Happy Freaking Birthday

This past Wednesday marked my twenty-third birthday and what better place to spend it than in Nicaragua, right? Well, I'll let you all be the judge of that after reading this post. My birthday started off like any other day here in Nica, I woke at the wee hours of the morning (well, at least for a 22 year old!) covered in a thick layer of sweat, and made my way to the internet cafe in the center of town for some coffee and connection to the world. After setting up my computer and ordering my usual Cafe Americano, I took a trip to the bathroom where I was treated to my first of several surprises of the day. As I was taking care of business, I felt something graze my backside and before I could make out what it was, a rat scurried through my legs and out of the toilet. After a few moments of screaming and trying to avoid the rodent, I grabbed my backpack and went back to my seat, finding myself alone in the cafe with no one to share my story with. Happy freaking birthday to me. Later on, I was welcomed by Allie and Jill, who, after a great amount of difficulty explaining (in Spanish) the concept of birthday candles, brought along one of my favorite banana-chocolate chip muffins with a large religious candle on the side (it was too big and dirty looking to put in my food, Allie explained).  

Later that day, Allie made sure that I was taken care of on my special day by taking me out to a delicious lunch and a great dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in town. We had practice where the girls decided to introduce me to a Nica tradition where the birthday girls gets a number of eggs broken on top of her head! We were doing a heading drill and when I went to demonstrate the other coach threw an egg instead of a ball as I was diving towards the goal - when I was on the ground the girls came over and showered me with 4 or 5 more! It was pretty hysterical and so much fun, but not exactly a tradition I plan on bringing back to the States..especially given how much I HATE having stuff in my hair haha. After practice the girls presented me with a poster that they had all signed and sung Feliz Cumpleanos to me. Then 3 of my favorite girls "took me" out for ice cream (I ended up paying because they couldn't afford it). After dinner we found ourselves ending the night playing all sorts of games at a bar downtown with a couple of Nicas, two Italian guys, and a couple of British people - pretty crazy combination of people! This weekend were going to a beach town in the south that is apparently a huge hotspot for big time surfers to carry on the celebration!

Thank you to everyone in the States who reached out to send me birthday wishes in whichever way possible - it always goes greatly appreciated!!! I know I don't make it easy running away to another country!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Fourth of July and were able to celebrate Americanism a bit easier than we could down here!

And Off We Go!

This weekend began like all others, with a Saturday morning activity with the girls. We spent all week preparing for a Dia de Los Juegos with the girls, or the equivalent to "Field Day" in the States. We split the girls up into 2 teams, pink and green, and came up with 4 games followed but Capture the Flag and Tug of War. The girls were in great spirits, competing against and laughing with each other throughout the activities. As always, the egg toss and water balloon fights brought about the most laughs as the eggs broke all over our hands and shirts, and the water covered girls from head to toe.

After the activities, we were finally set free for the next couple of days, which we couldn't help but take full advantage of. Allie, Jill, and I set off to a city North of Granada called Matagalpa. This city, in the mountains of Nicaragua, is well-known for its production of both coffee and chocolate, two of our favorite things. Needless to say, it was trip that just could not be missed. After five hours or so spent bus-hopping, waiting along the side of the road, and running through more than a few above average puddles, we made it to our hostel, only to find out that we were going to be given the boot the next day in order to make room for a larger group (so much for reservations, right?). We were also quick to find out that the hostel was out of towels, leaving us to use a set of spare sheets to dry off from our showers.

After cleaning up (and sprucing up quite nicely if I do say so myself), we made our way to the highly recommended Mexican restaurant down the street that we had read so many great things about. We couldn't wait to relax, chow down on some chips and guacamole, and throw back a margarita or two after a long day of less than ideal traveling! We, once again, were disappointed by the restaurant's inability to live up to our expectations based on what we had heard, and the lack of any margs really added to our frustations. Instead of hanging our heads, we did what any hungry, unsatisfied young women would do and went for a second dinner at the yummiest Italian place around. After a fulfilling, but exhausting conversation about altruism, connections, our purpose in life, and anything else completely cliche yet right up our alley you could think of, we made our way out to a few places...and let's skip to the next morning!

On Sunday we made our way to one of the area's most famous coffee plantations where we rode horses around as we took a look at and got to learn about the coffee plants. The horses provided a great view of the plantation and of the mountainous area on which we were located. It was a great, relaxing ride (with a trot or two thrown in the mix), before we went back and enjoyed a cappuccino and two slices of cake, which were out of this world! In an unlikely but incredibly lucky run in with the owner, we came to find out that the plantation exported its coffee exclusively to the United States, and after asking about to which company (with little hope that we would be familiar with its destination), we found out that it we were sitting in the home of the suppliers to Whole Foods! Not soo shabby, eh?

