Hi friends and family!
I’m Olivia from Cupertino high school and I’m here to give a GLIMPSE of how I, as well as the rest of our group spent our first free day (see what I did there ;)).
The group began their day of fun and relaxation at a comfortable 8am, woken up by my morning drumming against the doors. Everyone got ready at a steady pace, and we all gathered before heading to breakfast at Imabite one hour later.
An idea to purchase customized Leon baseball jerseys came up in yesterday’s nightly meeting, so after breakfast, everyone met up in the morning to make the trip to the store that makes them. One of our neighbors/frequent hostel visitors, Humberto, was generous enough to lead us there and help us order our jerseys. From there, we left in groups of 4 that we chose as our tour groups for the day.
Today was our first day to roam the city, and we were all excited to have the freedom to explore, leader and structure free! My group made our first destination Central Park to scout out hammocks for our hostel. After hunting around trying to find the best deal, we were approached with a good offer and successfully purchased 4 hammocks. We then sprinted back to the hostel to make it in time for lunch, meeting up with the rest of the delegation so we could all walk to Imabite.
Following lunch we had even more free time, and this time my group and I headed back to the city center. Most of the other groups also headed to the same area to visit the market, make a smoothie stop, eat fried chicken, and converse with locals. We enjoyed scouting out the stores to pick up souvenirs and gifts to bring back home for our loved ones. And of course, we also made our necessary trip to the Internet café to use the computers and/or phones to contact family and friends (we love and miss you all!). Some of the groups decided to relax at the hostel and wash clothes as well.
After hours of walking and shopping, we all made it back on time for dinner at 5:45pm. Many of us were very full afterwards because of all the food we had eaten throughout the day.
Finally, we headed back to the hostel to have our nightly meeting where we went over our question of the day which was: What am I expecting from myself for the next two weeks (or 9 days)?. One of the responses included talking more with locals, even if speaking Spanish wasn’t easy. It was then time for the anticipated passing of the torch, where I handed leadership over to Gabi, who you will all hear from tomorrow!
Overall, today was filled with adventure and excitement, and we were all able to immerse ourselves into the culture to the best of our abilities, while shopping and eating good food. 🙂
Hasta luego!
Olivia
Ps: Hammocks are so comfy to write blogs in
Olivia ~ great blog! Your day was filled with food, folks & fun! Having a day to relax was much needed. You all are working hard and learning much! I can’t wait to see what ImaRRa brings home for her siblings. Awesome job as leader, Olivia. You had me wanting some fried chicken! Continue to learn Glimpsers! We’re also proud of you guys!
I love reading the blogs, and I’m so proud of all of the students who are on this journey together. I was so excited to hear from my son Joseph, he shared all about his free day, and how important this experience has been so far. I hope that you all remain friends and share pictures and stories!
Joseph I’m so proud of you, and I see this as the beginning of a Global Music Major in College! Enjoy and experience all that you can, and continue to make new friendships with everyone, from the Nicaragaua and beyond!
Take lots of pictures, and know that I love and miss you so much, I look forward to talking to you in person about this splendid adventure!
Love,
Mom
It was exciting reading about your free day Olivia, thank you for sharing your experience. I can hardly wait to read what your adventure will be tomorrow
Imarra really commit to memory every experience you have throughout your time there because baby girl you will now look at the world and people with new eyes..I hope that makes sense to you! Love you bunches!
Hola Chikos, Hello Muñe Ari¡ it was really nice to heard your beautiful voice yesterday by phone? . Sounds like all of you have a good day trying new yummy local food and bargaining for the best price! Hammocks are the best. As a baby that was the only place you fall asleep Ari!!!
Take a lot of pictures…
We love you!?❤️??
Love mama Bear
Hola Olivia,
Sounds like you have been having quite the adventure and it just amazes me how much you have done throughout the trip so far! Please know your friends and family love and miss you very very much and hope you are making the most of your stay in Nicaragua. Can’t wait to hear more from you and your trip! 🙂
Xoxo,
Sheldon
For: Daniela Patino
hi mi amor, espero que estés disfrutando de tus nuevas experiencias y descubriendo nuevas culturas,
y costumbres diferentes, se que eres de gran ayuda para las personas que tienen diferentes necesidades, me siento muy orgulloso de ti, y espero verte pronto para que me cuentes tus experiencias, acá te extrañamos todos, y yo te quiero con todo mi corazón, cuídate mi amor echale ganas a todo lo que hagas en la vida ok.
Es tu Papio que te extrana y te quiere mucho!!!!!!!
Millicent – Olivia’s Grandma
Dear Livy, so nice to hear from you. Wow! You were the leader of the Free Day! How nice.
I am very proud of you. I am sure this will be an unforgettable learning experience for all of you.
Thinking of you.
I loved the write up today! Sounds like you all enjoyed your free day. Emma, maybe we should get a hammock for the backyard! Love you!!!
For Daniela Patino-
hi princesa espero
estes cumpliendo lo que tu querias te amo sigue tus sueños que siempre te apoyo. eres una lidere siempre, cuídate siempre. te quiero -mamy…..
Hey Dani I hope that your having fun on your trip! We all miss you so much. Hope that you come home soon! -Junior