Friday, February 25

This morning I woke up at 7:30, a time considered sleeping in to my host mom who woke up at 4:30 to see her husband off to work. I had breakfast complete with some outstanding coffee and then showered in the outdoor shower enclosed by plastic tarps. The heat outside made up for the cold water and I actually really enjoyed this intimidating experience.

Once we were ready to go, Santa Elena and I stopped at Jake's house to see how he was doing. He's been feeling a little sick, so we went to get the LASP medical supply bag from Courtney. When that situation was taken care of, Courtney and I got on the bus with our host moms to go to Managua to buy some things from the market. The bus is so much fun here. I loved people watching, seeing the beautiful scenery and trying some snacks that Santa Elena bought from the vendors who got on at some stops. We chose to pass on the magic pills being offered, but it was fun to hear about all the wacky things they promised to do. Courtney passed some time talking to the bus driver and he gave her his number..the two of us attracted a lot of attention as we walked through the market, and our host moms through it was hilarious.

Neither of us were even hungry yet, but our host moms took us to a restaurant for lunch. Since the the limits of our stomachs don't seem to matter much here, we were fed way more than enough. At least the food was pretty good, and once we finished we went about buying fruits and veggies at the market. I love markets, and it was fun to go to one during the week in order to avoid the crowds and see everything much more clearly. We loaded up heavy bags and made our way back to the bus where we crammed everything into the seat with us. It was a hot ride, but my fascination with the vendors that got on at every stop and the scenery made it go pretty quickly.

When we got home, I was encouraged to rest for a while, so I wrote a few entries in my LASP “critical thinking journal” (our assignment for the week). The neighbor girl came over to play with me, so I got out the jump rope, construction paper, and colored pencils that I brought. We colored and did some crafts for a while until it was time for dinner. After we ate, Santa Elena took her daughters and I to a church service a few kilometers down the street. It was an outdoor gathering of many church communities, and Santa Elena guided an elderly blind neighbor to the service. Many people shared songs with the group and there was a message given by the pastor of my host church. A lot of the other LASP students came with their families and Trevor and Javier were there. I enjoyed the gathering a lot and it was fun to see the other LASPers. On the way back from the service we stopped at a birthday party where I was served MORE food! We watched some TV when we got home and again had an early night.

Thrusday, February 24

What a fantastic day! I think Nicaragua might be my favorite part of this semester. Praise God! The dreaded challenges keep resulting in huge blessings, and I'm so grateful for His faithfulness.

This morning we had a slow, relaxed start at the hostile. Once the pastors taking us to the campo were ready, everyone got on the LASP bus to go to the market where we switched to a public bus. Street vendors swarmed our group and loaded onto the bus to sell everything from fruit, baked goods, and hot chicken to pens, coloring books, underwear, and razors. We had so much stuff with us already that it was funny to think of buying more to be crowded with. The community I will be staying in (La Cruz) is about 1 ½ hours from Managua, and at every stop more sales people piled on the bus, commenting on how strange it was to see so many gringos (people from the US) on the public bus.

I got off at the same stop as Courtney and Jake, the other two LASP students staying in La Cruz this week, and we went to Jake's host family's house to wait for the other host moms to pick up Courtney and me. It was nice to sit on the patio in big rocking chairs and chat a bit in Spanish after having a few English-intensive days. Courtney and I eventually had to pick which host mom we would go with, and Jake and Courtney came with me to my new home to see where I would be living. My host mom, Santa Elena, is super nice and friendly. She taught us how to make Nicaraguan rice and eggs and fed us all lunch. Then she took us to see Courtney's house where we hung out until the 3:30 church service started.

A small group of church members gathered to pray, sing and read, and it was a beautiful service. The church hosting us is Mennonite, so I won't be wearing my jeans and tank top back to church, butt they were incredibly welcoming and friendly. Our group was asked to introduce ourselves and everyone asked for English lessons...we'll see where that goes...I would love to work with a group sharing languages.

The church service was full of genuine faith and seeking God. Did I mention that I loved it? My host mom is one of the leaders in the church (like the pastor's assistant) and it was fun to see her as that role and talk to her about church afterward. She explained that she used to be Catholic but decided to join this church about 6 years ago. She told me about her desire to always put God first and to serve by treating all as brothers in Christ. I'm sure I'm going to learn a lot from this amazing woman, and I can't wait to get to know her better.

