Hello again on our last day of our trip! We left Chinandega this morning around 7am for the two hour ride to Managua. We went with a driver and an escort with us. As we drove I thought about the past week and how happy we all have been to come and experience another culture. Although the people here in Nicaragua are very nice, the country is very dirty and obviously very poor. You always see these road side shacks with little dirty looking little kids hanging outside. Something I've observed her in Managua, Chinandega and along the way was that as dirty as it is you always see ladies outside of their small shack homes sweeping. They sweep the dirt but the whole front is dirt! I suppose they are trying to maintain the little they have. Another observation that I haven't shared before is that there is always smoke in the air, at least up in Chinandega. They burn their trash alot, although you see so much trash everywhere so not sure about that! The whole week you see these little pieces of black floating in the air which is just burned particles. The smoke in the picture above was just one along the roadside on our trip this morning. Also the form of transportation is crazy. Kids on motorcycles squeezed between their parents, bikes with 3-4 people on it- even carrying a puppy on one I saw, lots of bike carts and lots of cars with kids and adults hanging out on the back. See picture above. No car seats let alone seat belts! So different than our world!
We arrive in Managua early so we decided to stop by a open market to pick up a few souviners. We only had about 15 minutes so we picked up a few things and off we went. When we arrived at the school, which was surrounded by a huge wall, we were detained at the security gates. They couldnt seem to find the person who we were supposed to meet, apparently they weren't familiar with the name. After about 10 minutes waiting,sweating and a few phone calls we were allowed to pass. We were greeted by an office administrator who brought us to meet the elementary level principal, Mr. Ramirez. He then took us to meet with their student council, about 8 or 9 of them. They ate their lunch while Celia gave a presentation about our school experience with Ops Smile and kids who have come on mission trips. They did a final mile last year but aren't sure if they will this year according to the principal. After a few questions and photos we were off for a tour. The facility is very beautiful, colorful and huge. The school goes from 3 year olds to high school! We saw most of it other than the high school part. We toured the cafe area which had Subway, Burger King and Pizza Hut. The kids were very excited to see that! We saw their pool, basketball courts, soccer fields, library, classrooms and more. It is mostly outside, all outdoor walkways but the classroom are individual rooms. I said how nice it was and he said that by March and April it gets really hot and the classrooms have no AC! Just fans and windows. Talk about hard conditions to teach and learn in! We ran in to Gabriel, the boy Garrett met up in Chinandega and quickly grabbed him and his buddies for a photo op! Garrett absolutely loved the school, he thought it was so cool! A driver was arranged for us to take us to the hotel so we said our goodbye's and off we went.
I asked the driver if it was safe for us to go back to the market later by ourselves since we didnt have a lot of time earlier and he said he would take us. We hit some big traffic jam so he took a shortcut through a shady part of town and locked the doors. I'd be lying if I didn't tell you I was a little nervous for a second! But then we arrived safe and sound. I asked him if he would lock the doors since all our luggage was in the back and he said he'd have someone watch it. We strolled around, made a few more purchases and then we decide to go because we were starving! When we got back to the car he was giving some guy with a gun some money and so I asked him why he paid him and he said to watch our stuff. I said but the car was locked and he replied but they will break in and take everything! I was thankful he paid the guy needless to say! Anyway we headed to our hotel which is a major upgrade from our last one! The kids were very excited to see the hotel which had toucans and parrots in a huge cage as we pulled in. We grabbed some lunch, which was very good - filet mignon was at the buffet! Garrett again was in heaven! The kids decided to go swimming which is where there are as I write this to you all. We will meet up with my mom's friend, Arnoldo around 4:30 for a little tour of Managua and then to dinner. Will check back for the last time tomorrow! I've enjoyed writing this for everyone and for us as well! Thanks again for all the comments, we love them!
-Crissy, Garrett, & Celia
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