Nightwatcher

Well, the trip is nearly over. I arrived in Toronto a few days ago. Due to an accident soon after the prvious post, I have notbeen able to type much with a broken arm. In the next few weeks soon life will drift back into a settled pattern.... maybe

I will include the last two newsletters I sent out, but now its back to figuring out what lies ahead. i am back in my land ,but right now it feels very foreign. Wealthy and foreign.

All the best wishes to al the adventurers out there. Happy trails!

Date: Thu, 01 Sep 2005 13:40:21 -0500
 
Dear friends,
This is about it!
I have been resting my bones in John's Dads house outside of Colorado
Springs,Colorado since Monday. Boy is it great to be in the US again!!

Resting may be the wrong words. Monday we arrived in at 6:30pm to
Albuquerque, New Mexico fom Zacatecus,Mexico, after a 17 hr trip via
El Paso,Texas. Jim and Vivien, John's dad and step mom met us at the
terminal. By the way, John is one of the drivers from the ill fated
bus who has travelled with me and been a tremendous help rewrapping
my arm.
We drove for 15 hrs to get here, though in a comfy car with worries
of petty theft out of the pictue we slept alot on the way.

Tues we did alot of laundry and repacking of bags,and hiked up into
the mountains to see the resevoirs. It is stunningly beautiful here.
It is a wonderful feeling to be able to hike and not think about
security even in the least.

Yesterday we went up to Pikes peak, a 14100 ft peak here. The road
was incredibly steep, and vistas lovely looking east onto the plains
of the mid west.
There is even a cog rail train which goes up to the top. ?It uses a
gear system with a 3a rail of gear cogs to pull it up and down very
steep inclines.

It has been such a fun time. Played Yahtzee last night. Generally,
Vivien has utterly spoiled us with great cooking and just warm
hospitality.
Today we did some research on biodiesel, and will build some alcohol
stoves out of pop cans. Funfun.

It has been a trip to watch the news about the hurricane in coastal
south US. I am musing on Friends diaster service, or the Mennonite
version. There will be alot of need over the next few years,
especially when the media flips over to its next curiosity item.

So in the next few days I will get on the last bus,40hrs with 1hr
layovers in Omaha,Chicag0 and Detroit.Its hard to believe its nearly
over!

nos vemos muy pronto
Have a great labour day weekend

Donald

I left Managua.. some time ago it feels now, thouh it may well be
only two weeks, taking a first clss bus right toXela,Guate in about 2
days of travel, passing through Honduras,Nicagua,El Salvador into
Guatemala.

I had some lovely little visits with people I knew from my 3 months
in Guate, going out to the daycare project;visiting Entremundos, and
visitin Lago Atitlan where I studied Spanish in Jan., including
friends from Jubilee who are in Guate, and my host family.

Tues I boarded a bus going to San Francisco. It is a veggie oil run
bus which had travelled to Costa rica using used cooking oil as
fuel,demonstrating how it is possible to use cleaner fuels like
veggie oil. We spent the first 3 hours at a tortilla factory taking
60 gallons of used oil.
It has been a hard trip. Driving in Guate is very hard, Isee now!
Huge ups and downs with narrow roads and no shoulders,and highways
that melt into the villages, with  no signs nor maps to tell how to
get through. we got lost ineach. Even asking for directions is hard
as everyone says ´recto´,stright, for every thing. It was here while
directing our bus I got caught between the bus and a wall,snapping my
forearm! We drove for an hour and found a hospital. I had surgery to
put a plate in, with 6 screws..I have the xrays still if they survive
the trip.

After i was released, we finally got to the Mex border..It was only
an hour to the border, but really scary, as we had to descend from
the mountains. The bus is an automatic, and completely unsuited for
mountain travel. At one point the airbrakes had runout of pressure,
and we were forced to pass on a curve to avoid rearending cars, but
almost having a head on. There was nowhere at all to pullover, and
the brakes caught on fire. Wemade it though!
  A 3 hr trip took 3days!
The Mex border was awful. We got through the maze of paper, soldier
inspections and genreal bueracracy. The first post told us we were
all in order and could proceed inland to get our passports stamped
there. An hour later, at the inland border they said the vehicle
papers were all wreong, and we had to go back, but to anither
crossing an hour away.

