tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19842254075596766392024-02-19T07:51:02.133-08:00Adventures in NicaraguaAshleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-49046877029808234812012-10-16T09:13:00.000-07:002012-10-16T09:14:53.447-07:00Mamita, me toca la comida!<i>Translation: Mom, it's my turn to take food to school!</i><br />
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One aspect of the Nicaraguan education system that I find fascinating is the practice of having families provide a meal for all of the students in their child's class. I think of it as the Nicaraguan way of providing a school lunch - rather than cooking and serving a meal for all of the children in the school, the government provides the raw materials of a typical Nicaraguan meal to each classroom daily (imagine how much food they provide daily to all classrooms in all public schools across the country!)<br />
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Each teacher is then responsible for organizing a rotating schedule designating which child/family will have to cook and bring the food in each day. From what I have seen, the schedule tends to go in alphabetical order, and if you consider that there are about 25-30 students per class, that means that each family is responsible for providing the food about once every month or month and a half.<br />
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When a child "le toca la comida" (has his/her turn for providing the food), the teacher sends that child home with the raw materials to bring back cooked the next day: about 2 pounds of rice, 2 pounds of red beans, 1/2 liter of oil, 2 pounds of corn (to make tortillas), and 2 pounds of cereal to make a fresco (a drink - it's not cereal like Frosted Flakes, it's more of a grainy powder-ish substance that you mix with sugar and water). That night or the next morning, the family has to cook the food and bring the meal to school at about 9:00am. The parent who brings the food typically stays to help serve.<br />
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Usually, the meal consists of rice, beans, fresco, and whatever else the parents decide to add, though families can prepare the food however they want. For example, they could prepare the rice and beans separately, or mix them together to make gallo pinto. If the family is more well-off, they could make a more complex meal, such as arroz aguado or arroz a la valenciana, which are rice based but also have chicken or pork, vegetables, and sauces. Some families will buy either cuajada (a typical Nicaraguan cheese), crema (like sour cream but more liquidy), or plantains (to make either maduros, tajadas, or tostones, various forms of preparing plantains) to accompany the rice and beans.<br />
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The last time my friend's daughter had to provide the meal, I decided to document the process. Follow me and see what it's like to provide a meal for 25ish preschool children!<br />
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<b>Ingredients:</b> <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raw materials: corn, rice, cereal (for fresco), and oil - the beans were already cooking.</td></tr>
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<b>Step 1: Cook the beans (either in a pressure cooker or boiled in water)</b><br />
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Beans cooking first in a pressure cooker. First, you have to sort them out in case there are little rocks mixed in among the beans. I don't imagine it would be too pleasant to be eating a spoonful of beans and find something extra hard...</div>
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<b>Step 2: Cook the rice</b></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Freshly washed rice, ready to be cooked! And this stuff doesn't come in a box with step-by-step directions and measurements! </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Large pot to cook 2lbs of rice - first, add oil and onions. Trust me, the onions give the rice a wonderful flavor!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adding the rice to the oil and onions</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cook until lightly browned.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Add water until it covers the surface of the rice.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Add salt to flavor.</td></tr>
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Then, cover the rice and cook until the rice absorbs the water.</div>
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<b>Step 3: Fry the beans</b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Removing the beans from the water remaining in the pressure cooker.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
Fry the beans in oil and onions.</td></tr>
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<b>Step 4: Prepare fresco from cereal</b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pour cereal into the container you will make the fresco in.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Add water and mix until well-blended</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnlUwkKfkeFuYcwXPmyCE4O6LNOFQ9kpraulFPtJEznhyphenhyphenMndH9Pees9N4m0Zo02vyErU6ZT4-8LNROFx69MkqGME9qLN-CdRIFMQjHdso6wK56zIWref-oE9-k1JZcPXaALGiixy08IJw/s1600/102_9907.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnlUwkKfkeFuYcwXPmyCE4O6LNOFQ9kpraulFPtJEznhyphenhyphenMndH9Pees9N4m0Zo02vyErU6ZT4-8LNROFx69MkqGME9qLN-CdRIFMQjHdso6wK56zIWref-oE9-k1JZcPXaALGiixy08IJw/s320/102_9907.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Add sugar to taste.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mix until well-blended!</td></tr>
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<b>Step 5: Fry plantains (aka make maduros)</b><br />
Unfortunately, I don't have pictures of this as this time we didn't make maduros, and when my friend's son had to bring food, I was frantically trying to cook enough maduros for 26ish hungry 2nd graders, and I forgot to take pictures.<br />
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<b>Step 6: Serve!</b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the teachers serving the meal!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzGCJHOv0R10C6_u4Vekfow4n_SLP93Mpe53BQhgSn3GFe2LT126Smm7LQCXSwdbwSfticHK0596Q-KSpWgOpC-zPMHiLF4iUhYAo-KjJRnTu-uU8FO4zU94WWYevvA03XeogfzR4WIZk/s1600/102_9918.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzGCJHOv0R10C6_u4Vekfow4n_SLP93Mpe53BQhgSn3GFe2LT126Smm7LQCXSwdbwSfticHK0596Q-KSpWgOpC-zPMHiLF4iUhYAo-KjJRnTu-uU8FO4zU94WWYevvA03XeogfzR4WIZk/s320/102_9918.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting patiently for her plate!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_xNp56ocOXDK3haTSHnBtK-EizZRW_TJOkSY6kDjnLprY1XAJyQ17FSbUvyTGfrxLN6Z3ZR-4PEve7fEHPGQIelCY1iQBZQyL3N_6sZEuS-51rE0PsOdkewVSvumNrKr6I88u_nj19S8/s1600/102_9919.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_xNp56ocOXDK3haTSHnBtK-EizZRW_TJOkSY6kDjnLprY1XAJyQ17FSbUvyTGfrxLN6Z3ZR-4PEve7fEHPGQIelCY1iQBZQyL3N_6sZEuS-51rE0PsOdkewVSvumNrKr6I88u_nj19S8/s320/102_9919.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Serving the cuajada</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN23SO9C6losEak92oa12-QuzdJwpe8vm4a8RIoFSl9e0PON4yLvDeiDpOex4Koe08iTtdWOdvGrBOrg5tTAahZE7zn4hsg41MKEnjdTwPn3EmP5v9bUuhsFnEzgy1xdJKvdJxH8d9WOY/s1600/102_9920.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN23SO9C6losEak92oa12-QuzdJwpe8vm4a8RIoFSl9e0PON4yLvDeiDpOex4Koe08iTtdWOdvGrBOrg5tTAahZE7zn4hsg41MKEnjdTwPn3EmP5v9bUuhsFnEzgy1xdJKvdJxH8d9WOY/s320/102_9920.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plates of food ready to be distributed! Rice, beans, and cuajada!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTKScfCueFJ3D8EENo1DTtnHYRfc0OZn17Xez_Qj0wxs8c2Y6P76luW8epz0QxngEW8leT2ai-1_mc7kmosanuzKApoDxpd1gyEDEDd2cHtI5j_zMgiGztmzJWqICGcJ_TWMEJr5xhDZ4/s1600/102_9921.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTKScfCueFJ3D8EENo1DTtnHYRfc0OZn17Xez_Qj0wxs8c2Y6P76luW8epz0QxngEW8leT2ai-1_mc7kmosanuzKApoDxpd1gyEDEDd2cHtI5j_zMgiGztmzJWqICGcJ_TWMEJr5xhDZ4/s320/102_9921.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready to eat! p.s. Ben 10 is super popular among the little boys here!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpkaECTIOItIX1EKteaUdV1UW9G8w0YHPStKTnzbN-W2TdZcg0vHOR9U7KQnfPbg8SB0fOVKdBZ4y_IMBvwNP7yhBEYc8ewVj0mzMijqHmi1f74q9j5Cxyfe4mwzDPTwXzBPmAnnd5NFo/s1600/102_9923.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpkaECTIOItIX1EKteaUdV1UW9G8w0YHPStKTnzbN-W2TdZcg0vHOR9U7KQnfPbg8SB0fOVKdBZ4y_IMBvwNP7yhBEYc8ewVj0mzMijqHmi1f74q9j5Cxyfe4mwzDPTwXzBPmAnnd5NFo/s320/102_9923.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How could you not love this face?!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzZJ8TT-I16V4uSS7suuZ6wImt1rSUF9KsLglglzY_XEvF-plFFd5u4trL7ZxFVjGz8vf70Vbo9km0dY22GgHnOaHCcB7h2JkDIOjZnJKcBZ8tUI_qwk9MwbyW2GkOKLpkVdNZzcVz9L8/s1600/102_9924.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzZJ8TT-I16V4uSS7suuZ6wImt1rSUF9KsLglglzY_XEvF-plFFd5u4trL7ZxFVjGz8vf70Vbo9km0dY22GgHnOaHCcB7h2JkDIOjZnJKcBZ8tUI_qwk9MwbyW2GkOKLpkVdNZzcVz9L8/s320/102_9924.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She looks a lot more enthusiastic here than she actually was when told that she had to EAT the food! But most devoured their food immediately! </td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDUehDCjz6XQA02hKp2bISDEKS90-gTc9YsjC7vDOS91rXDo4N1yX4nryvgDiJMZJlUm_4zjF_8D8Ys0HVFvT_stVCo1WCIl2iXuO7_LofoTX7lhca2VQhjBLgMj2bAwQqaagwC1JqSk8/s1600/102_9925.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDUehDCjz6XQA02hKp2bISDEKS90-gTc9YsjC7vDOS91rXDo4N1yX4nryvgDiJMZJlUm_4zjF_8D8Ys0HVFvT_stVCo1WCIl2iXuO7_LofoTX7lhca2VQhjBLgMj2bAwQqaagwC1JqSk8/s320/102_9925.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love the girl in the middle!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzzWjZ_ujsKV-eKb3p3ngoTGGSpE5FZFQOZINz_3DnQYeDePh7GW3uY3Nr2x8Ud99SR-qoDoESdppkarSKygMjpkCzTgX362Fli7WMVIxNV9Mr7IdKyRkIf0jeo9o7ZkcaIoI78xvSAog/s1600/102_9926.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzzWjZ_ujsKV-eKb3p3ngoTGGSpE5FZFQOZINz_3DnQYeDePh7GW3uY3Nr2x8Ud99SR-qoDoESdppkarSKygMjpkCzTgX362Fli7WMVIxNV9Mr7IdKyRkIf0jeo9o7ZkcaIoI78xvSAog/s320/102_9926.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Everybody wanted their picture taken</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSbKTJWbTKKbkbhB7IoIDJ63zJGDxyrx90WYvYuVK9n1jQNnrzEBl5AErxFl169LrkCR24eexiFWPjBcHl7Y81dww-kwIHOW0hjMsS0WOfmopE4qGQTA201klnTfiV3S0mv8cFc4XBfvc/s1600/102_9927.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSbKTJWbTKKbkbhB7IoIDJ63zJGDxyrx90WYvYuVK9n1jQNnrzEBl5AErxFl169LrkCR24eexiFWPjBcHl7Y81dww-kwIHOW0hjMsS0WOfmopE4qGQTA201klnTfiV3S0mv8cFc4XBfvc/s320/102_9927.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yummmy fresco!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinhCc-xnpGd6lzp0GNZitD0JzRhRr7Df5rM34fxGQza1xuNg49xSFpST9TDSuDZLexNd8RtTzaKGOkRkxfNx4JmfrxYfmdJ0D6IyiW-ZqkrFe5AJrm1i4WyMwmVMTljtEjk6VBiaP3esg/s1600/102_9928.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinhCc-xnpGd6lzp0GNZitD0JzRhRr7Df5rM34fxGQza1xuNg49xSFpST9TDSuDZLexNd8RtTzaKGOkRkxfNx4JmfrxYfmdJ0D6IyiW-ZqkrFe5AJrm1i4WyMwmVMTljtEjk6VBiaP3esg/s320/102_9928.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Believe it or not, this picture is candid, and this little girl really is that adorable!</td></tr>
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<b> </b> So, there you have it!<br />
<br />
While I find this practice fascinating, it also humbles me when I think that for some (possible a lot) children, this is their breakfast and lunch...or if they study in the afternoon, it's their lunch and dinner. According to my host mother, Doña Matilde, que descanse en paz,some kids attend school simply because they are guaranteed at least one filling meal per day. Unfortunately, there are a lot of families that can't afford to provide 3 meals per day for their children, and so they send their children to school so they at least have that food.<br />
<br />
But imagine what it must be like for those kids to arrive to school on an empty stomach and have to study for 2 hours before they are finally served some desperately needed food. And imagine what it must be like for those same kids when the government, for whatever reason, doesn't provide food to the schools - sometimes a few days or even a week or more will go by without any food rations provided to the schools. I'm not exactly sure the reasoning behind this, but I know that those kids in particular feel the effects of this greatly. And it breaks my heart. These kids desperately need nourishment to be able to study and go about their daily lives, to grow up healthy and become contributors to the society that is raising them. </div>
Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-42028495741813393612012-10-02T11:06:00.002-07:002012-10-02T11:50:23.758-07:00Kids Say the Darndest ThingsDoes anybody remember that show? I was reminded of it again today when my friend's daughter started a ridiculous conversation with us about coffee and coughing. You'd think that those are two completely unrelated topics, but leave it to a 4 year old to relate them! The conversation went something like this (G is the daughter, M is the mother, and A is me):<br />
<br />
<i>background info: we were eating breakfast - chicharrones with frijoles, tortilla and coffee, and the little girl wanted to drink some of her mom's coffee.</i><br />
<br />
M: Las niñas no toman café, solo los adultos.<br />
G: ¿Porque me da tos?<br />
M: Sí<br />
G: Y la Ashley tampoco toma café porque es la hija de los Estados Unidos y le da tos.<br />
A: <i>Tomé un trago de café y tosé porque no lo había tragado bien.</i><br />
G: Viste?!<br />
<br />
<i> <b>Now in English:</b></i><br />
M: Little girls don't drink coffee, only adults.<br />
G: Because it makes me cough?<br />
M: Yep<br />
G: And Ashley doesn't drink coffee either because she's the daughter of the United States and it makes her cough.<br />
<i>A: I took a sip of coffee and coughed because I hadn't swallowed properly.</i><br />
G: See?! (like "I told ya so")<i> </i> <br />
<br />
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<br />
<b>Example 2:</b><br />
<i>background info: I was taking my friend's daughter and her sister's son to their preschool class one morning, and the kids were walking incredibly slowly. To encourage them to pick up the pace a bit, I told them that Tobi (my friend's dog who is super loyal and follows us everywhere) was walking much faster than them and would arrive first to class.</i><br />
<i>G is the daughter, A is me, and D is the cousin/nephew</i><br />
<br />
G: Pero Tobi no va a clase!<br />
<i></i>A: Y por que no?<br />
G: Porque no.<br />
A: David*, por que no va a clase Tobi?<br />
D: Porque ya es grande.<br />
<br />
<b>English:</b><br />
G: But Tobi doesn't go to class!<br />
A: And why not?<br />
G: Because.<br />
A: David, why doesn't Tobi go to class?<br />
D: Because he's too old.<br />
<br />
Apparently it had nothing to do with the fact that he's a dog but rather that he was too old to be in their preschool class!<br />
*This is not actually the little boy's name.<br />
<br />
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
<br />
<b>Example 3:</b><br />
<i>background info: I was playing school with my friend's two children, ages 7 and 4. I was asking each of them questions appropriate to their level, but at one point, the four year old answered a question for her brother with a completely silly response, but with such poise and confidence that I had to share!</i><br />
<i>G is the daughter, T is the son, and A is me.</i><br />
<br />
A: Que es una centena?<br />
G: Es una nave espacial para los extraterrestres.<br />
T: NO, tiene cien unidades.<br />
<br />
<b>English:</b><br />
A: What is a hundred?<br />
G: It's a space ship for aliens.<br />
T: NO, it has one hundred units.<br />
<br />
And I have to give her credit...the word "centena" does sound like something related to aliens!<br />
<br />
One of G's favorite sayings whenever we're playing a game such as UNO is to say "El que gana, pierde", or "The one who wins, loses".<br />
<br />
