Well this has been a hard week. I had my second site visit from my sector boss that did not go well. She said the majority of negative things. The only thing I was doing right was i had good ideas. This put my spirits down alot even though i was very motivated and excited before the visit. This is not the typical ocurance usually they encourage you and give you good constructive advice  I know that she is stressed and busy right now but so are the volunteers there was no need to take it out of me. 

I guess it did get me thinking about what i could do better since i was obviously doing everything wrong. After feeling sorry for myself I got of my chair and began to plan some some things to do with the kids like a belly dancing class, a vegetarian cooking class and a mural. I want to start these in the next month or so. This will give me more things to do an prove that i can be a good volunteer not just good be great!

Well one good things this week was my first meeting with my leaders for my ecological burgade. Even though one of the people didn't show up it was still a good talk. The one man that showed has alot of good advice and ideas. I think that he will be a great addition to the group. I hope I can work more with him on other projects as well. It will be a big success, I can't wait to get started. i think I will be starting earlier than i originally thought. The only issue that i am running into would be the dry season and the kids not waters the plants. For this reason I might not be starting now. 

I think i will have to move again. This time i am going to look for a casita or a small house connected to  a family  This way i can have my own privacy and maybe my things will be a  bit safer  I love my family now but it is not a good living condition. They keep taking my things and now they have started to pick my locks. I feel back since Peace Corps just put bars on my window for protection and i would be moving but life  goes on. 

There is not much more to share talk to you all next week. 

Hey a lot has happened since i last wrote. I got to see three rainbows and one of which was in a cloud no not in the sky but just the cloud it was so cool. It must be my month or something for me to see such a beautiful rarity three times in a row. I also go to feed and touch a monkey at a monkey park in Matagalpa. In Matagalpa we got to see a beautiful waterfall, and ate some really good food.  We also saw the bands for the day in Independence  This is when all of the schools in the town put on a show and march through the streets of town. It is always very fun to watch and they have some very creative skits if not two provocative. 

Lets see what else happened there was the national day band for my own school happened this week. I am glad that i got to see it since i missed the independence day one. They were amazing and i have some pictures posted on facebook of them. I then went shopping and come back for the 6:30 bus into site. It never came he apparently decided not to run the last bus today. By that time it was dark out and I did not feel safe walking the 6k into my site on a unlit street with a few houses spaced out over the distance. I called a few volunteers to see if I could crash at their houses for the night. I got some positive responses but luckily a truck came by and offered me a ride into my site. The next day i had to get out of my site for an appointment but the bus left early and i missed it. I began to walk to 6k to get stopped my a man on a bike. I was offered a ride by sitting on the front  bar the connects the handle bars to the seat. It was a very uncomfortable ride but the man was nice. I got to the meeting on time which was great! Welcome to the fun adventure in the Peace Corps.

I have two leader for you ecological brigade and will be having the first leaders meeting soon! I am very excited about this it should be great. My research on malaria and dengue has been very interesting and informative i am learning a lot of things i never knew like mosquitoes sip pollen form flowers and it takes one week for the malaria decease to develop in it's host. 

My family is good but there are still thinking disappearing from my room. I dont' know who is doing it so we are now taking more precautions to protect it. We are installing bar on the windows and I am  making sure the room is locked at all times. I'm sure that everything will be ok in the end. 

until  next week bye

Well update on everything that is going on with the volcano and evacuation. We are still all stuck and the volcano is still erupting and the sulfur is doubled reading and there are a few new blockages. This was caused by the explosion blocking three of the gas vents. There is a fear that there will be more blockages. This is creating pressure to build up and might explode to release this blockage. I am safe but restless. We were in Managua the capital since Sat and just got the permission to travel to other areas not the costs, Atlantic area and near the volcano. So at least I am not stuck in Managua anymore. Isn't fun to have a all paid vacation. I am with a bunch of friends and we are having a blast. I don't think i will be going back soon.

