Day 6

For breakfast, my host mom (mama) made me a fried egg, banana/strawberry smoothie and crackers and cheese. It was good, but my North American I can’t believe how much fat/oil I just consumed for breakfast was in the front of my mind. I am tired all of the time, but I woke up a lot during the night because of the heat.

The first day, we had a scavenger hunt with a native-speaking guide. We spent the entire day walking around the city and exploring the sites. We went to the numerous bus stations, three markets, parks, and markets. It was very cool to see the city. We did the scavenger hunt for five hours. We stopped for lunch at 1:30 in the afternoon. For the equivalent of $2.40 American Dollars, we had an amazing fried chicken breast, rice, beans, and a tortilla. I really love the fried chicken, but I could do without the rice and beans. While we were eating lunch, it began to pour rain. I couldn’t believe how much rain was in the streets. During the rain, there was so much rain that the street had over seven inches of flowing water. I thought the motorcycles were going to float away. We had to wait in the restaurant for almost an hour until we could walk on the sidewalk. I was so glad that I brought an umbrella, and sandals that could get wet because my feet were soaking by the time we got to the meeting place.

Yesterday, it was my friend’s 21^st birthday, so we were invited to the host home of my friend. Mama told my host brother that we should go to the paneria (bakery) to buy a sweet bread. He gave me the tour of the city on his motorcycle. It was so nice because I got to see most of the city, and it was one of the few times that I actually cooled off since coming here. After we got back from the bakery we went to my friend’s host home and celebrated her birthday. They served us a fried tortilla called “caro sucio” which means dirty face. The dish was pretty good. I finished it and was full. They asked us if we were ready for the next two courses. We were so full, so we shared a plate between the three of us. They also like to serve a kool-aid drink. It is the one thing that I have had since I got here that I really can’t stand. There is so much sugar and I really don’t like the taste of it. After we finished the first course, they brought out a second course. I was full already, so my friends and I split a plate between the three of us. For dessert, we had Eskimo Neopolitan ice cream, but it was less dense and had a different flavor than ice cream in the states.

A friend of my host sister came over to the house later in the evening. She spoke a good amount of English and her Spanish was easier for me to understand. We talked for over an hour and I really enjoyed talking with her.

Overall, living in Nicaragua is an adjustment. In the U.S. houses are enclosed. Here in Nicaragua, the hallway has an opening and you will get wet when you walk down the hall in the rain. The doors are somewhat transparent material strung on wires from nails. Families wash laundry by hand here and they hang it in the opening in the hallway. Families watch a lot of television, and their programs have a lot less commercials than programs in the U.S.

It cooled off yesterday because of all of the rain, so I slept a lot better than I have been sleeping. I am also becoming more comfortable in the house. In the morning, I finally got enough courage to take a shower. The shower was like a small garden hose coming out of the wall. The cold water felt really good and I was ready for another shower by 10 in the morning because it is so hot!