After waiting on the roadside for a good amount of time, we managed to pick up a ride with a group of Nicaraguans passing by in their pickup truck (Mom cover your eyes!). We cruised down the mountain in the back of their truck as they provided us with drinks and entertainment. We learned that one of the men was about our age and was a scuba diver that traveled around (and kept saying lobster, so not sure where that was going), the woman in the car was his mother, and then we didn't find out all that much about the quiet driver and the man in the front seat dressed like he came straight from starring in a rodeo - cowboy boots, hat and all. Because they insisted, we joined them at a local restaurant/bar where they proceeded to buy us over $100 worth of drinks/food and went on to invite us to their home in the south of Nicaragua on an island where they have a boat and fish for a great deal of their food. Constantly (and I must admit, sadly) we questioned their intentions, skeptical of the Nicaraguans giving so much to a few strangers one random afternoon. We expected to have to pay some part of the bill, and feared a bit they might expect much worse out of us (though having a mother around definitely put our minds at peace), but were pleasantly and completely surprised to find out that they took care of every last bit of what was owed (and gave us the initial ride back to town) before we exchanged numbers and they left. Talk about a random act of kindness right?! We were then left to watch our beloved Spain lose to Brazil in the Confederation's Cup final amid a large number of Brazil supporters before we found a new hostel and passed out for the night.

The next morning, our final day in Matagalpa, we went on a brief trip to a famous chocolate farm (really only to snag a few chocolate bars to satisfy our hunger needs) before going to a stunning waterfall outside of the city. At the waterfall, called La Cascada Blanca, we met an intriguing couple who have been on a trip camping from Brazil up through Central America for the past month or so. We took pictures around the waterfall, played around in a cave set behind the water, and ate lunch as we admired our view. This little trip fittingly wrapped up a truly wonderful weekend full of exciting encounters, wild adventures, and most importantly, some delicious coffee and chocolate.

Well, this week is my birthday, so let's see what kind of great adventures we could come up with this time around!!

Nos vemos,
Leigh

2 Hot 2 Handle

This past weekend brought the sad departure of one of our friends who was visiting for 10 days. I became aware of and eventually joined this program because of my best friend from childhood, Allie Horwitz, and will be lucky enough to share my 6 weeks with her and one of her roommates from college who I have befriended over the past 4 years, Jill Kohaneck. Their other roommate, Livia Rizzo, decided that she just couldn't let the 3 of us get away with sharing this experience without getting a little peek for herself. Aside from the jokes and the fun that she always brings with her company, it has been great having Liv around for me especially, given she was the only person in the entire country with worse Spanish-speaking abilities, having not taken Spanish at any point during her academic years. In typical Liv fashion, we decided she needed to go out with a bang  and so we took a trip to the nearby volcano called Mombacho that serves as the backdrop to our everyday view of Granada. After hiking up about 2/3 of the volcano, we reached a coffee farm with a beautiful view and even more important, some free samples! We even got to see the beginning of a wedding ceremony taking place on the farm. Realizing that, as always, we were a bit late due to a combination of our late start and our slower than expected hike up the volcano, we opted to skip out on the rest of the climb in order to make time for a canopy tour down back to the main road. Within minutes, we were strapped up in harnesses, helmets secured, lives signed away, and ready to go! Over the course of an hour we soared from tree to tree through 11 different lines, including a number of obstacles, such as a tarzan swing, trapeze rope, and straight drop decline. I will have to work on getting out some pictures because somewhere between the natural mist of the trees and the downpour from the ominous cloud above us, I became reluctant to take out my phone for pictures (Mom and Dad give me a pat on the back for finally learning after 20+ phones). On the way back from the volcano, we struggled to find a taxi or a bus home, so when we came across a 3-wheel  motorcycle sort of vehicle meant for the most obvious tourists, we readily climbed aboard. Luckily, after Jill talked our driver up a bit in the front seat, he took us to a nearby site with rock from the volcano. We stopped and got out, climbing in the rock and fulfilling our touristy duties by taking 942 pictures of the massive red walls. Later on, Liv's trip came to a fitting end as we finished off with a delicious meal at a local restaurant called El Camello.

