Summer 2009

Looks like I'll be heading back to Nicaragua in this coming summer. Wahoo! I'll post more then.

Blog Update

As you've noticed, the number of posts has declined recently. I think I'm going to put the blog on hold while I'm outside of Nicaragua. There is a decent chance that I'll return to Nicaragua in June-July, and if that is the case, I will resume blogging then. Check back in a few months to see if I've posted any updates. Thanks for reading!

Iglesia San Sebastian

What's notable about this church is that it was destroyed by Somoza's military bombing of Leon during the 1979 Sandinista revolution. Leon was the center of the Sandinista movement, the group who fought against the US-supported Somoza dictatorship.
There is a new Iglesia San Sebastian pictured below that has been rebuilt next door, but it isn't nearly as nice looking as what the old church must have been.

Churches of León Part III

I'll start off with a side note: this is the 101st blog post I've made. I was thinking about mentioning that in my 100th post, but that one was more serious. I'm happy to have made it that far, and thanks to all of the readers and commenters for keeping me going.

And so we return to the grand churches of Leon, Nicaragua. Next in the lineup, we have Iglesia La Merced. This one is named after the patron saint of Leon, La Virgen de la Merced. Back in September, I posted a little bit about the festival for this saint. This is obviously an important church downtown, quite nice looking, and among the ones connected by tunnels.


Continuing along, we have la Iglesia San Juan. This one has seen better days. It's located near one of the largest markets in Leon as well as a nice park, so it's got some good things going for it. I'm not really sure if this is connected to the tunnel system; it's possible, but I got mixed results when I asked about it.


And lastly, we have la Iglesia Sutiaba. This is located in the neighborhood of Sutiaba, which was the indigenous settlement where Leon was relocated to after the original Leon was destroyed, most likely by the combination of an earthquake and eruption of the volcano Momotombo. The front of this church is quite large and imposing, but when you look at it from the side, it's not quite as intimidating. This one is also connected by tunnels, and everyone agrees on that because they say it required the longest tunnel, a distance of 1.2 kilometers (or at least I think that's the distance, it might be a bit longer). That gives you an idea of how many churches are in such a small radius..and that's just the Catholic churches...and only the ones that are possibly connected by tunnels.
Front View:Side View:
And so concludes our segment on churches of Leon connected by tunnels. There is still at least one other church I'll post about that isn't connected, but worth mentioning for other reasons. Stay tuned. But not too tuned; I know it's exciting, but don't sit there continuously hitting Refresh because it might take a couple days. Today is my last complete day in Leon, and tomorrow I return to the US.

Street Kids

Last Sunday while I was ordering a sandwich, I noticed a couple of boys maybe 7-8 years old walking down the street. They were dressed pretty poorly and were possibly homeless, maybe without parents. One of them came into the restaurant where I was ordering and I think that someone gave him a sizable piece of a sandwich. He walked out with the sandwich, and began eating it. I wasn't paying too much attention, but a few minutes later, the boys were skirmishing on the sidewalk and in frustration, one kid threw the sandwich into the street and began to cry.

The whole scene gave me a little shock. This boy was probably very happy to get someone else's leftover sandwich and then his happiness turned into frustration and the sandwich ended up in the road. Everyone lost. I felt really sad for him and for all of the kids. They may not have any parents, or much parenting at least, and what parenting they do receive is probably of dubious quality. These kids are most likely raising themselves.

I often forget how hard childhood can be. Even little things can seem like a big deal. I remember being a little kid and feeling like it was a crisis if my flimsy hot dog bun broke in half while I was eating. These kids live with far more serious problems, like not eating and not having a safe place to sleep, and are most likely left to deal with it themselves. And they're about 7-8 years old.

I'm embarrassed that I don't know more about what these kids go through. Sometimes they come into restaurants handing out little slips of paper saying that they're begging so that they can afford school supplies to go to school rather than resorting to stealing. I've also heard that lots of school supplies are donated and that the current president says you don't even need shoes to come to school; just come as you are. I think that some kids don't go to school because begging appears to be a more practical option. I've even heard that some parents keep their kids out of school and force them to beg because the parents don't want to work. It's hard to know what is really going on with these poor kids. One thing that is clear is that they have it pretty rough.