After church, my host mom encouraged me to take a nap, and I simply couldn't refuse. When I woke up, I got to meet Elena's 2 daughters, Yoheyling Yelena and Luz Marina. It's going to take me a while to get those names down! Santa Elena's son, Roberto lives and studies in Managua where he works at a juice factory. Yoheyling lives with her grandmother and goes to school each Sunday because it is too expensive for her to take the bus to school every day. Luz Marina lives with Santa Elena and her husband, Roberto and goes to school everyday. The two girls are a little shy, but we talked about school until dinner.

After we ate, I showed my hosts my family pictures, and they showed me there. Then I asked them a bunch of questions about Nicaraguan culture. It was great to hear their perspective after a few days of hearing what LASP had to say about the topic. I also got to share with them a little bit about the US. As the day went on, I began to feel more proficient in Spanish, and I really enjoyed talking with my hosts. Santa Elena set up the LASP mosquito net for me and we went to be around 9:00, a fairly late hour for them. The stars out here are marvelous and I hope to have a chance to see more of them. Santa Elena's husband came home really late due to some problems with the taxi he drives in Managua, so I didn't get to meet him, but hopefully this weekend I will.

What a beautiful life! I love the campo and I could definitely get used to the fresh air and friendly neighbors out here. I can't wait for a tranquillo week of learning more about his culture through talking, listening, trying new things, and no doubt stretching out of my comfort zone.

Wednesday, February 23

We spent this morning at a local shirt making cooperative called Nueva Vida. This project was started by women who knew how to make shirts but didn't want to work in the poor conditions of local sweatshops. They got together, and with the support (loans and customer contacts) of Jubilee House (a ministry based in the US), they opened their own factory. Here, they create high quality products while paying their workers a fair wage. They also maintain good working conditions and require reasonable working hours. It was interesting to learn about how Jubilee House enabled the project without creating dependence by keeping ownership and leadership in the hands of the locals taking initiative. We discussed the high risk of the loan they provided and the clear benefits of this type of loan. This type of international cooperation seems to hold a lot of potential for improving the conditions of poverty here and globally, provided that corporations with money are willing to take the risk to invest in this way.

After lunch, Don Mike gave another lecture on the church in Latin America. He summarized changes throughout church history and the basis of liberation theology. When everyone was thoroughly overwhelmed, he took us to two important churches in Managua (one pre-Vatican II church and a post-Vat. II church). There was a special celebration going on at the post-Vat II church that made our visit a little more chaotic than helpful, but it was interesting to see such a charismatic group in a Catholic church.

The second church we visited had been left to ruins after the Sandinista revolution, and we could only see it from the outside. It was located in a central square in Managua, so we also saw parts of the National Palace and the current government buildings. The center was eerily empty, and some of the few people there were street kids who offered us all gifts made out of psalm leaves. Javier took a group of us to see the National Theater, and one of the students in our group convinced the security guard to let us in to look around. We ended up sitting in on rehearsal for Nicaragua's national competition for their representative in the Miss Universe pageant. It was a private rehearsal, so it was kind of fun to see a little bit of it.

Later, dinner involved some good conversation about missions, and then we were introduced to some of the pastors of the communities we will be moving to tomorrow. I wasn't really looking forward to this home stay, but the orientation made me a little more enthusiastic. While we were all re-packing to fit the laundry detergent, toilet paper, and mosquito nets into our bags, the LASP staff called a meeting for us to say goodbye to Don Mike who is going back to the States tomorrow. He has really challenged us all and I'm really grateful that he has been a part of my experience here.

I was hoping to get by with drinking the local water in my community, but Trevor recommended bringing a gallon of filtered water just in case we need it. I'm really excited about being a part of the group leaving tomorrow at 7:30 instead of 3:00am. Its also exciting that LASP did a great job of mixing us up so that I will get to know some new people who will be staying in the same community as me this week. My time in the campo (Nicaraguan countryside) will also be a fabulous opportunity to get to know more about Nicaragua, the people and culture here, and most importantly, God. I'm looking forward to drawing near Him through this challenge.

Tuesday, February 22

I LOVED today! It was filled with more discussion and lectures than I've ever sat through in my life. We started out with a lecture by Don Mike about the simplified version of Nicaragua's history. He compared the Sandinista revolution to the American revolution, which was really helpful. After his lecture, we visited the site of Somoza's former palace. There we could see old and new Managua, developed based on Somoza's interests after the earthquake in 1972. We also saw the torture chambers under the palace and lots of Sandinista propaganda placed there by the current presidential administration.

