The fear of dying

Ok, so I am officially in my home away from home in Somoto now. The house where I am staying is a sort of crash pad for all staff traveling in this region. Last night there were 8 people including me staying in the two bedroom house (so basically there were mattresses all over the place including the living room!) Still no hot water; and the water shoots out all over the place. Now there are giant ants which one of the other staff assures me are not peligroso (bad), moths, and some sort of giant flying insect much scarier looking than a wasp that is in fact muy peligroso and bites!

Before leaving Managua, I got a mini tour of the city that included the Presidential Palace (somewhat like our white house, but pink), the park where they burned the guns after the end of the revolution, and the memorial where Pope John Paul II first visited Nicaragua and won over the people. Apparently, the President of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega is not using the Presidential Palace at this time, so its pretty much empty. Instead, he is running everything out of his own home. After the tour I went briefly to the center before setting off on the road to Somoto.

We traveled from Managua to Somoto in about 4 hours through a beautiful landscape up into the mountains. And, contrary to what I thought, the road was very well paved for the majority of the trip and the view was beautiful. During the trip my guide and I spoke about a variety of topics including the difference between the US and here, politics, children, God, religion, corruption, etc. It was a great opportunity for me to practice my Spanish! When we got to Somoto we visited briefly with the Director and I had lunch. I am getting very used to having gallo pinto at every meal! Then we went to visit Quebrada Honda which although is only 30 kilometers away is more than an hour of driving time up, up, up, (I really mean up) a steep hill that turned from cobblestone to dirt.

It was really beautiful, something like driving up through a land untouched by time and bare of man’s machinations. I wish that I could have gotten some pictures for you, but unfortunately, as anyone who knows anything about me knows, I have a serious, terrifying, very horrible, really shockingly overwhelming fear of heights. Since for most of the trip I was on the side of the car that tipped precariously off the side of the cliff, I couldn’t make myself let go of the hand bar in order to grab my camera and catch that exquisite view. At the top of the very large mountain we met with the Director of Quebrada Honda and talked about what I would do when I come back in a couple of weeks.

The ride back down the mountain was much more scary (even though I was on the mountain side) because it had started to rain. I have to say that I am terrified of the driving here and as it was explained to me by my guide, that driving here is not defensive but offensive! You fight to get the right of way and only give it up if absolutely imperative. I think that I will have to get some Pepto Bismal for any future rides because I seriously get queasy just thinking about it. People here honk all the time and it seems like there are a few different kinds of honks:

1. “I’m here” (this is used to notify others that you are coming around a curve, your passing them, or your just passing an intersection, this is a sort of light tap on the horn).

2. “Hey, I’m here!” (this is used when someone doesn’t respect your right of way and you have to remind them that you are there, and is a little bit stronger).

3. “Get out of the way!” (this is a more rapid form of honking used to encourage cars that strop in the middle of the street, which they do all the time to move out of your way) .

4. And, finally, “You’re an idiot!” (this is used a lot and is a long blaring of the horn that signals that the other driver has done something really offensive such as stopping to let a pedestrian go by!)

Driving here is a highly elevated art form, which I am terrified to even think about trying. They wanted me to drive to the house last night, but I was like no way! I am not that good a driver and I would likely get very lost (since everyone knows I have a poor sense of direction) and I would crash or get stuck in the mud.

Finally, we got a ride to the house and then we went looking for food. In Somoto it is much harder to find prepared food because there are not a lot of people who buy premade food. We went to three different places before we finally lucked out on one that had burritos and frozen slushes in various flavors. I will have to go shopping this weekend at the Supermercado up the street to buy some essentials such as bottled water. The house doesn’t have internet, but it is right next to an internet café, so I think that I will be able to have some access when I am not at work. I will be working at the Somoto office for now, and once my evaluation tool is complete, I will be administering it here and at Quebrada Honda. Possibly also at Cusmapa depending on how long it takes to get everything approved and done. Things here move very slowly and it’s a little bit frustrating, but apparently I just need to get used to Nica time.

Last night I was so tired I tried (note the word tried) to crash at 7:30. Unfortunately for me there are loud cars and trucks and donkey buggies (yes, you read that right, donkey buggies) that go up and down the street. There is also light that comes through the windows from the streetlights and no air conditioning. It’s really not that bad at night once it gets dark but I will have to get used to it. You know I love my automatic air conditioner! In addition to all of that I was woken up several times during the night by the chorale of dogs, roosters, and some other assorted animals that I am not sure what they were. Finally, I got up and at 5:30 and took a shower. I was shocked every time I looked at the alarm to see what time it really was because I didn't hardly get any sleep. If it wasn't a car it was a dog or other assorted animal every 30 minutes making noise!

One of the staff here, Arturo informs me that Somoto is the capital of a districto here Madriz (like a state) that is one of the most historic regions in Nicaragua. It's about 500 years old, I was told. The city has rows of cobblestone roads in a neat line and rows and rows of colorful houses that look like something out of a movie. The house has a gas burner in the kitchen and dishes for me to use and there is a lady who comes to clean once a week who I can apparently bargain with to do my laundry. A load of laundry here is like less than a dollar and to ride the Express bus to Managua is only three dollars! I have to provide the laundress with soap though and for extra money they will iron for you.

The walk from the house to the center is 9 blocks, so I will be getting a lot of exercise. And, when I move to Quebrada Honda, the walk is all up a mountain! Oh boy, I can feel the Aleve calling me already! So for now that is it everybody. This weekend I am going to explore the city a little and hopefully find the church. According to Arturo it’s beautiful and historic to this area.

Well friends, there will be more later; as tonight I will try to brave the supermercado!