I know there is at least one organization in Leon called Las Tias that tries to keep kids in school and offers vocational training and rehabilitation for drug problems. I don't know too much about whether street children must qualify for it, or whether all kids know about it or want to participate in it. I've heard of that there are some other organizations as well around Leon that do similar things, though I'm not sure of their names.

As I watched those boys fighting, I was wondering in my mind, how are these kids possibly going to have much chance for safe, healthy, happy lives stuck in such a terrible situation. It basically reminds me of how lucky I am and how many incredible opportunities I've had that these kids have no chance of encountering. I wish I had some story about how I did something generous for those guys I saw. I was vaguely considering maybe getting them each something to eat in exchange for telling me about their lives, but I never did anything. I had all sorts of excuses in my head for doing nothing, but ultimately, I probably should have done something. It feels like a crime of inaction. What would you have recommended doing?

I had written a lot more for this post, but it's already pretty long, so I'm going to wrap it up. I'll try to talk more about poverty in another post in the future. I should also just warn you that I'm returning to the US on Thursday. I'll continue posting for now, but I'm not sure how much longer I'll continue.

Churches of León Part II

Welcome to Part II of Churches of Leon. An unsettling thought occurred to me this morning. What if there really are no semi-secret tunnels? My fantasies of Leon creating a completely impractical subway system are even less likely. But beyond that, not too much to worry about, so I might as well continue this little blog project.

Our next church is La Iglesia San Francisco. This one was a site of the festivities during Semana Santa, specifically on Dia del San Benito. This one is among the better kept churches as well. This one is also generally agreed to have tunnels.


Next we have Iglesia El Laborío. This one is a little bit on the worn and torn side, but at least it doesn't have a big facade to fool you into thinking that it's really gigantic. I haven't ever been inside, so I can't speak to it's inner beauty, but I've generally found that the insides are often more polished than the outsides. This one probably has tunnels, but I'm not 100% sure.


Lastly, we have Iglesia Zaragosa. This one is a bit smaller than the others, has more unusual architecture, but looks like it needs a bath. Word on the street is that it too is connected to the tunnel network.


Stay tuned for Part III.

Churches of León

Leon has a lot of churches, several of which are connected by tunnels. The churches range in condition somewhat, although most show some serious signs of wear and tear. I figured that I'd do a couple posts on the main Catholic churches here, mostly on the ones connected by secret underground tunnels because everyone loves secret passages. Unfortunately, it's a little hard to get reliable information on which churches are connected, and after asking various people at the tourist office and main cathedral, I don't quite have a consensus. Regardless, I'll just go ahead and post some pictures of churches that are most likely connected by tunnels. Interestingly, all of the churches connected by tunnels face west, although I couldn't get a good answer as to why that is.

Part 1 of Churches in Leon:


This first church is the main cathedral, which has been featured in this blog a couple of times. Aside from the typical sanctuary part for mass, in the back there is an administrative area that I recently discovered, which even has a large garden. I probably walk up the cathedral about once a day just to look at it. Being the central church in Leon, this one is definitely connected by tunnels.


Next we have La Recolección. It's a bit grungy on the outside, but the yellow color makes it stand out. As you can see from this angle, the elegant front of the building is a facade and then rest of the church is a little less glamorous looking. Unfortunately, at some point, they built power lines right in front of the church, which basically ruins a lot of photo angles. I could have taken a photo without the power lines, but I guess I just wanted to capture them since I find them a bit frustrating. Also, everyone agrees that this one is part of the underground tunnels.


We now come to what is, in my opinion, the prettiest church in Leon, El Calvario. Like La Recolección, this center tower is a facade, although the two bell towers are quite real. I'm not quite sure why this church is in so much better shape than the others. People I talked to were also in agreement that this church is part of the underground tunnel network as well.
4/16/08 UPDATE: I found out today that El Calvario was painted about 3-4 years ago. I saw a painting of how it used to look, and it was worn down like many of the other churches. A little paint went a long way.

