Nicaragua

For American Thanksgiving we went to Nicaragua...it was a great time for a vacation.
















We left Teguc on a doubledecker bus - had front row seats...this is a picture of the trailer that our bus had to maneuver around - which took a while and gave us great entertainment!














Here is our group after we survived our first experience of intense Nicaraguans - the night before we were surrounded by overly excited taxi drivers! From left to right: Tara, Clinton, Melodee, Kyle, Heidi and I
















Heidi relaxing in the Hostel Oasis, it was quite relaxing and modern in looks (check out the mural in the background)
















Our first full day we went to a crater lake - the first fresh water lake we've enjoyed in Central America! It was quite warm and we had a lot of fun
















The girls of our group!
















Clinton and Tara are a young married couple from International school, it was fun getting to know them better throughout this trip. We also found a few good eating places - we had an italian dinner for thanksgiving...different, but very good
















Tara standing by a mural of the volcano we visited - a few centuries ago Catholic missionaries baptized what they considered the 'mouth of hell' by putting a cross on the side, it is still there!
















We visited Volcano Masaya, it took our breath away...literally - the sulfuric fumes made us all start coughing
















My close encounter with the crater...it was fun!

Nicaraguan Adventures!

To see more pictures check out Heidi's blog!
Other adventures from our Nicaraguan experience include...

Horse Carriage Ride: All six of us packed into into a horse and buggy and toured Granada...it was close quarters but a great experience! I felt a little bit bad for the horses - they looked a little malnourished - I thought our weight would make it difficult, but they made it through with gusto - even let Tara get on one of them for a picture!

Euro Cafe: Clinton came up with a novel idea of every meal being chosen by a different member of our group. I received our first lunch in Granada...we hadn't really had time to find anything so I decided to wing it! After checking out a taco place I went on a whim to the 'Euro Cafe'. It had a better menu, including gelato - but what clinched it for me was that 'Abba' was playing in the background! It got better and better, the waiter brought us back to a quaint courtyard and we ordered pannini...what a cool place! The only problem was that Kyle had issues with his sandwich. Poor Kyle. ;)

Intense Nicaraguans: When we were traveling to Granada we needed to take a busito...so we innocently went to the busito station - only to get mauled by the busito people as soon as we left our taxi!! They didn't even give me a chance to speak but tore my bag out of my hand!! They didn't even know where I wanted to go!! Clinton rescued it only to be surrounded by angry busito 'gangsters' who started pushing him around! He didn't let go of the bags but moved towards one busito...we all filed in and breathed a sigh of relief - and didn't let go of our bags for the rest of the trip!

Kayaking at Crater's Edge: Our experience at the crater lake was beautiful! The place we stayed at for the day tour was organized by Canadians...can't get better than that! We had a great time relaxing and swimming in fresh water - oh how I miss it! We had a great time fooling around on tubes, teaching Kyle to dive...then diving into tubes, and kayaking. The kayaks were great when they weren't tipping - Kyle and I had a hard time getting on one at the beginning :S Heidi and Tara tried doing handstands on theirs - which didn't really work, until Clinton made the bright suggestion that they should try doing a tri-pod...Melodee took some great videos of our time!

Volcano Masaya: After Kyle and Melodee left, Clinton, Tara, Heidi and I went to a Volcano...at the hottest time of the day (yah, we didn't learn from Copan). It was very impressive...the heat and fumes from the crater was overpowering! We ended up going to places that weren't necessarily open to the public. One of these places was up the edge of an overgrown volcano that had a very steep path. That didn't stop me, since I had seen a person at the top (so figured it was ok). At the top I found a gorgeous view, I stepped out on a ledge and started to take a picture...that's when I heard a sound beneath me - under the ledge was a guard with a radio! I slowly backed off and walked to the rest of the group asking what we should do - we figured it was best to talk to him - and instead of getting mad at us for going to an illegal area he showed us how we could go further!! I think he was lonely. So we talked with him for a while and then he laughed at us trying to get down the volcano without falling...

Masaya Road Trip: After shopping in a castle-like building in Masaya, we were tired of trying to find busitos and buses to get back to Granada. So Clinton walked up to a pick-up truck that had what looked like 'Gringos' getting into the back and asked if they were headed our way...they said to hop in. At first glance these people looked like naturalist hippies, but they ended up being the nicest people we met in Nicaragua. They were circus performers that designed items in Bali for half the year. One of them was a dancer and the other was a sword swallower/fire-eater from Oakland! We had a great conversation with them on our way back - and like every Gringo we met, as soon as they found out that we lived in Honduras they said: "Wow, we hear that place is dangerous!!" Funny...I thought the same way about Nicaragua!

Wedding: Friday night we went to a restaurant that the sword swallower recommended (his name was either Lee or Lade, the wind made it hard to hear). Across the road from it was a church beautifully decorated for a fancy wedding...we went inside (discreetly) and viewed the gorgeous flowers and candles...then went to eat. When we were finished we heard what sounded like gunshots coming from the church - we ran outside to view fireworks shooting off right above our heads!! The ashes were raining down all around - it was very impressive (and not the brightest idea since people were all over the place!). We met another gringa who told us that a girl from the richest family in Nicaragua was getting married in the oldest church in Nicaragua (which they had repainted about two weeks earlier). The gringa also asserted she thought Honduras was scary...how ironic.