There are so many more examples from these three kids especially, but unfortunately I didn't think to write them down in the moment, and I have forgotten. From now on, I vow to write down the wisdom of these children because it's just so darn adorable!Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-72871742022597700962012-09-26T12:52:00.001-07:002012-09-26T12:52:34.514-07:00Garbage Day!Photo of the Week: Garbage day Nicaraguan style! And I would like to note that my Nicaraguan friends who saw me taking these pictures laughed out loud at me and thought I was crazy for wanting to take pictures of the garbage truck. So please, dear readers, appreciate this pictures for all they're worth:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRsCInZJ0uFQOwMbmyyAbquD0jjIT_kpVPeqQMFXm_Dg2k9N1UpfnIsxK3p6c2xpOBA_8UkOcVn23Ttz9gafPmS-7gLqdofkndKwwIhm7EOdDrKfP0HTzmaJoYO7pT6JyO97Nh2A7GDq0/s1600/102_9889.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRsCInZJ0uFQOwMbmyyAbquD0jjIT_kpVPeqQMFXm_Dg2k9N1UpfnIsxK3p6c2xpOBA_8UkOcVn23Ttz9gafPmS-7gLqdofkndKwwIhm7EOdDrKfP0HTzmaJoYO7pT6JyO97Nh2A7GDq0/s320/102_9889.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dumping the garbage from the sack onto the "truck"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCxlL8S7NmVhou133p6QKdIiDw4W06CyZx9dGAideE6Acuy04Cx9A5eOKwihLwzA90AECCTnvM2apg4vmo732aqHq-1rdeySA9EACOtTfE1AYf1s0jhNSLQkEReW-CG2mEMuCKhH1yK1c/s1600/102_9887.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCxlL8S7NmVhou133p6QKdIiDw4W06CyZx9dGAideE6Acuy04Cx9A5eOKwihLwzA90AECCTnvM2apg4vmo732aqHq-1rdeySA9EACOtTfE1AYf1s0jhNSLQkEReW-CG2mEMuCKhH1yK1c/s320/102_9887.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yup, that's a tractor.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd5SQ8Wx-bS1ABFXF2vUsI-bZS7QDbNjgxZaJwV9FeGcHBz6TDcFdfSq2VODvEDvPvNfyL1qaMptxsXw56bAFc3Q5hL_Qdl8AffF8BDTQKyxIaAUwwoxjW3hzp6GdWOZd0D-s9VtRFO8A/s1600/102_9888.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd5SQ8Wx-bS1ABFXF2vUsI-bZS7QDbNjgxZaJwV9FeGcHBz6TDcFdfSq2VODvEDvPvNfyL1qaMptxsXw56bAFc3Q5hL_Qdl8AffF8BDTQKyxIaAUwwoxjW3hzp6GdWOZd0D-s9VtRFO8A/s320/102_9888.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I was trying to get a picture of this guy throwing the sack to the other guy, but I was too quick.</td></tr>
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<br />Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-40328309208469718822012-08-27T10:37:00.000-07:002012-08-27T10:37:02.906-07:00Pen Pals!One of my lovely friends, Colleen, had a wonderful idea to start a pen-pal project with students from Tapestry Charter School in Buffalo, NY and students from a local school in El Sauce. When she returned from a month-long stay in the beautiful town of El Sauce, she was (and still is!) on fire for all things Nicaragua, especially El Sauce.<br />
<br />
One of her brilliant ideas was to get youth from the US connected to youth from El Sauce, get them to develop a relationship and become as excited as she is about El Sauce so that once they are a bit older, they can come to El Sauce and fall even more in love. One tangible way to do this was to start a pen-pal project with middle-school aged children; how exciting would it be for these kids to receive a hand-written letter from a child in another country?!<br />
<br />
In May of this year, she coordinated with a Spanish class at Tapestry school, where one of her grandchildren attends school, and got them to write letters to their new friends in El Sauce, introducing themselves, their community, and their school and asking questions to learn about the lives of students in El Sauce. She sent these letters through the mail to a Peace Corps volunteer who is stationed in El Sauce; believe it or not, these letters JUST arrived to the volunteer! I should also mention that they were delivered to <i>Managua</i>, not El Sauce directly. You see, El Sauce doesn't have a mail system! So, all mail has to go to Managua or another large city.<br />
<br />
This week, I was able to get the letters from Rachel, the Peace Corps volunteer. Today, I had the wonderful opportunity to visit two 7th grade classes at Instituto Jonathan Gonzalez, the local public high school in El Sauce, and explain this project to them. The students were <i>so enthusiastic</i>! I had <b>way</b> <b>more </b>volunteers than I had letters to hand out - what a wonderful problem to have, no? They couldn't wait to read the letters and write a response to their new pen pals! Hopefully we will be able to expand the project to include more students in the near future!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Class 1 receiving their letters!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Class 2 - they were outside working in the school garden when we delivered the letters!</td></tr>
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We will be sending the letters back to Buffalo in September, just in time for the start of a new school year in the US! I can only imagine how excited the students at Tapestry will be to receive their first letter from a student in El Sauce! We're hoping to be able to maintain the communication and keep the letters going so the kids can develop relationships with their pen pals...and who knows what might happen in the future?!Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-34451315414145410072012-08-24T10:12:00.000-07:002012-08-24T10:16:10.100-07:0012 Year-olds and Machetes?Would you trust a 12 year old with a machete? If you live in Nicaragua, the answer is YES! Proof? When I visited the local high school this morning, Instituto Jonathan Gonzalez, one of the 7th grade classes was working on preparing the school huerta, or garden. All classes are expected to complete community service about once per week - sometimes they go out into the community and clean up garbage, for example.<br />
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This particular day, the students were working on the <i>huerta</i>, preparing the earth for planting. One step of this process meant cutting the <i>monte</i>, or all of the weeds that were growing. And what is the easiest way to accomplish this task? Clearly with a machete! And who is expected to do this? The students, of course. Take a look:<br />
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Other students were digging holes:<br />
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If I´m not mistaken, these girls are planting something:<br />
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So many students! The principal told us that each of the four 7th grade (<i>primer año)</i> classes has about 32 students!<br />
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I can't wait to see what it is that they're going to plant and grow in the <i>huerta!</i> And in the meantime, I will keep my distance from those 12 year olds bearing machetes...not that I don't trust them. In fact, I'm sure they are much safer in their hands than in mine!<br />
<br />Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-56430868412052273102012-08-13T16:51:00.000-07:002012-08-13T16:51:06.368-07:00Where in the world is Ashley Sofia?So, I haven't posted in a LONG time. I am so sorry, dear readers. You see, things got a bit crazy in Nicaragua. My friend's mom (my host mom), Matilde, ended up in the hospital with cancer suddenly.This sent the family into shock and changed family life and daily life 180 degrees, as I'm sure you can imagine. As the family is a "normal" Nicaraguan family, they unfortunately didn't have the funds to take her to be cared for at a private hospital, meaning she had to go to the public hospital in Leon.<br />
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As Nicaragua is a developing country with free public health (and the second poorest country in the western hemisphere), the care isn't exactly the best. This meant that someone from the family had to be in the hospital 24/7 with her - either in her room or at least in the hospital. And when I say they had to be there 24/7, I'm not exaggerating even one bit. The family had to come up with a sort of schedule to figure out who would be able to stay with her each day to make sure she was getting the best care possible. <br />
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As Martha had to travel to Leon often to be with her mother in the hospital, I was able to step in and help out the family by staying with Martha's kids, caring for them, taking them to class, helping them with homework, feeding them, and everything in between. One thing I can say for sure is that I have a whole new appreciation for parents and their role in raising their children! I also realized that I love those kids like crazy and that even when things get difficult, you do what you have to do because you love them and want the best for them.<br />
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Doña Matilde (Martha's mom/my host mom) put up an incredible fight against the cancer and all of the infections and other complications that presented themselves during her time in the hospital. Apparently, her tumor had been growing for 5 years, and by the time they found it, it was too late to cure her and was just a matter of time. She is an amazingly strong woman, though, and she fought hard and always had hope that she would get better, or at least well enough to come back to her home to be with her family. Her whole family rallied around her and did everything they possibly could to support her and help her to get better, and they also had an incredible amount of hope and faith that God was with them and would not desert them.<br />
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Unfortunately, her condition was quite unstable due to a number of complications, between infections, heart issues, respiratory issues, and on and on. It seemed like as soon as they were able to stabilize her and she had a good day or two, something would happen and she would be in an extremely risky state again, and the doctors and family would do everything they could to try to stabilize her again. The family even had to go searching for medicine that the hospital in Leon didn´t have - for example, there was one strong antibiotic that she needed to combat an infection, and the <i>only</i> place they could find this medicine in the entire country was in a hospital in Managua.<br />
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Despite all of the actions of all of the doctors and the family who cared for her and everyone who was praying for her, Doña Matilde passed away on Monday, July 9th. At that point in time, I was actually in the US - I went home to visit, see family and friends, and to work at the Migrant Education Summer School I have worked at for 3 years now. The family understandably was crushed by her passing, and still are dealing with the effects. One comfort is knowing that Doña Matilde is no longer suffering, because she did suffer immensely during her time in the hospital, even though she wouldn't complain about anything.<br />
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Now, I am back in El Sauce. I returned to help carry out a project that Martha and I have been planning for months, which I will write about in future posts, and to continue working on projects that we are developing. Things are quite different, and Doña Matilde's presence is missed every day. It's funny how many insignificant things remind a person of someone who is no longer with us. One thing is for sure: she was a well-loved woman who fought every day for her family, her town, and her country. El Sauce, Nicaragua, the WORLD has lost an incredible woman, and it is my hope to continue her work in the community that she loved so much, alongside her daughter who also desires to carry on her mother's legacy.Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-49678011526077942312012-04-19T10:10:00.000-07:002012-04-19T10:10:28.803-07:00¿Cómo te llamas?In North America:<br />
--What's your name?<br />
--Ashley<br />
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In Nicaragua:<br />
--¿Cómo te llamas?<br />
--María Celeste Talavera Hernandez (invented name)<br />
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One thing that makes me laugh here is whenever you ask somebody their name, they give you their entire name. And by entire name, I mean first first name, second first name, first last name, and second last name. Actually, I think it's really cool. The people here are very proud of their names, and so when they're going to tell you their name, it has to be all four names!<br />
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Why do they have four names, you might ask? Well, the first two is just tradition that pretty much every child is given two first names, and the family decides how the child will be called on a regular basis. Some kids are called only by their first first name, some by their second first name, and some by both names. Usually it´s whichever name is easier to pronounce, or if there are multiple people with the same name in one family, sometimes the child is called by the second name. Or, if the child is in trouble, they´re called by all four names. I´m sure we can all relate to that, no?<br />
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The two last names tradition is actually something that I really love and wish existed in the US too, because it gives importance to both the mother´s and father´s families. The first last name comes from the father, and the second last name comes from the mother. This means that the mother has different last names from the father, and the kids are different from the parents since you maintain your last names from birth. It is a bit confusing at first, but once you get used to it, it makes complete sense, and to me gives equal value to both families.<br />
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For example, if the mother´s name is Ana Cecilia Mendoza Lanuza and the father´s name is Marcos Nicolas Gamez Reyes, and they have a child, the child´s name would be Marileysi Liseth Gamez Mendoza - two first names, then the father´s first last name then the mother´s first last name.<br />
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I have officially become Nicaraguan by adopting more names, so I fit right in! Since my mom was visiting last week, she got to witness me being called by all of my names, and it was quite amusing! She was a bit confused at first, but grew to like it (right mom?). So, during my first month here, we decided that I needed another first name for a couple of reasons. First, they told me it was too difficult to pronounce "Ashley". Second, my friend Martha´s niece is named Alisson, and they kept mixing up our names. Third, to be Nicaraguan, I obviously needed another first name. So, to make it easier for them to pronounce my name, and to prevent confusion between me and the niece, I decided on the name Sofía. Plus, since I have unofficially become a member of Martha´s family, I added their last names on to the end of my name.<br />
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So, combining my official name (first, middle, and last) plus Sofía and the last names from Martha´s family, I am now Ashley Sofía Crocker Sullivan Moncada Rojas. It has a nice ring to it, no? On a regular basis, I am called any of the following: Ashley, Sofía, Ashley Sofía, or Sullivan (pronounced Sue-lee-von).Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-9574890254917968662012-03-06T09:29:00.001-08:002012-03-06T09:34:33.027-08:00What is Poverty?If I were to ask you "<b>What is poverty?</b>", how would you respond? This post is meant to be interactive...think about what poverty is to you, and leave a comment. Don't worry about saying the "wrong" thing; I'm not looking for any specific answer. I want to know what YOU think when you hear the word <b><i>poverty</i></b>. It can be a word or two, a sentence, a paragraph, whatever you feel. Your answers will help me in a future blog post that will be based on your answers, my experience here in Nicaragua, and a book I am reading called <u>When Helping Hurts</u>. If you'd rather your comments be anonymous when I use them later, please don't hesitate to send me your ideas in an email or Facebook message and indicate that you'd like them to remain anonymous. <br />