CocinArte

In my final week here, I'm finally getting around to doing some cool things I should have started long ago. Last night, I went to a vegetarian restaurant called CocinArte here in Leon. But I didn't go to eat; I have already done that a couple of times. I went there to go volunteer in the kitchen and learn how to cook some vegetarian meals. I happen to know the main cook during most days of the week, so luckily I was able to set this experience up.

I guess I need to explain that in Latin America, vegetarianism is a rarity. People tend to eat meat with every lunch and dinner if possible. So the fact that a vegetarian restaurant even exists in Leon is pretty remarkable. I've only met one Nicaraguan vegetarian. It turns out that CocinArte is mostly frequented by tourists, and very few Leoneses. It's a very nice restaurant and I have had good dining experiences there, which is mainly why I was interested in learning how to cook their dishes. Traffic at the restaurant was light last night, but I helped out in making some Indio Viejo, pesto spaghetti, tofu with tomato sauce, and a couple other things. I'm still in the most basic stages of learning, but I plan on going as much as possible here in my last week to learn as much as I can. I'm even learning less flashy things like better techniques for cutting up vegetables, which will be very practical for me in the future. I'm also washing a lot of dishes, but it's definitely worth it for the knowledge I'm gaining.

On a final note, on Fridays (like tonight), they have "romantic night," which means they have candlelit dinners, live music, and roses on the tables. I'm hoping there is a good crowd so that I can keep learning.

Cancha 23 de Julio

In downtown Leon there is a basketball court called La Cancha 23 de Julio. It is a memorial to four students at the UNAN-Leon who were killed in 1959 by troops of Anastasio Somoza, the Nicaraguan dictator from the 1930s to the 1950s. Here is a picture of the mural on the basketball court depicting what happened during the student protests, and also a photo of what the site looks like today. (click the images for bigger versions)



I walk by this corner several times per day, without pausing to think about what happened there. From my vantage point in peaceful Nicaragua today, it is hard to believe that it was once the site of murders. If it weren't for the mural, I would have never known about it at all. I guess thinking back on the crises of the past forces me to recognize the fragility of the future, not specifically of Nicaragua, but in general. After all, I suppose that's part of the point of the mural, to remind us to work to ensure a safe, happy future because nothing is guaranteed.

Lastly, to end on a happy note, here is a photo of the basketball courts in action. There are some pretty good ballers from time to time, and during the night, a lot of skateboarders come in and work on tricks.

Top of the Cathedral

Here are a couple of pics from the top of the cathedral. This first photo is of me at the top, where they ring the bell. I'm at the same location as this guy from my pictures of the festival for Saint Jerónimo.

It turns out that the roof of the cathedral is very unusually shaped, with lots of little domes all over the surface.


This is a picture of the Alcaldía, which is basically City Hall, from the top of the cathedral. Interestingly enough, in order to raise money, the city occasionally rents out the top floor of the Alcaldía and turns it into a disco for private parties.


Lastly, this picture shows a little more of Leon. You can see a string of volcanoes in the background, a typical sight in Nicaragua. The church in the center of the photo is notable because it is one of the many churches in Leon connected to the cathedral by underground passageways. Apparently, in the olden days, the churches used to have lots of money and gold stored in them, and when emergency escapes were necessary, the tunnels came in useful. I didn't get much more detail out of my tour guide than that, but the tunnels are now sealed off (or so they claim!).

Alfombras

One of the traditions here in Leon is to make alfombras. These are images made of dyed saw dust that they create in the middle of the street. There are tons and tons of these. Here are a couple of pictures that I took. This first one is a couple of kids putting the finishing touches on a cross.

Here are a couple more folks working on an alfombra.


And lastly, here is a completed one:

Semana Santa

Semana Santa is Holy Week; this is week leading up to Easter. It's a big deal here in Leon, and there are processions every day, along with other festivities. Here are some pictures of the week.

