Greetings all!! Our journey started in San Francisco at 3am Wednesday August 23rd, 2014. Anxiously 4 leaders, 40 glimpsers, and their families awaited for the ticket counter to open. Even though we had students from different high schools from all over the Bay Area, as our Granada delegation traveled with the Leon delegation, the students connected with each other from the start. They really showed initiative this mornig. Being such a diverse group of studenbts they quickly formed a giant circle in our terminal. They were talking about the upcoming trip and what they may have in common with one another. Students were just interested in meeting new people whether they were traveling to Leon or Granada. We were both really moved to see such a display of leadership abilities. We truly hope this continues to develop over the next few weeks. Our lay over was in the great city of Miami. Many students were happy to be in such vibrant city. The airport matches the city, with multiple shops and restaurants and even a train! Unfortunately, our flight was delayed. However, this allowed the students more time to explore the airport with one another. Many of the students have not traveled abroad before. So filling out the paerwork for customs took some time to complete. But, with four GG Leaders and some seasoned students we were all able to help one another out. What we really liked was how we were greeted upon arrival. All four of the In Country Coordinators were there literally cheering and clapping us along ! It was a great surprise and made us feel like rock stars. After settling our luggage in the bus we were on our way to eat our first Nicaraguan dinner, Pizza Hut. The students were all very hungry after our long day of traveling and were especially surprised by the variety of pizza’s available including the “American” style which included meat, chicken, cheese, and MUSTARD. Once we finished dinner we loaded in the bus and headed to Hotel Los Felipe where the students were able to call home, get their room assignment, and rest for tomorrow. We are all excited to see what adventures Nicaragua has to offer as we head to Granada tomorrow at 6:30am.

Chatting at the dinner table while we wait for our pizza.