Nica Pastimes

So as you may notice with blogging several times a week I do have free time.  Quite a lot in fact.  As soon as it gets dark, (6pm) I’m usually restricted to the confines of my home.  So my two main activities are reading and TV watching.

For my less personal followers that don’t know me so well, let me be frank.  I don’t read.  It’s not that I don’t enjoy it or that I’m illiterate (literacy rates are sometimes low in the rural community where I work—mandatory education ends after elementary school) but there’s almost always something I’d rather do (surf the web, watch a movie, hang with friends etc.).  But if you move me to a small town in northern Nicaragua and remove these basic comforts, reading begins to sound like a better and better idea.  So much in fact, here’s a list of what I’ve read:

Confessions of an Economic Hitman – Already blogged about this one, great read.

Water for Elephants – I was afraid that I wouldn’t like the book because that guy from Twilight was in the movie.  Irrational, I know but I really despise Twilight.  Anyway, loved the book.

Lamb – Satire of Jesus’ missing years between schooling the Pharisees at the temple and getting baptized by John.  Funny and well written.

Superfreakonomics – Written by two economists from University of Chicago, it runs economic models on everything from prostitution to global warming.  Interesting and humorous.

The King of Torts – Thriller/Mystery of an unsuccessful lawyer who stumbles on a huge settlement and what greed causes him to become.  Interesting and a quick read.

The Marks of Cain – The Da Vinci Code but not as well written.  Still worth a read if you’re looking for a page-turner.

I’ve read the last five all in the past month.  Hooked on phonics works for me!  Clearly I’m reading faster than I can obtain (three were loaned and three were mailed to me) so I’ve decided to do something more ambitious/foolhardy.  Today at the school library I picked up The Fellowship of the Ring.  Yes, it’s in Spanish.  Now I’m a nerd in two languages.  Wish me luck…  The next ones lined up are The Hunger Games and The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo (thanks to my personal English major, Michelle!)

TV.  As with what I’ve noticed in many developing nations, televisions are must-haves.  In some cases, owning a TV has ranked more important than indoor plumbing, a mattress, a refrigerator, tiled floor – you name it.  I’ve seen shanty towns of cardboard and zinc wired with electricity and satellite dishes.  Television is THAT important to some cultures.

As for what people watch, it varies greatly.  If you have antenna service you only get local channels (maybe six in total).  But since TV is so important, most people have standard cable with ups the total to 22.  Included in standard cable are all the local channel plus ESPN, Discovery, Fox, TNT, Universal, and Cartoon Network.  Of course these are the Latin America versions but I’ll quickly list some of the most popular shows on each network.

ESPN: Sports (soccer, baseball, tennis, cycling, boxing), SportsCenter, Futbol Picante.  I once got to watch the Cowboys/Jets game, awesome.

Discovery: Deadliest Catch and Man vs Wild (called A prueba de todos or “To Test Everything”)

Fox: The Simpsons, Glee, The Glee Project, 24, The Gates, Modern Family, Rescue Me

TNT: Mainly just movies.  I just watched V for Vendetta and Fast and the Furious 2.

Universal: House M.D., Law and Order, Medical Mysteries

Cartoon Network: Scooby-Doo

That’s it for now!