Poverty day began with a wake up call at 6:00, followed by a breakfast of pancakes and mango juice, after which we had a seminar concerning what to expect once we visited the dump that lay in the outskirts of Matagalpa. The bus ride there was full of fun and excitement, as the bus driver played the party soundtrack, which got everybody singing along to the tune of Treasure, Get Lucky, and I’m yours. Upon arrival at the dump, we met the workers of the dump, clad in tatty rags sifting through trash and bottles, in the presence of vultures, flies, and other scavengers. These scavengers appeared to be competing over the remains of trash, rotten flesh and other beings, the vultures often getting too close for the worker’s comfort, and retaliating in kind, often ending in the large flocks of vultures sudden flight away, then repeating the cycle. After the observation of the workers and the surrounding area, the group preceded to return to the area of the bus to hand out sandwiches and bags of juice (Nica style), however the workers actions were perceived as ungrateful by some members of the group, resulting in a long discussion on return to the hostel as to the workers side of the story. Ultimately we decided the workers were amused by our visit to the dump, however were ungrateful of the food as the group still had no idea what the workers went through day to day, and one sandwich would not make us any more helpful as individuals, or more partial to their cause as the working/ poor class of Nicaraguans.
On our return ride back to the hostel, we continued to sing along to various songs on the party track, looking at the beautiful countryside and generally having a good time. At around 12:30 we had a lunch at El Pollo Listo of battered and fried fish, rice, salad and a tortilla (to make a taco), along with Iced tea to drink. After lunch, we had a seminar discussing our experience, followed by preparation for our post- dinner English classes for an hour, and a seminar to discuss what projects the group would take on for the CAP (Community Action Project). Due to an hour search for a wallet, we had a delayed start, resulting in a curtailed meeting. At its close, we triumphantly had four projects we wanted to do for the small community we visited, including the building of a latrine, a division for the medical clinic/ shelves and cabinets for the medical clinic, the fixing of the floors and roofs of the buildings in need, and the fixing of broken tables and chairs that were too flawed for continued use.
We then went to a Dinner of Nicaraguan Enchiladas around 5:15, followed by a Spanish birthday song and chocolate cookie cake for the head chef of El Pollo Listo, after which we went to teach English to the different students at the school. A triumphant success, everyone emerged from the classrooms happy with their progress at the end, feeling they achieved far more in teaching and progress than the Wednesday class. Upon return to the hostel, we had our daily nightly meeting, which included the passing of the torch from myself (Iain) to Elizabeth. Following our Nightly meeting, we had free time until lights out. Hoping tomorrow is also fun!
