León Homestay
After meeting with the students at the university, we went back to the homes that we would be living in for the next 2 days. Amanda and I were extremely blessed in being placed with Papa Juan and Mama Ruth. They have 3 daughters and now 2 bonus daughters (Amanda and me). We were immediately greeted with open arms and dove right into the Nicaraguan culture.
I felt right at home during my stay with the family. On the first night Juan and Ruth did not get home until late so we went out for pizza and then a late run to the ATM and supermarket to make sure we had everything for the next day.
The next morning after eating breakfast with our families we were rushed out the door to start our day! Papa Juan and Mama Ruth had to work so they dropped us off at Tia Sandra’s (Aunt Sandra’s) and we were on our way. Our first stop of the day was to La Casona where we met with the Police Department in León who works with preventing . This is done by bringing inmates in to help run the facility after being reinstated into society.
Our second stop was to meet with 2 individuals about community human rights. Here we went into detail about community human rights. The idea of the center is to oversee the different things taking place in Latin America from Motorcycle accidents to human trafficking and sexual violence.
The next stop was to a museum which was originally a prison. This museum gave us very important cultural history including the reasons behind many of the superstitions in León as well as the traditional dances and more.
Our final educational stop of the day was to the Cathedral and downtown León where we were able to explore and learn more of the area’s history. We explored the top of the Cathedral for at least 30 minutes in the blazing sun but with the help of Tia Sandra I learned so much.
Seeing how religious León was became very appealing to me as we counted 1, 2, 3…. muchos (many) churches from the top of the Cathedral. Each building beautifully built.
That evening we were able to spend time with all of our families as a unit as we went out dancing and seeing the nightlife of León. Leaving the next morning was a painful goodbye but thanks to social media, pictures, and a special letter from mi hermana (my sister) Natalie, my family in León will always have a special place in my heart.
-Lauren Hitchens