We were lucky to meet a Guatemalan border officer, who helped us at
the seacond border, but they said that we were in order, and had to
return to the inland place! Luckily, we could get our personal entry
visas which we should have been given at the first.
çWe drove bach to the inland border(it is 10 pm now) and after an
hour of arguing were let through!! In all, 5 hrs of travel took us 4
days.

We had one good day of drving, and then yesterday at 9am we snapped
the drive shaft and trashed the transmission box  when we hit a
unmarked tope(speedbump,of whuch there are 1000s of all over the
highways here. We are arranging to leave the bus in someone´s lot as
there are no parts except maybe Mexico City, 12-14 hrs away.

So its been a blast! I will head to Oaxaca soon, and then decide what
is next. With my arm the way it is,I may not go along the west, but
head east directly to Toronto.. sadly, but çi am not secure that
being in theelements is what this arm needs righjt now.

Well,adios for now!
Donald

Its the last night. I am sitting here in the cafe, trying to eke out some time so I can go to bed. Not much to do tonight. Bags packed. Every errand complete, tied up and no loose ends.

Its a bit too neat really. Oh well, can't do much about that now. Mind you, all my plans for Mexico have been utterly shelved. I should know better than to spend hours poring over the maps and guides trying to find the best route. I had it pretty down.

Then today I was visiting Julie, the editor of the English community paper. She was actually really busy trying to wrap up her life here in the next week, and still groggy from a late night despedida, a farewell party, for her roommate.. who just happened to be leaving the next morning with a bus caravan to San Francisco.And they were looking for others to join.

I was intrigued. How is it possible for such neat fitting coincidences to neatly arrive on the lap? Where was the looming hitch, hook? It wasn't the schedule. The idea was to be in San Fran in about the same time I was aiming for. It wasn't the cost, as it looks like it will be cheaper than what I would have paid. Ok, I am in a bit of a jam due to lack of receipts, having anticipated that the Mex-US trip would account for the amount I needed.

So I called up the mystery cell phone. A friendly voice answered, and said I should come up to the university right away, as the bus was being shown off to some folks in the Ingenerio dept.

A quick microbus(and if I am crowned  boss of the USA or Canada, I will mandate that every city should ahve a fleet of microbuses to complement its fleet of regular pokies, run by cooperatives and equally as competitive and agreessive. I love 4 por fila, 4 per row. Yeah, pack those bodies in that bus. No more seats? Leave the door open and let  em hang on from the rooftop, being mindful not to swerve quite so close to the competing buses so as to preserve the customers behind. Please let me extols the virtues of the Guatemalan microbuses!) and I arrived. Of course, the bus is  a school bus, complete with converted back into bunks, and a set of drawers etc. John is outside under the bus,working with a Guate mechenic to do some repairs. Leaks in the diesel lines? Hard to say. They top up on what vegie oil they have found, and head off to a garage for a motor oil change.

Well, I am a bit doubtful as I head out, but as the day progresses, I am more and more excited. The promised first roadstop is a beach sleep. All these things I have not felt bold enough to do.. hey, these people are going to BURNING MAN after they get to San Fran. Coool

The rest of my afternoon was another type of adventure. I got a hold of the Pop Atz iak Association, whom the Can Quakers support. They support artisans of a variety of crafts, and I felt like going out to see what they had. I had had directions from them, but lost the scrap of paper. I knew that I had to get a certain bus, but was not sure where to get off. In my mind, when I had visited in February, it was not a long trip.

I got on the bus as ti was pulling away, having to hop in the back. When the conductor finally got back, I tried to explain I didn't really know where I was going but could tell  him when I got close, if I managed to see it and all the signs around it hadn't changed too much. He didn't look too impressed. Fortunantly I was in Guatemala and the people are super friendly. After trying to explain about km18.5 and a coop of artisans, I finally mentioned the name. The man beside me knew right away what it was and where it was. Que suerte. Then in the next 5 min the man in front of me stands up and lo, its my teacher from my time in Xela. Its a really small world indeed!

