Yo what’s up. Today was truly a humbling experience as we walked a mile (some of us literally) in the shoes of families living in the rural hills outside Estelí. I was honored to lead us through it but in all honesty they made it really easy on me. Believe it or not, your children can and will wake up at 5am.

IMG_1516After our earliest wake up call yet we headed to Buffet Estelí to pick up our breakfast of Gallo Pinto (rice and beans) to eat on the bus during our drive to Robledal. We were dropped of with our host families like kids coming home on a school bus. Although most of our families were incredibly shy we were welcomed with open arms. Despite their reserved nature they wasted no time in putting us to work. Yet again you would be surprised to witness your children’s willingness to partake in these actives. Chores included making tortillas, hand washing clothes and milking cows (some better than others). The day wasn’t all work and no play though. We spent time getting to know our families and asked them questions over a lunch of rice with carrots and chicken.

Later on we all headed down to the school to watch the neighborhood children take hits at a soccer player piñata. The joy on their faces as they scrambled the floor in the most aggressive dash for candy most of us had ever seen, certainly warmed our hearts . After heartfelt thanks and goodbyes to our host families we boarded the bus back to Estelí with a few adorable stow aways that we unfortunately had to drop off back at home. When we arrived back at Hostel Tamabu we were awarded free time in which most of us went out to buy boots to visit the dump tomorrow. Others decided on a nap after our early start. As you can imagine we were all extremely excited for dinner only to find out that we would be eating gallo pinto for the second time today, but after the day we had had, we welcomed it wholeheartedly.

Tonight was a movie night of sorts as we watched a documentary on poverty in Nicaragua; we snacked on our new favorite fruit – mamones – in place of popcorn. We ended the night with our nightly meeting as usual and our most reflective reflection to date. Hope to hear from you guys soon! Thanks to those who answer their phones when we call. A special shout out to our family member Anne! We hope your reading this, although we totally understand if you’re not lol. We miss you and we can’t wait to be reunited with you back home. Buenas Noches de Esteli!

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