I really miss my site and I just hope that things are still going to be running when i get back. Like my English class and my manualidades class. I want to get involved with my teachers classes again. I was to implement a test but I fear that i will not be able to do that. I also have a lot of ideas to do with the kids and i need to get there to do them. You can't change things so I just have to make the most of this situation. I am also meeting a lot of new people and getting some ideas from them. My planning has not stopped at least. I jsut have to get back soon to implement these ideas.

Love you all and miss you. XOXO

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/nicaragua.html

Hey, this has been an interesting week. As I am sure that a few of you have seen on the news there has been a lot of disasters close to Nicaragua. I am fine! I did feel the earthquake that was in Costa Rica but there was no damage in my site or anywhere near me. All of the volunteers are fine it was just a shock. Yesterday the volcano  San Cristobal erupted we were evacuated from my site. It is the region next to Leon. We are all safe and my village is safe too. There was no real danger there was a lot of smoke and ash a few random lava  but it didn't really effect us at all. We are being held some place safe and waiting to make sure that there is no more after problems. I have this feeling that this will not be our last evacuation for and environmental disaster I hope that I am wrong but we are on vault lines and the land of volcano. 

School has been going well I have gotten out garden close to done at my second school and the kids are very excited about my manualidades class (arts and crafts). I have been doing many things with the third grade teacher. I am creating one of the final exams with him and will be giving it. This should be fun to do and i have some great ideas. I think he will let me at least help out with the science one and I will be implementing the ECA (Arts and culture). There was an teachers meeting which are usually boring and long but i got a lot of Spanish lessons in. I brought my grammar book with me. I have also taken the initiation to read one thing in Spanish everyday weather it is a few pages of a book or a national geographic magazine in Spanish. I also am having Spanish tutoring classes every time I am in Managua. I hope that this means i can at least get up to advanced when I leave in a year. That is my personal goal if i get higher that would be amazing to. 

I have gotten a person who is interested in helping me with  my ecological burgade. I am very excited and hope that this will get going pretty soon. I just want to talk to one more person to see if she is interested and have a group meeting. Then i can finish the grant form and hopefully get it posted on line. My process with the fair is going well and have great ideas to start with that. I feel that things are coming along nicely with my side projects. I want to see if i could start some rain gardens to help solve run off problems I will see if i can do a small scale one on my property or maybe in the school to see how it would work out. The only problem would be the dry season and everything  dies. I will need to do more research on it. 

Love you all talk to you more later

One Year In Country!!!!

Well this week has been boring there has been little to no class. The kids are practicing for the the independence parrade. Also know as band practice and marching. With the little kids trying top copy the older ones. Very annoying very loud but the band is good and fun to watch. Testing is comming up so there is some reviewing and stuff. I have been jumping for class to class doing what i can. I have been asked to come up with a arts and cukture test. This should be fun. One of my teachers dad died so there hasn´t been class in my far school.

Things are going great with my family. I seem to be gettin g along well and learning more spanish every day. The dog had puppies three of them. They are so small and cute! They told me I can have one but I´m not sure if i want it. I have Miles and he is enough work as is. A horse also backed up into my fence to my garden and nocked out one of the posts and loosened another so I have animals in my garden. I will have to start over after the rainny season since the rain is also washing way my seads. But i do have some flowers on my canolope so hopefully i will get soemthing if the pigs don´t eat it all.

My counterpart has had her baby but it´s a premi about a few months early or something. I think people said it was a girl i am excited about seeing it. Don´t know what they are coming home though. not much more to report bye for now

Nicaragua vs USA

I have been thinking about this blog for a while  since I have time I figured I would write two blogs this week. It is the differences between Nicaragua and the USA.