For those of you who have not been able to get a full grasp on what exactly it is I am doing here (aside from fleeing the US for some fun in the sun), here is a bit more about the goals of the program and what last week (a typical week) in the program looked like for me! The main group that I am responsible for is a team called the Estrellas Juniors, comprised of 10-20 girls (depending on the day), all between the ages of 11 and 14. The Estrellas are a part of the larger program, called Futbol Sin Fronteras (Soccer Without Borders), which is made up of 4 separate teams that both work individually and collectively. The emphasis for the program is to use soccer as a mechanism to bring about positive change, especially for young girls in an extremely impoverished and vulnerable community. The goal is to create a unique opportunity for girls to play the sport they love, while developing important life qualities, working towards goals together as a team, and serving a positive and important role in the community. We work with the girls on a daily basis, Tuesday through Saturday, and then work to fundraise for the program on Monday nights.

Last week we ran practice for the girls on Tuesday and Saturday. Here we worked with the girls on their technical skills, but concentrated on team building activities within the game of soccer. We worked on sportsmanship concepts, trying to emphasize the qualities that you need to have as a team in order to be successful. A lot of these girls come from very broken families, where they have an immense amount of responsibility put on them in order to survive as a family, but where the idea of working together productively to achieve a common goal is not always demonstrated by their father or mother. We chose to concentrate on this element of their lives because it is something that through soccer, we hope can have an impact on their livelihood.

            In our team activities for last week, we first worked on a reflection of their recently finished season, where each of the girls on the older teams had to pair up with a girl from the younger teams and share their favorite moment, their most challenging moment, the thing they are most proud of, and their most prominent goal for next season. This was a great chance for the older girls to step up and serve as role models as they led the conversation with the younger players. It also helped them bring attention to the most extreme highs and lows of the season, as well as recognize how they reacted to each. We then followed up later in the week with a “Charla” (or chat/lecture), where we taught them about positive relationships – both friendships and significant others. We went through a presentation of characteristics of a healthy relationship, in addition to signs of an unhealthy relationship. We finished the chat with an exercise where the girls all spoke about things like the qualities that they value most in a friend, a time in life when a they really needed support and which friend provided that for them, as well as a time in which they had an argument or disagreed with a friend and how they were able to overcome that obstacle together. Because we are aware of the many broken relationships that these children have, even at such a young age, we tried to steer clear of personal discussions in front of the entire group about the unhealthy relationships that we taught about.

            This week for team activities we will be working on a mural that was originally supposed to go on the big wall at our field, but has been turned down by the Mayor of our town as he things it will draw too much attention to the girls playing football and he seems afraid of the community’s response to that. Like I said, a whole different world right?! Last week we had the girls come up with designs for the wall in our home (which is also the site for team activities) that we are painting. The wall is divided up into 3 sections, the first for the 2 teams called the Mariposas (Butterflies), the second for FSF (the program as a whole), and the third for the final 2 teams called the Estrellas (Stars). We scanned the designs that we selected and, as leaders, traced them on the wall from a projector. I even somehow got my Mariposa design selected for the wall, despite my inability to draw a straight line without the aid of a ruler! Yesterday we had the girls come over and start the painting. Take a look at what we've done!

Our Own Little Paradise

The rest of my week was filled with a number of activities and events, all sending me through a whirlwind of energy and emotion. There were highs and there were lows. There were also moments that made me want to cry out of shock and moments where I felt as though I was in Heaven. Today I am going to keep it light and sweet, leaving the heavy stuff for and up and coming post. Saturday morning we took the girls for a surprise visit around a number of little islands in Lake Nicaragua. There are 365 islands in total, some with bars and restaurants, some with private homes, and some with just a bunch of monkeys hanging around. We took two boats through and the girls seemed pretty excited to do something away from the field. After the tour the real fun began as we were set free for the weekend! Knowing all too well our need for solace and a little bit of relaxation, Allie took us to a beautiful little pool and spa with water, WiFi, and drinks. As four twenty-something year old Americans...what else do you need in life, right?! We spent the entire afternoon splashing in the water, laying out in the sun, and sipping on cold Coco Locos out of coconuts pulled down from the trees above us. In a week of uncomfortable heat and unprecedented Spanish struggles, this was the perfect solution to my exhaustion.

