Wednesday, July 18, 2007
downsides to the rainy season
Well, my latest exotic adventure was quite literally dampened by an influx of 4 tropical storms in a period of a week. I made it out to Bluefields, which is the capital of the Southern Atlantic Autonomous Region, (RAAS) and gathered most of the HIV statistics I needed. But I didn't make it to the Caribbean island where I was planning exploring a little and relaxing a lot. The rain was incredibly hard and incredibly constant. Many villages out there are completely flooded by now. Bluefields is normally extremely isolated as they haven't even considered making roads to stretch over the miles and miles of wetlands that separate it from the capital. And now, the increasing isolation that the floods bring are pushing up the prices of basic goods and people are continuing to be evacuated. But this isn't an emergency - it happens every year.
Here in Managua all is good. I have three weeks to finish this project and no other travel plans until then. The big holiday of the year is approaching on August 1st. Somthing to celebrate Santo Domingo...which, as luck would have it, is the name of the church directly behind my house and the epicenter of all firecrackers, parades, and general brewhaha. My alarm clock is now drowned out by loud Nicaragua pop music that starts promply at 6:30am. I expect it to get louder and earlier until August 1st arrives. The anticipation is killing me.
I'll post some damp and dreary pictures of Bluefields momentarily...
Here in Managua all is good. I have three weeks to finish this project and no other travel plans until then. The big holiday of the year is approaching on August 1st. Somthing to celebrate Santo Domingo...which, as luck would have it, is the name of the church directly behind my house and the epicenter of all firecrackers, parades, and general brewhaha. My alarm clock is now drowned out by loud Nicaragua pop music that starts promply at 6:30am. I expect it to get louder and earlier until August 1st arrives. The anticipation is killing me.
I'll post some damp and dreary pictures of Bluefields momentarily...
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Weekend at 'home'
So far my weekends in Nicaragua have been spent galavanting off to the nearest watering hole to escape the heat - but this weekend I was looking forward to a relaxing couple days at the pool in my yard. I caught up on some reading, studying and partook in the upper echelons of the Danish society in Managua. Friday night there was a going away party for a Danish women who, born to diplomats, had spent most of her life in Nicaragua. She and her husband threw quite the catered party complete with bar, food, and DJ spinning nothing but the best Nicaraguan classics - all surrounding a pool with overarching palm trees. Quintessential diplomat style.
To make it all the more interesting, our house guest this weekend was a Danish women who works for the Danish consulate. She was here to meet with embassy officials, as well as Daniel Ortega (President of Nicaragua). After him only canceling one of the scheduled meetings, they did actually meet and she returned with stories of his bizarrely decorated house and incessant need to talk. I guess you'd expect nothing else from a former revolutionary turned mainstream (but still kinda leftish) leader.
(Side note - here "leftist" means aligned with the US, so all the pro-business people are leftists...good thing I learned that one before any embarrassing mishaps at a cocktail party.)
So, things are good. My project has taken a bit of a turn. I was supposed to be compiling some Health Ministry projections on HIV and then writing an additional analysis of the potential economic costs of the epidemic in the Caribbean Coast. But as it turns out, the government team hasn't actually started their project... So it looks like I have to do theirs and then do mine on top of it. (that's what she said?)
It's one hell of an experience and I'm definitely learning a lot from the process. Not the very least is how to get things done in an unorganized and inefficient environment. (and given my inclination for efficiency you can imagine the deep breathing routines I have adopted...) And this is no knock on UNICEF here - it's more the governments lack of organization or information networks, to which I'm referring. But it's this same lack of functioning systems that gets me out of Managua and back to the Coast in a week or two. Email and phones don't quite reach the region so off I go in search of the type of information that a few clicks of a mouse could yield in the motherland.
Hope the summer in the states is treating everyone well. Send along emails when you have time!
To make it all the more interesting, our house guest this weekend was a Danish women who works for the Danish consulate. She was here to meet with embassy officials, as well as Daniel Ortega (President of Nicaragua). After him only canceling one of the scheduled meetings, they did actually meet and she returned with stories of his bizarrely decorated house and incessant need to talk. I guess you'd expect nothing else from a former revolutionary turned mainstream (but still kinda leftish) leader.
(Side note - here "leftist" means aligned with the US, so all the pro-business people are leftists...good thing I learned that one before any embarrassing mishaps at a cocktail party.)
So, things are good. My project has taken a bit of a turn. I was supposed to be compiling some Health Ministry projections on HIV and then writing an additional analysis of the potential economic costs of the epidemic in the Caribbean Coast. But as it turns out, the government team hasn't actually started their project... So it looks like I have to do theirs and then do mine on top of it. (that's what she said?)
It's one hell of an experience and I'm definitely learning a lot from the process. Not the very least is how to get things done in an unorganized and inefficient environment. (and given my inclination for efficiency you can imagine the deep breathing routines I have adopted...) And this is no knock on UNICEF here - it's more the governments lack of organization or information networks, to which I'm referring. But it's this same lack of functioning systems that gets me out of Managua and back to the Coast in a week or two. Email and phones don't quite reach the region so off I go in search of the type of information that a few clicks of a mouse could yield in the motherland.
Hope the summer in the states is treating everyone well. Send along emails when you have time!
