Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Learning Center in Pantanal finished!
The project that we worked on in Pantanal is now finished! Check out Amped's "15 seconds or less" video:
Thursday, August 21, 2014
Day 9
Our final day in Nicaragua was short. Breakfast was improvised and before we knew it we were driving from Gigante to Managua to catch our flight to Miami. Because of the time change we lost 2 hours and then spent 90 minutes trying to get through customs. This eliminated what was hoped to be a 2 hour layover, AND DINNER.
In Boston we felt relief but then we discovered that Jill's bag was missing and our bus was running late. While we waited for the late bus Jill started the process to file her lost luggage when Serina miraculously tracked down another passenger with Jill's bag who was about to leave with it! We definitely needed something to go right.
Right now we are finally on the road in our big comfy bus (hoping to stop somewhere and eat!) People have high spirits and are excited to be home with friends and family. In a lot of ways, putting this trip into perspective has just be done.
I want to thank everyone who made our experience a reality: parents who cooperated, the Amped staff, and the incredible young people involved.
Katie is sad the leave the beach house.
At Managua airport waiting.
Joe's and Heather's bags: a NUTC tribute.
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Day 8
Today we spent more time at the beach and enjoying the house. Cam, Myles, and I went on a fantastic hike around the bay. After family dinner (pasta with meat sauce!), Jeff handed out superlatives to the group:
Cam -- Festivals Wow Award
Rowan -- Most Likely to Be A World Traveler For Life
Halle -- Most Likely To Find A WiFi Signal At The Bottom Of A Volcano Crater
Jill -- MVP of the Job Site
Hannah -- Most Likely To Find Their Wallet In Miami
Serina -- Most Likely To Leave Donald For Geno
Ashlyn -- Most Likely To Win The Amped Photo Contest
Myles -- Up For Anything Award
Molly -- The Butterfly Award
Trish -- The Tennis Ball Award
Katie -- Most Likely To Return To Nicaragua
Jasmyne -- The Neon Dream
Heather -- The Lobster Award
Joe -- Most Likely To Be An Amped Member For Life
After the superlatives, the Amped staff engaged the group in a round-table discussion about Nicaragua's history and the direction of Amped. Tomorrow we have a long travel day but we are ready to get back to the states. We should be back in Boston tomorrow by around 11pm!! Crazy!
I recorded a conversation that I had with Molly tonight about her experience here. Here is some of what she had to say:
Joe: What can you say about Oasis, where we stayed in Granada?
Molly: The hostel was a very unique place. I met a lot of interesting people there.
Joe: Who did you meet?
Molly: I met some Australians as well as some Germans and some Americans.
Joe: That's cool. That's something that happens that we didn't even talk about before the trip!
Joe: What are three things about Granada that really stuck out to you?
Molly: The trash, the dogs, and the homeless/very poor people everywhere.
Joe: Pantanal is the place were we had been working. It's kind of like a "suburb" of Granada, but not really a suburb. Same question: what are three things that really stuck out to you about Pantanal? You can't repeat.
Molly: The skinny horses, amount of people just sitting in their homes, and the houses.
Joe: What about them?
Molly: Like, how some of them are just made of scraps.
Joe: You work with horses at home, right? As someone that works with horses what can you say about the horses that you saw in Nicaragua?
Molly: The horses were definitely malnourished. Their hooves were not properly done.
Joe: Is that a product of them putting the horse shoes on or is it the owner's fault, or a combination?
Molly: What I'm assuming is that the people that own the horses are just doing it themselves and either don't know how to do it properly or don't have the resources.
Joe: That's a cool perspective.
Joe: What was your favorite cultural excursion?
Molly: I think my favorite would be the Lake Nicaragua boat tour because it was really cool to see the stars. I was laying on my back at the front of the boat and you could see all the stars and I've never seen the sky as filled.
Joe: Can you give me a specific interaction with the kids at the work site that you'll remember?
Molly: We taught them Hopscotch. I'm not exactly sure if they already knew Hopscotch or not because of the language barrier, but from what they were doing I don't think that they did. On the second day, I think, they were teaching me a hand game, similar to "patty cake" I guess, that had a song that went along with it and that was cool. On the third day, one of the girls said "Molly!" and remembered my name and that was really cool.
Joe: When we got to the beach house, where we are now, what were some of the first things going through your head?
Molly: It's such a change from where we were to where we are now. There not as much pollution. Actually, I haven't seen any. The running water is nice, there's hot water. We're right next to a spa.
Joe: This being your first trip out of the country, did you enjoy it? What do you think you're going to take from this when you get home?
Molly: I definitely enjoyed it. I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to take from this when I get home because I'm not home yet. Hopefully I'm going to realize what I'm going to get out of this, but hopefully I'll be more grateful.
Joe: Anything you want to say to your fans on the blog?
Molly: Can I say something to my family?
Joe: Sure!
Molly: I'll see you guys tomorrow. To my family out there, I love you mom and dad. Ethan, Justin even though you kind of annoy me sometimes, you're awesome! Hopefully everything is going well and I'll probably see you 10 hours after you read this. Thank you and goodnight!
Here are some pics from today:
This little guy has a crazy shrill and drinks pool water every morning.
Ashlyn is sick. Fell asleep holding her phone.
