Hi! My name is Amy Leung, and I’m El Lider Del Dia for Day 4, which focused on politics. Adding on to our new found knowledge of Nicaraguan history and culture, we continued our exploration by learning about Nicaraguan politics. Of course we started the day off with a glorious breakfast of crepes, cooked by our wonderful hostel chefs.

Our first activity was a seminar on politics led by the Global Glimpse leaders. We read an article about current Nicaraguan president Daniel Ortega and his position of dominance. Although we analyzed and lightly annotated the article, it was still enjoyable, enlightening, and not at all school-like. Next, we went up a hill called Cerro El Calvario where we met Doña Sonia, a Sandinista ex-guerilla fighter, who told us her inspiring life story. She was wrongly accused of being a girl in the Sandinista Army, which ironically led her to flee and become a part of the rebellion against Samoza. At one point, she began tearing up, and this moment deeply touched many of us.

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We then explored Cerro El Calvario. There was a wonderful view upon a hill overlooking the beautiful city of Matagalpa with its pink-red roofs and luscious green plants everywhere.

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The students and Global Glimpse leaders climbed several flights of stairs on an observatory to get a full view of the city of Matagalpa below.

After returning home and having a delicious lunch of tortilla, meat, potatoes, and salad, the program coordinators introduced topics to us to prepare us for tomorrow. First we were introduced to the basics of teaching English as a foreign language. Starting tomorrow, we will be teaching the same group of Matagalpans English on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. The program coordinators went over some cultural differences with Nicaraguan students (some of which we had observed yesterday while shadowing a student) and gave us an in-depth booklet to help us. We also learned that for our Community Action Project (CAP), we would be partnering with the organization “Mujeres Del Plomo,” the people who taught us how to make bracelets on Culture Day.

Note: Some students did not attend the activities and are therefore not pictured because they were feeling a little under the weather. However, after resting, they are feeling better now and will be able to continue experiencing the trip firsthand.