Hey everybody! It’s Drew. We’ve had some pretty amazing days since the last update. From our last day in Masaya to soaking up coastal beauty and community at Playa Gigante to, most recently, our immersive experience and adventure on a permaculture farm and community project called Bona Fide.
Our adventure from Masaya to Playa Gigante departed on a flamboyant chicken bus. As like many buses in Nacaragua, the bus was an old elementary school bus passed on second-hand from the United States. This one was painted with colorful flair and carried its common mark of a Jesus Cristo mantra up front.
Halfway through the journey to Playa Gigante, with a sudden need to stop, our group piled out of our watermelon-green transportation machine. Bladders were full and we found a friendly neighborhood resident who let us use her outhouse. The experience is one that highlights the generosity and open heartedness that characterizes much of the culture and world we are living in–one where strangers will open their doors for others in need.
When we arrived in Playa Gigante we experienced our first introduction to home-stays. Easten and I, roommates for the week, approached our new home and were greeted by a dusty plot scratched by chickens. And, of course, we met THE ROOSTER–that pompas, strutting, abhorrent, red-plumed alarm clock. I found myself dreaming of a slingshot after the first morning! Oh! And, by the way, the stories people tell of roosters are all lies… Their symphony doesn’t start with the sunrise but, rather, at 2 AM! Besides the rude awakenings our home-stay was wonderful. It was marked by playful niños (kids), a warm and kind madre (mother), steaming plates of gallo pinto (rice and beans), and a four by four concrete cubicle behind the house (the shower… Don’t worry, they provided the bucket).
Our typical day in Playa Gigante began at 8:30. Ryan and Jordan, the leaders of the week, generally gathered up the troops from their home-stays scattered throughout the town and we all enjoyed a stroll together on the way to Mama Lin’s (the called “mother” of all in Playa Gigante). Each morning at Mama Lin’s we enjoyed a good check-in followed by two hours of Spanish classes. After Spanish classes we enjoyed a variety of activities such as: surfing, exploring the wide sand and sunny beaches, fishing, and volunteering. After a good and full day we always headed back to our “homes” by 5:30pm. Evenings shared with the families were great and I felt like I was treated as part of the family, too.
The partner organization we worked with is called Project Waves of Optimism (Project WOO). In short, Project WOO strives to work in partnership with communities that are being effected by surf tourism. Our work/play with Project WOO consisted primarily around the local grade school and the jovenes (teens). One day we enjoyed Yoga activities with the students at the grade school that were led by other volunteering Yogis. On another day we showed up at the school with a bunch from the local community to restore a swing set and move a giant shade structure. Phew! was that a task! The days work was topped off by playing soccer with the students. The volunteer day was tons of fun and the culture exchange in the midst of sweat and hard work was nourishing. All in all, the week in Playa Gigante was great. My sense and experience tells me that we not only learned about a rich culture and way of life, we lived it.
Since departing Playa Gigante we have made our way by ferry to Ometepe, an island in the center of Lake Nicaragua. We’re living smack dab in the middle of a permaculture farm that is located on the side of a volcano. The view is astounding as I gaze at the seemingly never ending horizon of the lake. Thus far we been introduced to permaculture 101, have gotten our hands dirty in a full range of projects and tasks, spent a day learning about Yoga, and, we witnessed and felt the impact of the weekly village cow slaughter. The latter being a profound, sad, and important experience.
Truthfully, I don’t so much like getting up at 6 in the morning to begin a work day. Nonetheless, meeting new friends and mincing straw with a machete while experiencing the cool and blazing sunrise is unreal. Similar to Playa Gigante, Project Bona Fide is beginning to feel like a new home–one with composting toilets and glowing spider eyes…
Until the next time!
Drew Brost