Well, it was lovely to see the centro again. Saludos to Gianna and Sabu and Suzanne of course.

So Here I sit in my 30th month. How I wish I was  in... (good question)

Its been 10  months since I cruised away and I'll just make Vancouver shortly.

What lies ahead? Who can say?

Adios, Guatemala.  I have loved to know you a bit. Long may you run

 Oye Mexico!

Well, here I am, nearly back to where I started. I arrived in Xela last Wed after two long days on a 1st class bus. I took the bus because of having such a bad experience at one border on the way south.

It was a pretty uneventful trip, though the airconditioning and contact with some flue in Managua really left me with a bad cold for a few days. I am over it pretty much now.

Thursday I went back to the school where I worked from Feb-April, and had a visit with the kids and staff. It was as wild as ever, though the new playground that was being planned when I left was built so there was a safer space for the kids to run around. It was really nice that most of the kids remembered me. Some were confused, clearly knowing they knew me but after waves of people I am sure they are always uncertain who is who after awhile.

I also met with Julie Loder, the editor of a community magazine. I had helped out a bit with some of her work. When I went to visit there was a conference in action about the growng organic food market in Xela. The first store opened up recently, and a simple food-table delivery system was being implemented. It is a big start for organic produce with all the fierce competition in the markets of the city.

It has been strange to be back in Xela. I know all the center zone streets still, and can navigate around easily, but seeing all the placse and knowing most people I knew have moved on is eerie. Its a sign that I mostly had friends with gringos there, and not many real relationships with Guatematecans. Even here as I  sit in San Pedro, I can see how hard it was to get to know Guatemalans. There are so many gringos here that people are reserved, not investing in relationships with people who come and go like the wind. As well, there is a huge language barriar, wehre most people speak Mayan languages before Spanish, so I have felt always on the outside as people chat away. Only when there is clear indication of communications desired does it switch to Spanish. Fair enough, but somehow it feels like a barriar.

Saying this, I know I have not made every effort, and with all the divides of culture it will talke a lot longer than maybe usual to build relation.

Friday I left and went to San Pedro, where I spent my first month in Guatemala. I met Kristine and Deb, two women I spent a few weeks with at Jubilee Partners when I was there in Nov 2004 at the start of this trip. Its funny how some threads come together. I have been spending the day with them and two of their friends. Today, Sat, we went down to the lake between San Juan and San Pedro. It was a short pickup truck ride over, and then a 20 min walk.

I have really enjoyed hanging out with this bunch. Jubilee had big impact on me, and its really meaningful to get to talk to people about familiar people and places.

Its a strange world of the internet. As I write theis I am chatting with my friends in Prague, Czec Rep who are just leaving for a Quaker conference, and with my friend Ivan and his wife Sveta in Toronto who just had a baby girl.
Congratulations Ivan and Sveta!!

Well, I will miss this crew, even though it has only been a day. Maybe with a bit of luck we will meet in Mexico. Otherwise, I begin the march north on Tuesday.

Well, I just am back from a great weekend. Greate finish to my time here in Nicaragua.

Friday night my friends organised a despedida, a going away party. I have to admit I was surprised at all the people came out. It was fabulous. We had a great night, singing and telling stories until 4 am.

I realize how silly I have been here. Too much work! Why is it that so many great conversations happened at a going away party? They should be the kind of conversations that are continued, not cut off by being from all parts of the world. I  also could see and regret I missed out on getting to know more Nicas. They have such incredible lives, as we all do, and I just was always on the peripherie.What a warm and lively people, truly! I will have to come back here some day!

Last night, we went up to Achuapa, in N. Nicaragua. It was a hard 4 hr bus ride. The last leg was 3 hrs standing up as the bus was jammed full on a rough road that even at 15km /hr it was really throwing the bus around.

