As I steped off of the plane this morning and into the hot and humid Managua air, I did not quite know how to feel. Mostly excited and nervous, we passed through customs and were shortly after greeted by a smiling Mireya holding a sign labeled "The College of New Jersey," she offered each of us a kiss on the cheek as we passed by her and filed out of the air conditioning and into the heat. I then got my first taste of Nicaraguan driving as I rode shotgun to our first meal here at a restaurant in Managua. The food was very different (and I have no clue what half of it even was), but I enjoyed it. And before I knew it Mireya was shoving me into a house and I was greeted by a yapping and growling little rat-like dog (whose name, I was later told, is Luna) and a smiling face who immediately began showing me the house and speaking quick Spanish to me. She showed me both rooms where the homestay students stay and told me I could pick which one I liked. I chose the room on the first floor, at first because I did not feel like climbing up and down the stairs in 95 degree weather, but I later realized that it was a good decision because I get to be closer to the family. My room is literally right next to the common living space, and with the open feel of the house I am barely disconnected at all. After being given my key and a motherly schpell about hiding my money and being safe en la calle (where she warned of prostitutes and to stay away from them), there really was not much else to say. For what felt like hours I moved my stuff aimlessly around my room while I used getting a glass of water from the kitchen as an excuse to be social-which involved exchanges of "Que Calor" (refering to the brutally hot temperature in the house). I was feeling very awkward and out of place, especially not having another student with me to break the silence (Brad is coming in a few days). But, just before dinner, I just gave up trying to speak well and resorted to using more broken Spanish to actually have a real conversation with La Señora. I asked her if she had lived in Granada her whole life, she replied saying yest but that her and her family had moved to Costa Rica for about 15 years during the Revolution. I learned that much of her family, including many of her sons and daughters, still live in Costa Rica today. I shared with her about my family and told her my major at school. My one question sparked an entire conversation and I am so glad I asked it (and didn't chicken out because of my imperfection when speaking Spanish), because she was happy to respond and it broke the ice in so many ways. More than anything else it made me finally feel a little bit more comfortable here at my new home. The rest of the family arrived shortly after I forced food down my throat to be respectful after eating such a huge lunch, and while I haven't gotten to interact with them too much (minus a few friendly exchanges of "Buenas"), I am sure I will in the next few days. Now that I have begun to become adjusted to what life is going to be like here in Nicaragua, I can not wait to see what it might bring.
Today we visited the service sites and later in the day we will start service. I am really excited to work at Los Quinchos later and really enjoyed seeing the different places we will be working. I will include what strikes me about them in my next post.
Things I have noticed so far:
Dominick- Trying to explain to my family that people call me DJ, but my given name is Dominick just wasn't working for me. So to my family here, I am Domìnìck (note the strong accents on the "i"s)
My Home- Physically my home is a lot different than I thought it would be. I was surprised by the all tile floors and the multiple TVs, specifically. Although it is interesting that I seem to be the only person with a fan her...I almost feel guilty using it. One thing that I wasn't surprised by, but is worth noting is the lack of a clock with such a realaxed sense of time here. Regardless, my family is obviously upper middle socioeconomic class and is not your typical Nicaraguan family. This was very apperant when we visited the NGOs earlier this morning.
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