Because I love photos, I decided to share with you as many from Amy's trip as possible.. hopefully they'll give you a little glimpse of Nicaragua through a visitor's eyes. The normal, the occasional, and the once-in-a-lifetime...
The west side of Nicaragua is scattered with a line of volcanoes..
this one Amy caught on her flight into Managua.
In the taxi ride from the airport, Amy gave me a note from her students. They have been learning about Nicaragua and we were even able to Skype one afternoon. They raised money and supplies for my craft class their class' annual service project. Anyways, here's the note they wrote as a class the day before Amy left:
Dear Elizabeth, How old are you? We are five and six years old. What will you do in the craft class? We like to color and paint. We like to learn! What are the kids in Nicaragua learning? Do the kids in Nicaragua like to read? Do you read too? We like funny books and learning books. We like to learn about transportation, princesses, and sharks. Do your cats speak Spanish? How old are your cats? Do you brush your teeth before going to bed? How many volcanoes have erupted in Nicaragua? Are volcanoes fun to look at? Are they fun to slide down? Have any volcanoes broken houses? Why does a volcano have rocks? We love to learn about volcanoes! What kinds of transportation are there? Are you having fun? Do people in Nicaragua like to write? We like to write about lots of different things. We want to learn about Nicaragua! Your friends, Ms. Schroer's Kindergarten Class
On the first afternoon we went to Mateare, but since Cantera was closed for the afternoon and no one seemed to be around, we just explored a little. Amy was amused by the cows in the street (and especially by this reunion of cow and calf!)
Fresh vegetables in the grocery store!
L-R: Potatoes, lettuce, onions, yucca (common root), tomatoes, papaya (huge!), pineapple and oranges
Unpacking two suitcases full of craft supplies! (Mia wanted to be in on alll the action and of course the photo taking!)
Awesome picture of me making us dinner on the first night - classic rice and beans.
Skype chat with Alex so I could open my anniversary present - the three of us had a good laugh.
Here's a few shots of things I don't really think of taking (or sharing for that matter...)
Our back yard
Laundry (blech)
Living Room
Kitchen
Bathroom
Yes, Thomas, Auntie Beffy's bedroom is messy.. even in Nicaragua.
(We pulled an extra mattress in for Amy to sleep on for the nights we were in Managua)
Baby Naomi (their little sister) enjoyed a luke-warm bottle and a good nap while the boys played.
This is one of my favorite pictures from her trip.
The brothers (Brandon and Mario) in red and another neighbor (Josue) in black.
Naomi lovin'.
After taking the kids to the park on Saturday we invited Deyra, another neighbor, to go to the Masaya Volcano with us. Of course we had to take our picture with the infamous Sandino.
And another with our lovely tour guide and Deyra (after hiking up 172 stairs to the top of this active volcano)
Our next hike was to the top of another volcano to see the lookout over Masaya.
Beautiful sunset over the volcano's crater.
A walk deep into a tunnel made by the volcano's eruptions.. we tried to take pictures of the bat, but usually our startled squeals when they were close scared them away.. shocker.
Amy thought dirty feet were photo-worthy. Little did she know that that's pretty much a permanent state of being here... ;)
The next day, on our bus ride (on which we stood in the crammed isle for over two hours) to the beach, we got stuck in traffic to wait for a Palm Sunday procession to pass through the intersection.
ATV tour of the beach town (San Juan del Sur) and surrounding beaches.. first time driving since August!!
Awesome.
We drove right by where we were staying! (the mauve-colored building)
See that Jesus way up there? That was our first stop...
To see the beach of San Juan del Sur from up above..
Then to a couple different beaches..
With our guide, Marvin (affectionately called "Marv")
Ready to go out for dinner on the beach!
Green eggs and iguana for breakfast maybe?!
Our morning at the beach rewarded us with several souvenirs:
about 7.67 in sand dollars, a banged up knee, and plenty of sunburns
This is my life (ha.. not.)
This picture was taken upside down. Thus, it remains upside down.
SUNSET CRUISE!!!
Cheers!
Sunset!