The festival was pretty ok. It started at  7pm and went until 4 am. I can´t say I am too alert rightn now even after I went to bed at 2 and slept all the way back to Managua.

I have to say I am not a huge fan of much of traditional Nica music. It takes some getting used to. Its sort of like country and western for me. Some times I can enjoy it but other times it is like a cat screaming or nails on a chalkboard. Well, it is fabulous to be part of 3000 people who really can dance and really enjoy being there even if I didn´t absolutely love all the tunes. It was a nice way to hang out with some friends too. I find it so hard when I am leaving to know what to say. How many times can you talk a bout your travel plans, but what else is there to say? With the despedida, many conversations are closed off for now it feels.

Well i have to race to write this so sorry. Got to run to the bank and get my stuff in order so I can leave Tues at 4 am for San Salvador. Then spend the night in the hotel over the bus station and leave at 6am for Guatemala city, staying the night and hopping on the first bus to Xela which at least is only 4 hrs. THen on Friday morning I spring off to Atitlan where I studiied Spanish in Feb to meet my friends for the weekend. Whew. I can feel how fast the time is going to fly already with all this bouncing around!

Tommorow I will go up to Paul and Becca´s house that htey are building to see it. I have not been there for 3 months, and it is nearly done. Should be exciting.

well times up loves,

more later

Hi all

Wow. I got a call to revisit my assumptions. What a wilde weekend. I will get to both

Today I went and played a game of beisbol. Do the sylables: Baseball. I have not played baseall, even casually, for over 10 years. What fun! What a great sport. Today is the patronal saint day of Managua, so the city is wild with fiestas. Or just playing baseball in the local field with neighbourhood folk.

Back a step. Yesterday I went and finally got out to the Ultimate Frisbee game. It is at km 11, which is just outside the city. I LOVE how you can get on a bus and say Km 11, and the people KNOW  where you want to go. I actually took a taxi as I was ignorant of the routse, but I am in love with local lore and local knowledge. Don´t need a map here. You just ASK someone. Sometimes its good to ask a few people to get the best results, but people here are acustomed to this manner of getting around. I think for us from the North-West what you will call it find it so surprising, and commenting how friendly the people are, but I think the real contrast would be for a person from here to try to get around in Toronto where I sure couldn´t tell people directions very well for most of the city, nor by looking around me on the street would have alot of ideas of who might have been around the area long enough to know something. I would go to a official transit map to figure it out.

SO

Frisbee. Only gringos, cheles would play in an open soccer field at 2pm . It is the hottest time of the day and insane to be bolting up and down a field with no sombra-shade what so ever. Thats us yeah, we can do what we want when we want to and if its dark just get out the light, and if its hot just run till you get sunstroke. Right.

After a 2 hr game, we went over to the house of some of the people. They run a project called Manna project. They run sports programs, teach English to adults and children, and do a diverse range of education programs in the area where they live.  Most are fresh out of college-university from the US. At the peak there was 23 people living in this house. Oh, but what a house. IT has a grand entrance- big steps up the hill to the house. The house is hard to describe. If it was in the norht, it would be somewhat normal. Here, where 90% of the houses are all more or less rectangles with squareish rooms and no curves, I am blown away by hallways, curved arches and even drop ceilings.  They have a lovely patio and a rooftop terrace as well as apool. What a find!

I spent dinnertime there, and then returned home. I realize I really appreciate my friend Milena, the Swiss Italian. She doésn´t speak English, so I really do get to use my spanish. I just enjoy talking with her. I am working on talking her into coming to the music festival in Achuapa in  the north this coming weekend. She is a real dear.

So Frisbee, swimming yesterday. Today, I went even further out of the city and took part in the baseball tournie. There were four teams and we played short 3 inning games. We got soundly thrashed 2-3 of the games, but thrashed on of the teams 10-3. It was so much fun as there was a big crowd out in this rural stadium. Mothers had brought iceboxes of water and pop to sell as well as enchiladas and saladas. Everyone was well behaved(seems like so many fiestas have too many men who start drinking kazooza or ´leche´(spanish for milk, but when they sell leche in little plastic bags at fiestas you know its homebrew liquor, and not milk)

Well, as I rode the bus back here to near the house I really have wondered where my life has gone. I have gone down this ´activista´ sort of life, but I seem to have gotten to busy organising to just have a game of ball or frisbee. Somehow things feel out of balance.

