¡Hola bienvenidos!
People always asked me why I chose a 3rd world country to study abroad in over a place like Australia or England. Right when I stepped out of the airport this past Sunday I was reassured that I made the right choice, even more excited to drown myself in a new culture.
Throughout our first week here we have gone to several places and met with an array of people. The first day, we did a tour of Managua, Nicaragua — the first city we stayed in. Below is the Old Cathedral here in Managua that was destroyed by an earthquake back in the 1970s. Though it may seem destroyed, it was still a gorgeous site to see.
When you are here in Managua you will constantly see these trees, Trees of Life, when driving down the roads and an assortment of them at the lake.
Vice President Rosario Murillo (who, mind you, is also the president’s wife YOU GO GIRL) is the one who transformed the capital to have these trees that symbolize a new vision. But, after doing some research, I found out that some of the general public isn’t fond of these trees and how much they cost to put them up and keep them running.
So far this week we have learned about Nicaraguan history and the current political and economic situation, talked with ANICP + VIDA about HIV and AIDS here, and had a wonderful conversation about feminism with María Teresa Blandón. With our talks, we also visited an organization named NicaHOPE, pictured below.
NicaHOPE is a program that works with children living and/or working in the trash dump — it is also a preventative program to try and keep them out of ever having to work at the trash dump. It aims to keep these children in school and do so by providing after school programs and teaching them about making and selling jewelry. (If you’re interested in some jewelry, which I highly recommend, visit NicaHOPE.org). At the end of the week, we stayed with host families in León which I can’t wait to share more about in my next post!
¡Adiós!
Cheyenne Lenhart