Hello Family and Friends,
I'm back from an experience that went by so quickly I'm still working on processing it all. I want to begin by expressing my sincere gratitude to those who supported me before, during, and after this trip. I am grateful to have you all in my life. I was lucky to meet and be a part of such an incredible group of medical professionals who shared a common goal. We were all inspired by each other and the people of Nicaragua, and came away from this experience with a new perspective on life.
Our journey begins and ends in the capital city of Managua. This city (approx. 1.8 million) is full of the hustle and bustle of any US major city, but definitely has some differences. It has suffered two devastating earthquakes in the past 100 years, and has been witness to rise and fall of political powers throughout history. There are political banners and signs everywhere you look, and people are picketing outside government buildings. There is trash in the streets, and some parts of the city are obviously poverty stricken.
We are greeted in the airport by one of our interpreters, Adrian. I think this is a good sign. He says that in Spanish my name is "Adriana" so the group decides to call me this, as to not to get us confused. We are driven in a mini bus to our guest house late the night we arrived. Driving in this city is insane, and makes even the strongest stomach a little uneasy. Our guesthouse is a quiet, green sanctuary that is a refuge from the city. There are rocking chairs on the front and back porch, and bunk beds in rooms that we would share.
We awake the next morning to the sound of birds chirping, and the wind blowing through the palm trees. It is already 85 degrees at 7:00 a.m. This climate change from the 30 degrees we left in Portland feels like heaven. They have fresh coffee with leche (milk) and sugar awaiting us, which we are grateful for. We are served a delicious breakfast with fresh fruit and the best juice I've ever tasted. We are informed that in Nicaragua they serve rice and beans for breakfast, beans and rice for lunch, and "gallopinto" a rice and bean mixture for dinner. We were pleasantly surprised at the variety they served us with the rice and beans throughout our trip, lets just say we didn't go hungry!
We are then taken to the AMC headquarters. AMC stands for Accion Medica Christiana and is the partner organization we would be working with while in Nicaragua. There, we met Beth Jerdon our AMC coordinator and Dr. Reyna, an epidemiologist who helps run AMC. Beth is a volunteer from Michigan who has been living in Nicaragua for the past two years. They gave us an orientation on our role as volunteer medical providers in Nicaragua, and taught us about AMC's mission and values. They have a holistic program which focuses in three main areas: food security, disaster relief and prevention, and community health and knowledge management. Their impeccable organization was very appreciated throughout the trip and allowed us to be as efficient as possible.
After a delicious lunch served to us by AMC, we are taken on a tour of Managua by our interpreter Adrian. He takes us to see some of the government buildings where political rallies are common. Here he warns us that we will be approached by children wanting to sell us banana leaves woven into different creations. He tells us to not buy anything from these children, because these children do not benefit from the money, and are likely working for drug dealers. It breaks my heart to ignore these poor children!
He then takes us to a hill overlooking the city called Tiscapa. There is a beautiful view here of the city overlooking Lake Managua. We learn more about the history and culture of Nicaragua from Adrian. It is all very fascinating. While at Tiscapa, we see people going on a zip line that goes out over a lake. We talk our team leader Jon, and Adrian into letting a group of us go. It was a nice surprise, and a steal only costing us $15.00!
The next morning we go to church in Managua. It was an interesting experience, surrounded by people singing, dancing, and clapping. They gave us a headset that translated the songs and sermon (we stood out just a little). The message of the day revolved around taking care of your self and community. After church, we pack up the bus to head for the mountain village Santa Luz. It is a four hour bumpy bus ride to get there. The views on the way are incredible, but difficult to capture out the window of the bus. We can feel the climate change as we gain elevation, and the cool breeze is welcomed after our hot, dusty venture thus far. We finally get to a point where the road gets too bumpy for the bus, and we hike the last mile or so in. The landscape has changed to a lush rain forest, with beautiful views of rolling mountains and green as far as the eye can see.
We arrive in Santa Luz, and are shown where we will be staying on the coffee plantation. It is rustic, but amazingly clean and well kept. The staff that work here host many volunteer groups, and are incredibly hospitable and friendly. They help us get unpacked and show us how to use the mosquito nets hanging from our beds, and the latrines (amazing compared to the villages we would later visit for clinic). We enjoy our first dinner in Santa Luz, and are impressed with the cooking given the remote location. That night we get to work organizing and unpacking our medical supplies. We are all nervous for our first clinic the next morning and head to bed early. Good thing we did, because we had no idea at this point that the roosters on the plantation start crowing at 2 am! Also, loud means happy in Nicaragua, so it was not uncommon to hear different kinds of boisterous music in the wee hours of the morning.
