Buenas Noches from Estelí! This is Anya, today’s el Lider del Dia. I’m very excited to share today’s adventures with all you at home.
An integral part of visiting and understanding any city or county is understanding their culture. Today was spent entirely on exploring facets of Nicaraguan culture as well as culture specific to Estelí. Known for its murals, Estelí is full of many different types of art- ranging from sculpture, to music, dance, and traditional crafts. Nicaraguans have a lot of pride in their country and culture, and I really enjoyed seeing and experiencing a small part of that today.
After a filling breakfast of omelet and toast with passion fruit mango juice, we took a field trip to El Jalacate, a sculpture farm created and cultivated by Alberto Gutierrez. We traveled around 7 miles north of the city, up into the mountain terrain in a natural reserve. El Jalacate is located about one kilometer’s hike down the mountain, and as a group, we hiked together until we reached the farm. Gutierrez began carving into the rock formations around his home when he was twelve, and as a seventy six year old, has gained international fame for his depictions of Nicaragua’s history, as well as anything else that inspires him. After meeting Don Alberto, we hiked back up the mountain to come back to the hostel for lunch.
After lunch (and mandatory naps), we walked to Casa de Cultura, a gathering place for artists, musicians, and craftspeople, as well as anyone else who would like to learn about Nicaraguan culture. There, we met Juan Carlos Moreno, an artist who popularized the use of Tusa, or dyed corn husks, in his art. Tusa is traditionally used in El Salvador and Guatemala, but Juan Carlos popularized its use, and it is now sold in all souvenir shops along with the more traditional art forms. However, not only did we learn about Tusa, we also had the chance to make our own creations and have a hands-on experience with a unique art form.
Next, we stayed in la Casa de Cultura for a crash course on traditional dances. Our instructor Hugo taught us two dances from every region of Nicaragua: North, Pacific, and Atlantic. We were very lucky to have a cooler day, since we danced for almost one and a half hours! After learning the traditional dances, we also taught Hugo a few moves of our own. Although we did face a language barrier between all three artists today, being able to learn about Nicaragua and share a small part of our culture in return was an experience that I hadn’t realized would have so much meaning.
In keeping with our theme of culture, for dinner, we ate a traditional meal of enchiladas (fried tortillas stuffed with chicken and rice) and Cacao con Leche (milk with cocoa powder and cinnamon). After dinner, we prepared for tomorrow’s activities and passed the LDD role to tomorrow’s leaders, Rishi and Tejas. Check back tomorrow for a recap of our first reality challenge: Living like a Local!
Besos y Abrazos,
Anya
Anya, thank for the detailed description of the day. It sounds like everyone had a lot of fun.
Alison, way to bust a move!!
Anys that was a great description of your day.
I felt that I was experiencing the trip myself, including the hot and humid weather.
Have fun and be safe.
Thank you Anya for the day summary!
Tejas,
Seems to be a great day for a hike into El Jalacate with the group. Everybody seems to have a great time. Opportunity to learn local culture and heritage while visiting gives a great insight.
Learning about Spanish Conquistadors and their history, Nice!
Local dance class, Wow!. I know your love for dancing, shake a leg!
Looking forward to you and Rishi post tomorrow as LLD.
Living like a local, no doubt you guys will ace it.
Have fun and stay safe buds.
Dad, Mom, Gaji & Jansi.
Hi Zach! We found you in today’s pictures. The food sounds amazing. Hope you had fun in dance class. We want to hear more about Don Alberto’s sculpture farm.
Wow! What an amazing day! Fabulous description of all the activities Anya and I love the pictures! Everyone looks so engaged and into it! I am very curious to hear some Nicaraguan music and see what their dances look like:-). We’re all missing you Anya but enjoying the daily blogs very much! Looking forward to Tejas and Rishi’s perspectives tomorrow! Take care Everyone!
It’s great to hear about your Estile experience today. Enjoying local food, culture, art and dance is everything one could ask for in a trip like this. We are glad to hear that you all are burning off some calories with the hikes and dances. Have fun and keep posting.
Resha- Hope you are enjoying yourself. We are flying out today and wherever we have internet will check the blog. Love you and miss you! Mama & Papa
How wonderful your adventure was! Esteli looks to be an amazing town with a rich history! So happy for all of you!
Thank you for the summary of your day, Anya! I loved seeing the pictures. It sounds like you all had a great time dancing and hiking. Makenna, we love and miss you! I’m so glad to see you’re having a great time learning about the Nicaraguan culture. Love, Mom and Dad, Jay
The pictures look awesome everyone. Hi Makenna, it’s good to hear about your daily activities on the blog and how everyone is engaged in the culture. I can’t wait to hear more about your experiences. Talk to you soon, take care!
What an amazing artist Don Amberto is to create such life from stone. The food sounds wonderful and can’t wait to try some of on your return. So glad you’re learning so much about the culture and history.
All the best to you Anya. lovely to see your pictures and read your blog, well described one, keep it up 🙂
So So proud of you Anya. Loved your vivid writeup. Look forward to learning the dances and listening to Nicaraguan music when you get back and don’t forget the Cacao con Leche ! Hope you have an enriching experience and bring back some wonderful memories