Peace Corps Cribs

Here it is, the post you've all been waiting for.  The video is a brief tour of Palacaguina and my new abode.  Let me know what you think!

Nicaraguan Idol

Now I know what you’re thinking, “Pedro, do the Latinos have their own version of American Idol??”  Answer: no, no they do not.  At least not to my knowledge.  But what my high school did have last week was a singing competition…In English.  As the resident English speaker, I was given a formal invitation (sent to my house, signed, and stamped, the whole 9 yards) to be a judge.  How could I pass that up?  So I judged the 10 groups on tune, tone, presentation, pronunciation, and use of props.  Here are the best performances of the day:

They butched Justin Bieber's "Baby"

Ironically, Nicas love the 80s -- "Dust in the Wind"

"I Want it That Way"

And the winner is:

T minus 1 year!

According to my paychecks, my “Close of Service” is July 26^th 2013.  That means I’m just about a year from saying adios Nicaragua!  In all honesty, it will probably be a little sooner because there’s about a month leeway to leave early for various reasons.  Many of you have been asking “Pedro, what will you do?”  To be frank, I’m not really sure.  Here is what I do know:

Travel

Instead of taking my government issued airfare, I’m going to ask for the face value in cash instead.  This will allow me the freedom to travel.  My plan is to head out to the Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua.  For those of you who know don’t know, the east coast is practically a different country.  The people are black instead of tan, speak Creole, and eat a lot of crab (YUM!).  From my pueblo in northern Nicaragua, it would probably take me approximately 10 hours by bus to get to the coast and then a couple boat rides to arrive in Bluefields, Pearl Lagoon and the Corn Islands.  If anyone is interested, I plan on bumming around in a hammock, drinking coconut milk and scuba diving for 2 weeks.

If time allows I would start heading south.  I’ve been to Costa Rica 3 times but I haven’t been able to really explore the country.  So a couple weeks in Costa Rica and then, if time/money permits me, I’d like to make it to Panama.  You can expect me back in the United States around September 1^st 2013 unless…

Graduate School

…I get accepted into grad school.  I’m applying to the Instituto de Empresas in Madrid, Spain.  I’m applying for an 11 month program for a Masters in International Management.  It is a well renowned business school so I’m not holding my breath but I think it would be super exciting.  I am going to submit my application in September and will find out probably in December.  If for whatever reason they make the grave mistake of denying me…

Gimme a job!

…I will return home!  Don’t fret Mom and Dad, I don’t plan on being an unemployed 25 year old for long.  A fringe benefit of being a RPCV (Returned Peace Corps Volunteer) is that I’ll receive non-compete eligibility with the federal government.  Therefore, I’m going to apply to any government job in the Chicagoland area and if unsuccessful, Washington, D.C..

Sound good?  Cya in a year (or so)!

Nicaraguan “holidays”

Today, as a productive way of venting I’m going to share what classifies as a “day off” in Nicaragua.  Nationwide, Nicaragua gets the standard holidays off: Christmas, New Years Day, Good Friday, Labor Day and Independence Day.  That’s fair right?  Now let’s add in some more interesting federal holidays: Battle of San Jacinto (the day before Independence Day) and Day of the Immaculate Conception.  Still reasonable, no?  Okay, let’s get crazy: Mother’s Day, Student’s Day, Teacher’s Day, every last Friday of the month to plan or have workshops, fiestas patronales (which depend on the town), anniversary of the high school, etc..  More or less, there’s about 180 scheduled schooldays but we generally only have class about 70% of the time.  So that means on any given week, 2 of my classes are canceled for one reason or another.  Long story short, I may have a little trouble adjusting to a 9-5 after this…

Third world entertainment

What do you do for fun when you live in a developing country and you only have less than $15 until your next paycheck?  Answer: a lot of hiking.

Mozonte near the boarder of Honduras

We peaked the pointy one in the background

I’ve also been quite the reader rabbit.  I finished the first 4 Harry Potters in Spanish, The Girl who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest (in English BTDubs) and am now on to The Two Towers in espanol. 

Additionally, I used some gifted (thanks mom, dad, michelle) iTunes money to rent movies.  I’m working my way down Rotten Tomatoes 100 top rated movies.  Here’s the list: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/top/bestofrt/

iTunes has a spotty selection and I tried to find ones that were $2.99.

These past weeks I watched:

Mission Impossible 4 – not on the list but I heard it was good.  And I liked it.  Standard action movie.  Also made me want to go to Dubai.  Any takers?

Rear Window – an Alfred Hitchcock thriller with Jimmy Stewart.  I recommend it.

Deliver Us from Evil – a documentary about Father O’Grady that sexually abused children in California for decades.  Never heard of him before this and was shocked and appalled about the ordeal.  It was good if you like documentaries.

The Third Man – an Orson Wells classic.  A murder mystery in Vienna in post WWII.  It was the least favorite of the bunch but I can see why film buffs love it.  It’s worth seeing once.  And anyone want to tack on Vienna after our Dubai trip?

