Well, we’ve finally reached the end of our Global Glimpse journey. Today, our final day in the city of Estelí, we were given a chance to reflect on our time in Nicaragua and consider the ways in which it will continue to affect us into the future. After what now seems like a leisurely late wake up at 7:00 am we headed out to Buffet Estelí to get some breakfast, featuring everyone’s favored gallo pinto (a note to any parents reading this: please do not serve us gallo pinto when we get home).

Afterwards we walked back to Hostel Tomabu for a two hour reflection seminar in which we discussed some of the most impacting and inspirational moments of our trip. For many, including myself, this experience was our visit to Las Cruces (the community in the dump) in which we met Dona Francisca and her daughter, Dona Francisca Jr. Others stated that this experience occurred in the CAP project, or in our visits to the community of Robledal. We also discussed the continual effect of this trip on us personally and thought of the ways we can incorporate what we have learned here in Nicaragua into our lives at home. I know we will all certainly be more appreciative of the luxuries and opportunities we’ve been afforded, but beyond this we’ve been inspired to take advantage of these privileges in order to make positive change in our communities and in ourselves.

Afterwards we each wrote our name on a sheet of paper and passed it around the group so that we could feverishly write down final ‘big love’ messages to each other. We did our last ‘unity clap’ before going out to lunch. As we arrived back at the hostel we headed to our rooms to pack. We then were allowed some time to go out and about, which most of us used to do final souvenir shopping (and of course to buy some last sweets from the bakery across the street). At 6 o’clock we went out to have our last meal at Buffet Estelí, after which we presented a picture of our group to the owners.

Upon returning to the hostel we repeated the ritual with Mama Elena, the proprietor of Hostel Tomabu. We skipped the nightly meeting and I went to write this blog as my fellow glimpsers prepare for our night on the town. At 9 o’clock were’ re heading out to a club to party hard and celebrate our time in Nicaragua (or in my case cling to wall and avoid dancing at all costs). It has been an incredible experience to be here in Nicaragua, one that I know we will carry with us throughout the rest of our lives. I recall that before I left on the trip my mom remarked that she thought I would return a different person, and after 3 weeks I think that assertion holds true for all of us. We all look forward to seeing our families tomorrow and sharing our experiences with them. Now it’s time to sign off from this last blog and say adios.

Special shout-out to my dog Percy, I miss you most of all.