Another week
Well, this week was pretty laid back compared to the previous couple. There are no more delegations until January so we don't have to worry about that aspect. We began the week by working on a new shop for the resident mechanic here at the foundation and then spent the rest of the week working on office type work, such as stuffing envelopes and folding letters. The life of a volunteer is hardly glamorous.
My friend Austin and I were fortunate enough to be able to attend an informational meeting about the maquiladoras, or sweatshops, here in Nicaragua. A woman from an agency that advocates for the rights of workers gave a talk about the issues and abuses of workers rights in sweatshops in nicaragua. Every week there are these meetings that happen for primarily volunteers and ex-patriots who are living in Nicaragua. (Really, it is a meeting for Gringos here in Nicaragua.) But the topics are mostly social justice related and each week they have a different speaker. The meetings are held at a house called, Casa Ben Linder. Ben Linder was a young man who came to volunteer his time in Nicaragua during the time of the Contra war. (The Contras were a US backed para-military force that conducted guerilla warfare against the ruling, and democratically elected, Sandanista party in the 1980's. Mostly the Contras were trying to thwart the efforts of the liberal Sandanistas, and were supported by the US because the US did not agree with the policies of the Sandanista government.) Ben Linder was trying to help bring electricity to communities who did not have access at that time, and was shot at point blank range by the Contras and was killed. The Ben Linder house exists today in order to preserve the memory of Ben Linder and to support and organize speakers on topics of social justice. I am hoping that we will continue to be able to attend these meetings in the future.
The other volunteers and I also went into Managua last night to hear a group called, Guitarra de Madera Azul. The group is made up of a husband and wife team, he plays the guitar and sings a little, and she mostly sings. They also have a percussion player who acompanies them. Much of their music has a social justice theme, including one song in which they sing about "Uncle Crocodile," who is really meant to be Uncle Sam. The gringos who know what it is about generally find it pretty funny, especially because the chorus talks about this crocodile that shakes his butt like a seniorita. We know the band because they have come to play here a few times before and are good friends of Mike and Kathleen, our bosses. It was fun to be able to go out and see them in Managua. It was a crowded bar, populated both with Nicaraguans and more than just a few gringos.
After I leave the foundation today to go back home I will be going to a birthday party for a girl who is turning 6 and lives accross from my house. This morning I was asked to accompany her and a relative to go buy the pinatas for the party today. They have told me that I am supposed to be the first one to hit the pinata, we'll see if they are succesful in actually getting me to do that. The big birthday in Latinamerican culture is when a girl turns 15. There are huge celebrations for a girl's fifteenth birthday. We actually walked by a celebration last night, where people were very dressed up, there was a DJ, and possibly a live band. I have heard that even when people have very little money they will go into debt in order to throw a lavish party for a girl's fifteenth birthday. I will write about what birthday party for a six year old looks like next week.
Nicaraguans clearly don't celebrate Thanksgiving, but we will be having our own celebration here at the foundation. I think we have half a day of work and certainly all the usual food for the Thanksgiving dinner. That's one of the nice things about having a community of Americans, we have people to celebrate our holidays with.
I think that's all the information I have from this week. I'm happy to report that my Spanish is coming along and I seem to be able to communicate better everyday. That is a huge relief, it makes me happy when I feel like I can understand what people are asking me. I have also found a Spanish teacher, a woman who helps out in the kitchen and around the house at the foundation is teaching myself and a friend two days a week. We started on Saturday, I think it will be good to have some direct instruction in addition to the practice I get with my family and friends.
I wish everyone a great Thanksgiving.
My friend Austin and I were fortunate enough to be able to attend an informational meeting about the maquiladoras, or sweatshops, here in Nicaragua. A woman from an agency that advocates for the rights of workers gave a talk about the issues and abuses of workers rights in sweatshops in nicaragua. Every week there are these meetings that happen for primarily volunteers and ex-patriots who are living in Nicaragua. (Really, it is a meeting for Gringos here in Nicaragua.) But the topics are mostly social justice related and each week they have a different speaker. The meetings are held at a house called, Casa Ben Linder. Ben Linder was a young man who came to volunteer his time in Nicaragua during the time of the Contra war. (The Contras were a US backed para-military force that conducted guerilla warfare against the ruling, and democratically elected, Sandanista party in the 1980's. Mostly the Contras were trying to thwart the efforts of the liberal Sandanistas, and were supported by the US because the US did not agree with the policies of the Sandanista government.) Ben Linder was trying to help bring electricity to communities who did not have access at that time, and was shot at point blank range by the Contras and was killed. The Ben Linder house exists today in order to preserve the memory of Ben Linder and to support and organize speakers on topics of social justice. I am hoping that we will continue to be able to attend these meetings in the future.
The other volunteers and I also went into Managua last night to hear a group called, Guitarra de Madera Azul. The group is made up of a husband and wife team, he plays the guitar and sings a little, and she mostly sings. They also have a percussion player who acompanies them. Much of their music has a social justice theme, including one song in which they sing about "Uncle Crocodile," who is really meant to be Uncle Sam. The gringos who know what it is about generally find it pretty funny, especially because the chorus talks about this crocodile that shakes his butt like a seniorita. We know the band because they have come to play here a few times before and are good friends of Mike and Kathleen, our bosses. It was fun to be able to go out and see them in Managua. It was a crowded bar, populated both with Nicaraguans and more than just a few gringos.
After I leave the foundation today to go back home I will be going to a birthday party for a girl who is turning 6 and lives accross from my house. This morning I was asked to accompany her and a relative to go buy the pinatas for the party today. They have told me that I am supposed to be the first one to hit the pinata, we'll see if they are succesful in actually getting me to do that. The big birthday in Latinamerican culture is when a girl turns 15. There are huge celebrations for a girl's fifteenth birthday. We actually walked by a celebration last night, where people were very dressed up, there was a DJ, and possibly a live band. I have heard that even when people have very little money they will go into debt in order to throw a lavish party for a girl's fifteenth birthday. I will write about what birthday party for a six year old looks like next week.
Nicaraguans clearly don't celebrate Thanksgiving, but we will be having our own celebration here at the foundation. I think we have half a day of work and certainly all the usual food for the Thanksgiving dinner. That's one of the nice things about having a community of Americans, we have people to celebrate our holidays with.
I think that's all the information I have from this week. I'm happy to report that my Spanish is coming along and I seem to be able to communicate better everyday. That is a huge relief, it makes me happy when I feel like I can understand what people are asking me. I have also found a Spanish teacher, a woman who helps out in the kitchen and around the house at the foundation is teaching myself and a friend two days a week. We started on Saturday, I think it will be good to have some direct instruction in addition to the practice I get with my family and friends.
I wish everyone a great Thanksgiving.
posted by Emily at 11:58 AM
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