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Y para mis amigos que sólo hablan español...porque quiero que ustedes participen en esto tambien! Si te preguntara "<b>¿Qué es la pobreza?</b>", ¿cómo me responderías? El propósito de este post es que sea interactivo...piensa en lo que es la pobreza para ti, y deja un comentario. No te preoucupes por equivocarte en la respuesta; no busco una respuesta específica. Quiero saber lo que TU piensas cuando escuchas la palabra <b><i>pobreza</i></b>. Puede ser una o dos palabras, una frase, un párrafo, lo que tú quieras. Tus respuestas me van a ayudar en el futuro para hacer otro post que estará basado en tus respuestas, mi experiencia aquí en Nicaragua, y un libro que estoy leyendo que se llama <u>When Helping Hurts.</u> Si prefieres que tus comentarios se mantengan anónimos cuando los utilizo después, por favor mándame tus ideas por medio de un mensaje por correo electrónico o por Facebook e indica que prefieres que tus comentarios sean anónimos.<br />
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Thank you y gracias!<br />
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email: asullivan531@gmail.comAshleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-33338554495600729422012-03-01T16:39:00.000-08:002012-03-01T16:39:32.432-08:00Feliz Cumpleaños!January and February is a marathon of birthdays in Martha's family, which means I have had access to lots of cake and piñatas in the past two months! So what's the recipe for a stellar birthday in the land of lakes and volcanoes? Lots of food, cake, music, dancing, and of course a piñata (I honestly have never seen so many piñatas in my life!)<br />
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The first birthday in the marathon was Martha's dad, Angel. We had a wonderful typical Nicaraguan meal of <i>carne asada, tortillas, ensalada de repollo, y gaseosa</i>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The fork and knife are just for show. To become a true Nica, I had to learn to eat everything with my fingers!</td></tr>
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While blasting dance music (salsa, merengue, cumbia, etc), we hung out and talked for awhile...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martha's sister Patricia came to visit for the weekend with her son.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm pretty sure there's an unwritten law in Nicaragua that you're not allowed to smile in pictures</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The birthday boy with his favorite daughter (though maybe I'm a bit biased)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amigas!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglbdZmAob0-prZ1zRiNHU9YtIHG03WKcAdFvzNB-5JswzY-4F8ftU5pRpoKwOF9ZcmpHAnZeBhs7QlJ99EIhrlA8cEpwT3NUNq1xaYTPmaZfkNGWVSS4FO4FOQTQClXA1hEolwXynjf-E/s1600/IMG_8907.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglbdZmAob0-prZ1zRiNHU9YtIHG03WKcAdFvzNB-5JswzY-4F8ftU5pRpoKwOF9ZcmpHAnZeBhs7QlJ99EIhrlA8cEpwT3NUNq1xaYTPmaZfkNGWVSS4FO4FOQTQClXA1hEolwXynjf-E/s320/IMG_8907.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dancing! Martha's dad was the first one up!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>And what's a birthday without cake?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxojWfUXNWkz1lphGaUrOs8yCnjO_yUYZVZE_epPG4k-rlZhcAl5mCQAOBEBmMx6OPMOXaIXPzd7TVWe3Qoa4fO0_yqUO3YJPDUknaUR-L0p6vhech-I_0bsNijCrKc-sP489RJM_zCeI/s1600/IMG_8953.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxojWfUXNWkz1lphGaUrOs8yCnjO_yUYZVZE_epPG4k-rlZhcAl5mCQAOBEBmMx6OPMOXaIXPzd7TVWe3Qoa4fO0_yqUO3YJPDUknaUR-L0p6vhech-I_0bsNijCrKc-sP489RJM_zCeI/s320/IMG_8953.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The kids sure had a good time sampling the cake haha</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<b>Birthday #2 </b><br />
The next birthday was for Martha's nephew, who turned 3. They invited over some of the neighborhood kids to celebrate with cake and a piñata.They also served <i>vigorón</i>, which is a typical Nicaraguan food made of <i>chicharrón</i> (fried pork rinds) and yucca, though I forgot to get a picture.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRVWbKd-xmwDQHUSHES6Csi8GtiZS8Owj54XI57-2lDtwrCIkm1-JCIdXLkDZ5C-epefOB34rqB5vdgX20OoEN5WebiOs8-x0KkN79S4QnmknsNfBr-_A8oH7JK-8a5dTH1LcBBHeWPvo/s1600/IMG_9597.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRVWbKd-xmwDQHUSHES6Csi8GtiZS8Owj54XI57-2lDtwrCIkm1-JCIdXLkDZ5C-epefOB34rqB5vdgX20OoEN5WebiOs8-x0KkN79S4QnmknsNfBr-_A8oH7JK-8a5dTH1LcBBHeWPvo/s320/IMG_9597.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The chavalos with mom, dad, grandpa, and Tia Ana (Martha)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi92bMyN6xoL4jeu21dlLtOi68JhweD7415jDJL43MJgRnEp1_ne_u_5DEPZ-1SwBQuxyWYUufXmXwDVQMrhRUmz1AYznkaTLdvJ53sCEVvMI0rURLUgHvLoXDpQ_beN2XJFv7otq4OWOs/s1600/IMG_9599.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi92bMyN6xoL4jeu21dlLtOi68JhweD7415jDJL43MJgRnEp1_ne_u_5DEPZ-1SwBQuxyWYUufXmXwDVQMrhRUmz1AYznkaTLdvJ53sCEVvMI0rURLUgHvLoXDpQ_beN2XJFv7otq4OWOs/s320/IMG_9599.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now with me!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmH7pjqbpzpuAY7yPhrUivrInLrzMeqjF4y500Y-Sab3UDI5Gbbk16rhcTIIq5WkiNZ4gyji2RKGibsUZphVrBvDVcPsVLDLAJDtL6YYD5Zer5HPH4rrD5MX8Vwqmul_xD2MEInQb9SqA/s1600/IMG_9601.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmH7pjqbpzpuAY7yPhrUivrInLrzMeqjF4y500Y-Sab3UDI5Gbbk16rhcTIIq5WkiNZ4gyji2RKGibsUZphVrBvDVcPsVLDLAJDtL6YYD5Zer5HPH4rrD5MX8Vwqmul_xD2MEInQb9SqA/s320/IMG_9601.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birthday boy sampling his cake! In case you're wondering, yes we did eat it with our hands.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc7DAgsKJeKG9LozDZZ1UKuG6D_uJ16v7LQ4msc-S95mwQZGGV_hhrG1nI8a_bplV1yqIhiyuI8F31fDA6bwJIWSQGEq5mbVdOWfkO21xx3di3J1cgJx4VdChxcKzJz8_C4-dUX449Muw/s1600/IMG_9611.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc7DAgsKJeKG9LozDZZ1UKuG6D_uJ16v7LQ4msc-S95mwQZGGV_hhrG1nI8a_bplV1yqIhiyuI8F31fDA6bwJIWSQGEq5mbVdOWfkO21xx3di3J1cgJx4VdChxcKzJz8_C4-dUX449Muw/s320/IMG_9611.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You're supposed to dance while whacking the piñata - great job Martha!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMhmJn1-Y7quu0DAVO9MRHCqYbU9KNdFv8CUeR3XPPvba_GOZ7hSRbv3v9n-0K_zig3ddoP1FsC5UxQQ11vCBEzG5gMIJ9OISeliXK0T4raU5chrq-KyvSi8GsFtckC46uyhJHHiZyPXw/s1600/IMG_9615.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMhmJn1-Y7quu0DAVO9MRHCqYbU9KNdFv8CUeR3XPPvba_GOZ7hSRbv3v9n-0K_zig3ddoP1FsC5UxQQ11vCBEzG5gMIJ9OISeliXK0T4raU5chrq-KyvSi8GsFtckC46uyhJHHiZyPXw/s320/IMG_9615.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">p.s. the candy is already gone. We're just hitting the piñata for fun!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVndDf05U_3lhV0Gx-5zR8h3wM3sqVM8zy6nKdSHzyLe0_zvjSZ_2yJKMR3FF1TqNHb4cSQAblX2Ibr1FxMPd2wOWXpzvL4LLLFp30SwOK91kS-2cewXvhT0w4PZbY14-T80bSgJCxdLg/s1600/IMG_9619.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVndDf05U_3lhV0Gx-5zR8h3wM3sqVM8zy6nKdSHzyLe0_zvjSZ_2yJKMR3FF1TqNHb4cSQAblX2Ibr1FxMPd2wOWXpzvL4LLLFp30SwOK91kS-2cewXvhT0w4PZbY14-T80bSgJCxdLg/s320/IMG_9619.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at those moves!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKIqNBJVRm4mm_vdCCBQJwrDUj3XXvzdqvh7Y3eMBDpn7yKLKMuvV67N070SgzTQwMVqCQJFCTt1md4BmQXk6gkt3dTbqeDYsQbSC-Qq79gziRB7Qs_PA-zhtyHQ21APotc8WyiCYN56s/s1600/IMG_9647.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKIqNBJVRm4mm_vdCCBQJwrDUj3XXvzdqvh7Y3eMBDpn7yKLKMuvV67N070SgzTQwMVqCQJFCTt1md4BmQXk6gkt3dTbqeDYsQbSC-Qq79gziRB7Qs_PA-zhtyHQ21APotc8WyiCYN56s/s320/IMG_9647.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After the piñata was dismembered, the kids used the parts as swords and shields to continue playing!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOA4NnVr10aMLZiEEUr3-G0DLS4gA8388AN5-TyOwOmpwdT2u1uHCxuy4wq6JQ7wzySpLOruCGSEEPkZJlMh4QmPv9q6T7LCePxoL5NRY3fzRH9O0nGll3rbMSCrkT2dI8N2KgpH2mYJE/s1600/IMG_9624.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOA4NnVr10aMLZiEEUr3-G0DLS4gA8388AN5-TyOwOmpwdT2u1uHCxuy4wq6JQ7wzySpLOruCGSEEPkZJlMh4QmPv9q6T7LCePxoL5NRY3fzRH9O0nGll3rbMSCrkT2dI8N2KgpH2mYJE/s320/IMG_9624.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at the air he got!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><b>Birthday #3</b><br />
Next was Martha's son, who turned 7 years old. They were going to have a piñata, but decided to fill their inflatable pool to let the kids cool off for a bit instead. Sidenote - I have really missed having an easy way to cool off in the heat! Nobody has pools around here, and we've only made it to Rio Grande to swim once...so most days are spent sweating from about 10am until dinner time. Yum.<br />
<b> </b><br />
Anyway, the kids had a great time playing in the pool, even before there was water in it!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpNjHH618J1DGHwb_yPhqc3RziKpVCn0-AV3t0FPBMBp1nwlT9HOYy1A-jbSgakO8xg1cgTEEeI3uPLMEzKYPLXugUUR6GCsDjHLiq4WGKzkLZLB7ipmJ7Af-K4xiywcLANyiQhpVplmU/s1600/IMG_9811.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpNjHH618J1DGHwb_yPhqc3RziKpVCn0-AV3t0FPBMBp1nwlT9HOYy1A-jbSgakO8xg1cgTEEeI3uPLMEzKYPLXugUUR6GCsDjHLiq4WGKzkLZLB7ipmJ7Af-K4xiywcLANyiQhpVplmU/s320/IMG_9811.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hermanos! Playing in the empty pool. Love their imaginations!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHlk0fNh9s4eK490Q91dPs9Gjwemww7bZKQazode4Aw0i8BZIRMzeUqv7IxiK1iPO89BhFMdPWTcnA5FNRTyerui46N30W0wQ6_BRlveXtn0lzU6C6Sh_uw95lKqpcPTqN8KrWCFFtaKQ/s1600/IMG_9813.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHlk0fNh9s4eK490Q91dPs9Gjwemww7bZKQazode4Aw0i8BZIRMzeUqv7IxiK1iPO89BhFMdPWTcnA5FNRTyerui46N30W0wQ6_BRlveXtn0lzU6C6Sh_uw95lKqpcPTqN8KrWCFFtaKQ/s320/IMG_9813.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birthday fun!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_LOlyI21X-aSEituu8Y6dPj7UfWYys87f9xRkInbHiYKGtLWZb6tKh3cp6EU1lM4kOvVsmyWc1ilZyqgbgpkWo6AaXT0lRgWcPVchTJ5q8i5N-DVCxGCzaqvkmwC-Y0BY4UUM_dlJHmE/s1600/IMG_9819.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_LOlyI21X-aSEituu8Y6dPj7UfWYys87f9xRkInbHiYKGtLWZb6tKh3cp6EU1lM4kOvVsmyWc1ilZyqgbgpkWo6AaXT0lRgWcPVchTJ5q8i5N-DVCxGCzaqvkmwC-Y0BY4UUM_dlJHmE/s320/IMG_9819.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfEqVs54lAfxkojwSpdnIDryTqoeOyxgLvjjjMqi-evDNSgJNMV6QLqvkqIRWG0T-AcyOcj1SKwzVquQ7jyPIoFhm3M_qKWxAVrt5NInVuHDdLn3LJ49NRikcKWAUqZQn1zJCQz_OUM-I/s1600/IMG_9820.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfEqVs54lAfxkojwSpdnIDryTqoeOyxgLvjjjMqi-evDNSgJNMV6QLqvkqIRWG0T-AcyOcj1SKwzVquQ7jyPIoFhm3M_qKWxAVrt5NInVuHDdLn3LJ49NRikcKWAUqZQn1zJCQz_OUM-I/s320/IMG_9820.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tobi was the lifeguard :-) (The pink is from when he rubbed against the newly painted pink bike)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNZUVxtQZZ3C-ru0D1AGOBlB1SThKVOocZxdva2XikS2hrwuREXkja4VdtxWbungwl0a1mZGV2pU5sLPGsuKu1xgvV3dexBhWXrXfTzw-z11u7sPh5WKbShzhwRdzmaaagzz1dXof6yfc/s1600/IMG_9821.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNZUVxtQZZ3C-ru0D1AGOBlB1SThKVOocZxdva2XikS2hrwuREXkja4VdtxWbungwl0a1mZGV2pU5sLPGsuKu1xgvV3dexBhWXrXfTzw-z11u7sPh5WKbShzhwRdzmaaagzz1dXof6yfc/s320/IMG_9821.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chair = improv diving board</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnYnjszSbm7KKuuesOqieTVJB6zxswqadkNK14ZOELe0JUjWdAdVqVyqlKEhXBrs1dkueVViEdIZX6lnCZa4Sz_F1bW2-JxgNrgB-SFJ49Cs0qhjrj3MfhfT7KZ2lB_LxdK0SDunwpEiM/s1600/IMG_9825.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnYnjszSbm7KKuuesOqieTVJB6zxswqadkNK14ZOELe0JUjWdAdVqVyqlKEhXBrs1dkueVViEdIZX6lnCZa4Sz_F1bW2-JxgNrgB-SFJ49Cs0qhjrj3MfhfT7KZ2lB_LxdK0SDunwpEiM/s320/IMG_9825.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pause the fun for some breakfast</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-H1H5zNt5eJSr9xzEWvax8oSB63ogIP82jtMmh_XTpc2s7hVKrcvPqnjP6cdUbdGMyatpmbPZKvgzX9vLl69ebqsQu09TMeQeBca1fbYxOmF9Uj-uzBN8Mj7jFIKuuNlPvPUh8oysnhs/s1600/IMG_9828.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-H1H5zNt5eJSr9xzEWvax8oSB63ogIP82jtMmh_XTpc2s7hVKrcvPqnjP6cdUbdGMyatpmbPZKvgzX9vLl69ebqsQu09TMeQeBca1fbYxOmF9Uj-uzBN8Mj7jFIKuuNlPvPUh8oysnhs/s320/IMG_9828.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cutest hermanos ever!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1EFXVFXBfxnpIGXNeMHQF6gzCca-beakAUsn3JufQK6S3BfQLW1rvx940AI_SMj86uCTAbAe1rgiRiVKM1kMLjaDYyQVeFNGltPgPSYfYToc6t86gvnr6CW5OTPlGl3Ck7bV4no9zACA/s1600/IMG_9838.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1EFXVFXBfxnpIGXNeMHQF6gzCca-beakAUsn3JufQK6S3BfQLW1rvx940AI_SMj86uCTAbAe1rgiRiVKM1kMLjaDYyQVeFNGltPgPSYfYToc6t86gvnr6CW5OTPlGl3Ck7bV4no9zACA/s320/IMG_9838.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Botando el agua!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzgYRahSzRAhA479GU6g4xEMvV5qXVHPWJApjpOANMlkD2Zey69iNhG_DUTvHylVVb4V9AfMqrmPimLhhrhkJ4SBtX9P-ZtX4FX2Xdn0QAT_TFX7FkcQYZB69Kfse4ADFYZ_JUjXEIcLM/s1600/IMG_9840.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzgYRahSzRAhA479GU6g4xEMvV5qXVHPWJApjpOANMlkD2Zey69iNhG_DUTvHylVVb4V9AfMqrmPimLhhrhkJ4SBtX9P-ZtX4FX2Xdn0QAT_TFX7FkcQYZB69Kfse4ADFYZ_JUjXEIcLM/s320/IMG_9840.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love it! Ultimate "water slide"</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuM_4FizjurhJJVqvb9vPOTYN601fjLRtn04kpSBX8_R7on_aHZd4Pz7gtZEpjkxCHaoiT0tt_HrlBXhQwW_b3syfl3jov6noHDRIjXEy3c7alqgFE_q3awhCKDBxqp7_46fIlgSQ0p1k/s1600/IMG_9842.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuM_4FizjurhJJVqvb9vPOTYN601fjLRtn04kpSBX8_R7on_aHZd4Pz7gtZEpjkxCHaoiT0tt_HrlBXhQwW_b3syfl3jov6noHDRIjXEy3c7alqgFE_q3awhCKDBxqp7_46fIlgSQ0p1k/s320/IMG_9842.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arroz aguado. I helped cook this!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihnEnSC_ImCGFnRUGE36fZ3JQMT0mGsq6ZjU8thj9nlenlOE8mlWM8ZhhweIMTjWyc5EOrYeXZm-8YUs0C__qJK1ONdHLqHICKWyu_pwPVK11SQCREjTKRNim2cCL-PjFbsP6uGvHnt8w/s1600/IMG_9846.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihnEnSC_ImCGFnRUGE36fZ3JQMT0mGsq6ZjU8thj9nlenlOE8mlWM8ZhhweIMTjWyc5EOrYeXZm-8YUs0C__qJK1ONdHLqHICKWyu_pwPVK11SQCREjTKRNim2cCL-PjFbsP6uGvHnt8w/s320/IMG_9846.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Enjoying the meal! Arroz aguado con gaseosa (soda)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvxfBC8a3aHAcHncQHJKL4GTh9frmseh4TOCmQqFr2tTlylJvPjkFOKDwagzLVj3y2eXXFHnSGkYab4cZyOvZknPRNY0prby1UdyTF-WJOmhiV2UeOVanqKNHfUtgzNu_b1l-DUlGy8EY/s1600/IMG_9843.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvxfBC8a3aHAcHncQHJKL4GTh9frmseh4TOCmQqFr2tTlylJvPjkFOKDwagzLVj3y2eXXFHnSGkYab4cZyOvZknPRNY0prby1UdyTF-WJOmhiV2UeOVanqKNHfUtgzNu_b1l-DUlGy8EY/s320/IMG_9843.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We had more people than planned, so I had to wash extra bowls and spoons. Note that the "sink" is outside!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2EU9TM0JVxEo2JD8IUzF2O-3qY_Dii-_FUy6kgxQxaVzaBHVvtgHMEsKAwxE0gNVG6sEGKw-kWNHGMUzJAFxJDA6ODqeTNneUbuL4pDPuprul1yxSLNftSdLvDfoHgHY8ZvwXEuuNZ1k/s1600/IMG_9847.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2EU9TM0JVxEo2JD8IUzF2O-3qY_Dii-_FUy6kgxQxaVzaBHVvtgHMEsKAwxE0gNVG6sEGKw-kWNHGMUzJAFxJDA6ODqeTNneUbuL4pDPuprul1yxSLNftSdLvDfoHgHY8ZvwXEuuNZ1k/s320/IMG_9847.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eskimo (ice cream) and video games. A boy's dream come true!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8EVJKhpkLa0ILdC3fkpeL0EDaaM_8Mt3e4NOl4YwniP9QSs8mzP6_YKpm9Oxi24zXkkZfMD1DiSWsfIxxBHZSVLh_Y-h5WVmsA-NEG_ar2EsRFwwyVeepNBNhk4XaNydeANJjKuK034s/s1600/IMG_9856.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8EVJKhpkLa0ILdC3fkpeL0EDaaM_8Mt3e4NOl4YwniP9QSs8mzP6_YKpm9Oxi24zXkkZfMD1DiSWsfIxxBHZSVLh_Y-h5WVmsA-NEG_ar2EsRFwwyVeepNBNhk4XaNydeANJjKuK034s/s320/IMG_9856.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birthday boy cutting his cake!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglYMJklJ2tvHBzSDDAKtG5x7TpuntHRRjHm0Bfr0xMW0fbms8eKvqi-WKvEP_lKwb3QLnlUOMAP3I96ZreBOv-PHeh-FA5arcamGltbxGmBsAaEgkqb2rMFF6AsmPtirDHAbQjmCugEB4/s1600/IMG_9858.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglYMJklJ2tvHBzSDDAKtG5x7TpuntHRRjHm0Bfr0xMW0fbms8eKvqi-WKvEP_lKwb3QLnlUOMAP3I96ZreBOv-PHeh-FA5arcamGltbxGmBsAaEgkqb2rMFF6AsmPtirDHAbQjmCugEB4/s320/IMG_9858.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I think it's safe to say he enjoyed his cake!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Anyone wondering how to sing Happy Birthday in Spanish? Here you go! (By the way, since I have been working on this post, this song has been stuck in my head and driving me loca!)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxOaVyLrTQvN_ySnYtJwQ6lgsIq0xPsZE0wzhvJf0gh64-BcK01uiMJDDWEvWIDcLc2h7cUHNzuu2fyPruX8w' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUQkSEGcXqCZWrJVAL91lsHJ9F931pQzpzQq4S7n2mlnxKnCMmwtNOLi-ueq2xEEhwmQiENyl9FAOaSF0pUN7elD2f_mqzOdbcYJhc5OMFPglvzZflVlcFeYGsqGsqvakBo-C-lvfbXAQ/s1600/IMG_9880.