One Week In

My first week in Granada has been a whirlwind. Going into the trip, Tommy and I knew that we would have some difficulty communicating with our homestay parents because of our limited Spanish skills. However, they have been very nice and were very accomodating to our limited spanish speaking. Our limited skills have led to some comical situations. The first day we rejected the offer for coffee in the morning, and then we were served coca cola for breakfast for the next week before we were able to tell them that we dont like coca cola for breakfast. We drank the coca cola and they received it every day for breakfast since they thought americans enjoy coca cola for breakfast The work we have been doing in the community has been truly amazing. Los quinchos, which is a an organizations that supports children that have had substance abuse issues, was the first service site we visited. There we worked on landscaping and refurbishing old classrooms. The kids at los quinchos were eager to help us and all of the kids are very hard workers. Then we visited the site I was assigned to work at which is Sor Maria Romero. This is an after school program for children located in one of the poorest neighborhoods in Granada. As soon as we stepped our of the van we were greeted by the kids as if we were celebrities. Since the kids were using a flat volleyball to play soccer, I brought them a new soccer ball. When I revealed the gift the kids were ecstatic, and they took a picture with me and the ball as if I was some kind of hero. We immidiately played soccer and the smiles on these kids faces that day is something that I will never forget. The third site is La provendencia, a nursing home for the elderly. Unfortunately, there are not many resources put into the nursing home, and they are every understaffed, so the women and men have extremely limited medical resources. During my work their on Tuesdday, I was able to sit and speak with numerous men and women. It was remarkable to me when they told me that conversing with me was the highlight of their day. We have only scratched the surface of our work here in Nicaragua, and as Ryan Pilarski would day I am ready to "fight the beautiful fight" for the rest of our trip.