways, I'm gonna end it here although I could write pages more. I am having an amazing time & am really enjoying my stay. I think I have learned more here in the last few weeks than I have learned in years & have also met some truly wonderful people.
Saludos,
Alix
posted by Alix at 9:58 PM
1 Comments:
When California lawyer Chris Berry first arrived in Nicaragua in 1988, it was aboard his sailboat, Pelican Eyes. blackjack
Chris wandered ashore in San Juan del Sur and, eventually, wandered into tourism when it arrived a decade later — first by taking the odd visitor on sunset sailing trips, later by opening Pelican Eyes Piedras y Olas, one of the classiest hotel-restaurants in the country and a source of employment for over 150 Nicaraguans.casino online
After making the commitment to stay and be a part of Nicaragua, Chris met fellow expat and retired Red Cross nurse Jean Brugger and together they founded the A. Jean Brugger Education Project, a non-profit that, in addition to anti-litter and environmental campaigns, provides scholarships, uniforms, school supplies, and job training to dedicated students in the San Juan del Sur area.
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