I have to say with a week to go, I am a bit scared of coming back. No job, no vision of where to live or what it will feel like to experience winter after two years away.. all is very intimidating. I know I am not going to delay any longer but boy I sure do know if I can´t find something I will be looking back to Nicaragua as an alternative.

Well, enough for now. Necesito comer, hombre, pues. Tengo habre ahora mismo

Hi

A bit of a sentimental entry, as I feel my time  here rapidly coming to a close I find myself wanting to stay. I know I will leave, but there is so much here. Last night I went for cena at the quaker house. It really made me remember how important that place was to land. Ironically after 4 months they finally saw the 'Quaker Concern' newsletter that had my photo on it from 2003.

I  was thinking this morning about how here in Nicaragua, much of the technology here is such a new thing. In 1990, when the Liberal party came to power, and all the western goods, businesses and such flooded in, it was then that so many things came. It was not like there was a progression of technology like in the north. No phones practically and suddenly there are thousands of cell phones. No computers really and suddenly a mountain of them. No big malls and Burger Kings and restaurants like that, and suddenly in 10 years the cities are transformed so you can go to some places and not really be sure what country you are in. It is such a facinating difference in how people view technology and how they use it.

Well, its another sticky day. Hard to believe its Viernes/Friday. Quaker meeting this weekend, and maybe a game of frisbee. Not too much else on the agenda for now outside of trying to wrap up the project. Exciting to read notes from folks back home, of clearing out the farm of my great uncle, of the summer corn and raspberries and such summer things. So ordinary but yet so part of the rich life we enjoy in the north. My north at least.

Its hard to believe how fast time is flying now. I figure I have about 10 more days in  Nicaragua. Though I have grown to love this country, I am very excited about returning to the place I was before.

The week has been basic. Work most days and quiet nights at the house. On Friday I went up to Esteli, in the northeast, to visit Miraflor, a biological reserve.

I got into Esteli at 3pm, only to find out that there are two buses a day to Miraflor: 5 am and 12 noon. It is about 30 km north, so I bunkered down in Esteli for the night.

What a beautiful city. Cool air, green mountains alll around. It was a welcome change from Managua. I really have spent too  much time in the dusty humid heat of Managua.

The next morning I got up at 4 to get to the bus stop. Of course, the bus didn't come until 6:15. Oh well. Such is the way.

In Miraflor I stayed with a family. The reserva has farms all through it and some have opened their houses as  hospitality houses for tourists. When I arrived there was a pair from Netherlands, and 3 Germans. Its a real interesting mix of Spanish, English, German and Dutch when all are around the table.

We went out hiking for a few hours. It is a very most area, with banana and other such tropical wet zone plants. Strangly though in the midst of the lush growth would be cactus. Another strange thing was seeing a crab scuttling about. I never heard of a crab so far from saltwater, or for that matter, any water!

We visited some waterfalls. It was very pretty but very muddy. We were covered in mud, especially after a few slips. At the end of the hike, some of us went swimming below a waterfall. It was there my glasses fell into the pool and were gone beneath the silty waters. We dived for about a 1/2 hour, but it was too deep and dark to be able to see anything.

As there was little to be done, I spent the rest of the weekend without them. We did a great hike up to the top of the mountains in the afternoon. Then everyone except me left for Esteli. It was so nice and calm. I just read a book and did some writing that never seems to happen in Managua. So much so that the owner wondered if I was happy. I was. The cabana I was in (the owner let me stay in it rather than a small room in the house since no one else was around) was lovely. It had a porch looking out over the corn field and towards the mountains. After so much cement, wooden houses are lovely to be in. The cabana  had no electricity, and no one used lights in the house, so after 8 it was quite dark.  Still, people sat on the patios and chatted late into the night, above the sound of the cicadas and birds

On Sunday I went horse riding. I never had tried before , so figured it was a good time as any. We rode up into the wet side of the mountain(wet being raining season10 months a year vs 8 in the dry zone) It was alot of fun, and we went along way. Much of it was in deep mud where it would have been difficult to go on foot. By the end of the day, 6 hrs of riding had really left my bum raw and sore. But what fun!