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUQkSEGcXqCZWrJVAL91lsHJ9F931pQzpzQq4S7n2mlnxKnCMmwtNOLi-ueq2xEEhwmQiENyl9FAOaSF0pUN7elD2f_mqzOdbcYJhc5OMFPglvzZflVlcFeYGsqGsqvakBo-C-lvfbXAQ/s320/IMG_9880.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Celebrating in school! Aren't the kids so cute in their uniforms?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuB9JQiOlz56e8LU1uQgtrjptOyLslBO-5Ssf1Y-K6KdeE7af1MsmstAzLWanGrKYaawe3nCJh4vjSJCJCMtcRmTazpHF2VuzVdLSCRAgNxzyeeSWvyxVK-XvGCNYFUUl2JoAWbcLhp9M/s1600/IMG_9883.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuB9JQiOlz56e8LU1uQgtrjptOyLslBO-5Ssf1Y-K6KdeE7af1MsmstAzLWanGrKYaawe3nCJh4vjSJCJCMtcRmTazpHF2VuzVdLSCRAgNxzyeeSWvyxVK-XvGCNYFUUl2JoAWbcLhp9M/s320/IMG_9883.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Congratulating the birthday boy with a hug!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVroQ1Rd8FDk7IQcPxkrKguyoQXMMSPkf44H_rqt9nqEOOuI-1rYOmgf3Z26g-ClAid45vJrXT9zBAYXX2a3Zz7m1-9ch0JEpJnxdiPgwLKoD6K8oIaZq-mBO93PthGYGnsUt8_Sq58o/s1600/IMG_9886.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVroQ1Rd8FDk7IQcPxkrKguyoQXMMSPkf44H_rqt9nqEOOuI-1rYOmgf3Z26g-ClAid45vJrXT9zBAYXX2a3Zz7m1-9ch0JEpJnxdiPgwLKoD6K8oIaZq-mBO93PthGYGnsUt8_Sq58o/s320/IMG_9886.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm pretty sure I'm going to take these kiddos home with me...if I ever leave, that is.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b>Birthday #4</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Ok, so this birthday isn't at all related to Martha or her family, but it was still fun! There is a volunteer from Japan that is working in San Luis Gonzaga (the school where I taught English), and her birthday was this past Monday. Of course, they had to do a big celebration for her in the school. All of the kids gathered on the <i>cancha</i> (basketball court) for some singing and dancing, then one of the classes had a piñata and cake for her.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEl167JowdRs3PiOw9D1GhYMX2Kgi6f9gdFdl3Wi-edNoyKKMJhhBMhpDspop4wBmZFHazeuPat9-C_3DWz0sthOB5g9FJRGxC6hf7yZ4BnQudmRQmE-_rLH735Vq6FCk1dld0OtJqv8c/s1600/IMG_9927.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEl167JowdRs3PiOw9D1GhYMX2Kgi6f9gdFdl3Wi-edNoyKKMJhhBMhpDspop4wBmZFHazeuPat9-C_3DWz0sthOB5g9FJRGxC6hf7yZ4BnQudmRQmE-_rLH735Vq6FCk1dld0OtJqv8c/s320/IMG_9927.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All of the primary students on the <i>cancha</i> singing to Kanako!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHVIXu7R1kCBsTUwpGhxdteqQrSogRDQVzqISp-Wd5JiZ7pTdXsXFmFF9JTz8ppE-LUYjhVx2urupbfhiZ_FxY-FMvGnDWlM0UFTikGPmEKx5-gGrbf_-KreDOiJVROkCN0ju57Q38_gQ/s1600/IMG_9929.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHVIXu7R1kCBsTUwpGhxdteqQrSogRDQVzqISp-Wd5JiZ7pTdXsXFmFF9JTz8ppE-LUYjhVx2urupbfhiZ_FxY-FMvGnDWlM0UFTikGPmEKx5-gGrbf_-KreDOiJVROkCN0ju57Q38_gQ/s320/IMG_9929.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Preschool student dancing to Danza Kuduro. She danced way better than I do, hands down.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs4PKYNNja7t1EZu-mHqCv_GH90m_fk14nMEVHZVHVqMM7uRZjKelfn9f6PrZGn5VwzkNE7r-2u8Y8ku_z7Iit-QrwVRz3WW3-G630ml4Y53ZiGjbLmJbtxmqgL2BDr0qoTR7pGZDkHgk/s1600/IMG_9933.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs4PKYNNja7t1EZu-mHqCv_GH90m_fk14nMEVHZVHVqMM7uRZjKelfn9f6PrZGn5VwzkNE7r-2u8Y8ku_z7Iit-QrwVRz3WW3-G630ml4Y53ZiGjbLmJbtxmqgL2BDr0qoTR7pGZDkHgk/s320/IMG_9933.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kanako with some of her 4th grade students and the piñata</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRfcYPavR9woIXrB0k8-zSzZE53ueSNhokss5ZrtN3MbI2seqbFz1oILN7EOvOcUUecGov563smnqtHpF2je0GsAdPuqDEdyM51IQB6_-l-7ljInF9cub6-UMKUWORL4c9oBuCMPQSVBo/s1600/IMG_9935.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRfcYPavR9woIXrB0k8-zSzZE53ueSNhokss5ZrtN3MbI2seqbFz1oILN7EOvOcUUecGov563smnqtHpF2je0GsAdPuqDEdyM51IQB6_-l-7ljInF9cub6-UMKUWORL4c9oBuCMPQSVBo/s320/IMG_9935.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love her smile!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJHtECe-i_I1sPga7p_XthqgJLzXTYFk4ay9QvTnbaBlpWwFKxPkDdG9zZgQUGDNUWO9yGkFRFW9DOyP6MQ9HsSPHzFRSSkFjZSz7QKY_OKe1lQKRf59p0zYNzDu_lF4zCWHLWujGqtg/s1600/IMG_9938.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJHtECe-i_I1sPga7p_XthqgJLzXTYFk4ay9QvTnbaBlpWwFKxPkDdG9zZgQUGDNUWO9yGkFRFW9DOyP6MQ9HsSPHzFRSSkFjZSz7QKY_OKe1lQKRf59p0zYNzDu_lF4zCWHLWujGqtg/s320/IMG_9938.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ya queremos pastel!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzH1kmh77pewvI9w1afqma9ZQXDMSLpfNeaGbCOJoGV3U09rbcQfblYm1qLzJ_lbEd-Fayt9q9BM4UFxND4HA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
That evening, we had a birthday party for Kanako at the nun's house (the nuns are the ones who run San Luis). They had a special mass, then Kanako served Japanese food that she'd spent all afternoon cooking for us. After came <i>another piñata</i>! See what I mean that piñatas are important here?! <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqX1uq85WjmWBmwoD4HqbYtL6P_Qpy8b2b1S8-xQdzUybJFkN4Qo_2ueiGF0AI3XXdW9QH4RmdofKtB8nZPQEpeivxnQSIpu8l-H8oULhd1Q2f43ugBKmt_kE3uvcssDhDj1GLxxnHLg8/s1600/IMG_9939.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqX1uq85WjmWBmwoD4HqbYtL6P_Qpy8b2b1S8-xQdzUybJFkN4Qo_2ueiGF0AI3XXdW9QH4RmdofKtB8nZPQEpeivxnQSIpu8l-H8oULhd1Q2f43ugBKmt_kE3uvcssDhDj1GLxxnHLg8/s320/IMG_9939.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One nun is dancing and trying to whack the piñata and another is standing on a table controlling the piñata. Who said nuns can't have fun?!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7yo_giwGZu1piIPo_CteAevsa3JZv9LxY7s9eE395U8QpmeqA5YA8U-cTx4bFVcsrchodkfJvmsZttNb8lPzaqjPk2QUUWDlkSnbUykLpC92XKP8uRTvVWrEJBICnSTCgW9TW_VW1Lew/s1600/IMG_9941.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7yo_giwGZu1piIPo_CteAevsa3JZv9LxY7s9eE395U8QpmeqA5YA8U-cTx4bFVcsrchodkfJvmsZttNb8lPzaqjPk2QUUWDlkSnbUykLpC92XKP8uRTvVWrEJBICnSTCgW9TW_VW1Lew/s320/IMG_9941.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She ended up grabbing the piñata and ripping it open with her hands to dump the candy out!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc8R-Av5YITmpHsS2fWkQCbVyPpIHdm8wnAzQElR2P53_j1gtWZRGyVDg5yXerOQuwk3rJGJSlZQH9IsZ8jtmjYCYMj2nXSLGnQLmHK3ugcH_9cPKG3vLVHboCsRGMERBxDxx3dR5wBvU/s1600/IMG_9944.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc8R-Av5YITmpHsS2fWkQCbVyPpIHdm8wnAzQElR2P53_j1gtWZRGyVDg5yXerOQuwk3rJGJSlZQH9IsZ8jtmjYCYMj2nXSLGnQLmHK3ugcH_9cPKG3vLVHboCsRGMERBxDxx3dR5wBvU/s320/IMG_9944.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rachel aka Raquel dancing with one of the party attendees</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> So, there you have it. Now please excuse me as I go (pathetically) attempt to learn to dance so I can actually participate at the next birthday party I attend :P</div>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-25989389352207076072012-02-28T14:29:00.000-08:002012-02-28T14:29:46.136-08:00Food for Thought"We (North Americans) are the richest people ever to walk the face of the earth. Period. Yet, most of us live as though there is nothing terribly wrong in the world. We attend our kids' soccer games, pursue our careers, and take beach vacations while 40 percent of the world's inhabitants struggle just to eat every day. And in our own backyards, the homeless, those residing in ghettos, and a wave of immigrants live in a world outside the economic and social mainstream of North America. We do not necessarily need to feel guilty about our wealth. But we do need to get up every morning with a deep sense that something is terribly wrong with the world and yearn and strive to do something about it. There is simply not enough yearning and striving going on."*<br />
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THIS is why I'm in Nicaragua.<br />
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*taken from the book <u>When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor...And Yourself</u> by Steve Corbett & Brian Fikkert, pg 28Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-26927183551515336552012-02-20T11:12:00.001-08:002012-02-20T11:13:50.008-08:00Schools in San Fernando and Las LimasI know a lot of people are interested in knowing more about the schools in Nicaragua, and while Tim McMahon and his wife were here, Tim and I had a chance to visit two rural schools with Martha as our guide. It was definitely an eye-opening experience for all of us...but I will let the pictures do the talking.<br />
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<i><b>Part 1: San Fernando</b></i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>The first school we visited was in San Fernando, a rural community to the south of El Sauce. This community received a well last year that was donated by a collaboration between Ciudad Hermana and El Porvenir, an NGO that does a lot of work especially building wells in poor rural communities. The school in San Fernando was built by World Vision and educates 72 students according to the sign out front: <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJVShdTuVulalnia7-W8VlYzCNE2LWaUkRKz5-m1W_0Th6vtnHfnGPOg30ykZ33UayuWD5S-3lrElyz8G2dHS4uSZ90rwktEJGpM0QH_C7sftMI3IFO2FPI9ejGTDEwcOF_dI9ni_hiT4/s1600/IMG_9287.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJVShdTuVulalnia7-W8VlYzCNE2LWaUkRKz5-m1W_0Th6vtnHfnGPOg30ykZ33UayuWD5S-3lrElyz8G2dHS4uSZ90rwktEJGpM0QH_C7sftMI3IFO2FPI9ejGTDEwcOF_dI9ni_hiT4/s320/IMG_9287.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside of the school in San Fernando</td></tr>
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There are three classrooms with minimal supplies. When we visited, school still wasn't in session, so the classrooms weren't cleaned or arranged yet, but these images still give a pretty good idea of how little the teachers and children at this school have:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6PsifxKmI85w5uxKbwDkVJWFI80EDAl_RkwpDekluEnDMucXo4xRbWWW2H3p9KgLpJEgl3hpvjHxIV_Xek-iQ28zzzGpjPGP8TA2IZRVBG7zHKJoLr_kBVf336xt6mIa6iRvmZCAS7T0/s1600/IMG_9289.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6PsifxKmI85w5uxKbwDkVJWFI80EDAl_RkwpDekluEnDMucXo4xRbWWW2H3p9KgLpJEgl3hpvjHxIV_Xek-iQ28zzzGpjPGP8TA2IZRVBG7zHKJoLr_kBVf336xt6mIa6iRvmZCAS7T0/s320/IMG_9289.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Classroom 1: old chalkboard, a couple posters, dirt floor, and wood desks, some of which are partly broken</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvXJWDTVVmC3BJX5V7AaUcnN2WX47WlFtTgMoS-XPCMBV-8jbsrggG7obFlqbM0H816M_DoDiJ-28E0PZKgTjGOc0ZwQ9odQKQw-WlTLgBoOkIOytS_b1vaHrGywHR5ZDO9xU12FLjYRs/s1600/IMG_9292.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvXJWDTVVmC3BJX5V7AaUcnN2WX47WlFtTgMoS-XPCMBV-8jbsrggG7obFlqbM0H816M_DoDiJ-28E0PZKgTjGOc0ZwQ9odQKQw-WlTLgBoOkIOytS_b1vaHrGywHR5ZDO9xU12FLjYRs/s320/IMG_9292.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Classroom 2: ceramic floor, old chalkboard, table and chairs, and wooden desks</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Classroom 2 other side: classroom decorations/projects</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26jbJ2fIuCBKRulhUqYu7XFkWv-tVBvy5rLPN5eh9M-GIjwY74Ghz-NvQc0od9WuWdVsPVaqowmCrCyWncAxh1Vr4_eFkZWC79SxihVI9w0YABU3e9b9i3Uanp9d3AOf8Z6cLwTz9s7U/s1600/IMG_9294.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26jbJ2fIuCBKRulhUqYu7XFkWv-tVBvy5rLPN5eh9M-GIjwY74Ghz-NvQc0od9WuWdVsPVaqowmCrCyWncAxh1Vr4_eFkZWC79SxihVI9w0YABU3e9b9i3Uanp9d3AOf8Z6cLwTz9s7U/s320/IMG_9294.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Classroom 3: ceramic floor, some desks, and a chalkboard with a poster about Nicaragua's independence</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUwWUirwTj7JKCVFSsFSV9tw0vlMaCiGi1JoqFV1tWA-AuKlqRK-xE6Bd0OyLkwo9WFcsXl09vtngFK66n2oTCExPG-WvBu-uwg6nWh5olbb1UOkwhnrsjMMkG_UViFCEOMlCVvpqpBtM/s1600/IMG_9295.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUwWUirwTj7JKCVFSsFSV9tw0vlMaCiGi1JoqFV1tWA-AuKlqRK-xE6Bd0OyLkwo9WFcsXl09vtngFK66n2oTCExPG-WvBu-uwg6nWh5olbb1UOkwhnrsjMMkG_UViFCEOMlCVvpqpBtM/s320/IMG_9295.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Classroom 3: whiteboard balanced on two chairs</td></tr>
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The bathrooms are outhouses put in by Word Vision. Keep in mind there are 72 children attending this school...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp6lQJX8VcYrX6Cx_ghUvHFocm3bmqN6vfpNx730ahYQAU_CUmf6lO0tNEpELbcN6h5sFZX6qyae9wBEgMW8o5KkpS6HPjBdZXfGA8krIfPCzNAyXX3boTeLB4urJrJTZuKwoxRqtxC-E/s1600/IMG_9291.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp6lQJX8VcYrX6Cx_ghUvHFocm3bmqN6vfpNx730ahYQAU_CUmf6lO0tNEpELbcN6h5sFZX6qyae9wBEgMW8o5KkpS6HPjBdZXfGA8krIfPCzNAyXX3boTeLB4urJrJTZuKwoxRqtxC-E/s320/IMG_9291.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Three outhouses for the 72 students, plus a few swings</td></tr>
</tbody></table>I think the part of this visit that most struck us was when we saw the preschool area. It is a makeshift area that we (meaning people from the US) wouldn't keep livestock in. And supposedly, their preschoolers are supposed to learn in here. Take a look at these pictures and think of your youngster, or a cousin, neighbor, or any child you know, and think how you would feel if that child had to attend school in these conditions:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT65e2iRtYi6Jk_3DGBcIxiGeLhw7I7tWunTeFXCRBU8PzDkg7LowYwO8RzmNQ4dNwPuLauJICE9aCh8WC-3jauY8KL0pItl4lz8keEeHc3j0DqzzEeh42SjAOwWCKL3GR8Ltyf6GNfz8/s1600/IMG_9297.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT65e2iRtYi6Jk_3DGBcIxiGeLhw7I7tWunTeFXCRBU8PzDkg7LowYwO8RzmNQ4dNwPuLauJICE9aCh8WC-3jauY8KL0pItl4lz8keEeHc3j0DqzzEeh42SjAOwWCKL3GR8Ltyf6GNfz8/s320/IMG_9297.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeZ8tLO4wbOQoVdLeZkqD9YVqj9Kw2Zhv2exDCGxCG2UMrBpfcW9vzxe7AeCtSYE-zOllVpAvxhKU_Ho2DppnVy1o3n0jTshUYNEOPLbgTtf-q2kl4-IpfXzP6AmATjrYEQtM1KHgnF4w/s1600/IMG_9300.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeZ8tLO4wbOQoVdLeZkqD9YVqj9Kw2Zhv2exDCGxCG2UMrBpfcW9vzxe7AeCtSYE-zOllVpAvxhKU_Ho2DppnVy1o3n0jTshUYNEOPLbgTtf-q2kl4-IpfXzP6AmATjrYEQtM1KHgnF4w/s320/IMG_9300.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfbCJ9vrDKbw1nSzSn6SFFoMx2bSbmxARpfxQUcfsSHDvufocZk0YoXXfU7KB0ONgVUDDNSopuXTGKsVofLyjeM0UPm-mzAGr3SgxZ6pz_r-aLdlT7coajyzA2dwGnxZohNFs9q23wdNM/s1600/IMG_9302.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfbCJ9vrDKbw1nSzSn6SFFoMx2bSbmxARpfxQUcfsSHDvufocZk0YoXXfU7KB0ONgVUDDNSopuXTGKsVofLyjeM0UPm-mzAGr3SgxZ6pz_r-aLdlT7coajyzA2dwGnxZohNFs9q23wdNM/s320/IMG_9302.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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Now, we're not 100% sure it is actually functioning as a preschool, it's just what Martha had heard. Martha and I are going to investigate this now that the school year has started. If there are children trying to learn in this area, we were thinking of ideas to start a project to clean it up and make it presentable for learning to take place. We want to talk to the community and see how the parents feel and if they would be interested in helping fix the area up so the children can have a dignified classroom. So, keep this school in your prayers in the meantime, and I will keep you updated on what we figure out and if we can do a project to help this school, because if so, we will need all the help we can get!<br />
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<i><b>Part 2: Las Limas</b></i><br />
Our second visit for the day was to a rural school called Las Limas, which is to the north of El Sauce (past the hospital, for those of you who know where the hospital is). This is another rural school that has a number of <i>estudiantes becados</i><b> </b>(children on scholarship) from one of the projects of Ciudad Hermana.<br />
<i><b> </b></i><br />
There is one teacher in this school, and he lives in El Sauce and rides his bike about 30 minutes over the extremely uneven and dusty road to get to the school. During rainy season, I'm sure his ride to school is another adventure that I can't even imagine right now! This school is a primary school, meaning it offers 1st through 6th grade. Remember, though, that there is only one teacher for all of the children. There are about 25 children in 1st-6th grade here, plus a few in preschool.<br />