Patriot Games – would you believe Netflix works in Nicaragua??  Thanks to Cousin Jake for that!  Anyway, I watched my man crush Harrison Ford save the day.  Bonus points, I watched it in Spanish.

Any recommendations or want to gift me iTunes money??  :P

Size/Composition of Nicaraguan families

The Nicaragua nuclear family has undergone some changes in the past generation.  Family planning is a relatively new concept and is slowly being accepted.  Barriers have included the Catholic Church’s opposition to birth control, taboos, and the lack of resources and knowledge.  In any case, the generation of Nicaraguans before me (people aged 39+) most likely have between 6-13 siblings.  Everyone lives under the same roof until marriage.  After marriage, the husband and wife move into wherever there’s space but usually on the same plot of land one or the other’s family in a smaller 1 or 2 room house.

That’s the generally accepted tradition but there are some variables.  Many a time, men will father a child or 2 before settling down with the woman they will marry.  Or, after marriage, they will have an affair with another woman.  All of these factors have led to a nearly insurmountable problem – a disproportionate population size.  Over 60% of all Nicaraguans are under the age of 30.  As of now, there aren’t enough jobs available for Nicaraguans of working ages and it will be difficult to create enough work opportunities for the generation that will be entering the work force shortly.

Thankfully there is good news; the family size appears to be decreasing.  At a meeting I attended with 60 Nicaraguans from all across the country, no one had more than 5 siblings.  All in all, that’s why I think the Peace Corps is so important.  With the health sector helping with family planning and the small business development program spurring entrepreneurship, Nicaragua will hopefully be able to grow sustainably.

Attitudes towards North Americans

The Nicaraguans opinions of us norteamericanos (white people) are surprisingly positive.  Why is it surprising?  Because as many of you may not know (I sure didn’t), the US and Nicaragua have had a bit of a turbulent history.  I know I’ve told the story before so here’s a pop culture reference to bring you up to speed.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrW3K6e8Ju0

Understand now?  Even though it’s been 30+ years, if Nicaraguans wanted to harbor some resentment towards the USA, I’d understand.  I have experienced very little racism in my community or with my counterparts because I’m an estadounidense.  Nearly every family in my community has someone that is working in the United States.  Additionally, a lot of people have told me that they would like to visit the USA but very few wants to move there permanently – Nicaragua is their home and it always will be.

That being said, the Nicaraguan and United States governments do not always play nice.  Nicaragua is still seeking reparations from the USA for the contra revolution in the international court.  On the other hand, United States is bothered by the way Nicaragua is usurping the democratic process.  In fact, this month the US and many EU nations are withdrawing aid programs in Nicaragua for repeated infractions during the elections.

Thanks for the recommendation, Robin!  And keep the ideas flowing the rest of you!

Good weekend

Saturday, I gave my marketing presentation to 6 employees of a microfinance institution.  It went well!  They paid attention, took notes and laughed at my jokes.  In earlier posts, I’ve alluded that Nicaragua is much more relaxed (western custom would perceive it as unprofessional) than the US.  For example I was discussing marketing strategies such as “Suggestions” (this product/service will make you happier, prettier etc) and one participant said beer commercials use this with scantily clad beautiful women.  Then another guy said, “No, after 10 beers all women look like that.”  Oh Nicaragua, you slay me.

Sticking to my “work hard play hard” philosophy, I traveled up to Ocotal to hang out with 15 volunteers for a post 4^th of July celebration.  I ate 2 cheese burgers and played games reminiscent of my college days.  Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

House updates!  I now have a propane tank and stove, WOOHOO!  I also paid for a fridge and just need to figure out how to get it up here from Managua.

This week I am finishing and submitting my well grant proposal.  I’ll share the details in my next post!

Happy birthday ‘MERICA!

I apologize for not writing more – I’ve been busy or life in Nicaragua has become such a routine for me that it doesn’t faze me anymore.  My house is, let’s say, half furnished!  I now have a bed, table, closet, rice cooker and 4 cool rocking chairs but I still lack a stove and fridge.  I’m hoping to acquire a stove top Sunday along with some other odds and ends.  Pictures and an amateur movie coming soon!

I spent the weekend in Managua with the rest of the business volunteers.  Saturday morning I was on a panel about business plan competition planning.  It went well but kind of surreal.  For the first time, I was giving advice to NEW business volunteers because I’ve been in Nicaragua for more than a year!  Crazy right?  I finished off the day eating Quiznos and kickin’ it with my fellow biz PCVs.

How will I be celebrating the birth of the greatest, bestest, awesomest nation on God’s good earth?  By teaching a class, womp womp.  But for dinner I’m going to try making chili in my rice cooker!  Wait Pedro, you have no cooking surface.  How will you brown the meat for the chili?  I won’t, that’s how.  Because (and I hate myself for admitting this) I will be using SOY MEAT.  Yes, while you, dear readers, will probably be out barbequing glorious burgers and hot dogs, I will be embracing my inner hippy and eating soy.

Saturday I will be giving a presentation to a savings and loan cooperative about marketing!  Then it’s off to a post 4^th of July party with some volunteers.  Should be fun!