Trip Home: We had to wait for a connecting bus at a hotel in Honduras. We ended up having a lot of fun there - playing on a trampoline, talking to crazy singing parrots, following a rogue turkey around the pool (I guess he made it safely through thanksgiving) and torturing turtles...this hotel had it all! However, we figured we'd be staying longer than we did and had started a settlers of catan game and ordered food when we were informed we needed to go! Once again we were in the very front of the bus, which wasn't the best place for Heidi since she was feeling a bit sick - but she made it through and we safely arrived in Teguc.

There are a few adventures from our trip!

Feeding Centre

This past week was full. We had our first meeting of the drama club. It went well, the students put their all into what we had them do and ended up having Betsy and I rolling on the floor laughing. It looks like we'll have a great time with them!

Friday night I went to Bible Study at Laparra's. I was exhausted all day so when I arrived at Henry's he pulled out the chocolate-raspberry coffee. It went well, there were 12 students who opened up very nicely...we had them discuss the difference between worldly success and Spiritual success. Afterwards, 6 of the grade 9 girls slept over at Tiffany Fischer's place - I don't think there was much sleep going on!

Saturday Heidi and I went to the Feeding Centre with a few other teachers. I enjoyed seeing the children. There were so many of them, it was hard to move in the building...they were constantly wanting hugs and any attention we could give them (especially 'photos' - they loved having their picture taken). I met a girl named Marissa who was 12 years old. She clung to me most of the time. I taught her a couple of English phrases and she introduced me to her brother. As I was sitting with her I watched some of the other kids...a few of them had infections that needed treatment. Marissa had hurt her head and it wasn't healing properly. It's hard to see that. Most of these kids are starved for attention...The church that works with the Feeding Centre was getting a list of kids who show up each week so they could give them all a present at Christmas. That will be an exciting day! Probably a lot of mass chaos, but the rewarding kind!

Sunday Kyle and I sang a special at church. It was the first time Kyle played guitar in front of a group - go Kyle! From what we heard from everyone it went well!

On Monday we had a cold front hit the mountain...hard! We still went to school (my classroom - the sauna, was actually at a nice temperature!). After school, all the staff bundled up and went to the Auditorium for a thanksgiving dinner. It was amazing!! The food was delicious - made even better because the power went out, giving us only candlelight to eat with. Today (Tuesday) we have the day off, because of the cold. The mountain has a temperature of 8 degrees celsius. Which can be pretty chilly without central heating! It is a good day for this though since we will be having Thursday and Friday off for American Thanksgiving...a group of us want to go to Nicaragua. We'll see what happens with that!

Pictures of the day: Our experiences with the Feeding Centre...

Heidi and a group of kids














Me and a group of kids, the yellow building behind me is the feeding centre. A two room building that was made after Hurricane Mitch destroyed this area.











Beautiful faces...

We don't need greater power, we need deeper death. - Watchman Nee

Dream Bunnies & Baklava

Yesterday was a very long day. After practicing for the worship team we stayed downtown to watch Heidi and Kyle's final volleyball matches for their tournaments. Heidi was playing for 3rd and Kyle for 1st. Unfortunately the team Heidi was playing didn't show up so she won by forfeit (unfortunate in that we didn't get to see her play). Kyle's game kept getting pushed back so we ended up staying down longer than we intended. When he did play, his team won quite quickly and without any drama. Friday's game against another Unitec team was more intense - I think it was the best game of the season for tenseness. Anyhow, since they both won they are going to a ceremony on Wednesday.

Today we are battling sickness. Melodee is coughing, I've got something ...not sure exactly what - so I gargled, had cough medicine, took vitamins and who knows, maybe I'll breathe in eucalyptus ;) And now I'm eating a gringa while listening to an R&B song about Belleville's Cheesies, which has by now turned into Stuart McClain's 'Dave & Lauralie" story (which Heidi needs to hear every week - they are good) about dream bunnies that eat baklava. How random! I guess I should talk about it more since I titled this blog after it, but honestly...I think I'm going to leave it at that!

We also had a discussion about the CN Tower...I thought it was pretty clear where and what it was...but apparently not! Kudos to Joey who knew about it by looking at a picture!

Photo of the Day: Our fan picture with Kyle

A Thought

Here's a quote from Tozer that interested me...

"Feats of thinking may create reputation, but habits of thinking create character..."

"Three men walking side by side may yet be inhabiting three different worlds. Imagine a poet, a naturalist and a lumberman traveling together through a forest. The poet's mind races back over the centuries to the time when the mighty trees now towering above him were but beginning to appear as tiny green shoots out of the gray earth. He dreams of the mighty of the world who then wore crowns and swayed empires, but who have long ago passed from this earthly scene and been forgotten by everyone but a few historians."

"The naturalist's world is smaller and more detailed. He hears the sweet, hardly audible bird song that floats among the branches and seeks to discover the hidden singer. He knows what kind of moss it is that clings to the base of the centuries-old trees; he seeks what the others miss, the fresh claw marks on the bark of a tree, and knows that a bear has recently passed that way."

"The lumberman's world is smaller still. He is concerned neither with history nor nature but with lumber. He judges the diameter and height of the tree, and by quick calculation determines how much it will bring on the market. His world is the dull world of commerce. He sees nothing beyond it."

"It is obvious that one external world has been turned into three internal worlds by the thinking of the three men...From these we learn that circumstances do not make men; it is their reaction to circumstances that determines what kind of men they will be."

"What then can we Christians do? The answer is, 'Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.' "