1.       Pizza Hut is good pizza

2.       The sound of Roosters is a wakeup call

3.       Beans and Rice is almost all you eat

4.       Kisses on the cheek

5.       Cat calls

6.       Glue sniffers

7.       Overly packed buses

8.       Very skinny pets

9.       Mosquito nets

10.   Cleaning at least 4 times a day

11.   Bucket baths are preferred

12.   No running water or electricity for half or more of a day

13.   Latrines being preferable to toilets

14.   Most of food is bought in outdoor markets

15.   Only 5 TV channels

16.   School is half a day

17.   School is maybe 4 days a week

18.   Teachers can leave class rooms

19.   Clothes never dry

20.   Washing laundry on a wash board

21.   Very tight clothes that don’t fit their body

22.   There are only two religions catholic or evangelical

23.   Doors are left unlocked

24.   You are expected to walk into houses without invite

25.   Mode of transportation is a horse

26.   Roads turn into rivers when it rains

27.   Walk 6k to get to your house

28.   AC is too cold

29.   A fan is your new best friend

30.   70F is cold

31.   A rain storm sounds like the house is falling apart

32.   There is dirt yards not grass

33.   Horses are the main source of transportation

34.   All schools wear the same clothes

35.   Hitchhiking is welcomed

36.   Parasites and Bacteria are your babies

37.   Food on wood fire tasts better

38.   The oven is a storage place

39.   Dogs and cats are anorexic

40.   Traficlights are just for show

41.   What is a speed imit?

42.   All clothes are ironed

43.   Salt sugar and oil are their own food groups

44.   What is a trashcan?

45.   Not greeting someone is an insult

46.   Reading is not a pastime

47.   Hitting kids and animals is the norm

48.   Food, rent and utilities are only $65 a month

49.   There are no prescriptions just go and ask for what you want

Well this has been an interesting time. Let’s see I have 14 kids in my manualidades (arts and crafts) class. I have talked to the teachers about having SONATI a NGO from Leon come and do a class about the environment. They agreed on a topic and we are now having them come twice! The first time I will have to change because I will not be in my site. They will be doing the charla your responsibility to the environment and animal trafficking. Those are rough translations of the Spanish version. It should be fun and I can’t wait to see what they do. The best things is the only thing that we need to pay for is the transportation.

I have been having problems finding times to help the high schoolers with their projects. When they are out of class and doing most of the work I am in class. As well when I am out of class they are in class. I am still trying to figure this all out. I really want to work with them just haven’t figured out how yet. My English class had gone well and I think I am really getting the handle of things. I hope that all of the students show up again. I need to remember to get their numbers I have to be able to call them to tell them about any cancelations or changes in times.

Classes are going relatively well I have taught some cultural and art classes. They did a picture using three of more different types of materials. They could go out and look for the materials in the school then they had to make a picture using said materials and different colors. They were graded on the number of material their creativity and participation. They loved it and the teachers loved it too. I have fun doing it and did a really good job. I even had teachers bragging to the other teachers and I did in their classes too! It feels good to be appreciated.

I am also helping another volunteer with their youth group and we are having a blast doing it I can’t wait to help more. They kids are really nice and she is giving me a lot of ideas about things that I could do. While I am on the topic of helping volunteers I will tell you what I did this weekend. I went to my friend’s house and helped her with a fair she was putting on. It went great but I was so tired after it. We woke up early every day and worked for most of the day. The kids were great and they had a blast. She also lives next to a river so we got to go swimming something I really miss. It was nice to get cooled off and hang out with a great friend. I think I will do a fair of my own around the topic of malaria and dengue. It will be done after school gets out giving the kids something fun to do. Maybe I can get the help of other volunteers of community members.

I have a lot of new ideas of things that I want to do. I am planning for a baseball competition with HIV and AIDS theme. I am also working on the ecological brigade like I mentioned before. I think that it will cost will be a about 1,000 dollars so I think that I will post a partnership through Peace Corps that will allow friends and family to donate to the event. I will keep you updated if this is something that I will do and when I post it. Tell me who is interested in giving some money I need to know for the grant process.

Thanks and I love you all.