I managed to get back to Managua, with some help and asking alot more questions of people. The Nicas are a gregarious and friendly people as it is. I got an express bus to Managua. The driver was telling all these stories about how taxistas, taxi drivers, really took too much money for rides. Here you have to negotiate your fare at a flat rate, so if you don't konw how much it should be you can really pay alot more than the accepted rate. He was so disgruntled that he drove the folk on the bus from Mercado Mayorea, which is the terminal for Esteli, and is on the opposite side of town(a 1/2 hr taxi ride), and drove us as close to our houses as made sense. For me, it came within 3 blocks, saving a 35 cordoba fare.

Well, for now I am plugging away at work. Things are coming together. I just hope I can manage to make the system work good enough to be usuable before I go. Now I start to plan getting the bus tickets and all that jazz. Soon and very soon I'll be off for Guatemala.

I am not so sure why I called the last post the 19th as it had not happened.

Here is a link to my friend and "boss" Shannon's photos of the day- some are actually from last year, as she has been around for 3 years here.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/oklanica/sets/618458/

The day was ok for me. It was one of those days where no one I  knew at least would commite, and Shannon's mom fainting at the last minute so I ended up going with some friends who were not so enthusiastic.

Fair enough. It was 37 degrees, about 102 F , and no shade. 30000 people I heard in the plaza. It is pretty exciting. People are very outgoing, as they always, and there is alot of rum unfortunantly. I have no problem with the drink but too many drink too much and it gets ugly at times. We only stayed for 2 hours but some were there all day.   I heard after that there was a great fiesta in the neighbouring plaza, but we were not well informed and so missed out.  It is part of being in a bubble of gringos that this happens. More and more I am happy to be at least with Europeans so at least I am able to be in more than one community. 

For many, the day is too crazy and stay home. I can understand. Crowds here are full of pickpockets, and often women are groped. As pale skinned foreigners, we stick out and draw alot of attention, some times its genuinely nice people and other times the worst types. Such is the way.

Ah well, its nearly August. I am scrambling to finish this project still. I feel like I am making decent progress. Tommorow I will try to get some of the volunteers to do a test run of what is there to try to start ironing out the confusing parts  of the windows and such things. I really don't want to be at thsi more than two weeks. I sat down today and sketched out the trip back. At a leisurely rate, it will take about 20 days to reach Vancouver, with a few days in various cities along the way. I have started to figure out bus tickets and such, but with two weeks or more there is some time left. Indeed though, not much!

Well, rain and thunder coming, so time to disconnect!

What a long weekend!  I worked all Saturday at the store, having so many of the usual frustrating moments where I thought I would have to tear apart my work because of another 'exception' only to find after much thinking that I in fact had already built in support for the exception. It is no wonder my mood swings with the wind. At times I think I will never finish this project, and then I manage to implement another feature or squash a bug and the world is rosy and wonderful. I definitly can see I didn't do a fabulous job at finding out all the details. Hard to say now though if it would have made a difference.

Yesterday I spent the day at a conference helping with the store's booth. It was a sister city, or twinned city conference. I love the energy and excitement in such places. Its so exiteing to be in a place where many people are meeting, networking and sharing experiences, especially on an international level. However, the 12 hr day was exhausting and I was glad to be home and rest.

Its funny. During the day, I realized hwo much my life here is like much of my time in Toronto. I looked out at the little space of vacant land- a lush green field with coconut trees and a variety of flowering shrubs with hundreds of butterflies. I still could here the buses and trucks, but the little oasis was very peaceful and comforting. Again I am in a place where access to things not paved by concrete or full of radio noise blasting is hard to get to, and here worse because its 'dangerous' to be out on your own without someone. Finding a quiet companion who just is happy to 'be' and not have to always talk  is  a rare gem.

