Day 10

Sleeping in never felt so good!

Today was a chill day. I slept in and woke up around 7:45am and laid in bed until 8:30ish. It was very nice to be able to relax and just have a chill day for a change. I was able to talk to my folks on FaceTime this morning which is always very nice. I also finally got officially settled in to where I'll be living for the month and now it actually feels like I am living here.

Me and Jessie's room

We made breakfast at the hostel today because the whole country was basically shut down for their revolution day. I'll share more about that in just a minute. But homemade scrambled eggs with onions, green peppers, and tomatoes is always a great way to start the day!

So Nicaragua's revolution day is today, July 19th. The revolution was the people of Nicaragua fighting the dictator in power, whom the United States of America helped keep in power because they were able to have access to Nicaragua with this dictator. Horrible on our part but it's not the first time our government has done some sketchy and wrong things, but what government hasn't been corrupted at some point? People do things and make decisions even though they aren't always the best decisions. As sad as it is it is the reality of the world and reality of humanity.

Anyways, their revolution day is today and it is a huge event! People from all over Nicaragua travel in buses to come to Managua. They began coming in last night and then all this morning. They gather in the plaza and their is music and the president comes to speak, which he has been speaking since 5 or 6pm and is still speaking and it is almost 10pm now! But the people love it! They all have t-shirts supporting today and so much more!

Men holding the flag of their revolutionary government in the plaza

So that' what we did at around 2pm, we went to get lunch and then took a taxi to the plaza and walked around and saw what was going on. We were able to meet up with a few of our scholar's moms who were selling items in the plaza. We also saw Ana and Davíd who are two of our scholars. It was so great to see them and just say hello and talk for a little bit.

We left soon after because it was getting more crowded as people were getting ready for the president to arrive. So we came back to the hostel and I was able to take a nap which was much needed. We made dinner at the hostel, yummy cheese and bean quesadillas and are now ready for bed to get ourselves well rested for an eventful day tomorrow!

It was so fascinating today to experience Nicaragua's history and to hear about their country and their people. Sometimes I feel as though we can become so closed and narrow minded to others  and their situations when we focus solely on our own situations. So it was nice to branch out of what I know to understand other's culture and history. I was also so excited to see some of the kids again! I can't wait to continue to work with them! :)

Well I am off to bed and hopefully I will be able to sleep in-spite of all the loud noises outside of people and helicopters and cops! Happy Revolution Day Nicaragua! :) Buenas noches