On the way back to our hostile, we stopped at a tent city created by protestors of the use of Nemagon (a harmful pesticide) in banana plantations. While large companies have stopped using this chemical, reparations have not been made to the people who suffered from using it. Members of the community we visited have suffered many illnesses because of their exposure to Nemagon and have been protesting for 19 years. Only in the last 5 years did they move to Managua to establish their tent city in order to be more visible to the politicians they are trying to work with. Their plead is for the government to help them stand up to the corporations that required them to use Nemagon.

Unfortunately, while their claims are likely true (similar cases have been tried in other countries with victory going to the workers), they do not have concrete evidence, such as medical records or records of when they used the chemical and how, so their case has gone no where. The current Ortega administration (vying for votes) has given the Nemagon community food, plastic to build shelters and electricity as well as some healthcare but has been relatively unhelpful in their legal case. This visit sparked some good discussion about cultural dependency, the exploitation power of large companies, and ways to buy fruit (buying locally or through fair trade) in order to avoid enabling this exploitation.

After this visit, we went to a local Catholic church that was very involved with the Sandinista revolution and the development/spread of liberation theology in Nicaragua. There a nun showed us some beautiful murals depicting Nicaraguan history through the eyes of the people. The murals are typically covered because the church leadership has moved away from the activism they represent, but this nun invited us to uncover them and hear their stories. At the end, we saw a beautiful rendering of an indigenous Jesus that was being covered by the traditional European crucifix. It was interesting to note the presence of indigenous gods above the church doors, and on the bus back to the hostile I had an interesting conversation with Don Mike about this type of synchrotism in Latin America.

When we got back to the hostile, Antonio Lacayo, former “vice president” of Nicaragua, was waiting to talk with us. He presented the history of Nicaragua from his right-wing position and proposed some solutions (primarily foreign investment) to the country's current poverty. I really appreciated his view and it was helpful to hear about the logic that brought the country here. We asked him questions for almost an hour after his presentation and then went out for dinner.

It was a long, exhausting day, but I loved gaining a fuller grasp of reality here and trying to piece together perspectives in order to understand how things work and why while throwing in a few conversations about how to fix it all. ;)

Monday, February 21

I can't believe we're already in Nicaragua! The 10 hour trip to Managua seemed to fly by. This morning papi dropped me and my backpack stuffed with things for the 10 day trip off at LAST at 6:00. We left around 6:30 and I was stoked to score a window seat in the van. I spend the morning reading more about Nicaragua and trying to sleep. We stopped for lunch at a little restaurant at like 10:00 in the morning, so no one was really ready to eat, but it was a nice break from the drive.

The next time we stopped was to cross the border. We had to fill out the same forms for Costa Rica and Nicaragua, but crossing went pretty quickly. Driving into Nicaragua and seeing the extreme difference in quality of life on this side of the border was shocking. Listening to music, seeing the beauty of the mountains and valleys, and being challenged by seeing the extremes of living conditions made me really pumped for this part of my time in Latin America. I can't wait to learn more about this part of the world and serving in different cultures.

For our first few nights here, we're staying at a cool Christian hostile that is very active in the community, which is cool. They provide as many jobs as possible for the locals by giving classes and offering a bunch of services for people traveling to Nicaragua. All of the profits they make go back into community development projects, and its fun to look at the pictures of things they've been able to support in Managua.

After dinner we had a lecture from a former LASP student now living in Managua. It was cool to her her perspective, and afterward we played Dutch Blitz for a while before going to bed early in preparation for a big day tomorrow.

Sunday, February 20

There is so much to write about today! It was the continuation of a fabulous break, and I don't want it to end! When we got up this morning we went over to the bodega at QREK to make a full out American breakfast, complete with banana pancakes and coco puffs. We also made scrambled eggs and had toast and fruit. Everyone was pretty much in paradise. After breakfast, we had some more time to hang out (I went back out to the river with some other girls) and pack up to come back to San Jose, and before I knew it, it was time for lunch.

For lunch we had the option of sandwiches or going back to the bakery. I chose to see what new delicious treats were to be found at the bakery, and I was not disappointed by the double chocolate chip cookies and cranberry carrot cake that I tried. Ok, so it wasn't the most balanced lunch I've ever eaten, but it was delicious. While we were eating lunch, we talked about how we all felt like we had left Latin America for the weekend. Being surrounded by the comforts of home, such as food and lovely showers and only speaking English for a few days totally rejuvenated the whole group. Because we had all packed up before leaving for the bakery and some of the group stayed behind to have sandwiches, the van came to the bakery to pick us up, so we didn't even had to hike back to QREK.

