Post #5

We've been away from Cafe Latino for a bit, but only because we've been so busy. Don't worry, we are alright, and here is post #5!

Friday:

Friday nigth we decided to hit the town and go to a club (discoteca) with Tony and Alejandra. We had a blast, got really sweaty from dancing so much, and had a late-night burger from a burger-stand that would rival Jack Brown's for Five Guys. Nicaraguans certainly know how to dance, too. Oh, and we iced Tony back to back at the club. We're bringing icing to Nicaragua one translator at a time! Before we headed out to Chaman we stopped at Tony's friend's house. His grandfather owns a large coffee farm in the northern parts of the country and Tony said next time we come we can go there and tour the processing plant. We had a few drinks at his friend's house before heading to Chaman in another torrential downpour that turned some side streets into rivers. It was an interesting trip!

Saturday:

Saturday we decided to take a day trip to San Juan del Sur. It's a small tourist spot on the Pacific Coast near Costa Rica known for its surfing waves. Tony also informed us that Nicaragua is now considered the top surfing location in all of North America, particularly because of the large waves and year-round surfing conditions. It was about a 2 hour drive, though it was without incident as we got pulled over on the way there for having 6 people in a 5 person car. We paid the $20 ticket and went on our way. We stopped at a nice restaurant for lunch and got the seafood soup, as recommended by Tony. Tony did not warn us, however, that the soup consisted of a piece of almost every ocean creature. After getting over the fact that I had half a fish sticking out of my soup bowl and an octopus tentacle floating on top, I dug in and thoroughly enjoyed (we all loved it). The soup consisted of lobster tail, crab, fish, octopus, squid and shrimp. After lunch we went to the beach and enjoyed the huge waves. They were probably about 7-8 feet and not exactly the easiest to body surf. We had a great time, though, and had a thorough workout fighting through the waves and strong current. The temperature was perfect as well, and it felt like we were taking a bath. The beach was beautiful and was located in a cove surrounded on both sides by high cliffs. On the right side, on top of a mountain, a Saint John statue overlooked the ocean. If anyone saw the article in the Washington Post a couple weeks ago, San Juan del Sur is where Mark Twain often stopped on his journeys to the Gulf of Mexico. We left aruond 7 and made it back in time to get a very good night's sleep in.

Sunday:

Sunday Luca and Ryan woke up to go to chruch while ANna and I decided to sleep in. It had been a rough day Saturday and I was in no codition to sit through 2 hours of Spanish. Afterwards, we rented a school bus and headed to Chocoyo with the kids. It's a restaurant and bar with a huge pool that we took the kids to in March. It only ended up costing us each about $35 to pay for everyone to go (39 teachers and kids). It was well worht the cost as the kids had a blast. I came away with a slight injury, however, acquired while being a base for a chicken fight. I slipped on a tile picture on the bottom of the pool and slit my toe open. It bled for a long time, but I think it's starting to heal. We taught some of the younger girls how to swim, too. After the pool we went to the orphanage, snagged dinner and hungout with the kids while it rained. The night is probably my favorite time. All the kids congregate in one area around some candles that Luca bought and we all play in the candle light. I don't think any of us notice the fact that we haven't had electricity for over a week, and it will likely be a culture shock when we return to the states and we have power. We did finally get back the watever and enjoyed some nice showers. Last night we also went to a local restaurant and bar with Maria Jose, the orphanage director and enjoyed some drinks and discussion before heading back for bed.

Today is our last full day, and this is likely our last post before our re-cap posts tomorrow, assuming we have internet access at the airport. I don't think any of us are ready to leave and I could certainly stay for another few weeks. These kids are absolutely incredible and are always so happy despite their coditions. Coming on this trip was beyond rewarding. With only 4 of us, we were able to connect so much more with the kids. We've also been able to witness first-hand what it is like to live these kids' lives. The previous trips have exposed us to a lot, but this one allowed us to LIVE their lives a bit, connect with them on a much more personal level, and learn who they are as individuals. I think I speak for all of us when I say we are going to miss these kids to death.

Today we are going to get our car cleaned out and have one last long day of playing with the kids before we have an ice cream party tonight to cap off the trip. I got permission from Maria jOse to pick Leyla and Nicole up from school. They always take the bus and Leyla asked if I could get her today since it's our last day here, and I was excited that Maria Jose agreed!

Also, we want to give a HUGE shoutout to Tony who has been absolutely incredible for us on this trip. He has shown us a great tiem here and has helped with translating when we can't quite undrstand what is being said. We're gonna miss him a ton as well, and we hope his visit to the US planned for September becomes a reality!

It has also been really great getting to know Allison. She spends 4 months of her year living at El Canyon and using her own money to take care of these kids when she's not in school. She has also been a great help with translations and helping us get adjusted to life at the orphanage. She also leaves tomorrow to head back to school at Tennessee Chatanooga so we want to wish her a safe trip!

We have a ton of picture to post on facebook, but it will probably have to wait until we get back stateside. Hopefully the ones that are already up from the first half of the trip are enough for now!