It's been more than three months since my last blog post...oops. I'd like to think I've been busy with work...I'll tell myself I have :) As of today, I have exactly 77 days left in Nicaragua, WHAT?! But before I talk about finishing my service, lets talk about what I've been up to.
Adventures:
Back in May, one of my close friends back from graduate school in California came to visit me from Panama, where she is finishing her Peace Corps service as an Aggie (Agriculture volunteer). And we had a blast! I brought her to my site for her to experience what my days are like and well....teaching isn't for everyone (and she went on a good day). But my students enjoyed having her in class with us and she got a taste of what other sectors around the world do during their service. We then went to some of my favorite cities in Nicaragua: Masaya, Granada and Leon.
Adventures:
Back in May, one of my close friends back from graduate school in California came to visit me from Panama, where she is finishing her Peace Corps service as an Aggie (Agriculture volunteer). And we had a blast! I brought her to my site for her to experience what my days are like and well....teaching isn't for everyone (and she went on a good day). But my students enjoyed having her in class with us and she got a taste of what other sectors around the world do during their service. We then went to some of my favorite cities in Nicaragua: Masaya, Granada and Leon.
Masaya: This city is cute, but after a while it becomes too overwhelming for me. They have great artisan markets (one where all the Nicas shop and one where all the foreigners shop). The old market has many of the same things as the newer market, only significantly cheaper. They are great places to buy souvenirs and gifts. I will definitely be returning before the end of my service.
Granada: This is still my favorite city in the entire country. It's maybe because it's one of the few places I can shut off my teacher/peace corps button and just enjoy Nicaragua as a tourist (not something I get to do often). They have incredible food, lots of fun activities like tours, kayaking, volcano adventures. And their architecture is beautiful Spanish inspired buildings, churches and homes. I've been to Granada maybe 10 times and highly recommend it. This time, I got to go up into the tower of the bright cathedral (didn't even know that was a thing), for only 1 dollar!). And finally,
Leon: I just recently discovered Leon, and although I still prefer Granada, it has some cool things. On this trip, I did something I never expected myself to do...VOLCANO BOARDING! For those who don't know what volcano boarding is, it's exactly what it sounds like. They give you a board, you climb a volcano (Cerro Negro to be exact) and then at the top, come flying down while sitting on the board! It was an okay experience (probably the first PCV to ever say that). After doing it I realized it is definitely not for me, but it was cool to try it out. My friend and I were the last two to go, so we decided to go at the same time and "race". The first thing I realized is how scratched up my goggles were, I COULDN'T SEE ANYTHING! So that's probably a main contributor to not really enjoying the whole experience. As I started to gain speed, I decided to risk looking to my side to see where my friend was. I didn't see her and started to smile and think to myself "I'm going to win" when all of a sudden ZOOM! She flys past me and I just start laughing. It was one of the most surreal things to see someone go so fast down a volcano. But it doesn't end there. I started to shout "Go Genevieve" when CRASH! She hits a rock right as she is reaching the end and goes FLYING! I mean flying, tumbling, crashing, it was one of the scariest things I've ever witnessed, and my goggles restricted me from seeing most of it. I slowly came to a stop at the end of the volcano and just started to my right as the other people on the tour ran up to help her. And the best thing I could muster to say was "Is she dead?!" HA! She slowly rose her thumb up at me and we continued on our way. She was fine, only a few scratches here and there. But we learned something, volcano boarding is not for everyone. The hike is not long (about 45 minutes) and it was a beautiful drive out to Cerro Negro. Perhaps if I could have seen better through my goggles and not seen my friend crashing down a volcano, I would have had a more "enjoyable experience". I don't regret it, but I will not be doing that ever again.
We also got to climb the Leon Cathedral for about 3 dollars and it was SO WORTH IT! We went during closing time which was perfect because the sun was almost down so our feet didn't burn (aren't allowed to go up there with shoes on). It was so WHITE and clean. And apparently made with egg shells, HOW COOL?!