The ride home was much faster than the trip there because we knew where we were going. On the ride I read over some of the material we will be talking about in Nicaragua, and it made me really excited about what we are going to be learning and focusing on. Most of the readings were about the drastic differences between the wealthy and poor and potential solutions to the problem of poverty. Looking over the packet renewed my excitement about learning more about the culture here and becoming better equipped to serve internationally in the future. It broke my heart to read about the sufferings of God's people and made me want to do everything I can to eliminate this suffering.

When we got back to LASP, everyone quickly dispersed to go home. Haleigh and I stopped at a pharmacy to try and pick up some medicine for pink eye (my eyes have been a little funky lately and Laura suggested getting some before Nicaragua), but the store was closed. Hopefully I was just allergic to something in the forest, but if not, I should be able to find something in Managua if I really need it.

My host siblings were playing outside when I got home, and Melany immediately ran inside to announce my arrival and then ran out to greet me. Then, we all got ready for a birthday party at the neighbors' house. Four of the kids who live next door have had birthdays in the last few days, so it was a pretty big celebration. I played Uno with some of the kids there, and then we all had cake and ice cream. It was pretty fun, but when I got back I needed to pack for Nicaragua. It took me a while to figure out exactly what I should take, but I think I've got a pretty good bag packed. While I was packing, there was a minor tremor and I could actually feel the ground shake. At first I thought I just lost my balance, but then I saw things swaying in my room. I opened my bedroom door and my host family came rushing to see what my reaction was.

I was pretty bummed about not being able to spend very much time with my host family this weekend, so I went into the living room to watch some silly shows with my host siblings before they went to bed. I worked on writing my entry for yesterday while watching TV, and all pretty much just watched me type. It was really cute. My host mom cut up a green apple and served it to us with salt on it. How interesting...apples have actually been growing on me throughout the semester, and trying them with salt was just another step in widening my palate, I guess. ;)

When everyone started getting ready for bed, I went to my room to finish up writing and reading for Nicaragua. My mom came in with a gift she wants me to take to my host mom in Nicaragua and some cookies to give to the kids. She is just too much...I love living with this family! The more time I spend with them the sadder I get that I'll only get to live here for such a short time. What a blessing they have been!

Tomorrow its off to Nicaragua, so I want to try to make it an early night. The ride will take at least 10 hours, possibly as many as 15, so it will no doubt be a draining day. I can't wait to see a new part of the world and get to know God more through interacting with a new group of His people. I want to seek Him with all my might and draw closer to Him than ever during this challenging experience.

Saturday, February 19

Today was an amazing day. I got up really early to meet the group going to the cloud forest at LASP. I met a few other girls at the bus stop and when we got to LASP we quickly loaded up the bus for San Gerardo de Dota. Almost immediately after we started driving, our driver had to stop for directions. This started a stream of 13 stops for asking the way over the course of about four hours. QREK, the research center we are staying at is really remote in one of the highest cloud forests in Costa Rica.

When we got here there were 6 students, an intern and a program coordinator here to greet us. They were super friendly and helped us settle in before leaving us to explore the area on our own. Megan, Haleigh, and I went to the stream b the center and it was incredibly beautiful. Around lunch time, some of the students here took us to an awesome bakery that took about 40 minutes to hike to. At the bakery we had some delicious pizza, cinnamon rolls, and chai tea. The food was totally worth the hike...delicious!

After lunch we all got changed to go on a hike through the forest. On our hike we saw 2 beautiful waterfalls, and all kinds of cool plants. There were some amazing views that pictures just couldn't capture. It was fun to climb through the forest and cross some hanging bridges over a river with water so clean that it doesn't need to be filtered even for us to drink it. Some of the QREK students led our hike, so we learned a lot about the nature and history of the area. It was a lot of fun.

When we got back, everyone took nice hot showers with fantastic water pressure. I enjoyed it immensely. We went to a restaurant down the street where there was an incredible buffet for dinner. Everyone enjoyed getting to pick what and how much we ate, and it was a nice change to be able to eat vegetables (something none of our host families eat on a regular basis) for a change. The dessert buffet was also a nice addition to our evening.

Dinner was followed by free time during which a bunch of us chatted and then Haleigh and I went out to look at the stars. There were so many out and the moon was amazingly bright. We had a great time reflecting on what God has been teaching us this semester and pointing out constellations (both real and made up) to each other. Its so great to have a short break for the weekend in order to prepare for Nicaragua. I've been blessed by the time away, the great friendships, and God's presence today. This weekend feels like a breath of fresh air and its helped me feel better prepared to finish out the semester trusting God day by day.