Nicaragua Service Learning Semester 2007

 We just got back yesterday from El Salvador, and it was a pretty awesome trip... minus a nasty food poisoning. The eleven hour bus ride wasnt so fun, but it was totally worth it! We hear a speaker from the Co-Madres which is a group that is looking for their disappeared or assassinated children from the civil war so that they can finally find some closure to their greif. Alicia talked to us and the mission of the organization as well as her personal story were really inspiring. We also went to Divina Providecia which is where Monsenor Romero house is, and the church where he was shot. It was incredible to be there where he had lived and worked and was killed. His house is now a little museum and its incredible some of the pictures and things that are preserved there. The next day I was really sick and I missed a lot of really awesome things. Although I had a really interesting encounter with a Salvadoran OB-GYN because apparently the place we were staying at had connections there and I could get an appointment right away. Yea I went to an OB-GYN for food poisoning, and that was a mistake lol. Saturday I was also pretty sick, so I did nothing during the day, but I did go to the March for Romero that night. It was incredible how many people were there. Sunday we went to an awesome mass in the basement of the Cathedral where Romero is buried. It was an awesome mass, I just wish I had understood a little more! Then we went to  community which is one of the poorest in El Salvador and is right next to a huge developed ritzy shopping mall. The government is trying to oust these people from land that is rightfully theirs in order to build housing and a golf course there. It was so sad, and really showed the continuing corruption of the government. Over all I wish I hadn´t gotten sick, but it was an awesome trip none the less. We practiced our Spanish a lot which was really good, and we learned so much!! Exactly one more month left!!! Its crazy how quickly time has gone by!
Lots of Love
Kaitlyn

   Yesterday we got back from our five days in Ocotal, and I don´t think that I have ever done so many different things and learned so much in five days!! The first day we just took a tour of Ocotal and meet our families. Thursday we went to Finca Monte Libano, which is a coffee farm. Coffee grown at a high altutude in the shade is apparently better, and this farm definitely fit those descriptions. We were in the Segovia mountains, and we climbed through the property of the farm which was essentially like climbing through a forest on a mountain. Then we got to pick coffee, which grows in a fruit, and we got to watch the de-pulping, drying, de-shelling, roasting and tasting processes. It was sooo interesting! We also got to eat at River Coco and see La Virgen de la Pierda, which is a statue of the Virgin Mary in the middle of a mountain. Friday we went to a cooperative where tomatoes and chiles are grown in conjunction with US AID and ADRA, and it was really interesting to see how this organizations function at a base level, and ways in which they aren´t really helping. Then we went to an organic fertilizer farm, and learned all the ingredients and got to help in the process of making some. Afterwards we went to a different part of the river and ate and swam! We also went to a small town called Somoto, and saw some awesome old churches. On Saturday we went to Canyon Somoto, which was so amazing!! We climbed for a while and then swam in the river in the canyon, and then went on this tubing/walking tour through the canyon and we got to jump off the cliffs into the water! Saturday night we had a goodbye party, and our families were sooo sweet and gave us goodbye presents, even though we had only been there for 5 days! On Sunday we visited Cuidad Antigua which is one of the oldest cities in Nicaragua, and we saw a church that was built in the early 1600´s. We also went to a pottery cooperative, and to various little museums. While we were in Ocotal three Nicaraguan Spanish professors who are about our ages came everywhere with us so that we could continue to use spanish the whole time that we were there. We also had two guides that were soo fascinating, both having fought in the Contra War in the 80´s. Everyone we met in Ocotal was really sweet, and we learned so much in our short little time there! Plus it was gorgeous, so of course, I took lots of pictures!!
    Today at service there were only 13 kids in our class for some reason so things were a little quieter than usual! One boy, Axell who is always crazy sat with me for a while playing with Play Dough because we were playing a game with a button he kept hiding. I was really impressed with how long I got him to sit still! Granted the rest of the time he was wreaking havoc as usual! :) 
    Its crazy how quickly time has passed here, it feels like time has gone by quickly, but like we´ve been here forever at the same time because we´ve packed so many different things into four short weeks! Well, I hope all is well at home, paz y amor Kaitlyn!

  This weekend we took a day trip to Granada, which was so awesome! We toured the historical buildings in the city and then we took a little boat on a tour of the 360 little islands in Lake Nicaragua. We stopped on one of the islands that had two pools made out of stones and got to go swimming! It was so gorgeous, and I finally got started on my tan :). That night we went to a poetry festival, and got to see Carlos Mejia Godoy in concert. He is huge here... he wrote revolutionary songs in the 1970´s and everyone here knows him. It wa really awesome seeing him in concert. This week at Olla de la Soya has been really interesting because the teachers weren´t there today, and yesterday the kids were little devils. But we´ve been making it there and back safely even on the bus, so I´m grateful for that. I love being able to work with kids everyday, even if it is frustrating to not understand them, and that they don´t understand me (mostly because I have no idea what to say to them!). Its been really really hot here this past week, and I think I would´ve died without the fans here! I hope that you are all enjoying the cold in the States. We started Spanish yesterday, and there are three people in my class, so its really beneficial and we get lots and lots of one on one work. Thanks so much for all of your messages, it is great to hear from all of you! Love you lots! Paz y Amor -Kaitlyn

  Today it is finally time to go!! Our group will be leaving St. Marks in about an hour. We have a 2:30 flight to Houston, and then a flight from there to Managua. I should be arriving in Managua around 9pm tonight (Nica time, which is two hours behind us!). Last night the reception and mass where amazing. Thank you so much to everyone who came, I really loved getting to see you one more time. I lost my keys last night so I had to unpack and repack for about the fourth time. But I have them now, so I can relax. Its hard to believe that I will be leaving later for three months, but I am so excited to get started! I am going to miss you all so much! Have a fabulous semester, and I'll see you all in April when I return! <3