Monday, June 25, 2007
Comunidad Naranjal
Here is a view from underneath a house where I took shelter during a rain storm with a very friendly school boy. Houses are built on stilts to avoid flooding, and in this case, this space also doubled as the 'barn' as it's where the animals sleep. Next one is a boy looking out the school window. I think we were quite the distraction from their normal school day. Although I'm not entirely sure that they didn't all just run into the school house once they heard that the people from UNICEF were coming up from the river! Last is a view of one of the communities from the river. Quite a lawn!
Miskitu village
Here's a few pictures from a Miskitu village about an hour or two down river from any road. They have a church, which is the only solid structure, other than the large row on latrines that the government built. Each family has one latrine, although from the looks of them, no one ever uses them. In the picture of the two kids - the oldest is 12, and pregnant. Her sister has a cleft lip and they daily drink polluted river water despite the wells the government installed in the village.
Friday, June 22, 2007
you heard it here first...& Coast commentary
The cable that brings internet to Central America was broken for 2 days last week at the fault of fishermen. Or at least that's what they're telling us. Doesn't sound like a likely story to me, but it is true that most countries in this part of the world were without internet for almost 2 days. I tried to find an article about it, but the only one I found was just about columbia. (although this same article has the little nugget about the culpable fisherman, which was news to me)
But I wasn't too affected as I spent most of last week in the eastern side of Nicaragua. It was quite an experience. A little background: the two regions in the Caribbean side are called RAAN and RAAS, and they are autonmous regions consisting mostly of indigeous villages. In the early 90's these regiones gained autonomy, which in principle it gives them control over their own resources, including land.
The UN publishes a Human Development Index, which ranks the level of "development" within 177 countries. If RAAN and RAAS were officially their own country, they would rank at number 171 out of 177. (While all of Nicaragua ranks at 113.)
It was like nothing I'd ever seen. It's sort of like everyone is permanently camping. They have houses, which they've made from wood cut from the abundent forest. They eat fruit, grain, vegatables grown from their land and the meat from the animals, which are also quite plentiful. But they have no roads so trade between villages is very low, and most people don't particpate in anything close to a formal economy, nor have access to any social services. The education system is virtually non-existent other than donor sponsored schools, most people have no access to medical services or access to clean water.
So, they have the potential to have great lives because the land they live on is so furtile, and thanks to the laws of autonomy in this region, most people actual own the rights to their land. Unfortunately, thanks to a few select companies who extract wood and minerals, the river is polluted and clean water is hard to come by. Lack of education about keeping animal carcasses and both human and animal waste out of river is also a large 'natural' source of pollution, so we can't blame everything on big business here. The main kicker is that lack of roads means that all transporation between communities is by river or horse or foot...combine this remoteness with unsanitory conditions and the potential paradise quickly fades away to a standard of living far below anything a human should have to bare. But at least they're not starving.
I was there with a team of consultants who were deciding which villages to sponsor over a 5 year period. The project would involve education on sanitation, as well as training on, and the provision of, appropriate clean water technology. I accompanied them on their first day...which included 6 hours in a wooden oversized canoe with a motor. And we didnt' even reach the furthest communities which would take a good 12 hours round trip. Keep in mind that this is the distance with a motor - which makes the 'main' town and the health clinic virtually imposible to reach for most.
The purpose of the community visits were to interview households on their current water and sanitation habits and view the existing technology they had. In most cases 'technology' was nothing more than a bucket to catch rain water, or perhaps a filter or a well at the very highest level. However, the only community I saw that had a well, didn't even use it because it had a broken cable, and they didnt' know where in the world to get a cable to fix it. We were also there to gauge the level of interest the village had in recieving outside help. Despite the even need, some communities are eager to 'develop' while others are not, which has a lot to do with the indigenous culture of living directly off the land. As opposed to some government sponsored projects which have left many wellbuilt wells and latrines unused, UNICEF trys to make sure that the technology will actually be used and that the people are eager to try something new.
I read a statistic saying that 9% of the people had access to water, and as the house we stayed in didn't even have running water, i though that at least those 9% must be fairly well off. After a little investigation I learned that it was 9% that had access to clean water.
After a 3 hour return trip consisting of 3 downpours and 3 periods of powerful sun in the very open air canoeish boat, I was a bit beat. But loved every second of it. The next day wasn't as eventful, but it was interesting all the same. Visitng an area further north, I interviewed health administrators about their policies regarding HIV/AIDS and began gathering data for my report. I have a lot of work to do, but it's going to be a great experience.
I'm back in Managua now where the weather has cooled thanks to the rains that continue to wash away entire houses. The women who works in my house is making fresh orange juice and doing my laundry as we speak, while the young man who works in my friends house is taking a few days off because his 18 year old brother just drowned trying to help two children who fell into an open drainage system in the most recent downpour.
But I wasn't too affected as I spent most of last week in the eastern side of Nicaragua. It was quite an experience. A little background: the two regions in the Caribbean side are called RAAN and RAAS, and they are autonmous regions consisting mostly of indigeous villages. In the early 90's these regiones gained autonomy, which in principle it gives them control over their own resources, including land.
The UN publishes a Human Development Index, which ranks the level of "development" within 177 countries. If RAAN and RAAS were officially their own country, they would rank at number 171 out of 177. (While all of Nicaragua ranks at 113.)