We had a great time hanging out with Pavel and Alice on the cruise. They were on a week-long road trip thru Nicaragua and Costa Rica from El Salvador!
Wednesday we returned to Nicaragua, and the evening brought a [seriously] torrential downpour. Before the rain came I swept the kitchen and living room to prepare to mop it (this could be done 7 times a day in the dry season and the floor still wouldn't look clean). Then it started sprinkling. Then raining. Then down-pouring. Then HAILING. Then flooding the kitchen... so much for mopping!
First I made good use of the rain.. rinsing the mop!
Thennnn, it flooded over my clean floor...
Our next trip was to Leon, a city I have visited several times but had never stayed in before. We decided to come check out the Semana Santa (Holy Week) traditions.
We had a simple hostel room (where I totally beat Amy in Scrabble).
I also worked more on my most recent embroidery project--the prayer of St. Francis stitched onto an old apron using leftover thread from a previous project.
Amy's first gallo pinto (a Nicaraguan staple..made with rice and beans) and maduras (sweet, fried plantains)
On Good Friday we saw several Stations of the Cross processions in the streets. They usually involve a ton of people, giant statues carried by 6-20 people (interesting that only women carried the statue of Mary!), a truck with a megaphone or speakers and the emcee, and of course people on the sides selling water, pop, food, and whatever else you may need in the streets on a blistery hot afternoon.
Many people were gathered with the Bishop for the Rosary and Stations of the Cross in the Cathedral, as well. We thought it was interesting that (since the Passion was happening), the tomb was still empty..
A statue depicting Jesus' fall (also being carried in a procession)
Common street in Leon, as we walked across town to see the "alfombras" or sawdust carpets that each family in a 2-3 block section of the city makes with an image of Jesus or something semi-Easter themed. We met several of the artists who explained that the tradition is over 100 years old and has been passed on from generation to generation and even today the youngest kids get to help (so then they learn, too!). They start around 10am and work till the procession at 6pm.. starting with a blank (brown) sawdust square and adding colored sawdust, sand, flour, flowers, and even glitter to make the intricate design. Similar to the salt carpets in El salvador, the day is complete with a procession that walks right over them, pretty much destroying everything!
Amy got to help!
Isn't she gorgeous?!
Our new friends :) Their family's mural reads, "Welcome to the street of carpets"
We came back to the East side of town for the evening procession that so many people had been talking about. This is the tomb from the Cathedral, but now carrying Jesus.
Who'd'a thunk it?! At breakfast on Saturday, in walks our Salvadoran friends from the Sunset Cruise in San Juan del Sur! What a fun coincidence--we say and chatted with them all morning :)
After returning to Managua on Saturday, I took Amy to meet my friend and neighbor, Nineth, and her family. Brisa, her 8-year-old daughter, played a song for us on the marimba and Nineth accompanied her on the guitar. Brisa is currently in the semi-finals of an international talent contest!!! :)
Mia is getting so big! She loves to wait for visitors at the front door.
Easter morning water balloon fight with Brandon and Mario!! Going to the beach is the most common thing to do for Holy Week, but families who stay in Managua often set up swimming pools for their kids to keep cool!
We spent most of Easter day working on my projects.. this is the Prayer of St. Francis embroidery I mentioned earlier.. Amy brought fabric to make a border to help me finish it off!
All done!!
We went to 6pm Mass at the Cultural Center on Easter, but arrived to find the Center dark and empty. Evidently they canceled it the Friday before because the priest had to celebrate elsewhere. I was really bummed we weren't able to celebrate Mass (even tho Amy probably wouldn't've gotten much out of a service and homily entirely in Spanish), we decided to stop by Sr. Dianne (my Spiritual Director)'s house.. luckily she was home so we were able to spend the evening with her, a beautifully sacred communion of sisters.
Amy was off Monday morning, all too soon. I hope everyone takes the time to read her beautiful reflection from her time here, and I'm sure she'd be more than happy to share more pictures and stories if you're interested (no videos, tho, Ame!). It was such a blessing to have her here for a while--to share with her not only the volcanoes, beaches, and unrelenting heat, but also the beautiful faces of some of the people I have come to know and love in my time here so far.
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