June 18: Beach Day

Joel took us to the Pacific coast today along with Rachel and Joni (another Nicaragua Christian Academy teacher). They have some connection to folks who are building a resort community called the Gran Pacífica so we were able to go to a private beach – we ended up being the only people there. Nathan spent the majority of time trying to catch the wary crabs, Angelina spent her time in the waves and Sophia preferred playing in the sand.
The hour drive there let us have a good look at the Nicaraguan countryside: lots of lush green foliage, rolling hills and mountains, a distant volcano and fields of sugarcane as we neared the coast.
Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the western hemisphere (behind Haiti) so we also saw many third world images that stick with you: women washing clothes by hand and then hanging them to dry on a line, barbed wire or cactus, diaper-clad toddlers playing barefoot in the dirt, one room tin-roofed homes with people sitting in the doorway in search of a breeze or gathered round a covered patio, oxen plodding along pulling carts, and lots of cows, horses, goats, pigs and chickens…some by homes and in the fields and some on the road that we needed to slow down for.
For dinner this evening we were treated to Chef Joel’s specialty lasagna…delicioso! We are so grateful that he’s been around this first week to help us get settled. He leaves next Monday for some time back in Michigan before returning again in August.