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Since this is a rural school, and the children have to travel long distances to get to and from school, attendance becomes a major problem during the rainy season. Some children literally can't go to school because they would have to cross a river if it's a very rainy year. As a result, generally only 1-3 children complete 6th grade in this school. Really puts things into perspective, no?<br />
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Following are some pictures of the school, surroundings, and classroom.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQUCwQpbv1XypegAbbxDPpCMv_d6m8u5N6823Trw7qXID-epOKLaOgWkHHqom9kOD4dwlDFdn6emQJfjVDSvO-tof6ObQmllul7rgc63GXNtED_hgIqEzKb4yOQUjq0IEKnAjbjS24So/s1600/101_6852.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQUCwQpbv1XypegAbbxDPpCMv_d6m8u5N6823Trw7qXID-epOKLaOgWkHHqom9kOD4dwlDFdn6emQJfjVDSvO-tof6ObQmllul7rgc63GXNtED_hgIqEzKb4yOQUjq0IEKnAjbjS24So/s320/101_6852.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tim McMahon, Martha, and I outside the school building. Blue and white are the national colors, and a lot of schools are painted like this.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One outhouse for the 25-30 children. Apparently the boys find another place to do their business if this one is occupied...</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the classroom from the back. Just enough room for all the desks, the teacher's desk, and the chalkboard!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiQg9HgvuYU4Ee_bWGZ0B10ml4sAflqO0a1v9BWpmCZDYqk4uJMXVauhq1ZKgBTFx2Grkn72xvX7reFZQA4fTZmw-KHxAqqlRNUUUlxC6QXTe8O7TwqWLT4OB1Pue1k9NOHmiPRHTV6oQ/s1600/IMG_9310.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiQg9HgvuYU4Ee_bWGZ0B10ml4sAflqO0a1v9BWpmCZDYqk4uJMXVauhq1ZKgBTFx2Grkn72xvX7reFZQA4fTZmw-KHxAqqlRNUUUlxC6QXTe8O7TwqWLT4OB1Pue1k9NOHmiPRHTV6oQ/s320/IMG_9310.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martha sitting in one of the desks. You can also see some of the posters from class projects.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMMJEk-3TAeftaheN1BGe-GpaeCw5Dplu22UA0Xk8N6kAYX43NYHOUJQOBFsOSHizZfZJy0bdLFFKzhGmibqvh_sgjVXBVPxcatC5S3xx0q7hL_Y4Bj4hGU86GN2ASeT8PwmbYyg3lCmM/s1600/IMG_9311.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMMJEk-3TAeftaheN1BGe-GpaeCw5Dplu22UA0Xk8N6kAYX43NYHOUJQOBFsOSHizZfZJy0bdLFFKzhGmibqvh_sgjVXBVPxcatC5S3xx0q7hL_Y4Bj4hGU86GN2ASeT8PwmbYyg3lCmM/s320/IMG_9311.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bookcase holding the workbooks that the children use. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie7XN9UuHZi45Xd6lp0BqXkHLg13XOkGRDEX_FNsVThxMoxsq-d71L6zfFHR-TDM26Juyi-_3cwbXIiF22DYeVg3JxgdnYW-6vQ94-a236PVmEB5Z8n-vfTSFb_Fx_abk2A5i-h90I1vs/s1600/IMG_9313.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie7XN9UuHZi45Xd6lp0BqXkHLg13XOkGRDEX_FNsVThxMoxsq-d71L6zfFHR-TDM26Juyi-_3cwbXIiF22DYeVg3JxgdnYW-6vQ94-a236PVmEB5Z8n-vfTSFb_Fx_abk2A5i-h90I1vs/s320/IMG_9313.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Teacher's desk! In the background, you can see a poster of the children on scholarship, though I think it needs updating.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFAY-uzg6VRwyL295prFTMmwqDmOXk7J9QKMnkk9Pj96GFKsDg5MIcm3A_7A41UUAsHYeE6vRS6zTyyRlz7369BYz3iM9-16P8gXF0RQGjydp_PIJpozXLijzwQm5aSMZsALBSAyU8iec/s1600/IMG_9315.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFAY-uzg6VRwyL295prFTMmwqDmOXk7J9QKMnkk9Pj96GFKsDg5MIcm3A_7A41UUAsHYeE6vRS6zTyyRlz7369BYz3iM9-16P8gXF0RQGjydp_PIJpozXLijzwQm5aSMZsALBSAyU8iec/s320/IMG_9315.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Botiquin</i>, or medicine cabinet. Teacher = school nurse as well...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ryv8bJEl5oxquibGc-pbjIRlNHch_ZZ2io9o_cU15eilmvY4PL3ihZDgYwWI2p7eHrulFr-MynziyfytMBJZMES2cCa1Sqw_WAuRJVyIZO-H_AMmBwjjH3H4VrBHHSeR7N-luebA75M/s1600/IMG_9316.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-ryv8bJEl5oxquibGc-pbjIRlNHch_ZZ2io9o_cU15eilmvY4PL3ihZDgYwWI2p7eHrulFr-MynziyfytMBJZMES2cCa1Sqw_WAuRJVyIZO-H_AMmBwjjH3H4VrBHHSeR7N-luebA75M/s320/IMG_9316.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Teacher's chair. All of you teachers out there, go give your chair a big hug and thank your principal for taking good care of you!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmwf6l2kK4X6sGVxuh54uxGUdT59nsJbP6DV_vS8W6iGpOplUygJ_XfiqELFrR2ouTh4zVLpHbZApzc2BN8dBVUsw0TS902DR9BDnXhtk1hSu0PCRlKXN_tVD5bcGPW3BCW5mbHU601pA/s1600/IMG_9317.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmwf6l2kK4X6sGVxuh54uxGUdT59nsJbP6DV_vS8W6iGpOplUygJ_XfiqELFrR2ouTh4zVLpHbZApzc2BN8dBVUsw0TS902DR9BDnXhtk1hSu0PCRlKXN_tVD5bcGPW3BCW5mbHU601pA/s320/IMG_9317.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Class schedule</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOphZd4MClYx0VIKwQaZRJ89pHbglxgCre-rNHloUPqY9rVyI3PHvqV3VGrzOA2FxmQ0u21kev1aM79KVf4NKwnyDwOMKbmMzyEhxLhKFd9n1JUvRYmoOrf5My_eZvWy5epH_t5lwNEPo/s1600/IMG_9321.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOphZd4MClYx0VIKwQaZRJ89pHbglxgCre-rNHloUPqY9rVyI3PHvqV3VGrzOA2FxmQ0u21kev1aM79KVf4NKwnyDwOMKbmMzyEhxLhKFd9n1JUvRYmoOrf5My_eZvWy5epH_t5lwNEPo/s320/IMG_9321.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poster that shows attendance, food rations (the gov't provides some rice, beans, and cereal to the children), and classroom jobs.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEEBI95mEDi2DQDDCJlk8z3gfqkp7AFNHsxz_AIdLL8P86atWR66PE3RBbx8CKx5zD-46xtnjJFnxckFu4sY3QUdIZfcXuzxhILhtfBSZoIof04ScDoCsf4vCSKicbo06hyPs9vql7BCU/s1600/IMG_9319.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEEBI95mEDi2DQDDCJlk8z3gfqkp7AFNHsxz_AIdLL8P86atWR66PE3RBbx8CKx5zD-46xtnjJFnxckFu4sY3QUdIZfcXuzxhILhtfBSZoIof04ScDoCsf4vCSKicbo06hyPs9vql7BCU/s320/IMG_9319.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martha, Tim, and I in the school/classroom</td></tr>
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Now, keep in mind this is an example of some of the rural schools here in Nicaragua. The schools in El Sauce proper have more resources, but what you see in these pictures is a reality for thousands of schoolchildren in Nicaragua.<br />
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To all of the teachers reading this blog, share this with your students and talk with them about the struggles other children have to overcome to get to school and to get an education. To all the students reading this, think about this next time you are about to complain about doing homework or having to get up early for school. Be thankful that you have a bus to pick you up or parents to drop you off, and that you don't have to walk or bike to school over rough terrain or through rivers to get to school. Be thankful that you have computers and SMARTBoards and don't have to copy lessons from the chalkboard. Think about the obstacles children in other areas have to overcome to get an education, and how much they <i>appreciate</i> the opportunity to get an education, because they know it's their only way out of poverty. Pray that they do indeed realize that getting an education is their only way to overcome the cycle of poverty, and that their teachers wouldn't give up hope for their students and the incredibly important job they have to equip the next generation.<br />
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If you're really motivated or moved by this, think about how you can help children in another area, whether in Nicaragua or elsewhere. There are plenty of schools that are seriously lacking in funding, teachers, materials, you name it. I know that the Hilton School District in Hilton, New York is already developing a number of projects to help the schools and community in El Sauce, and I'm eternally grateful for that. Keep up the good work, and please please please let me know what I can do to help your projects be successful while I'm here in El Sauce.<br />
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It is really encouraging to see all of the people who are willing to give of their time and money to help others, and I have hope that eventually, if we all work together, every child will have all of their basic needs met, including getting a good education. Just remember, nobody can do everything, but everyone can do <i>something</i>, and every penny, every pencil, every prayer helps. Don't wait for other people to do something, because what if that other person is waiting for <i>you</i> to do something? Think what YOU can do right now, and do it! A child, parent, teacher, student somewhere will thank you from the bottom of their heart. And you will never be the same.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-44368673817870041712012-02-13T07:27:00.000-08:002012-02-13T07:27:06.303-08:00Ciudad Hermana/Hilton Donation Stage 1: Collecting and Packing DonationsOne of the projects that Ciudad Hermana (the Sister City program between Rochester NY and El Sauce, Nicaragua) is working on is sending a large donation of school supplies, used clothing, and supplies for the hospital to benefit the community of El Sauce. They will be sending the donations on a cargo ship bound for Managua, which will be then sent on truck to El Sauce after going through customs. Then, Martha and I will have the pleasure of opening all the boxes, sorting the donations, and distributing them to the schools, children, and people most in need in this area. It should be quite the interesting experience!<br />
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As the title of this post suggests, the first stage in this process of course was to get the donations. Ciudad Hermana members and friends collected many supplies to donate for this shipment, but they weren't the only ones to get in on the fun! Back in October, Martha, the employee for Ciudad Hermana that runs all the programs here in El Sauce, visited Rochester to spread the word about the program and see if more people would like to be involved in some way. One of the schools she presented at was Hilton High School, and the students and principal were so impressed by Martha and the program that they wanted to get involved.<br />
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One of the ideas they came up with was to run a school supplies drive to donate send on the shipment. From what I understand, the International Baccalaureate (IB) students were in charge of organizing this drive, gathering all of the donations, organizing them, creating a master list of everything, and packing the boxes. It sounds like they put a lot of work and time into this, and we are incredibly grateful for all of the efforts of the students, Mr. Bartalo (this principal), and everyone who donated!<br />
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Mr. Bartalo and Tim McMahon shared some pictures of the IB students organizing and packing all of the supplies, and I want to share them with all of you so you feel part of this process! My plan is to take pictures of the whole process...receiving the donation, unpacking everything, and distributing it so you can all see who has benefited from the donations!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi47vbPNgGfuCAVoRcPrBlG6fsvEO_HhNI_r59SMHI1LQ7MVLcCUsXlOIwzyV7R6S5TxOKBazhvB6nI5deFLeTMZIJMe1ORyIJBNY6ZvbcPJI-u9HHXUoGYRjPNKAhRqdzM9NdwfdohhL0/s1600/2012-01-12_08-10-43_79.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi47vbPNgGfuCAVoRcPrBlG6fsvEO_HhNI_r59SMHI1LQ7MVLcCUsXlOIwzyV7R6S5TxOKBazhvB6nI5deFLeTMZIJMe1ORyIJBNY6ZvbcPJI-u9HHXUoGYRjPNKAhRqdzM9NdwfdohhL0/s320/2012-01-12_08-10-43_79.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Tons of school supplies!!!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitk9CWaiPWxp-A9WJkhyphenhyphenu83yXmuJkoAisPnGPgXnLqbrf3R1MQUu_tZGsFo2qCcy0vZCvejeODvFCQ7HE9kmGusOpzaSiDg2CftdqMU4yrNXbPkQ3xtjY_kd9t8ixANIY3G4tNLsmdfhc/s1600/2012-01-12_13-47-18_84.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitk9CWaiPWxp-A9WJkhyphenhyphenu83yXmuJkoAisPnGPgXnLqbrf3R1MQUu_tZGsFo2qCcy0vZCvejeODvFCQ7HE9kmGusOpzaSiDg2CftdqMU4yrNXbPkQ3xtjY_kd9t8ixANIY3G4tNLsmdfhc/s320/2012-01-12_13-47-18_84.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Hilton HS IB student helping organize the donations</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPPjEHc2li6qP7b3HDpnZs0kO9_nY92PCVyL67reW2pslxI-2dcmVnrEcJLQB_8mGvksGVK0etDA0ihGKdmvoWkMZ6pIFh_OIX-AsEVnt_kYyZVk1ccd2DG1vAU9WZpz5dUh1Mu2liKmk/s1600/2012-01-12_13-47-39_239.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPPjEHc2li6qP7b3HDpnZs0kO9_nY92PCVyL67reW2pslxI-2dcmVnrEcJLQB_8mGvksGVK0etDA0ihGKdmvoWkMZ6pIFh_OIX-AsEVnt_kYyZVk1ccd2DG1vAU9WZpz5dUh1Mu2liKmk/s320/2012-01-12_13-47-39_239.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSFq8vJxpVFaIxLDxKbBXOuF2WmTK-N54itpjbHarz5FpMPWx-YQdHo5YJLOWWQoW1mFoMhmUefO-5vERCl59yBDb1VY1-6Q8cr5LCEYfryLWGXv16v3XhgYQqVJ0wX5SwMtQYOg1NJOs/s1600/2012-01-12_13-47-53_85.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSFq8vJxpVFaIxLDxKbBXOuF2WmTK-N54itpjbHarz5FpMPWx-YQdHo5YJLOWWQoW1mFoMhmUefO-5vERCl59yBDb1VY1-6Q8cr5LCEYfryLWGXv16v3XhgYQqVJ0wX5SwMtQYOg1NJOs/s320/2012-01-12_13-47-53_85.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7W9PP6ImJvoN3vJdEUzklaMsHgNLzIAeLNy57_HtabdZtXMZZ3P6xvORgnUs8YWODWAgJooxL6Z-sdvmjTjUvpikUPYi3JV9dT-7yLmwVgIqAg7nKTG6vbliD-dxYLUt06Tx6TmOwkBE/s1600/2012-01-12_13-48-17_890.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7W9PP6ImJvoN3vJdEUzklaMsHgNLzIAeLNy57_HtabdZtXMZZ3P6xvORgnUs8YWODWAgJooxL6Z-sdvmjTjUvpikUPYi3JV9dT-7yLmwVgIqAg7nKTG6vbliD-dxYLUt06Tx6TmOwkBE/s320/2012-01-12_13-48-17_890.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvHQeJOu6T2yTXRlIHKpdtqkcm7kOJj_kHG46Z7Qm7H9K7qWH_-Nqv7CSH0PbVICaZCwjsFw6JP9MlR5PpXNIszm6P4PkraTeCJ49Xv1jaRjR0JH66VFgzBkfk1H7zXuRp738FrdEtXMs/s1600/101_6222.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvHQeJOu6T2yTXRlIHKpdtqkcm7kOJj_kHG46Z7Qm7H9K7qWH_-Nqv7CSH0PbVICaZCwjsFw6JP9MlR5PpXNIszm6P4PkraTeCJ49Xv1jaRjR0JH66VFgzBkfk1H7zXuRp738FrdEtXMs/s320/101_6222.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Mr. Bartalo with the packed boxes</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBcTCrB6_aa0dHmHY_SIx7WPqLTIRt-p8ljW9HWgBdV5bSg3zik598VfvgJRRYK7vRbEM-Bz1P9rwo-DGdaqdW05sx2SpBB6bnWZkCln-ZSS8WJcFBaEVOkU-vx0QqTf87Ycv92mwCEAE/s1600/101_6224.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBcTCrB6_aa0dHmHY_SIx7WPqLTIRt-p8ljW9HWgBdV5bSg3zik598VfvgJRRYK7vRbEM-Bz1P9rwo-DGdaqdW05sx2SpBB6bnWZkCln-ZSS8WJcFBaEVOkU-vx0QqTf87Ycv92mwCEAE/s320/101_6224.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">IB Students: Emma Steinmetz, Jessica Marengo, Katie Wroblewski, Mark Romig, and Nadia Wallace</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaJXtCCmTibXourGQkCphTJTJOJ2u3C__xlhARbjt5PQdXEIyb5DVb8BscOVywterca6HBL7dzVZKRQ5Es9AsojEHb6NWvjLdvTMwyxX3RBT27HIvsZK0FkMw5zf1EjwIHjKDIqqiHc5A/s1600/101_6227.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaJXtCCmTibXourGQkCphTJTJOJ2u3C__xlhARbjt5PQdXEIyb5DVb8BscOVywterca6HBL7dzVZKRQ5Es9AsojEHb6NWvjLdvTMwyxX3RBT27HIvsZK0FkMw5zf1EjwIHjKDIqqiHc5A/s320/101_6227.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mr. Bartalo, HS IB students, and Tim McMahon, member of Ciudad Hermana</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdH7UXDpttLEr0pcZewwxaHWVUytwb6p3W6Q5-qvTDqUIjMyuUZSVyWHoTdmI98IFbaf6X_syXYpL41CW4a3oHZ128jHGL_WNJcw6V3ivksoeFIjmUNfLbay1ffNaCUbX6RMWiuudmVEw/s1600/101_6229.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdH7UXDpttLEr0pcZewwxaHWVUytwb6p3W6Q5-qvTDqUIjMyuUZSVyWHoTdmI98IFbaf6X_syXYpL41CW4a3oHZ128jHGL_WNJcw6V3ivksoeFIjmUNfLbay1ffNaCUbX6RMWiuudmVEw/s320/101_6229.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tim's car packed with school supplies donations!</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Thank you so much to everyone who participated in this! I will keep you posted as the process develops!Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-51679608606212352812012-02-08T09:56:00.000-08:002012-02-08T09:56:36.847-08:00Sad Days in El Sauce<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="MsoNormal">I have some sad news to share with all of you; I have debated whether or not to share this with everyone since I want this blog to be positive and uplifting, but I think it’s important for all of you to know about some recent events that have deeply affected El Sauce. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">A couple of weeks ago, the mayor’s 17 year old son, Alejandro, was in a very serious motorcycle accident along with one of his friends. The friend escaped with minor injuries, and from what I understand is doing well. Alejandro unfortunately had very serious injuries and was immediately taken to the military hospital in Managua to be treated. He had major cranial injuries, and the doctors said pretty much from the beginning that there was nothing they could do because of the severity of his injuries. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">On Sunday, January 29, Alejandro passed away in the evening. As you can imagine, last week was a very sad week for El Sauce. It’s always hard to lose young lives, and I think this town was hit very hard by this tragedy because Alejandro was so well known and loved, and because his mom is such a prominent figure in town. I can’t imagine what Rosita (Alejandro’s mom , and the mayor) and her family are feeling right now. My heart goes out to them as they try to make sense of this tragedy and go on with their lives without such an important person to experience everything with them. The town has rallied around them and supported Alejandro’s family as best as it can, though I’m sure the pain the family and friends are feeling are beyond description and comprehension. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Last week, they had services in the cathedral in El Sauce every evening for three days after his death, which was a beautiful way to commemorate his young life. On Monday afternoon, they had a memorial service in the cathedral which was packed with family, friends, and Sauceños supporting the family. After the service, nearly the entire town followed the procession on foot from the cathedral to the cemetery. It was a very powerful experience to see so many people there to support the family of Alejandro; literally all you could see was crowds of people either walking in the procession or lining the streets watching all of us who were walking to the cemetery to pay our respects. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">In addition to all of this pain and suffering, one of my friends from El Sauce (Teresa, the librarian from San Luis Gonzaga – the school where I’ve been teaching English) has been doubly hit by this tragedy. First, her nephew was the friend on the motorcycle with Alejandro. Plus, her teenage daughter was Alejandro’s girlfriend, and was understandably devastated by the accident. The day before Alejandro’s death, her daughter tried to take her own life and ended up in the hospital in Leon. I was able to see Teresa at Alejandro’s funeral service, and she looked absolutely devastated. From what I understand, her daughter is still not in good shape. Not only did the pills she consumed take a toll on her body, but she also is under supervision by a psychiatrist, and they are very worried about her safety both physically and mentally.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Part of my reason for writing this post is to ask all of you to keep Alejandro’s and Teresa’s families in your prayers. My heart is breaking for all of the people affected by this tragedy, and I know that they are in desperate need of being surrounded by prayer. I can’t imagine the pain Rosita and her family are feeling having their son taken from them so abruptly. I worry about my friend Teresa and pray that she can find strength to be there for her daughter as they go through the healing process that I’m sure will seem endless to them. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I would sincerely appreciate if all of you would join me in praying for this situation and these people so that they would feel God’s love and support and know that they are not alone, and that when the time is right, they might begin to make some sense of everything that has happened. Pray for them to lean on God and their friends and family and for all of us to become a support system for those who are suffering so that together we may overcome this obstacle. From the bottom of my heart, thank you!</div>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-26084812429383248792012-01-25T19:30:00.000-08:002012-01-25T19:30:55.477-08:00Nicaraguan Treats<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="MsoNormal">One of the things I love about Nicaragua is that there are all kinds of treats you can buy super cheap as a snack. People prepare them and walk around the streets shouting out what they have on a daily basis. A lot of the women balance large plastic buckets full of their goods on their heads, and I’m always amazed that they don’t drop everything since it’s balanced there on a rolled up towel and not strapped down or anything! </div><div class="MsoNormal">A lot of the treats you can get are cold, which is definitely a welcome break from the heat. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">One of the most popular is called “raspado”, and is shaved ice with flavoring on it – most often either dulce de leche or a fruity flavor. The raspado vendor has a brightly painted cart with huge hunks of ice inside, a scraper, and the flavorings in glass bottles on the top of the cart. They push the cart around ringing a bell, and at certain times of the day, people flock around the cart for their treat. Here are some pictures of my most recent raspado experience:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj68ZM2bdyJY6p-MrxQfH7IJveZsld9ioJ9pBeGNLvxe9LDZkr0gGd2jqxrNwBN79nsSCLEyyDVxtkPYEC_wcYbkQ7xWKas_dBFkUXW2NXU3vQMF4IbG71JkSNEv6mArEthVQud_NRY-oU/s1600/IMG_9004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIVpfSxSFl4SJtto5JE68LAVjFyBSsaRLAl1hyQ8__hqbfj5T16oA6kQqsjOVgKEGGhDMea3UjwBAeYbC8N6qi6ibeAHdhliwLh4Mo5mjHRHx6MSRcjmoPxJx0EAXw1QEfdOgnuVlAdBQ/s1600/IMG_9007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIVpfSxSFl4SJtto5JE68LAVjFyBSsaRLAl1hyQ8__hqbfj5T16oA6kQqsjOVgKEGGhDMea3UjwBAeYbC8N6qi6ibeAHdhliwLh4Mo5mjHRHx6MSRcjmoPxJx0EAXw1QEfdOgnuVlAdBQ/s320/IMG_9007.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"> Step 1: Scraping the ice with a special tool that collects it so he can put it in a bowl.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFMjBHSEoFgz787OSa24MkSBF3rYv-xL327cTvnXV5keh2nuN5l1W4xcI8dXwNgiPZv_lWaG7xWt-UqY7LwYbVQULlz6_7EzwBVe9QtDmhEPHpgnXkQYDy_Rbdyld4aLF_JH5dRSUheHc/s1600/IMG_9002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFMjBHSEoFgz787OSa24MkSBF3rYv-xL327cTvnXV5keh2nuN5l1W4xcI8dXwNgiPZv_lWaG7xWt-UqY7LwYbVQULlz6_7EzwBVe9QtDmhEPHpgnXkQYDy_Rbdyld4aLF_JH5dRSUheHc/s320/IMG_9002.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"> Step 2: Pouring on flavoring. This one already has dulce de lecha, and he's adding a fruit flavoring - "combinado" because it has two flavors</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj68ZM2bdyJY6p-MrxQfH7IJveZsld9ioJ9pBeGNLvxe9LDZkr0gGd2jqxrNwBN79nsSCLEyyDVxtkPYEC_wcYbkQ7xWKas_dBFkUXW2NXU3vQMF4IbG71JkSNEv6mArEthVQud_NRY-oU/s1600/IMG_9004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj68ZM2bdyJY6p-MrxQfH7IJveZsld9ioJ9pBeGNLvxe9LDZkr0gGd2jqxrNwBN79nsSCLEyyDVxtkPYEC_wcYbkQ7xWKas_dBFkUXW2NXU3vQMF4IbG71JkSNEv6mArEthVQud_NRY-oU/s320/IMG_9004.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Gabriela enjoying her raspado, or as she says, "zaspado" because she can't quite pronounce the rolled r yet!<br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Another cold, refreshing treat is called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">posicle</i> and is pretty much ice cream in a bag. A lot of drinks and little treats here come in plastic bags, and to eat it, you bite of the corner and drink or suck your treat through the hole. I’ve only had posicle once, but it was absolutely delicious and so refreshing! The one we had was chocolate flavored, and I actually don’t know if it comes in other flavors...I will have to investigate that! The one downside to having the ice cream in a bag is that your hand pretty much freezes off as you are eating, and you have to juggle your treat back and forth as each hand thaws enough to endure a bit more freezing. It’s SO worth it.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Fresco is probably the most popular cool drink (other than Coca Cola…), and it’s so refreshing (I feel like a broken record, but it’s so true!). Fresco is a fruit drink that is made of various types of fruit, depending on what’s in season. I've had pineapple juice, orange and carrot (that combination is super popular), watermelon with other fruits, and a mixture of a bunch of different fruits. To make it, they squeeze out the fruit juice, add some sugar and water, and you’ve got your drink! Doña Matilde (the mother of the family I’m staying with) makes me fresco every morning for breakfast, and I often have it for lunch as well. She blends the fruit, but it’s still just like drinking a glass of juice, only much fresher.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Finally, there is a treat I have yet to try called <i>quesillo</i>. The women who sell it carry the ingredients in a plastic tub on their head and walk around shouting "quesillooooooooooo" with an extra elongated "o" on the end. Quesillo is kind of like a burrito - they take a corn tortilla and put a hunk of quesillo in it (a type of cheese), then add sour cream and pickled onions and put the whole thing into a plastic bag (since it would otherwise leak out everywhere and cause a huge mess). As with the posicle, you then bite a hole into one corner and eat it through the hole. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">So, there you have a few Nicaraguan specialties! I'm sure I will discover more and will share them with you!</div>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-70441601988191713742012-01-25T19:02:00.000-08:002012-01-25T19:32:29.911-08:00COMIDA!<div class="MsoNormal">This post is thanks to a request from Kelly Manza's Spanish classes at Merton Williams Middle School. Thanks for the idea! Feel free to comment and ask for clarification or more detail about anything I missed!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">First of all, Nicaraguan food is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">delicious</i>. There’s not nearly as much variety as we’re used to in the United States, though, and a lot of it is quite heavy on the stomach. Meal times are pretty much the same as in the US – I eat breakfast at about 7:15 before going to school, then lunch is sometime between 12 and 1, and dinner is usually about 6pm. A lot of my students eat snacks at about 10am, and I’m told that teachers generally do as well, but I haven’t very often since I’m still so full from breakfast! </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It’s not uncommon to get something else to eat, often from the street, in the evening (or really at any point in the day!). The thing is, there’s a lot of easy access to food here since there are so many people walking around carrying food to sell, or pushing carts of food, or with food stands set up in front of their homes. Walking around presents you with infinite possibilities for picking up a little of this and a bit of that at pretty much any time of the day.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">One of the most typical Nicaraguan foods is called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">gallo pinto</i>, and we pretty much eat it breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Ok, maybe not for all three meals every day, but it’s not uncommon to have it twice a day. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Gallo pinto </i>is rice and beans cooked together – and if the rice and beans are cooked and served separately on your plate, it’s just rice and beans. The beans are different from what we’re used to, also – they’re red in color, and all Nicaraguans will tell you that they are MUCH better than the black beans we eat. One of the projects I did with my students was having them make menus in English when we learned food vocabulary, and one of the groups decided to split their menu into breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I found it very interesting to note what they listed for each meal, particularly that they listed “rice and beans” as the first choice for breakfast. I almost corrected them, then I remembered I’m in Nicaragua, not the US, and they were absolutely correct to list rice and beans as a breakfast choice!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">In addition to the given rice and beans/gallo pinto, many meals come with homemade corn tortillas. Corn is another staple here, so you’d be hard pressed to find flour tortillas, but the corn ones are quite abundant! Some people make their own tortillas, while others buy them – but always buy hand-made tortillas. The thing is, some people have a side business of preparing some sort of food, and everyone in the community somehow just knows who prepares what. So, when you need a few tortillas or a bowl of beans for dinner, you just pop over to that person’s house, ask “hay tortillas” (are there tortillas) or “hay frijoles” (are there beans today?), then buy however much you need. I find it so fascinating! </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Martha told me that often, she will see if there’s anything in the fridge for dinner, and if not, or if there isn’t enough for the whole family, she will go over to this woman’s house to get some tortillas and beans if they’re available, or over to the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pulperia</i> (basically a convenience store found literally everywhere in Nicaragua) and see if they have eggs or <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">mortadela</i> (like a sausage or bologna type meat) and get whatever she needs to make dinner. It’s such a different way of life, and I’m really enjoying learning more about it! </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Another super common food here is called <i>cuajada</i> and is Nicaraguan cheese. They eat it every single day, though I haven't had it much because I'm not much of a cheese person. Cuajada is quite salty, but I do have to admit is better than American cheese. I don't think Nicaraguans would survive if there weren't cuajada. One of the women I know (she's one of the daughters of my host mom) has a son who loves cuajada so much that, in order to get him to eat, has him eat a bite of food, then a bite of cuajada.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">We also eat a lot of meat here – and on a few occasions, I’ve had meat at both lunch and dinner. The meat is a lot fresher, though; often, I will see a cart with two <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">bueyes</i> (special cattle that we don’t have in the US), and Martha will tell me “van al matador” – they’re going to be butchered. There are tons of essentially free-range chickens here as well, and people either prepare their own chickens, or they go to a meat store that has live chickens there that are prepared for you. There isn’t a single supermarket in El Sauce (there are in big cities, but don’t even think about looking for one around here!), so people have to either prepare their own or go to the little specialty shops to get what they need. The most common types of meat are chicken and beef, and they are mostly prepared either fried or grilled. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">While ovens “exist” in Nicaragua, they are never used – I’m not even sure they work. You either cook on the stove part, or on an open flame that is kind of like a grill except bigger and runs on firewood. Martha actually told me a funny story from when she was in Rochester and enjoying a lovely fire with people from Ciudad Hermana – apparently, she asked what they were going to cook on the fire, and all of the Rochestarians laughed at the question, thinking she was joking. But really, it made absolutely no sense to her to have such a beautiful fire and NOT cook something. All of our meat here is cooked on the fire, so of course she would think that if they lit a fire, it was to prepare some food.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Luckily, in addition to all the rice and beans, meat, tortillas and more rice and beans, there is a lot of fresh fruit here – one of the benefits of living in a tropical climate where some sort of fruit and vegetable can grow at any given point in the year. Again, as there are no supermarkets to go pick up a bag of apples, people go to fruit and vegetable stands. On the stands, the fruit is sitting out on the table, and you ask how much it is then buy whatever you need – nothing comes prepackaged. It’s actually quite interesting, and you know it’s all fresh. If anyone has been to Nicaragua before, they know how delicious the fruit is – especially the pineapple! I could honestly eat it every day. Look for another post soon about the different types of fruits and vegetables – there are so many new ones that I’ve tried here, and they are absolutely delicious!!!