It was like nothing I'd ever seen. It's sort of like everyone is permanently camping. They have houses, which they've made from wood cut from the abundent forest. They eat fruit, grain, vegatables grown from their land and the meat from the animals, which are also quite plentiful. But they have no roads so trade between villages is very low, and most people don't particpate in anything close to a formal economy, nor have access to any social services. The education system is virtually non-existent other than donor sponsored schools, most people have no access to medical services or access to clean water.
So, they have the potential to have great lives because the land they live on is so furtile, and thanks to the laws of autonomy in this region, most people actual own the rights to their land. Unfortunately, thanks to a few select companies who extract wood and minerals, the river is polluted and clean water is hard to come by. Lack of education about keeping animal carcasses and both human and animal waste out of river is also a large 'natural' source of pollution, so we can't blame everything on big business here. The main kicker is that lack of roads means that all transporation between communities is by river or horse or foot...combine this remoteness with unsanitory conditions and the potential paradise quickly fades away to a standard of living far below anything a human should have to bare. But at least they're not starving.
I was there with a team of consultants who were deciding which villages to sponsor over a 5 year period. The project would involve education on sanitation, as well as training on, and the provision of, appropriate clean water technology. I accompanied them on their first day...which included 6 hours in a wooden oversized canoe with a motor. And we didnt' even reach the furthest communities which would take a good 12 hours round trip. Keep in mind that this is the distance with a motor - which makes the 'main' town and the health clinic virtually imposible to reach for most.
The purpose of the community visits were to interview households on their current water and sanitation habits and view the existing technology they had. In most cases 'technology' was nothing more than a bucket to catch rain water, or perhaps a filter or a well at the very highest level. However, the only community I saw that had a well, didn't even use it because it had a broken cable, and they didnt' know where in the world to get a cable to fix it. We were also there to gauge the level of interest the village had in recieving outside help. Despite the even need, some communities are eager to 'develop' while others are not, which has a lot to do with the indigenous culture of living directly off the land. As opposed to some government sponsored projects which have left many wellbuilt wells and latrines unused, UNICEF trys to make sure that the technology will actually be used and that the people are eager to try something new.
I read a statistic saying that 9% of the people had access to water, and as the house we stayed in didn't even have running water, i though that at least those 9% must be fairly well off. After a little investigation I learned that it was 9% that had access to clean water.
After a 3 hour return trip consisting of 3 downpours and 3 periods of powerful sun in the very open air canoeish boat, I was a bit beat. But loved every second of it. The next day wasn't as eventful, but it was interesting all the same. Visitng an area further north, I interviewed health administrators about their policies regarding HIV/AIDS and began gathering data for my report. I have a lot of work to do, but it's going to be a great experience.
I'm back in Managua now where the weather has cooled thanks to the rains that continue to wash away entire houses. The women who works in my house is making fresh orange juice and doing my laundry as we speak, while the young man who works in my friends house is taking a few days off because his 18 year old brother just drowned trying to help two children who fell into an open drainage system in the most recent downpour.
Friday, June 15, 2007
Rain rain rain
The rainy season is here in full affect. That said, the temperature is more to my liking. Or maybe it's because i'm in an air conditioned office all day, so it just doesn't seem so bad. Office work does have its perks. I was awakened last night by a forceful storm with so much lighteining I felt I was in a night club with strobe lights...and the rain on the tin roofs so loud I had no choice but to lie awake listening to it. Once I accepted that I wasn't getting any sleep I just enjoyed it. Until I realized that houses in the shanty towns where likely being destroyed as hillsides are usually wiped out in these types of rains. Then I feel asleep, woke up, swam in my pool, ate breakfast and left my dirty dishes in the sink for the maid who comes to clean today. Guilt is a strange thing.
I leave Monday for the RAAN, (Caribbean Coast northern region) where electricty, never mind internet, will be scare. I'll be interviewing people about the prevelance of (and measures taken to prevent) HIV in their communities. The main problem I'm having gathering information is that the government is full of conflicting reports. So I'm trying to get the information directly from the health clinics and determine what is really happening. One of the first reasons I became interested in developing countries is that I felt you could actually do something that hasn't been done before, and contribute to improving the situation somehow...everything is the US is so developed and set in place, it seems harder to actually influence things. Here, no one's ever done any study to determine what the impact of HIV is on the communities. The information just doesn't exist. So this will be a first shot at comparing gov't reports to what's actually happening.
Will report back when I return in a week or so.
Love,
Amanda
I leave Monday for the RAAN, (Caribbean Coast northern region) where electricty, never mind internet, will be scare. I'll be interviewing people about the prevelance of (and measures taken to prevent) HIV in their communities. The main problem I'm having gathering information is that the government is full of conflicting reports. So I'm trying to get the information directly from the health clinics and determine what is really happening. One of the first reasons I became interested in developing countries is that I felt you could actually do something that hasn't been done before, and contribute to improving the situation somehow...everything is the US is so developed and set in place, it seems harder to actually influence things. Here, no one's ever done any study to determine what the impact of HIV is on the communities. The information just doesn't exist. So this will be a first shot at comparing gov't reports to what's actually happening.
Will report back when I return in a week or so.