We also got to climb the Leon Cathedral for about 3 dollars and it was SO WORTH IT! We went during closing time which was perfect because the sun was almost down so our feet didn't burn (aren't allowed to go up there with shoes on). It was so WHITE and clean. And apparently made with egg shells, HOW COOL?!
Celebrations!
I was able to help set up one of my god-daughters surprise birthday parties back in May. It was awesome! It was a great feeling of just focusing completely on my friendships rather than my primary role as a Peace Corps volunteer. I think sometimes, I forget that my service will not be determined by the amount of classes I taught, teacher trainings I gave or school gardens and nurseries I helped put together, but rather by the lives that have welcomes me so closely into their lives that they gladly invite me to blow up balloons for hours at their home. My friends will be what I am going to miss the most, and I'm hoping to take full advantage of the last 76 days I have left.
I was able to help set up one of my god-daughters surprise birthday parties back in May. It was awesome! It was a great feeling of just focusing completely on my friendships rather than my primary role as a Peace Corps volunteer. I think sometimes, I forget that my service will not be determined by the amount of classes I taught, teacher trainings I gave or school gardens and nurseries I helped put together, but rather by the lives that have welcomes me so closely into their lives that they gladly invite me to blow up balloons for hours at their home. My friends will be what I am going to miss the most, and I'm hoping to take full advantage of the last 76 days I have left.
Also, I was very fortunate to get to return to the US for the last time before COSing in October to see my only brother marry his best friend :) Honestly, this was the only trip I had planned to go to the states before leaving for the Peace Corps, and I have since returned home 4 times!!! It really is possible to visit your family back home (if that is a worry you have), you just need to save up your vacation days. This was an interesting trip home with my service close to ending. I am now starting to reflect more clearly on what I have accomplished and what I would possibly like to contribute to my community before I leave. It was a nice way to recharge and return ready to give it my all for my last two months left in site.
Projects:
Apart from planning thousands of science classes and actually teaching maybe half (school gets cancelled A LOT), I have been able to keep myself busy with some projects that really make me happy :)
I have said it multiple times, if I could have spent two years just painting murals in my community I would have been the happiest volunteer, but I've only been able to help other PCVs with the community murals, still a nice fix once in a while. I was asked to draw out the mural in the PCV's town closest to me and of course I said "I'M READY NOW!" It's so great what some paints can do for the soul. I love to draw and getting to draw on giant wall was so therapeutic, we just painted and talked about our last remaining months as Peace Corps volunteers.
Apart from planning thousands of science classes and actually teaching maybe half (school gets cancelled A LOT), I have been able to keep myself busy with some projects that really make me happy :)
I have said it multiple times, if I could have spent two years just painting murals in my community I would have been the happiest volunteer, but I've only been able to help other PCVs with the community murals, still a nice fix once in a while. I was asked to draw out the mural in the PCV's town closest to me and of course I said "I'M READY NOW!" It's so great what some paints can do for the soul. I love to draw and getting to draw on giant wall was so therapeutic, we just painted and talked about our last remaining months as Peace Corps volunteers.
I've also gotten to focus a lot of time transplanting marango trees with my ecological brigade! Last year, all of the trees had a sad ending (for various reasons) and none of the saplings in the nursery survived. This year I changed it up a bit. I asked each student to take theirs home and bring it back to school when it was tall and healthy. We have now planted around 10 marango trees and one tamarind tree at my urban school. And the kids LOVE getting to play with dirt, I just sit around taking their pictures.
We also planted a small bed of radishes since they are the quickest to grow, and I figured since I don't have much time left I'll be around for my students to harvest some radishes.
We also planted a small bed of radishes since they are the quickest to grow, and I figured since I don't have much time left I'll be around for my students to harvest some radishes.
As for my last 2.5 months in site, who knows what life has in store. Right now, it has been a lot of paper work, emails, skype calls, etc. trying to get ready to return to school to finish my last semester of grad school. Almost forgot I was here working on that hahahaha. Although Master's International is no longer a thing begin offered, I'm glad I made the choice to do grad school and Peace Corps together because they both complimented each other a lot, and I will be able to cater my last semester to best fit my new found love for teaching.