I have spent so much time in Managua lately! I had a dermatologist appointment last week (for the itchiness) and then spent the rest of the week giving presentations to the new group. The trainee that is living with my host family from training is really fun. I'm glad he is part of our "family" now.
After spending the whole week in Managua I was really anxious to get back to Somotillo but decided against it. If I had gone home I would have spent 6 hours on the bus to get there, been in Somotillo for one night and then would have come back to Managua the next day for more follow-up with the doctor, more meetings and even more doctors appointments.
Instead of going home I went to visit a friend who lives closer to Managua in a part of the country I had never been to before. Her part of the country is notorious for being green, hilly, cowboy country "where the rivers are made of milk and the rocks of cheese" because of all the cattle in the area. My friend's town is pituresque (the opposite of Somotillo) nestled between lush, green hills. Her boyfriend took the day off work to help play tour guide and we went to his friend's farm. The farm was fantastic! I had so much fun in the 4 hours we were there. I got to ride a horse, play with baby cows, watch bulls fight, have lunch and enjoy the scenery. I passed some tense moments watching the farm-hands tie up some of the cattle to brand them. I can't decide if the hardest part was hearing the branding iron sizzle on their skin or the lost, resigned expressions on their faces as they layed on the ground, unable to escape.
I have lots of great pictures from the weekend that I will be sure to upload as soon as I find the cable for my camera. My favorite is the pics of me just after I mounted the horse, looking amused but also terrified. I had explained to my friend's boyfriend that I while I have in the past sat on a horse, I do not really know how to ride one. His response was to tell me not to be a sissy and saddle up. Once I was astride the beast (which luckily was a tiny Nicaraguan horse that would be dwarfed by any horse in the States), he handed me the reins and said "Its just like driving a car, go ahead." I didn't fall of, but a baby could crawl faster than the pace at which the horse and I mulled about the farm. The horse (which didn't have a name, I asked) was more than 25 years old and wasn't in the mood to run either.
After a morning at the farm and an afternoon nap my friends and I got dressed up and went to a ranchera concert. Ranchera is of music that originated in Mexico but is extremely popular across pretty much all of Latin America. I personally love it because the crowds are always really enthusiastic and its fun to dance to.
I'm back in Managua now, at the Peace Corps office. Since my group has been in country for a year we have to have a bunch of medical exams to make sure, among other concerns, that our teeth aren't going to fall out. Managua is not my favorite place to be. Managua is enormous, dangerous and EXPENSIVE with respect to our salaries. I am always really happy to go home by the time my stay in Managua is over. What's good about Managua is that there is a movie theater and pizza.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments:
Post a Comment