Love,
Amanda
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Office life
I´ve moved up to Managua to start the real working part of my internship. The past few weeks in Granada have been a lot of fun, but (and this will really show what a nerd I am), I am really liking being in the office and working full time on this project. It´s been almost 11 months since I´ve been in an office, but I´m getting right back into the skirts, heels and pencil sharpeners like I never left. (Barb, if you´re reading this you´d love it...meetings ALWAYS start a good half hour late, and everyone expects it. haha!) Working in spanish is, of course, a new challenge. Not only do I have to listen hard to understand what is actually being said, but then I have to process it fast enough to think about the significance of it all...and then respond in some manner that doesn´t make me sound like a complete idiot. But I´m getting the hang of it.
So, what I´m actually doing...I´m putting together an economic and social impact study of HIV/AIDS, in particular, on the Caribbean Coast. There´s a few teams of experts in statistics, epidemology and demography, from a variety of organizations, who are working on separate reports. I´m meeting with them (including government officials) to gather the most important data from their reports, and combine it with what I come up with on the social and economic impacts. It´s a perfect mix of nerdy math spreadsheets and qualitative research. It´s a hell of a lot to do in a summer, but I´m looking forward to it.
Next week I take off in a UNICEF car for a long rough trip to the Caribbean Coast. If you get a chance, check out a map. They don´t have roads per se. Well, they have a road that goes to the capital, but most of the time I´ll be visiting communities along the river, gathering personal accounts and generally getting the lay of the land. That and trying to not get bit by rats. Apparently the rat infestation is a bit overwhelming. delicous.
I´ll leave with this last nugget...I took my security clearance test yesterday (I passed). The whole ordeal was quite serious and I actually did learn some useful things, such as how to tell north by using only your watch and the sun. And how to find north in the southern hemisphere during the night (no north star to guide your way, so it´s a bit trickier). But the best advice was regarding road travel in developing countries (although I feel this could be extrapolated and applied to road travel in all countries)... and I quote, ¨Do not try to copy driving techniques seen in James Bond films.¨
Sage advice.
So, what I´m actually doing...I´m putting together an economic and social impact study of HIV/AIDS, in particular, on the Caribbean Coast. There´s a few teams of experts in statistics, epidemology and demography, from a variety of organizations, who are working on separate reports. I´m meeting with them (including government officials) to gather the most important data from their reports, and combine it with what I come up with on the social and economic impacts. It´s a perfect mix of nerdy math spreadsheets and qualitative research. It´s a hell of a lot to do in a summer, but I´m looking forward to it.
Next week I take off in a UNICEF car for a long rough trip to the Caribbean Coast. If you get a chance, check out a map. They don´t have roads per se. Well, they have a road that goes to the capital, but most of the time I´ll be visiting communities along the river, gathering personal accounts and generally getting the lay of the land. That and trying to not get bit by rats. Apparently the rat infestation is a bit overwhelming. delicous.
I´ll leave with this last nugget...I took my security clearance test yesterday (I passed). The whole ordeal was quite serious and I actually did learn some useful things, such as how to tell north by using only your watch and the sun. And how to find north in the southern hemisphere during the night (no north star to guide your way, so it´s a bit trickier). But the best advice was regarding road travel in developing countries (although I feel this could be extrapolated and applied to road travel in all countries)... and I quote, ¨Do not try to copy driving techniques seen in James Bond films.¨
Sage advice.
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
outside granada
Today I went to go check out one of the school outside of Granada. These pictures are on my long walk back. The houses were built with whatever material they could find lying around, but the composition of different textures and colors was beautiful.
Center of Town
Here's two pictures close to the center of town. The steeples of the cathedral and one of the four kiosks that occupy each corner of the park.
Pictures
This is a main street that they recently reconstructed to allow for outdoor seating and fewer cars. It's one of my favorite places to have an evening beer, once the sun has cooled off! The other picture is me with my salsa instructor. He has a very difficult job, since salsa does not come naturally to me...
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Granada and all its glory
This is a great city. Everywhere I travel lately, I seem to find myself in a Colonial City. Antigua, with its fancy restaurants, bright buildings and safe side walks (safe from holes, not pickpocketers of course); Ayacucho with it's run down center, one decent cafe, and the constant smell of dust and trash. Then there's Granada. Somewhere in the middle of the two previous cities I've visited, it's center is impeccably restored (except for gapping holes in the sidewalks), and the central square is lush and tropical with kiosks selling drinks and snacks in each corner. These kiosks and various outdoor restaurants primarily serve locals although there are one or two more expensive places to eat that cater to tourists.
They say this is the second most touristy city in Nicaragua which is very strong evidence for how poor of a tourist industry there is in this country. Other than a few white faces wondering around, most people seem to be local. I've met a good group of them who've taken me out dancing and shown me around town. Despite my burgeoning social life, my best friend may be a 12 year old street kid who comes to my hostel for lunch most days. He's quite charming, if not slightly dirty. I have a thing against giving money, so instead I bought him lunch. Now he seems to be part of my daily routine.
Things were going quite well with my spanish tutor, but I think he was drunk and hitting on me at our last lesson. Must find a new teacher.
So my days are consisting of reading spanish: newspapers, books and UNICEF reports. And chatting with people around town. Yesterday I stumbled upon the market. This seems to be my favorite part of the city so far. It's where prices are a third of what they are in stores (although, in reality there aren't many 'stores' so the market is the only place to go for things like vegetables and bootleg movies). And while the smell is less than pleasant at times, there's something mesmerizing about wondering through the endless maze of wooden stalls.
Right now it's the rainy season...and as I write, I'm looking out over the hostel's courtyard as the rain is pouring down off the tin roof into the tropical garden. The rain only lasts about a half hour, but it's a welcomed relief from extreme heat.