Cam, Myles, and I went on a massive hike around the bay and saw some incredible things.
The mustache doing card tricks.
Last sunset at the beach house.
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Day 7
Here are Myles and Hannah with some perspective from Playa Gigante:
Today was the group’s first full day at the beach house! It felt really nice to sleep in and wake up in a well air conditioned room. As soon as you step out the door, you are greeted with an extravagent sunrise that is reflecting over a beautiful view of the bay. this day was a relaxing day, there was nothing to do and nowhere to be so it was amazing to take all of Nicaragua’s features on the Pacific ocean. After a big breakfast we all went to the beach and rode the waves and snorkeled, it was a great kickstart to the day. When we went home we all made ourselves lunch with all of the great food that is at the house. For the rest of the day we all did our own things. For dinner we all pitched in and made a huge meal of fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and salad. As the day was winding down the group decided to take a walk down to the beach at dark zero-thirty. As we jumped in the water we realized that the water surrounding us was bio-luminescent. Every stroke was illuminated with a glowing splash of water, and as you looked out over the ocean you could see huge lightning storms out at see. and as if that wasn’t the best swim i have ever taken in my life, you look up and you can see the Milky-way and all of the millions of stars shining down on you.
And of course, here are some pictures from my phone:
Monkey paw prints on the deck table this morning.
So much chill right here.
The sunsets here are a spectacle.
Giant hermit crabs are all over the beach at night.
Monday, August 18, 2014
Day 6
Today we left Oasis for the last time. Jeff picked up our baggage in a truck and we walked to Pantanal for a short but rigorous work day. We withstood some rain and earned another delicious lunch and then we were gone!
We made it to our beach house after a drive and now we are enjoying the beautiful scenery of the Pacific. With more relaxation and reflection in the next 2 days, we will have some more travelers contributing to the blog. Stay tuned!
Here are some pics from today:
Packed and ready to leave Oasis after breakfast.
Ashlyn doing work.
Halle doing work.
Some of our group will be interviewed as part of Amped's new marketing campaign.
After a half day of work and our last lunch with Ramona we took a group shot with her. Truly amazing woman. Her kindness and dedication to her community was essential for Amped to purchase the land for the new support center. And she refused to be paid for cooking us all lunches for 4 days.
2+ hour ride from Granada to our beach house in Redonda Bay...
...and there it is.
Jill and Hannah take in the scenery.
Main room and kitchen.
We got down to the beach ASAP. Vamos a la playa!
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Day 5
Today is Nicaraguan Independence day so we could not work on our project. Instead, we packed our day with cultural excursions. We visited El Coyotepe, a political prison turned tourist attraction, and then Masaya Volcano and markets. After a short rest at Oasis, we braved the crowded streets of Granada in mid-festival on the way to dinner and did some sight-seeing on the walk back.
I talked with Halle, the only one down here not directly associated with Frontier, about her experience so far. I've transcribed part of our conversation here:
Joe: Compared to some of your expectations going in to this trip, what are some of the things that have surprised you or that you didn't expect?
Halle: I've had a lot of fun. I like all the people, they're funny. I was not expecting such hard work! Its very difficult.
Joe: Like, physically?
Halle: Yeah.
Joe:What are some of the images that have really stuck with you over the last 4 days that we've been here?
Halle: Definitely the trash on the street and how poor the communities are. How unsanitary almost everything is.
Joe: So, I've noticed you playing with the children a lot that live next to the work site. Give me one story about what that has been like.
Halle: Well, when they were playing with our phones it was really cool to see the excitement on their faces holding that technology that they've never seen before. We also played games with them like hopscotch and kicked around a ball.
Joe: How about the excursions that we've done? What are some of the things that really stick out?
Halle: The prison was really shocking. Learning about how they were treated as political prisoners.
Joe: Hearing about the history was really cool. What is, like, an image from the prison that really sticks out?
Halle: Definitely imagining people hanging from the hooks and being tortured.
Joe: Lake Nicaragua? Boat tour?
Halle: That was amazing! I thought seeing all of the islands was so cool.
Joe: Going back to the work site and the project that we are working on, building a center for the sole purpose of after school help and programming, what is your impression knowing that in Nicaragua there aren't really that many opportunities like this?
Halle: I mean, I think that they will definitely use the center because they don't do anything otherwise. And I think they want to better themselves. The kids we talked to said they liked school.
Joe: Cool. Anything else?
Halle: Umm...
Joe: Are you excited for the beach house?
Halle: Yeah, that will be nice!
Here are some pics from today!
Myles and Hannah trying a licha spiny fruit for the first time at breakfast.
Molly walking across the walls of El Coyotepe before our tour.
On the first level there are bullet holes everywhere from the most recent regime change about 30 years ago. The horrors that occurred in this structure happened much more recently than many would like to admit.
This is a poor picture but the graffiti on the wall reads "Yo quiero morir" which translates to "I want to die" in English. Scrawled into the wall nearby is a phrase that translates to "Only Christ can save us." Thousands were tortured and killed in these rooms over the span of about 40 years.
At Volcan Masaya.
Masaya is an active volcano. It had an eruption just 3 years ago.
Looking fresh heading out into Granada during the Festival Hipicos, the largest party of the year. Nicaraguan independence day.
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