This first picture is an "action shot" of the festivities outside of la Iglesia San Francisco. People are selling Eskimo ice cream, hot dog caliente, and little toys and trinkets. All of the people out and about creates a very happy, warm atmosphere.
The second picture is of some folks getting some chicha, which here in Nicaragua is a hot pink colored drink with a corn base. On this particular day, you can get some chicha for free from various people on the street or houses if you go and ask for it en el nombre de San Benito (in the name of San Benito). Usually, you either bring your own cup, or they'll serve it to you Nicaraguan style in a sandwich bag.

Rosita - last look

Here are a couple of final pictures of Rosita before I move on to other topics besides the trip to the Atlantic Coast. These were taken by Andrew.

Sometimes, it can be surprisingly comfortable to be underneath a truck:

This is a serious parking job:

The Airline/Ice Cream Store

This is the place where you go to confirm your airline tickets and get a ride to the Rosita Airport. It also doubles as an ice cream parlor. Here is what it looks like from the outside.

And here is how it looks from the inside:

Notice the poster about what you're not allowed to bring on the plane, as well as the other poster with ice cream flavors.

Nicaragua's Pasttime

We went to a baseball game in Sahsa, the second I've seen in Nicaragua. Interestingly enough, the leader of the local health center, Sergio, is also the starting pitcher for the Sahsa baseball team. Baseball is one of the most important events around town, as evidenced by the fact that the baseball jerseys were completely spotless and clean before the game. Players walk around town in their jerseys sometimes, even when there isn't a game (or at least one that I know of). On this particular day, Sahsa was engaged in a heated battle against Kukalaya, a nearby village.

Boys of Summer:


Boys in Blue, keeping the peace.


Actually, while we were there, one guy got into a fracas with the police. I'm not exactly sure what happened, but the guilty party basically got embarrassed in front of most of the town. Then as the police walked away, the guy grabbed a log and started chasing after the police. The towns people shouted to the police, who turned around and re-disciplined him. There are 6 police officers in Sahsa, all of whom are voluntary.

Safety is probably a bigger issue out here than back in Leon. I wouldn't have felt particularly comfortable walking around alone at night around Sahsa. Even while we were in Rosita, I didn't feel completely safe. I was never threatened or anything, but I did see a street fight on the main drag there during my brief stay.

Bulges in the Pants

Speaking of buses, on the first bus ride, from Rosita to Sahsa, the guy in front of me stood up to put something in the overhead rack. As he did this, his shirt lifted up, and I could plainly see that he had a handgun stuffed into his pants. This discovery was a little unsettling because I had heard of buses being robbed in Peru. The bus system there is a little different in that they have buses owned by private companies, so the buses are pretty nice. Nonetheless, bus robberies in Peru had gotten so bad that most companies have all passengers go through a metal detector screening before getting on board. These public buses in Nicaragua are mostly beaten up former school buses from the United States. Sometimes people ride on the roof. Animals sometimes ride inside along with possessions, food, crops, desks, and almost anything that can fit. As far as I can tell, there aren't any security measures whatsoever, much less metal detectors. And once you're out in the middle of the campo, ain't nobody coming to rescue you.

The discovery of the gun caused some concern and I began scanning other passengers for unusual bulges in their pants, as well as trying to determine whether this situation might be dangerous. Fortunately, this guy didn't appear to be sketchy. He had just bought a snow-cone like treat for a young girl who was apparently his daughter. Just to be safe, I asked Edgar about it. Edgar says that it's pretty common for people to carry guns in rural Nicaragua. A lot of people were involved in the wars in the 1970s and 1980s and still carry guns for protection. After all, many of these folks live in very rural areas where they don't have any police protection. That made me feel better. I guess that if no one has guns, that makes you feel safe. Or if lots of people do, then you feel a little safe too because anyone would have to be crazy to try to rob a bus full of people with guns.