That's all for now...
They say this is the second most touristy city in Nicaragua which is very strong evidence for how poor of a tourist industry there is in this country. Other than a few white faces wondering around, most people seem to be local. I've met a good group of them who've taken me out dancing and shown me around town. Despite my burgeoning social life, my best friend may be a 12 year old street kid who comes to my hostel for lunch most days. He's quite charming, if not slightly dirty. I have a thing against giving money, so instead I bought him lunch. Now he seems to be part of my daily routine.
Things were going quite well with my spanish tutor, but I think he was drunk and hitting on me at our last lesson. Must find a new teacher.
So my days are consisting of reading spanish: newspapers, books and UNICEF reports. And chatting with people around town. Yesterday I stumbled upon the market. This seems to be my favorite part of the city so far. It's where prices are a third of what they are in stores (although, in reality there aren't many 'stores' so the market is the only place to go for things like vegetables and bootleg movies). And while the smell is less than pleasant at times, there's something mesmerizing about wondering through the endless maze of wooden stalls.
Right now it's the rainy season...and as I write, I'm looking out over the hostel's courtyard as the rain is pouring down off the tin roof into the tropical garden. The rain only lasts about a half hour, but it's a welcomed relief from extreme heat.
That's all for now...
Sunday, May 20, 2007
He llegado! (I've arrived)
Hello friends and family....
I've made it to Nicaragua, had a nice weekend at the beach, got lost in a sketchy neighborhood, met some great people in the UN circuit, stepped on a dead mouse, and seen some live salsa music. all in five days. The Danish guy I'm working with, Lars, invited me to stay with him and his adorable Venezuelan wife upon my arrival. They've got a great house with a pool, so I'm inclined to take them up on their offer to rent a room from them. The only problem is that they live a bit far out and without a car it's difficult to get around, because taxi's rarely come to this area.
Managua is a very strange city. It's been devastated by earthquakes and never quite rebuilt. The whole city is basically a sprawling suburb, which range from fancy houses to shanty towns, with some of the fanciest megamalls I've ever seen, thrown in every now and then. There's no "downtown" and no area that even has strollable streets. You really need a car to get anywhere. The bus system is basically nonexistent and taxis are fairly cheap, but sort of sketchy at night for a lady like myself. And so, since I don't have to be in the office until Lars is back from his trip to Denmark on June 11th, I'm taking off to Granada tomorrow morning. There I should find decent cafes, quaint colonial buildings and hopefully a room with a good fan. It's hot here.
But I can't complain, I much rather the heat than the cold, and a fan can do wonders as I'm not sure my internship salary will afford me the luxury of air conditioning. The little bit that I know about what I'll be doing is really interesting. I'm reading all sorts of reports right now on the millennium development goals (MDG's) and the development situation in Nicaragua as it relates to Health, Education, HIV and Water. (The areas that UNICEF works in that are covered in the MDGs). Ultimately I'll be doing a combination of research and statistical analysis to offer a suggestion as to how much additional funding would be needed for the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua to reach the MDGs by 2015.
The UNICEF office is shared with UNDP and pretty much all the people I've met through Lars and Yajiada are somehow connected to the UN system here. Everyone's got an interesting story and my first dinner party was quite lively and all senses of the word.
Well I suppose that's all for now. I just returned from San Juan Del Sur, a beach town 2 hours south of Managua, and I need a shower. I hope you guys are all finding time to appreciate the summer months. Keep in touch!
-Amanda
I've made it to Nicaragua, had a nice weekend at the beach, got lost in a sketchy neighborhood, met some great people in the UN circuit, stepped on a dead mouse, and seen some live salsa music. all in five days. The Danish guy I'm working with, Lars, invited me to stay with him and his adorable Venezuelan wife upon my arrival. They've got a great house with a pool, so I'm inclined to take them up on their offer to rent a room from them. The only problem is that they live a bit far out and without a car it's difficult to get around, because taxi's rarely come to this area.
Managua is a very strange city. It's been devastated by earthquakes and never quite rebuilt. The whole city is basically a sprawling suburb, which range from fancy houses to shanty towns, with some of the fanciest megamalls I've ever seen, thrown in every now and then. There's no "downtown" and no area that even has strollable streets. You really need a car to get anywhere. The bus system is basically nonexistent and taxis are fairly cheap, but sort of sketchy at night for a lady like myself. And so, since I don't have to be in the office until Lars is back from his trip to Denmark on June 11th, I'm taking off to Granada tomorrow morning. There I should find decent cafes, quaint colonial buildings and hopefully a room with a good fan. It's hot here.
But I can't complain, I much rather the heat than the cold, and a fan can do wonders as I'm not sure my internship salary will afford me the luxury of air conditioning. The little bit that I know about what I'll be doing is really interesting. I'm reading all sorts of reports right now on the millennium development goals (MDG's) and the development situation in Nicaragua as it relates to Health, Education, HIV and Water. (The areas that UNICEF works in that are covered in the MDGs). Ultimately I'll be doing a combination of research and statistical analysis to offer a suggestion as to how much additional funding would be needed for the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua to reach the MDGs by 2015.
The UNICEF office is shared with UNDP and pretty much all the people I've met through Lars and Yajiada are somehow connected to the UN system here. Everyone's got an interesting story and my first dinner party was quite lively and all senses of the word.