Just when I thought that our little pool and spa was the best that this area had to offer, Allie took us to another mini-paradise in the form of a lake called La Laguna. After the combination of a suspect bus ride and a less than ideal taxi situation, saying that we were pleasantly surprised by the view that stood before us would be the understatement of the week. We found ourselves beside a peaceful, beautiful lake with a couple of water tubes, a kitchen for cooking, and of coure, a lakeside bar. Again, we spent the day soaking up the sun and cherishing every last moment of relaxation and, more importantly, time to speak English. We lasted hours in the water laying in our tubes or messing around on a wooden raft, then took time to make a massive pan of scrambled eggs with fresh vegetables (and a year's supply of avocado). These days created the perfect balance for us as we try to make the adjustment to a world completely different from our own. I look forward to telling you all about a number of things, so here is a brief preview of what's soon to come: the most frustrating soccer game of my life (and I have played A LOT), the Bar Mysteriosa, and my new Spanish classes. Off to class as I type! Hasta luego!

LeighHow

Como se dice...?

Now that my first day is a thing of the past and I can no longer use "jetlag" or "travel day woes" as an excuse, it's time to get serious. No more accidentally flushing toilet paper, complaining about the layer of sweat that covers every inch of my body the second I dry off from a shower, or revealing a look of shock and disgust when I see goats, stray dogs, or horses scattered in the streets. Yesterday I was taken to the field for the first time, as every Wednesday we hold a technical clinic for the girls in the program. When I say field, I use the term loosely because the space we use would hardly be recognized as a field of play back in the States. Covered in unruly, high-growing weeds and random patches of dirt, this field takes on multiple roles as not just a site for young girls to play, but also as a source of grazing for wild horses. 

For those of you who are familiar with my travels in South Africa for almost 6 months during my junior year of college, you would know that this site came as little surprise to me and that I have done work for similar organizations before. The use of soccer as a method for positive change in a vulnerable community is a concept that I am very passionate about. As a sport that has been a part of so many people's lives for many of years, soccer serves as a universal language that unites all sorts of various cultures. People of all different nationalities, ages, socioeconomic statuses, literacy abilities, and more have been able to connect through the passion that comes from bringing their foot to a ball. In the United States, we are lucky enough to have fields, equipment, and the opportunity to play competitively at our disposal. However, this is very much not the case worldwide, especially for young women. Soccer has served as an outlet for people living in times of struggle and despair. It has helped create an identity and a role for people who feel as though they have no other reason to get up each morning. It has been a source of freedom for prisoners, who find comfort and peace through the sport during their time served. And soccer has been a source of hope and promise for young women who, even if they must play privately in their own backyards, hidden from public knowledge, have dreams of playing in a place and at a level where their talents are valued. The sport of soccer takes on so many different roles in people's lives and represents far more than a game. It has the ability to truly change people's lives and save them in times where nothing else could. It is through this philosophy that I hope to learn down here in Nicaragua, as I did in South Africa, and take back my experiences to those that I coach back in the States. 

While in South Africa it was easy to learn and develop relationships with the players and staff members that I worked with. We all spoke the same language and shared many goals and philosophies. We learned from one another in a reciprocal relationship and equally benefited from my time in the program. However, my time in Nicaragua presents a different set of challenges, the language barrier being at the forefront. In my first couple of days I have realized how much of my experience and my influence is going to be reliant on the aforementioned impact of soccer and using the sport as a tool to connect with those that I meet down here. I am looking forward to the challenges of living in a community in which the people speak Spanish, and hope to develop my own abilities speaking in the language. I look forward to these next 6 weeks and seeing how what type of impact I can have, as well as what I can learn from the people of this country. 

Hola Amigos!

Well, as the saying goes it is safe to say that I'm not in Kansas anymore! I am one cold shower down, have managed to find the 1 ft x 1 ft corner of the house with WiFi access, and have already made the mistake of flushing my used toilet paper down the toilet (what a crime) - and that's in less than 24 hours! Needless to say, the language difference is not going to be the only cause for adjustment!

Last night I was met at the airport by my very best friend from childhood. I must admit, the sound I let out upon seeing her was a bit more than a sigh of relief as I spotted a friendly face among a sea of strangers. After being best buds for over a decade and sharing countless memories (some that for my parents' sake I'll refrain from reliving), it feels pretty great to have Allie living right through the wall of my bedroom.

Today I had a meeting about my duties and the team that I will be working with for the duration of my stay. Over the next month and a half I will be running weekly practices, holding clinics, and working on all sorts of group activities from mural painting to lip syncing contests (which I am fairly confident that I will bring home the hardware in). It's all still a bit of the blur being thrown into projects and responsibilities on my very first day, but here we gooooo!!

Stay tuned,

LeighHow 

PS More to come as I take a trip through town and go through our first clinic later today!