</div>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-71434413062192713002012-01-25T18:53:00.000-08:002012-01-25T18:53:56.616-08:00Nica Time Part 2<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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</style> <![endif]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To continue from my previous post, another thing I have noticed about Nica time is their time for sleeping and waking. Now, if you know me, you know I go to sleep late. Really late. And that I don’t like to get up early. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, believe it or not, I don’t need an alarm here, not even to wake up at 6am! The thing is, basically the entire town goes to bed at about 10:30 at night – everything ends earlier, and people just go to bed. It’s not like they all have the internet or videogames or whatever it is that eats up our evening hours. And it’s a good thing, too, because all of the two and four legged creatures wake up at about 5 or 5:30 and start clucking and cock-a-doddle-doing and barking! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">My first two to two and a half weeks here were right in the middle of the fiestas patronales in El Sauce, so it was even crazier in terms of noise. They have this thing called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">novenas</i>, when people go to church up to three times a day. The first services starts at 5am, and before each service, they ring bells and set off<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> bombas y cohetes</i> (firecracker like things that make LOTS of noise). So during those two weeks, I was woken up starting at 4:30 when those wonderful bombas started going off. But the funny thing is, because I’ve gone to bed at 10:30, I’m not really annoyed by it. I get maybe another hour and a half of sleep, then I’m up and ready for the day, no alarm necessary! Well, actually that’s a lie. The animals serve as my alarm. But who’s counting anyway?!</span>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-20614899696312575742012-01-25T18:51:00.000-08:002012-01-25T18:51:18.894-08:00Nica Time<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="MsoNormal">If you know anyone who has been to pretty much any Central or South American country, you’ve probably heard about Latin American time. They’ll tell you “vamos ahorita” (we’re going right now)…and 2 hours later you’re wondering if they’re almost ready. Or they say the fiesta starts at 6, but people wouldn’t even think of arriving before 6:30 at the earliest. Well, it’s the same here in Nicaragua. And I have to confess that it’s actually really nice. I didn’t think I’d be saying that so soon into my experience here considering how ingrained the American go-go-go attitude is (though I do have to confess that I’m generally late by at least 5 minutes for everything…) And the funny thing is, some of the people from the 4 Walls group have even commented about how quickly I’ve adjusted to Nica time and how I seem so relaxed and just “go-with-the-flow”. Martha even mentioned to me that I've started walking slower (and I normally have the pace of a cheetah) and she's noticed that I seem to have become accustomed to Nica time - now she can maintain a comfortable conversation with me as we walk around doing <i>mandados</i> (errands)!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The thing is, the pace of life here is so much more relaxed. You don’t see people always in a hurry, constantly stressed out and letting life pass them by. Here, people take the time to talk with you, ask how you’re doing, and make you feel like you’re worth their time and not like they have an agenda to follow. It’s amazing how quickly the time slips by as you’re conversing with someone during a meal, or sitting out on the porch by the road in the evening, or walking down the street. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s so refreshing, and I think we “Americans” (though technically they’re Americans too!) have much to learn from them. I mean, seriously, why are we in such a hurry to get through life? We always say (and I include myself in this!) “oh, it’ll be great when I graduate from HS and can go to college”, or “college will be the best time of my life”, or “my life will be better when I get a job/married/have kids”…you get the idea. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Here, people live in the moment. Now, I know it’s partly because of their life situation – living in a developing country essentially forces them to live for today, because that’s all many of them can feasibly think about. But really, it’s a beautiful thing to see people who are grateful for another day and excited to see what the new day brings. When you ask people what they’re going to do this weekend or at any point in the future, they always follow their response with “si Dios quiere”, and when you ask how they are or how their weekend was, they always tack “gracias a Dios” on to the end, which is another beautiful thing to me. It just seems like they are so much more aware of all of the blessings God gives us <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">every day</i>, and they are so thankful for what they have, even if it’s much less than what you or I might be “happy” with. It just gives you something to think about, no? </div>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-69990746154243043862012-01-15T14:48:00.000-08:002012-01-15T14:48:17.857-08:004 Walls - work and fun!As promised, here are some more fotos from the amazing 4 Walls group! They left yesterday to spend a day in Leon and a few days at the beach, and are definitely missed here in El Sauce! The families are incredibly grateful for the humble houses of which they are now owners. It definitely puts things into perspective and makes all this hard work the volunteers have contributed worthwhile. Bonnie received the most beautiful letter of thanks from Alejandra, the mother of the family. It put us all in tears!<br />
<br />
Without further ado, here are the images!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxZL75h3sT5dbe-a1olZIRs1j44t-7vBGRyVITHYvku0N-B8X-hLM9oVihYE8EyR0VsutwIEqR9cbllgta5hHlt9n0hgvxer5q9H_CUMkuxqpRDqjsp9iYMC9ChOxBRr4tChAONdYYhVU/s1600/IMG_8702.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxZL75h3sT5dbe-a1olZIRs1j44t-7vBGRyVITHYvku0N-B8X-hLM9oVihYE8EyR0VsutwIEqR9cbllgta5hHlt9n0hgvxer5q9H_CUMkuxqpRDqjsp9iYMC9ChOxBRr4tChAONdYYhVU/s320/IMG_8702.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> The whole group at one of our cenas. We even had musical entertainment! Traditional Nica music!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWSXaxRlMkhmGGkFmoKq_3Oaa3Rd_mRQsLognHd0rVjSqLt75S8LfB2VcGJg4Sa3WIv4WTDZbO2uFhN_loyKL5Uxxy0Eeyx-wuoQBC5W3YXQzbtROMhrdCWvojoS-Aj-zSl1dc3BLDkxM/s1600/IMG_8704.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWSXaxRlMkhmGGkFmoKq_3Oaa3Rd_mRQsLognHd0rVjSqLt75S8LfB2VcGJg4Sa3WIv4WTDZbO2uFhN_loyKL5Uxxy0Eeyx-wuoQBC5W3YXQzbtROMhrdCWvojoS-Aj-zSl1dc3BLDkxM/s320/IMG_8704.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Martha and Gabriela! So precious<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkDoZ-LVGyWWgzZlFmM_FgaoMec7IuHgHrCJ885tWmDgoWAX1fvlZzHB4MxtAaQjEOjYKFXuDgz_-87p3TPgMueX4aQ__H4tPafSSw7D-1HGZYwOfAQlKmt5fBNxc3XK-2gEaCkIP3r_A/s1600/IMG_8705.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkDoZ-LVGyWWgzZlFmM_FgaoMec7IuHgHrCJ885tWmDgoWAX1fvlZzHB4MxtAaQjEOjYKFXuDgz_-87p3TPgMueX4aQ__H4tPafSSw7D-1HGZYwOfAQlKmt5fBNxc3XK-2gEaCkIP3r_A/s320/IMG_8705.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Sally and I! It was a pleasure to meet you and get to know you, amiga!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXnUfIDe11vGYMmdFXq9wSWRN1Wg64OTaRBw7C_HWh5EufK08S3xMmtu8pOa5BDbfkaipCeDz-nd6eJS8kGSCS6enjLdPVdMqxckR5sZvYk3ZZvZ7tFlIM8G1wyU54_k4nSIxUhqrCvSM/s1600/IMG_8706.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXnUfIDe11vGYMmdFXq9wSWRN1Wg64OTaRBw7C_HWh5EufK08S3xMmtu8pOa5BDbfkaipCeDz-nd6eJS8kGSCS6enjLdPVdMqxckR5sZvYk3ZZvZ7tFlIM8G1wyU54_k4nSIxUhqrCvSM/s320/IMG_8706.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Bonnie, Beth, Nancy, and Bill. Such a dynamic group!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLcU9nidHi7aCDG77e3nTB7Z-VhJ9N5nzJsqRc9xYKXW3zz5euBYfJSc8BGef7AmLclEaJ4rriQzbfuVlCkEAfF1dfwbcS7XlrzXsQ2xqvtoNe9dvbWVi1d9bhYqGM4uhBjp6gY1K_4S4/s1600/IMG_8729.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLcU9nidHi7aCDG77e3nTB7Z-VhJ9N5nzJsqRc9xYKXW3zz5euBYfJSc8BGef7AmLclEaJ4rriQzbfuVlCkEAfF1dfwbcS7XlrzXsQ2xqvtoNe9dvbWVi1d9bhYqGM4uhBjp6gY1K_4S4/s320/IMG_8729.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> After dinner at the barbecue! We actually ate in the family's living room since it was so packed. Only in Nicaragua...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGpIi0Zd7ArzvZLxZckH-WuLIOQYBEryZJcma9kMMtgLAuSwGjgVkTsP3Sdb7XkfjwyOnNLC4L7b2LLiyilfx_x8EesnR7tAoE0DZqVZPtmfAKhLII1X_4cva8buTayKyrJqe2kpzHMbQ/s1600/IMG_8738.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGpIi0Zd7ArzvZLxZckH-WuLIOQYBEryZJcma9kMMtgLAuSwGjgVkTsP3Sdb7XkfjwyOnNLC4L7b2LLiyilfx_x8EesnR7tAoE0DZqVZPtmfAKhLII1X_4cva8buTayKyrJqe2kpzHMbQ/s320/IMG_8738.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> The house Bonnie and Sally were working on. Such a beautiful view in the background!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_us1uEeY3L6lgE6jglaaJAwKm25jQ2wYZzwPUYAYBYQWHKWcrwjRmQHgR_Gs6TLjKshyphenhyphenDCwxIWg4M2vWQ2mVZltkExS1ZRCZnLmWgncIOmWVeAoYIjHNFLNk4t7DkTUEVxvUDUtPSh7M/s1600/IMG_8817.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_us1uEeY3L6lgE6jglaaJAwKm25jQ2wYZzwPUYAYBYQWHKWcrwjRmQHgR_Gs6TLjKshyphenhyphenDCwxIWg4M2vWQ2mVZltkExS1ZRCZnLmWgncIOmWVeAoYIjHNFLNk4t7DkTUEVxvUDUtPSh7M/s320/IMG_8817.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> Sally and Alberto, the albañil working hard!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimcACoyMUvdZtWne0lRBCgQuGtmEjTzoHDUy1HTNZ08w_Ehpdbb_lXPNqYTIM53KPM6FttXCP81Gadqgbz4EpxWajB0wjgW9xED9V0Ehg3cWXp9bSdA__XVj3C1IsRu1DkKmqki-T_adY/s1600/IMG_8818.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimcACoyMUvdZtWne0lRBCgQuGtmEjTzoHDUy1HTNZ08w_Ehpdbb_lXPNqYTIM53KPM6FttXCP81Gadqgbz4EpxWajB0wjgW9xED9V0Ehg3cWXp9bSdA__XVj3C1IsRu1DkKmqki-T_adY/s320/IMG_8818.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Henry, the interpreter/guide for the 4 Walls group. Thumbs up for good work!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh07M5KpES2eqm19os-Zygkhs21siv0eczOWtXppXLbrEPa0WhwVGlQ6kSu3Bm6aiRKnrZgvUvARXFCJMwfiHsm725Z_LBrgvOOT2LLoUwBduCE2bNFt-zIpFnG1LTKLsui2yq2PIxJsNI/s1600/IMG_8819.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh07M5KpES2eqm19os-Zygkhs21siv0eczOWtXppXLbrEPa0WhwVGlQ6kSu3Bm6aiRKnrZgvUvARXFCJMwfiHsm725Z_LBrgvOOT2LLoUwBduCE2bNFt-zIpFnG1LTKLsui2yq2PIxJsNI/s320/IMG_8819.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Look how much is done! The house will have 4 walls, 2 windows, and a 2 doors to allow for air to flow.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHRugmqC3ipddwNuvLmFBI6jTZWYgBZDKXiYHr8vC0Xu1Ay_IG_uubaIFYMwD6Stzna5BjcoL3znqQ3GWDhHK76Y_UWy1rFEVi-cVCfo3zk63q2-t4Ijqodw2PQBxyMWpTuKPTntIFlG0/s1600/IMG_8821.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHRugmqC3ipddwNuvLmFBI6jTZWYgBZDKXiYHr8vC0Xu1Ay_IG_uubaIFYMwD6Stzna5BjcoL3znqQ3GWDhHK76Y_UWy1rFEVi-cVCfo3zk63q2-t4Ijqodw2PQBxyMWpTuKPTntIFlG0/s320/IMG_8821.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Mixing cement!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq2NtWd8dlGRx0uvmSGV0uJFa3_h-wBUa1L9LTmZ_1z3BdsOXXDvnX2ANVQASq2mD-LQPRk-duj17Yx-B3kmkIB91v6QWPVsUXbVxqqqKJdOgsLIm22kNJhyphenhyphenljNRClzO-CzkS0SJSBZ5k/s1600/IMG_8823.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq2NtWd8dlGRx0uvmSGV0uJFa3_h-wBUa1L9LTmZ_1z3BdsOXXDvnX2ANVQASq2mD-LQPRk-duj17Yx-B3kmkIB91v6QWPVsUXbVxqqqKJdOgsLIm22kNJhyphenhyphenljNRClzO-CzkS0SJSBZ5k/s320/IMG_8823.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Bonnie is a pro! If you look close, you can see the cement coming off the shovel.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUIgwPgWvvWT1So4mIdtRl79CrAhtt1Lesbizp5-M3oZ9rs_p98bdVXoIuieZpio9aMDm_cvrOM6bJXI5WgY4CACOzqCcxjUSwa59ndjNNx4uVOZmkPVDSQF6H3rtDgLOJXPpLD9Ol1g/s1600/IMG_8825.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUIgwPgWvvWT1So4mIdtRl79CrAhtt1Lesbizp5-M3oZ9rs_p98bdVXoIuieZpio9aMDm_cvrOM6bJXI5WgY4CACOzqCcxjUSwa59ndjNNx4uVOZmkPVDSQF6H3rtDgLOJXPpLD9Ol1g/s320/IMG_8825.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> Passing the cement to fill in the middle column<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3lJRDt2R1f2Nz0rvgArWrxGz30xrAZU2onVp-uH1SmIO6nuAd2dXH99TV2SmlKbfz8dM2rMR8fgAYOUqifWYYzCy55Z9wdwrI7fx5Be5UcEHppfHowKcHBeh-ePZmuSZne_Hzqhu_HBQ/s1600/IMG_8826.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3lJRDt2R1f2Nz0rvgArWrxGz30xrAZU2onVp-uH1SmIO6nuAd2dXH99TV2SmlKbfz8dM2rMR8fgAYOUqifWYYzCy55Z9wdwrI7fx5Be5UcEHppfHowKcHBeh-ePZmuSZne_Hzqhu_HBQ/s320/IMG_8826.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> Alberto is an expert!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5RIS-VbhSzevyRMLSpw3UuqPYy2lGuA9K8KZM_j_nD9lXjRLztt6NC1TylS_kG1PHcN8sSyGn6RGPrZDnKTnwK9h0M8ZSRWm7c36DrBo0UBEoUElx6D5J7UOludZp6gWXzYiygjg4W6o/s1600/IMG_8827.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5RIS-VbhSzevyRMLSpw3UuqPYy2lGuA9K8KZM_j_nD9lXjRLztt6NC1TylS_kG1PHcN8sSyGn6RGPrZDnKTnwK9h0M8ZSRWm7c36DrBo0UBEoUElx6D5J7UOludZp6gWXzYiygjg4W6o/s320/IMG_8827.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Tapping the wooden frame to be sure the cement gets all the way down.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyOz7hfUQwY9a64zht5kWRMqsZ4m7sGOtXBKNcAV2vTcI9Cf0zgSMVVxPBCnHGnNCW9JPU2Dx_FFDHoTOJkhw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Bonnie and Sally demonstrating how to sift out the rocks from the rest. Don´t worry, Bonnie is okay!<br />
<br />