Well I suppose that's all for now. I just returned from San Juan Del Sur, a beach town 2 hours south of Managua, and I need a shower. I hope you guys are all finding time to appreciate the summer months. Keep in touch!
-Amanda
Thursday, November 09, 2006
The Urban Poncho
My job has changed quite a bit in the last few days...While I´m still playing around with numbers in spreadsheets on occasion, the majority of my day is spent realizing my true potential. Basically I´m the Peterman of Peru. (Seinfeld reference) Keep an eye out for me in the latest Vogue, Vanity Fair or Cosmo...I´m pretty sure I´m going to be a pretty big deal in my new career as a designer. I´m working with a group of woman knitters to design modern shawls, gloves, hats, scarves - and anything that can be made out of Alpaca. My first piece is called the urban poncho. The whole idea behind this is to create designs that have a bit of Peruvian style, but that will sell abroard. A few days ago I found myself under a tin shelter in the pouring rain explaining to a group of 8 woman why someone may actually want to buy a skirt that only covers their ass. It took awhile, but I think they see the point now - I, however, can not remember said point. Regardless the skirts will be short and alpaca, which I can only hope is the perfect combination of Peruvian and slutty that I was going for.
While I spend most of my days in the office I also venture out into the markets to look for internesting buttons, fabrics, lace etc. This may seem a lot more ´libral arts´ than my usual work, but today during my latest market adventure my finance skills came in very handy. Here´s how the scene went down:
Me: Excuse me, can you tell me how much for these buttons?
Lady: 5 for $.50
Me: Hmm, would you give a discount if I bought a large quantity?
Lady: 12?
Me: sure
Lady 12 for $1.50
...this is where she lost me. So I asked again to reconfirm, and she did in fact mean what she said.---I opted for 5 buttons and told her I´d be back for more tomorrow. So my years of finance have come in handy bargaining in third world countries. Also studying geometry for the GRE has come in handy as I´m sketching designs with measurements and needing to recall the area of a triangle. It´s all coming full circle.
In all seriousness this is a very cool project which brings together artesan woman to help organize production and keep costs low. The company is going to be a spin off of FINCAPeru called FINCAPeru exports...which we hope to get finalized in the next few months. Everything is still very new and there are just me and 2 other volunteers running the show and figuring out the whole export business. It´s always different and getting to work so closely with the local woman is a real treat. If anyone knows of local stores in the US that might be interested in carrying Alpaca products, or custom orders for individuals - let me know and i´ll send off some more information about the project Perhaps things could be ready in time for christmas or perhaps not. Deadlines aren´t really our strong point yet. By next week I should have some pictures that I can send off if anyone is interested!
Ok, well there´s a pair of fingerless gloves that are dying to be sketched out, so off I go.
comments: amandajudge@yahoo.com
While I spend most of my days in the office I also venture out into the markets to look for internesting buttons, fabrics, lace etc. This may seem a lot more ´libral arts´ than my usual work, but today during my latest market adventure my finance skills came in very handy. Here´s how the scene went down:
Me: Excuse me, can you tell me how much for these buttons?
Lady: 5 for $.50
Me: Hmm, would you give a discount if I bought a large quantity?
Lady: 12?
Me: sure
Lady 12 for $1.50
...this is where she lost me. So I asked again to reconfirm, and she did in fact mean what she said.---I opted for 5 buttons and told her I´d be back for more tomorrow. So my years of finance have come in handy bargaining in third world countries. Also studying geometry for the GRE has come in handy as I´m sketching designs with measurements and needing to recall the area of a triangle. It´s all coming full circle.
In all seriousness this is a very cool project which brings together artesan woman to help organize production and keep costs low. The company is going to be a spin off of FINCAPeru called FINCAPeru exports...which we hope to get finalized in the next few months. Everything is still very new and there are just me and 2 other volunteers running the show and figuring out the whole export business. It´s always different and getting to work so closely with the local woman is a real treat. If anyone knows of local stores in the US that might be interested in carrying Alpaca products, or custom orders for individuals - let me know and i´ll send off some more information about the project Perhaps things could be ready in time for christmas or perhaps not. Deadlines aren´t really our strong point yet. By next week I should have some pictures that I can send off if anyone is interested!
Ok, well there´s a pair of fingerless gloves that are dying to be sketched out, so off I go.
comments: amandajudge@yahoo.com
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Around town
Here´s a few pictures of the town plaza and one of the main streets, which is only for pedestrians. They were having some sort of parade to promote a candidate for county president this morning when i took these. All very peaceful, but all the same, very loud.
I´ve spend the last week and a half working, finding my way around and trying to figure out what I´m eating that is causing me stomach pains. They seem to have subsided, although the source I wasn´t able to distinguish. It´s just to difficult to be extremely careful about what you eat, so I´ve decided that I´m just going to have to get acustomed to it rather than be nuerotic about it. Civiche is a very popular dish here, which is delicious. However, eating raw fish I try to do only in the nicest of restaurants. I think the nicest restaurant in town may be equivalent to TGIFridays...or maybe a step up, but not too much higher. Most of the restaurants are small rooms in the front of peoples houses where you can eat for a couple dollars or less, but since i´ve been working so much i often make my own food or have the 86 year old lady that i live with make me a meal for $1.70.