We didn't have any problems. On the way back, as a matter of fact, another guy had a gun in a holster that wasn't concealed at all.

The dog on the bus goes "Bark Bark Bark"

Actually this dog didn't bark, he was just a cute puppy that rode quietly on the bus with us on the way back from Sahsa to Rosita. He belonged to one of the families riding the bus, but he thought the floors were too uncomfortable, so he took over one of the empty seats.

Ambulance

At about 2:30 in the afternoon while we were at the health center in Sahsa waiting to catch a bus back to Rosita, a patient arrived. At about 8 am, while he was cutting grass, he accidentally sliced open his knee, breaking his patella. Since he lived far off, it took 6 and a half hours for him to come in to Sahsa. He arrived to the center in a pick up truck, but many rural areas are accessible only by foot trail or house. After his wound was cleaned up a little at the health center, an ambulance arrived to take him to a hospital in Puerto Cabeza, the capital city, which is a few hours away.

Los Centros

Here are some pictures of the Centros de Salud in Sahsa. The first one is actually no longer a health center, but it houses various visitors like us. In this picture, there are some engineering and architecture students repairing the roof. The building is pretty old and needs some basics, like lighting in the rooms, so the volunteer students are appreciated.

Here is the new health center in Sahsa. You can see the radio tower on the left, which was put in by UNAN in order to communicate with Rosita since Sahsa is so isolated. There is also a sign on the left which says "Made by the people for the people!" It also says that it cost C$ 1,067,184. In US dollars, that's about $56, 167. Sometimes the government likes to put up signs, especially at health centers, that say how much the government is doing for the people of Nicaragua. I noticed this too in Mexico, where the government would have signs that tout the pavement of a road or relief work in an area destroyed by hurricanes.

Sahsa Tour

Andrew, Edgar and I did a little tour of Sahsa to get a better idea of what it is like and who lives there. Accompanied by a 10 year old kid as our guide, we went to houses and asked the residents about their lives and if they were aware of what the University of Nicaragua at Leon (UNAN Leon) is doing in Sahsa.

Andrew and our guide approaching a house.
Here is a picture of Andrew standing next to a tarp of beans. It's my understanding that the Misquito culture strongly emphasizes community. Many residents walk 2-3 hours to communal farms daily to harvest crops and bring food back to eat. Yes, they travel 2-3 hours each way, every day. They'll often do this for several weeks at a time until they've collected enough food to last a while. The residents we talked to don't harvest food to sell it; it is only used for personal consumption. Many of the families have no income whatsoever; their work is providing their own food.

Here is Andrew with our tour guide (the tall kid in the middle) and two of his friends. This is at the water purification well at the top of the big hill in Sahsa. If I remember correctly, it was built by Canadians in the early 1990s. This well is crucial for providing water to Sahsa. Unlike many places in Nicaragua, including Leon and Managua, the health center in Sahsa has water 24 hours a day thanks to this well.

Radio Radio

Sahsa has a radio station, but no phone lines or cell phone tower.
Notice the outhouse on the left. I didn't get a chance to listen to it, so I'm not sure what exactly they're sending out on the airwaves.

Housing in the Atlantic Coast

Here are what some typical houses look like in the Rosita and Sahsa areas. The houses in Sahsa have been rebuilt since Hurricane Felix in September 2007 and according to Edgar it looks much better now than then.
This first house is on the way from Rosita to Sahsa.
This is a house in Sahsa.
Another house in Sahsa.

Fake Champions in Leon!

Today as I was walking around CIDS, I saw an older gentleman with another 2003 Oklahoma Sooners Champions hat. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera on me. I think it might have been a slightly different style hat than the one I saw earlier, but it had the same message. Like the last hat I saw, this one looked surprisingly new, leading me to think that the NCAA might have had them distributed around here recently.

Did I say Rosita was Modern?

At first I thought this was a fake champions t-shirt because I couldn't remember the Redskins winning anything in a long, long time. And then I realized, that no, in fact, it is real, just really, really old. It is a 1992 Redskins NFC champs shirt. 1992! That's almost as old as my sister! And it still has a price tag on it! (discounted to $1.99, what a deal!) And not even a Superbowl t-shirt...this is just from the NFC title game.