So as you can see, the group has worked very hard and enjoyed their time here in El Sauce!Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-38849298338871609252012-01-15T14:03:00.000-08:002012-01-15T14:03:22.030-08:00Adios, Profe!<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="MsoNormal">Lesson #1 on how to stick out as a gringo in El Sauce: say “hola” to people as you pass by them in the street. What?! That’s right, if you say “hola” everyone will immediately pin you as a foreigner (though the light skin and hair don’t really help in that department!) </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Now, this doesn’t mean that people ignore each other. On the contrary, actually. People are SO friendly here, but if you want to acknowledge and greet someone when you are just passing by, you say “Adios!” (though it comes out more like “adio” because they tend to chop the “s” off a lot). I guess it makes sense. I mean, if you’re going to say hello to someone, it’s like you’re starting a conversation…so to say hello but then keep going and chop the conversation seems a bit odd. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Given that El Sauce is fairly small, pretty much everyone knows everybody else, so you are constantly hearing "Adios!" Now, one of my favorite things about walking around El Sauce is passing by one of my students and hearing “Adios profe!” </div>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-1824452628676165032012-01-15T13:52:00.000-08:002012-01-15T13:53:46.777-08:00English Classes<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;">During the month of January, I am blessed with the opportunity of giving English classes to primary students at a Catholic school here in El Sauce called San Luis Gonzaga. I have two sections of class, and we meet every Monday to Friday. The first class has about 23 students, and they are the younger class; the kids are entering 2<sup>nd</sup> through 4<sup>th</sup> or 5<sup>th</sup> grade this school year (side note: the Nicaraguan school year starts in February). The second class has 15 students currently (I started with 10 and keep getting new ones!), and these students are entering 4<sup>th</sup> grade through their first year of secondary school. This class is definitely more mature, and they’re a blast!</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;">Each of the classes is two hours long, which makes planning very important! Imagine trying to keep 15-25 primary school children busy for 2 hours every day! I have to say, though, I absolutely love it! The students are precious and SO enthusiastic! I don’t really have a problem with participation; there are a few shy students who need to be encouraged to participate, but mostly I’m asking them to calm down and not all shout out answers at once! Not such a bad problem to have, right? And for all of you teachers reading this, Nicaraguan children also <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">beg </i>to play games every day! </div><div style="font-family: inherit;"> </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;">In fact, a lot of the activities I plan are games/activities that focus on speaking or action. Why, you might ask? Well, I don’t really have a choice. The thing is, the only materials I have to work with are a whiteboard, a few markers that don’t always work (because it’s so hot and dry), and whatever I brought with me. (Kelci – those colored pencils have been used <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">every single class</i>. The kids love them!). That’s right, no copy machine, no textbooks (though they do have workbooks for their regular classes; this is just a special program we’re offering that I'm creating), no worksheets. Everything we do is activities I’ve done or used in classes in the past, or something from the top of my head that I think will get the kids to use English and hopefully get it to stick in their brains! It sure makes you get creative as a teacher! </div><div style="font-family: inherit;"> <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> </span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The thing is, I actually like it this way. Yes, it is annoying to make the kids copy sentences down for homework when I want to give them something to practice, and yes the kids complain. But it really forces you to come up with activities that will get the students to <i>use</i> the language instead of just filling out worksheets. Additionally, I have to be very conscious of how much I have them write. I have to keep in mind that I have to write everything on the board, and they have to copy it all into their notebooks. Considering they're still elementary students, I don't want to give them pages and pages of notes! Plus, for all the vocabulary I give them, we have to write it in English and Spanish AND the pronunciation. Why? Because if I don't, they end up pronouncing cucumber as "coo-coom-bray", or grapes as "grah-pays". So in their notes, in addition to "cucumber", they write "kiu-cum-ber" and "greips", and the number 5 becomes "faiv". It's quite amusing!</span></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Now, I’ve only taught them for a week and a half, so I can’t say for certain that they’re learning better this way, but I do know that getting them to communicate in real life is a huge benefit for them. Check back later and we’ll see how things are going…but for now, enjoy some pictures of my older class! We were making flashcards for fruits and vegetables, and I let them use their creative side to draw the fruit/vegetable to act as a visual aid for learning the new vocabulary!</span></span></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxHnfGq9UM-OnUwvn9FhODZB5U2DPOW6DoljzTTg6Knqz28DXQSNS4hd6yh9uUQazQrYzd3i5JVfQlSaE1c5MVyHPwyJCi14D-LKL9eIcztS1owq7rn17WcCYheVJT0p6T5qsSjqvtHbo/s1600/IMG_8769.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxHnfGq9UM-OnUwvn9FhODZB5U2DPOW6DoljzTTg6Knqz28DXQSNS4hd6yh9uUQazQrYzd3i5JVfQlSaE1c5MVyHPwyJCi14D-LKL9eIcztS1owq7rn17WcCYheVJT0p6T5qsSjqvtHbo/s320/IMG_8769.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Lucy - one of my favorites (I know, I know, you're not supposed to have favorites, but she's precious!)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXwek3Jq1LPXFwOoiShqOuHRfowTmxevZIit6McB_q3vluQh9rG89miDsR5dNBYHRIwxE-QLRwrdu0TPGMLeXh54b5sPgm6RO4mo760Wt299If_psWwvc5u8ar0XDM4Kv_EIwmJKnhDhE/s1600/IMG_8770.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXwek3Jq1LPXFwOoiShqOuHRfowTmxevZIit6McB_q3vluQh9rG89miDsR5dNBYHRIwxE-QLRwrdu0TPGMLeXh54b5sPgm6RO4mo760Wt299If_psWwvc5u8ar0XDM4Kv_EIwmJKnhDhE/s320/IMG_8770.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Ashley (yup, a Nicaraguan child with my name! And she's also AMAZING!)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiab-rID4U74DVXI8RJBz3tF76KRkVYuoCDxJPCSI7tKiGzcl1HTETAsqtS5ZMrMin-T1ue-sUjmi-c3rUTKxLd9Hjx4aujaNC3aknQfR8NWWXgg5SIELqky-0JavBjrRZHTpT5WgyKwCw/s1600/IMG_8771.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiab-rID4U74DVXI8RJBz3tF76KRkVYuoCDxJPCSI7tKiGzcl1HTETAsqtS5ZMrMin-T1ue-sUjmi-c3rUTKxLd9Hjx4aujaNC3aknQfR8NWWXgg5SIELqky-0JavBjrRZHTpT5WgyKwCw/s320/IMG_8771.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Yelba America (very fashion forward, but also a good student)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguXkUtj-nXSpaf0rOJUD_sWX7j3UWdUsroDmFzm2404K41sIfv-bTl-oM4-SSuyZDyFuOk2gZxJF3nzZRe3NiRhrPutst6NnUbirdwvzlUizXmH7YuorO6j8csOMVOgDULf8athioJYVs/s1600/IMG_8772.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguXkUtj-nXSpaf0rOJUD_sWX7j3UWdUsroDmFzm2404K41sIfv-bTl-oM4-SSuyZDyFuOk2gZxJF3nzZRe3NiRhrPutst6NnUbirdwvzlUizXmH7YuorO6j8csOMVOgDULf8athioJYVs/s320/IMG_8772.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> Tony and Jaime, with Diana in the background. Tony learns incredibly fast and is very accurate in his work.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMkeKgw0GKEsWBc_dBmE0cYP3gxe5FptD_VFd7gkM_HRIGa2jHE925ITQeFLGsVBd0SDDMDV0UGBK-l8VVoXvWUloEKF05bTQXuA4AXMo0Ug6b-F0uRrPx7Ut2DKZoSNIQHL4KHZv9l3U/s1600/IMG_8773.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMkeKgw0GKEsWBc_dBmE0cYP3gxe5FptD_VFd7gkM_HRIGa2jHE925ITQeFLGsVBd0SDDMDV0UGBK-l8VVoXvWUloEKF05bTQXuA4AXMo0Ug6b-F0uRrPx7Ut2DKZoSNIQHL4KHZv9l3U/s320/IMG_8773.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;"> The two Ashley's! Sra. A - she joined our class a couple days late, and when she walked in, I could've sworn it was Analisa! She is definitely a favorite student. She's one of the youngest, yet so conscientious about her work and is such a hard worker! She's brilliant, too!</span></span>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-40123366259426366622012-01-10T15:05:00.000-08:002012-01-10T15:05:00.733-08:004 WallsAs many of you know, I traveled to El Sauce with a group called 4 Walls, or in Spanish, Cuatro Paredes. You can read a description of the project and its mission <a href="http://www.journeysofsolutions.com/?q=node/21" target="_blank">here</a>. If you scroll to the bottom of the page, you will see something that says <<Meghan's Story>>, and if you click on that, you can read how this whole project got started.<br />
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This is a <i>wonderful</i> project that helps provide a home with four sturdy walls (and a roof for the current projects) to a very poor Sauceño family (typically one that has many children or some other special need) that was previously living in a house made out of adobe, which could crumble during the rainy season, or plastic, which clearly is no way for people to live. I have met some incredible people through this project, as they are here currently and have been gracious enough to invite me to some of their dinners other events. I wanted to share some pictures so you can see what they're doing and appreciate the time and money they have donated to help other people less fortunate than them. Thank you, Bonnie, Sally, Beth, Nancy, and Bill for being so welcoming and for all of your hard work!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhitvut7NxspxOZS2Gvg1zpRP7ZyuXwCrH9xtTdZsKuELRnex37i2kcahSxvEPxVXMQrclDXo7gSdLucX9birTiV3thyphenhyphenxKq-uk8jzUJiDcXcz8xU0KTCQWp-NIo7p-U3fwJvPizVieD4g4/s1600/IMG_8730.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhitvut7NxspxOZS2Gvg1zpRP7ZyuXwCrH9xtTdZsKuELRnex37i2kcahSxvEPxVXMQrclDXo7gSdLucX9birTiV3thyphenhyphenxKq-uk8jzUJiDcXcz8xU0KTCQWp-NIo7p-U3fwJvPizVieD4g4/s320/IMG_8730.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Here´s Bonnie and Sally working hard!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixgRkOgz2spSV-MiaPu22Z5kSq06eLnN0b0gfKs3PL8FJJ93LUHAx6Q2PNNXxkYqBlRaB4FsiVK88cSxJyuXwJH3WE0BvIQYIUsUbeGR44jnWyMP_STDS5gTnhWDCXG5F8_Ly3Fh_iVxo/s1600/IMG_8743.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixgRkOgz2spSV-MiaPu22Z5kSq06eLnN0b0gfKs3PL8FJJ93LUHAx6Q2PNNXxkYqBlRaB4FsiVK88cSxJyuXwJH3WE0BvIQYIUsUbeGR44jnWyMP_STDS5gTnhWDCXG5F8_Ly3Fh_iVxo/s320/IMG_8743.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>The albañil (mason) doing an amazing job!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4THfqnwLdg96XchlVxpz0m4NQT7u6DYTw3rffavZmZHMmwj9tr2kJwZXGiWJrraSzXQkjazKcSykrwAJXc1otfkr9v665OJcs-4HWog8GT0WigiFqvJcWCXvTVedgskoNykOhiCr42w/s1600/IMG_8746.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4THfqnwLdg96XchlVxpz0m4NQT7u6DYTw3rffavZmZHMmwj9tr2kJwZXGiWJrraSzXQkjazKcSykrwAJXc1otfkr9v665OJcs-4HWog8GT0WigiFqvJcWCXvTVedgskoNykOhiCr42w/s320/IMG_8746.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Bill and Nancy, looking great after a long day of work!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxoDubTR31C_t4md9KYJQNUkVHiKuQl-Qt7lC-dwoqeslK4H2Czrj6Bg_SZcQLYxdLCkXlzFMjHUqNwEhVlgZTq6J0d_-sDpKY1ro61zpl1I86foAj7WQFkLdkNg7JJviZWTzoWa-GLUs/s1600/IMG_8754.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxoDubTR31C_t4md9KYJQNUkVHiKuQl-Qt7lC-dwoqeslK4H2Czrj6Bg_SZcQLYxdLCkXlzFMjHUqNwEhVlgZTq6J0d_-sDpKY1ro61zpl1I86foAj7WQFkLdkNg7JJviZWTzoWa-GLUs/s320/IMG_8754.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Even the niños help!<br />
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Later I will share some pictures of the group at dinner and a video of Bonnie and Sally demonstrating one of the skills they have learned!Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-77052632201020921322012-01-10T14:45:00.000-08:002012-01-10T14:45:44.269-08:00Motos and Horses and Bikes, OH MY!<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;">One of the first things I noticed, and one of the things I have come to love about El Sauce, is that casi no se ve coches (you hardly ever see cars)! Instead, people travel by motorcycle, horse, bicycle, camponera…or walking, of course – the beauty of living in a small city! I love seeing people ride by on horses and hearing the click-click-click of their hooves on the streets (adoquinado – one of my new words<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> -</span> it means that it has “pavement” in the form of hexagonal cement blocks laid down as opposed to the dirt and rock on the outskirts of town). </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;">Now, I know about 99.8% of you are wondering what in the world is a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">camponera,</i> right? Well, it’s probably the best thing since sliced bread…just kidding, but it’s right up there. All kidding aside, it’s a very common mode of transportation, and basically it’s a bike with the front part removed and a little part attached to the front where you can sit 2-3 people. It looks a bit like a large tricycle since the cart part has two wheels in the front. They are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">wonderful</i>. They’re always riding around the streets, and when you want to go somewhere, you ask if it’s “ocupado”, and if not, they let you climb into the little carreta and ask you where you want to go, then peddle you there while you get to enjoy a nice little breeze and protection from the sun (which, trust me, are very welcome breaks around here!). Then, you pay when you get out – usually it’s C$5 (5 cordoba – the currency in Nicaragua, which is about $0.25) to take you anywhere, though sometimes they charge extra for gringos (white people – because obviously if you’re white that means you’re rich…which I guess is true to a point…though that’s a topic for another post). Here's a camponera from the back to give you an idea:</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitYL-igct4xLd0goMGAJugkCsUTLd_jH_DG11ry1bcMF9PWOvBaGiQQw008j9AA3QTBcsE9oYokYJh982pMioCFCoNj1TnLv-NNJGzSQpIRCjUTQULZX8muJBRJmEVcaddFk9VyNXcaKk/s1600/IMG_8742.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitYL-igct4xLd0goMGAJugkCsUTLd_jH_DG11ry1bcMF9PWOvBaGiQQw008j9AA3QTBcsE9oYokYJh982pMioCFCoNj1TnLv-NNJGzSQpIRCjUTQULZX8muJBRJmEVcaddFk9VyNXcaKk/s320/IMG_8742.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;">The funny thing about the bikes and motos is that there is almost NEVER only one person riding. I promise. You will often see two schoolchildren riding on a bike together, one sitting on the seat and peddling, the other sitting on the bar between the seat and handles. Or, it might be two grown men. Completely normal. Or a mother and her child – even a 2 year old. Sometimes I wonder if as soon as the child is able to hold himself up, they put him on the bike and hope for the best, because I’ve seen some pretty young kiddos riding on the bars of a bike or moto and hanging on to the handles. Same thing with motos – you will often see a parent with their child(ren) – yep, sometimes 2 kids riding with mom or dad. And nobody, NOBODY wears helmets. I suppose it’s a bit safer here since they all go pretty slow since it’s a small town and not all the roads are paved, plus there are lots of people biking or walking down the streets (and basically no cars), but it is what it is! </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;">I do have to confess that I have been on a moto, and I also have to confess that IT WAS SO MUCH FUN! Mom and dad, I hope you’re not too worried. Bonnie took a picture and promised to send it to you. And did I mention I was in a skirt? Me, in a skirt, on a moto? Who have I become?! Anyway, my moto experience was with Martha’s family – she had to go back to one of the 4 Walls houses, so I went with her husband and 2 kids. Her 6 year old son rode in front, then her husband, then me in the back (sitting sideways, ever a lady…right…), with Martha’s 4 year old daughter on my lap. Definitely not the safest thing I’ve ever done, but you’d better believe I had an absolute blast! </div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;">Oh, and did I mention that it's completely normal to see cows being herded down the street, or a cart full of bamboo or another material being pulled by ox? Don't believe me? Take a look:</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyZt6wvzDbahL-XwkIr-grHv0j9EGir_3zhhwsalod-2XoddN5U1JiamwDKuaTaAsHmJNINiptZMUA4mZNeS_rQo2wF0MSMsxJJ5qx6ugAHcbxixILrvB305jElWf83J792MjpC6QSDN0/s1600/IMG_8751.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyZt6wvzDbahL-XwkIr-grHv0j9EGir_3zhhwsalod-2XoddN5U1JiamwDKuaTaAsHmJNINiptZMUA4mZNeS_rQo2wF0MSMsxJJ5qx6ugAHcbxixILrvB305jElWf83J792MjpC6QSDN0/s320/IMG_8751.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit;"> Did I mention that I love El Sauce? How could you not when you get to see this on a daily basis? Admit it, my life is pretty awesome right now! </div>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1984225407559676639.post-49394806939578152892012-01-05T15:59:00.000-08:002012-01-05T15:59:57.501-08:00Hola! Bienvenidos a mi blog!Well, I made it to El Sauce, Nicaragua, and I LOVE IT!!! The people of El Sauce are so hospitable, loving, and welcoming! My first two days here have been filled with new friends, food, and experiences, and I can't wait to share them with you.<br />
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Right now, I'm sitting out on the patio of my friend Martha (the one who invited me to spend some time living and volunteering/working in El Sauce), enjoying the late afternoon breeze with Martha's adorable daughter sitting on my lap and asking 5 million questions as any typical 4 year old, and I can't help but think that I LOVE my life and this experience! I can't wait to see what else I get to experience.<br />
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Well friends, I hate to leave you with such a short bienvenido, but I'm off to meet the other 4 Walls volunteers for a light dinner and enjoy another evening here in beautiful El Sauce! Hopefully I will get to add another post soon updating you more about all of the wonderful experiences I have had! Que Dios les bendiga!Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12325309343762398351noreply@blogger.com3