I had a fabulous conversation with my house mate Milena. She is an Swiss Italian. A new fellow from Germany moved in last night as well and we had a good talk. I am feeling very happy to be in this house, for its water problems and various people just staying. I am feeling like my Spanish is improving, but more importantly I am able to talk on a longer level with Nicaraguan(we have a se-pe-efe, which I don't know what it translates to but its a security person who just hangs around the house to make sure things are secure, and to do a little cleaning. His name is Hamilton, (pronounced Ameeltonne) and he is a really great guy. I think he is probably lauging all the time at the crazy cheles, but still he is very amiable. 

 Talking with Milena(who speaks German, Italian, Spanish and French but not English) I really am getting an eye opener into Europe. At least one persons view.  We N. Americans stick together for the most part, as well as some of the Brits and Aussies, but the continental Europeans tend to hang out separately, feeling more at home with other Europeans (even if they don't speak the same native language) than with Americans(continental, not US). I can understand it, but I enjoy and marvel at how many Europeans can speak interchangably in 3 or more languages fluently.  All and all, the house is a good place to be.

Tommorow is el dia de la Revolucion. Its the major holiday. I hope to go with Shannon and her mother with some Nica friends to the plaza where thousands of people will be there. However, we plan to leave before Daniel Ortega, the 'leader' of the Sandinistas takes the stage. He is reputed to speak forever, and on the same topic year after yeasr. People are not happy that there was no vote on who would run for President in 2006. There has been alot of manuevering to block any new leadership from taking part in both the FSLN and the Liberal parties(the two dominant parties). So tommorow the plan is to just walk away.

Either way  it will be an exciting day to be part of. Here, everyone is involved in politics and has an opinion.

Another bit of exciting news is my friend Mile is due to have her baby any day now.  We wait and see.

Ok, I don't know where these 80's tunes keep coming up.

Right. From all around me!Radio!

I moved into a new house at the beginning of the week. It has been a interesting experience. Yes, that word. Interesting.

As of yet, I have met most people. There was a big birthday party on Wednesday, but everyone except me in the house fled. Admittedly it was a horde of 20 American folk from another project. They are great, but its a small house and I know what its like to feel under siege by a language that you can not understand.

Then two guys have been staying here. They have no money for a room so just find friends to crash at. Nice enough guys but a  bit strange. Both are named Tim, supposedly. One is very talkative but extrovertedly excentric. The other, virtually silent. TimTalker answers all questions even those directed at TimidTim. They are talking of hitching out of here. I don't know. Its really hard to know where you are going in this city, and besides I have never heard of a free ride. Even pickups charge some form of a fare.

Water. I have to say if there is nothing else, having a little experience of not having free flowing water on demand will be good. The water is really erratic here. Thursday I was out late, getting home by midnight. The water was still off. I have figured out that if you leave your tap open, you will hear the water when it turns on. At 4 am I woke up to water running, had a shower and went to bed. By 6 am when I woke up it was gone again for the rest of the day. Yesterday at the community center  there was no water. People just took a pickup out and found a place where there was water and hauled it back.Important because we had a big opening night for a sister city conference.

The night was  big success. We had expected to have some people come out, but the place was packed and overflowing. There were three musical groups, but most people seemed to be more interested in catching up with friends than in the entertainment schedule. 

For me though, it was such fun to work with cheerful and enthusiastic people. This community is beautiful for that. We were working from 4pm to midnight, setup to break down but many people helped pitch in serving and keeping things flowing. I think back to some of the weddings I got to help out in, and in some of the work bees. Some of my favourite memories are of when we worked together, and then had that special moment of everyone being tired but happy that something special was accomplished, and accomplished with lots of mutual care and affection.

It was sure special last night. I have really grown to love this community and this city.

PS There is a new Doctor Who series out there in the wide world?