Also of note in the t-shirt realm. In Sahsa, we saw a guy wearing a UNC Michael Jordan jersey. Unfortunately, we didn't feel particularly safe or comfortable taking a picture of him, but yay for UNC!

Back

Sorry for the long delay. If there are any readers of this blog still out there, I thank you for your patience. I meant to write more about Sahsa, but then work was closed for a week for Semana Santa (basically Spring Break). I had limited internet access so I was unable to post my photos. But now I'm back in CIDS and will continue to post semi-regularly. Stay tuned for more information today.

Welcome to the Rosita Airport

With heavy emphasis on the "ita" part of the name. Here is what the airport looks like, in it's entirety.


The dean of the medical school had warned us not to expect to see any buildings or anything when we landed, but I thought that that meant there would be a very few. No, he really mean that there would be no real buildings, other than the straw hut where the military guys hang out. The van in the picture is what takes you from the airport into town. Here is a picture of Edgar disembarking our plane with the runway, aka cow pasture, in the background. Yes, those are cow turds on the runway.

Turns out that the town of Rosita itself is not quite as small as the airport makes it look. It has a population of about 25,000 according to census figures, although other estimates are as high as 35,000. The main street is paved and it is pretty modern, with a musical instrument store, internet, a cell tower, and pretty consistent electricity. Unfortunately, like most places in Nicaragua, water is highly irregular.

First stop, Managua

First we went to the Managua airport. The international terminal is really posh and fancy. The domestic terminal is a little more basic. Since we were flying on such a small plane, we had to step on the scale with all of our luggage to get our weight. Here is a picture of our boarding pass for our flight to Rosita.


It's a big, plastic card. They have 12 of them, one for each seat on the plane. La Costeña is the airline we took. Here is a picture of me boarding the plane:

Outline of Sahsa Trip

Click on the markers and lines for more information:

View Larger Map

East Side

This week I'll be traveling to the Atlantic Coast, leaving on Tuesday and coming back on Thursday. It's a very rural area with a lot of poverty, in much worse shape than the rest of Nicaragua. I'll bring my camera along and take some pictures and report on it. It's very different from the rest of Nicaragua for several reasons. One, it was colonized by the British and so they don't speak Spanish there. Various languages are spoken there, including Mosquito and an English Creole. Secondly, because of the British slave trade, a lot of the population is of African descent. It should be a very educational experience so stay tuned!

Typical Day at the Office

So there I was, sitting in my 10' x 10' office in the epidemiology center on a sunny morning, taking advantage of the internet to call my girlfriend on Skype. I'm chatting with my headset and camera turned on and just barely into the conversation, a herd of people come knocking on my door. It turns out that it's the dean of the medical school, the director of the epidemiology center, and the Swedish guy who founded the epidemiology center and hasn't been to Nicaragua in 10 years and is doing a tour to see how it has come along over the years. Then of course, there were a couple other people who came with the group, for maybe 6-7 people total. I minimized my Skype window and let them in. They showed the guests the office I'm using explaining the various features, like how they have internet here. Swedish guy asked me if I'm talking to my girlfriend on Skype. I sheepishly said yes. Ironically, Meredith and I had actually planned on talking about some of my research during our conversation, but hadn't really gotten to that part of the conversation yet. Unfortunately, I forgot to mention this point in my favor to the visitors.

However, the bosses didn't really seem to mind, mostly because it was a Saturday, after all, and I don't have to work weekends. Whew!

Straight Chillin'

Actually, straight photo opping, but same thing.

So this is me in my new home, the Hostal Cerro Negro. It's a pretty nice place with some hammocks, a television, a kitchen, a garden, a lobby, and a bunch of rooms. It's actually owned by my friend Luis from CIDS (the epidemiology center where I work) and his brother. It's got a good location and the staff who work there are great. I'll post some more pictures in the future.