Work is going well. Starting a new job is always challenging, and starting a new job speaking a new language is not any easier. But this week my communcation skills have started to pick up and I think I´m figuring out what projects they want me to do. It´s a great place to learn about microfinance and the people who work there are so sweet. It´s a bit exausting because you kiss everyone on the cheek hello AND goodbye - Even if you just had a 30 second conversation. I get a kick out of imaging that sort of interaction at a company in the US.
I had my first day of visiting clients on Friday, which was very eye-opening. The day started by riding off on the back of a motorcycle to the outskirts of town. Once you get out of the town center all of the streets are dirt and you are constanting dodging pigs, cows, sheep, goats, small children and what I can only assume are rabid dogs. We were visiting clients who were requesting large loans (over $500) or clients who were requesting individual loans (from $100-500), in order to make sure that they lived where they said, and ask questions about how the were planning to pay the loan back and what collateral they could put up for the individual loans. It´s was amazing to see how some people lived...houses built right into the hillside, dirt floors, children of 5 left home alone when the parents go off to work. All the while we were surrounded by very dramatic mountains, cliffs and valleys - next time I´ll take my camera.
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
day 1 - Ayacucho
After a winding bus ride up many many meters, I have arrived. The 9 hour bus ride was surprisingly comfortable...and very cool because I had a seat in the first row of a double decker, so I had a great view. Slightly scary at times as well, as the drivers are well...bus drivers. It seems like we pretty much just drove through the country side and passed the occasional pueblo...which is called something else in Peru. Aldade maybe? Already I´ve learned that my Guatemalan spanish is useless here. At least for the food...everything is different! I´ve learned that salsa picante is salsa aji...avocados are something very very different... cafe comes in two parts and you put it together depending on how strong you like it...and everything else will come with time.
I´m suprised at how much it´s like Antigua. I guess it makes sense since they are both colonial cities. Ayacuhco has smoother streets, is a bit dustier, at a higher altitude, less touristy, and not as colorful. But the central parks of the two cities are amazingly similiar with all the sidewalks bordering the park made of arches.
So tomorrow I´ll go find the FINCA Peru office and see when I can get started. I´m really excited about starting to work again. Spanish studying has been great, but I need something with a little more depth to keep me interested.
Right now I think it´s time for the second nap of the day. Adios!
I´m suprised at how much it´s like Antigua. I guess it makes sense since they are both colonial cities. Ayacuhco has smoother streets, is a bit dustier, at a higher altitude, less touristy, and not as colorful. But the central parks of the two cities are amazingly similiar with all the sidewalks bordering the park made of arches.
So tomorrow I´ll go find the FINCA Peru office and see when I can get started. I´m really excited about starting to work again. Spanish studying has been great, but I need something with a little more depth to keep me interested.
Right now I think it´s time for the second nap of the day. Adios!
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Lima is...
...well, Lima is not like Antigua. It´s kinda dirty, but it´s got a cool ´lived in´ feel, which gets lost in Antigua´s bohemian ¨aora¨ (i have no idea how to spell that...) I got in this afternoon and navigated my way to one of the bus stations. All the bus companies have their own terminals and they don´t have schedules at the airport or anything convenient like that - Speaking spanish definetely came in handy today. After spending the day here, I´m wondering how I traveled around so many other countries without speaking the language. Definitely no english around these parts. It´s fun to be able to speak to the locals and somehow sketchy men don´t seem as sketchy once they see that you can speak their language. but and i´m definetely ready to ramp up my conversation skills. I´m sure I sound like a real @-hole most of the time. It took me a while to realize that instead of saying ´can i pay you now?´ I had been saying ´can i poke you now´. people figured it out, but still...those are the kind of mistakes that, since i´m traveling alone, i´d rather not continue making.
Tonight I´ll be snoozing on a night bus. Hopefully they´ll play a jean claude van dam movie...if Peru´s anything like Guatemala, my chances are pretty good they will. More from Ayacucho later this week. Hasta luego.
Tonight I´ll be snoozing on a night bus. Hopefully they´ll play a jean claude van dam movie...if Peru´s anything like Guatemala, my chances are pretty good they will. More from Ayacucho later this week. Hasta luego.
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Roatan Pics
I was really bad about taking pictures in Roatan, so I don´t have that many...but here´s a couple to give you the feel of the place. They just don´t do it justice though!
Antigua Character
Here´s a picture of me with one of my favorite Antigua character
s...The French midget chef who works in the cafe down the street from me.
s...The French midget chef who works in the cafe down the street from me.
Mishaps in Roatan
My savy travel skills have really been put to the test this weekend. My Korean friend, Miok, and I traveled to Roatan, but we had to stay a night in La Ceiba, Honduras because our bus got in after the last ferry. So I went to withdraw money and left my ATM visa card in the machine. I realized this within the hour, but of course it was no where to be found. Thank goodness for I always have 2 cards on me...
After that mishap we proceed to Roatan the next day and pass the weekend lounging on beautiful beaches, and realizing how good life can be in the Carribean.
On our way back we needed to spend one more day in La Ceiba...the armpit of the bay islands. But we were recommended a great hotel and it all feels very comfortable. 5am we hop in a taxi and at 5:05 we hope out. but i forgot my purse. damndamndamndandmadnandma. i dragged my sorry self back to the hotel as i ponder how to get out of this damned country without a passport, while my friend is comfortably on her way to Antigua. All my smart rules about different types of money to carry don´t work so well when they´re all in your purse and it´s lost.
