Quick Thoughts from Nicaragua

We all just returned from Nicaragua last night..it was one of the real highlights of my semester so far.

Managua, Matagalpa and Granada are all incredibly different cities. From climate to income to energy, it seemed like each city really had its distinct personality.

But culturally, the country is warm and welcoming..political ideologies were strong and visible. Daniel Ortega and the socialist party have assumed power again (as of Jan 2007)..there are new government projects, like schools and homes being built. But on the whole, Nicas I met didn´t seem to think that the Sandinistas could lift the nation out of poverty.

Living in Costa Rica sometimes makes you forget where you are. Things are generally comfortable here..I have a bed, running water, (sometimes) working showers, and three meals a day. In Nicaragua, many of these things are scarce. It is a true challenge to live, even for a few days, in Matagalpa. I find myself thinking constantly of the daily life conditions there--to lose electricity for a week, or water, or food.

It is a country with rich culture and history that I hope to dive further into soon..we are finalizing internship plans over the next week or so, and I can only hope to learn more from our neighbor to the north.

Mi Vida Aquí

Thought I´d take the time to reflect on my first two weeks in Central America..

The ICADS program is very, very intensive..with classes from 8 to 5 every day, and not much time for rest. It has, for me, been a great success so far. The Spanish professors here have literally transformed my ability to speak the language. Concepts that seemed vague and incomprehensible are now very clear, and I find myself making more mental corrections, shedding my ¨gringo¨ understanding of Spanish! Initially, I hated the idea of spending this much time learning a language, but is so rewarding to be able to communicate and really engage with everyone here.

The afternoon class is filled with intensive lectures and readings (I have a hard time finding a better word than ¨intensive¨!) which are also very rewarding. The guest speakers have spoken richly and about a number of important Latin American issues. I´ve also had to tap into my pathetic capacity for science, to perform hands-on research in sustainable agriculture. We traveled through the mountains to see firsthand how stringent regulations are for organic coffee.

But I digress. As much as I´ve learned in class so far, actually living with a family and becoming part of this culture (if only for two weeks) has been a life-changing experience. I feel so lucky to have this opportunity...every day meeting someone new, hearing an incredible story. I´m convinced that studying abroad is hugely important, but to do it in this manner is very different--and much more significant than living in an American dorm overseas.

The first five weeks here are dedicated to living around San José, learning as much Spanish as possible. It´s broken up by a trip to Nicaragua during the third week. We´re leaving on Sunday and it´s something we´re all looking forward to..all the ticos here say it´s a totally different world. Already we have heard that many of the American myths about Nicaragua are not true, but I´m interested in seeing that firsthand.

We´ll be traveling to Managua, Matagalpa, and Grenada..including some stops in between. I am looking forward to seeing all three of these cities, but particularly Matagalpa, because there are some internships there I am seriously considering.

After the five weeks of class have finished, we all move to different homes for 7 weeks to work at the internship site we´ve selected. I´m going through that process right now, looking at an activist group for sustainable development, an international radio program for peace, and a few organic farms scattered around the area. It makes up the vast part of the program, and as much as I´m cherishing San José, it will be good to find new work, a new home, and a new set of interesting challenges.

After those 7 weeks, we return to our families here for about ten days to write papers and present our work to the program. I hope this blog post wasn´t too boring, but I know I was confused before I started the program. So hopefully this will clarify some things for any students that are interested...

I´ll be sure to check in after we get back from Nicaragua! But that may not be until late Saturday or Sunday. Thanks for checking in!

La Manera Orgánica

The first thing you notice about Costa Rica is not the rainforest, or the beach, or the fancy resorts. Rather, it´s the way people interact..even with minimal competence in Spanish, it has become more and more clear that there is a sense of community here completely absent in the United States.

When I eat a meal, it is more often than not produced locally. Costa Rica does not (cannot?) rely on other countries for its rice and beans, or its bread and butter. Of course, when you go to a McDonald´s in the U.S., you´re eating an American burger (maybe), yet you still have no idea where it comes from. In this country, everything has a fresh, local taste. It amazes me how many Americans are trying to go "organic", which is all peachy..but how organic can a fruit be when it´s flown in from another hemisphere? I am on the 20-fruits-a-day diet, and they all come from Costa Rica. (Sadly, also the 20-cups-of-coffee-diet, but I´m convinced there´s no better coffee in the world)

Without a computer or the internet or a book or a magazine or the latest fashion news from Hollywood, I find myself constantly interacting with my surroundings. How often do we take a minute out of our day to study what´s going on around us? Of course, this is part of being a traveler, but it is also a product of life without the petty distractions we seem to live off of.

There is more love here than I have ever seen..each family is sown together in such a natural way. To me, that´s what organic means..love minus the chemicals: gossip, drama, propaganda. It´s not our fault that these petty things seem to penetrate our daily lives, but we also must take responsibility for the decisions we make. Cliché, I know, but I realize now that winter doesn´t mean me and the internet need to be best friends. Or that a day off from work means a day with HBO...

Everyone who walks by my home here stops in to say hello. In a half-mile radius of my home in the U.S., I know maybe 3 neighbors? 4? It´s those personal decisions we need to re-examine. So I´m sorry if this first blog post is a bit unclear, but I guess I´m just generally shocked at the organic sense of community everyone has here..something we lost a long time ago.

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Thanks for checking in everyone! I´ll be trying to blog every Saturday while I´m here..I´m sorry for any typos etc..but Spanish is very intensive here, and there´s not much time to speak English!

Initiated!

Hey ya'all,

I am leaving tomorrow morning for San José..thought it would be a good opportunity to start blogging. I'm doing this for Hampshire's global education office, but also for friends and family that want to keep track of my adventure!

Thanks for checking in..

Speak to ya'all soon,
Matt