So we are back in the city of San Jose after a mentally intense trip to Nicaragua. After a long bus ride we arrived in Managua where we spent a few days taking a closer look at the history of the country and the physical affects wars and earthquakes left in the capital city. We talked with a number of inspirational people who encouraged us to really get to know the people of Nicaragua.
The Next 7 days were spent with families dispersed throughout the country. I happened to stay in Wapy, a rural city about six hours away from Managua. The lifestyle in Wapy was definitely a different reality for us North Americans. Many of us being the first Americans in the communities, we were stared at... a lot. However, we had great conversations with the families and community memebers about life, Biblical principles, politics, and cultures.
We all participated in some sort of community service project. In Wapy the five of us painted a church classroom for children. We also attended church often and as students from Christian universities, we were even asked to give a sermon.
The experience was wonderful learning how others live and we were welcomed with open arms. We were all impacted by how close we grew to our families in such a short time. This is probably because relationships are so important to the people of Nicaragua.
To complete our stay, we spent a day in Granada and a few hours in the market of Mesaya. Our last evening we ate at a wonderful organic restaurant called Ola Verde. This was perfect example of how an educated woman from the United States came to live in Nicaragua and invest in the people. She uses her knowledge of nutrition to inform the public about healthy eating habits and even teaches cooking lessons.
Our trip left us all asking some significant questions. Some samples...What is poverty? What do we deserve? How can we effectively use the knowledge we have acquired in the trip?
We will be posting pictures soon!!
Katie Cooper
Olivet Nazarene University
LASP Spring 2007