But the hotel I was staying at was great. The little man who works in the hotel lobby, miraculously enough, remembered the number of the taxi. I now have a new rule and I advise you all to use it...When traveling in taxis, always remember the number of the taxi. This is my new montra. However, just the number of the taxi isn´t enough to actually DO anything. 3 people from the hotel and myself went to the main taxi office to find out the name and number of the taxi driver. but one phone call to the driver wasn´t enough to convince him to give my backpack back. he argued his point, that if something is left in his taxi then it´s his. I see where´s he´s coming from, but just didn´t agree with the sentiment. So the wonderful chica from the hotel had to get quite upfront with him, explaining that we knew all of his information and if he didn´t bring the backpack back we´d call the police and they´d come find it. I´m pretty sure this invoked a laugh as the thought of the police actually doing something was funny even to me. (we´d been calling them all morning, but they just weren´t answering) However, once I explained that there was no money in the backpack and that you needed a code to use my credit card...but that´d i could pay him once he brought it to me...he suddenly had a change of heart and decided to return my ´maleta´ to me in one piece.
Funnily enough, i couldn´t give him any money when he arrived...i had lost my visa, my mastercard wasn´t working because i use it just for purchases and i don´t even know the pin, and all my cash was with my friend who was comfortably sleeping in a bus on her way to Antigua. The man was angry. He yelled, he flailed his arms...and I hid behind the large security man from the hotel and pretended I couldn´t speak spanish. (not that big of a lie really)
So I had my bag back, but still no money...What was i to do without cash in Honduras? I pondered this as I ate a combo meal at wendy´s thanks to my trusty credit card. When you´re down and out it´s nice to know you can still get a frosty.
My fast food infusion reminded me of my secret travelers check stashed away! only after I had spent a good 4 hours waiting in different lines at different banks to no avail..but nonetheless, i regained confidence in my savy travelingness. So i was able to tip the hotel, leave some for the scary man so he doesn´t harass the hotel staff tomorrow, and travel safely back to antigua.
So all in all things have ended well. For the part of my family that worries...remember that despite all my misfortunes this weekend, things ended up just fine and I will now be more careful than ever when traveling around.
I leave for Peru on Tuesday and until then I will be just enjoying my last days in Antigua. Out for now...
ps- i know I should spell check this as i may be the worlds worst speller, but I just can´t figure out how to get the spell check language to english.
After that mishap we proceed to Roatan the next day and pass the weekend lounging on beautiful beaches, and realizing how good life can be in the Carribean.
On our way back we needed to spend one more day in La Ceiba...the armpit of the bay islands. But we were recommended a great hotel and it all feels very comfortable. 5am we hop in a taxi and at 5:05 we hope out. but i forgot my purse. damndamndamndandmadnandma. i dragged my sorry self back to the hotel as i ponder how to get out of this damned country without a passport, while my friend is comfortably on her way to Antigua. All my smart rules about different types of money to carry don´t work so well when they´re all in your purse and it´s lost.
But the hotel I was staying at was great. The little man who works in the hotel lobby, miraculously enough, remembered the number of the taxi. I now have a new rule and I advise you all to use it...When traveling in taxis, always remember the number of the taxi. This is my new montra. However, just the number of the taxi isn´t enough to actually DO anything. 3 people from the hotel and myself went to the main taxi office to find out the name and number of the taxi driver. but one phone call to the driver wasn´t enough to convince him to give my backpack back. he argued his point, that if something is left in his taxi then it´s his. I see where´s he´s coming from, but just didn´t agree with the sentiment. So the wonderful chica from the hotel had to get quite upfront with him, explaining that we knew all of his information and if he didn´t bring the backpack back we´d call the police and they´d come find it. I´m pretty sure this invoked a laugh as the thought of the police actually doing something was funny even to me. (we´d been calling them all morning, but they just weren´t answering) However, once I explained that there was no money in the backpack and that you needed a code to use my credit card...but that´d i could pay him once he brought it to me...he suddenly had a change of heart and decided to return my ´maleta´ to me in one piece.
Funnily enough, i couldn´t give him any money when he arrived...i had lost my visa, my mastercard wasn´t working because i use it just for purchases and i don´t even know the pin, and all my cash was with my friend who was comfortably sleeping in a bus on her way to Antigua. The man was angry. He yelled, he flailed his arms...and I hid behind the large security man from the hotel and pretended I couldn´t speak spanish. (not that big of a lie really)
So I had my bag back, but still no money...What was i to do without cash in Honduras? I pondered this as I ate a combo meal at wendy´s thanks to my trusty credit card. When you´re down and out it´s nice to know you can still get a frosty.
My fast food infusion reminded me of my secret travelers check stashed away! only after I had spent a good 4 hours waiting in different lines at different banks to no avail..but nonetheless, i regained confidence in my savy travelingness. So i was able to tip the hotel, leave some for the scary man so he doesn´t harass the hotel staff tomorrow, and travel safely back to antigua.
So all in all things have ended well. For the part of my family that worries...remember that despite all my misfortunes this weekend, things ended up just fine and I will now be more careful than ever when traveling around.
I leave for Peru on Tuesday and until then I will be just enjoying my last days in Antigua. Out for now...
ps- i know I should spell check this as i may be the worlds worst speller, but I just can´t figure out how to get the spell check language to english.
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