Preparing for the field step 5: “Cut your fingernails.”
On topic: I found “dolphin friendly” canned tuna here in Managua.
I still don’t know at what time my flight leaves tomorrow, will find out once I get to the office in the morning. At least I got an email that my Security Clearance had been granted. This disorder is all because of riots in one of the areas close to where we are going, apparently a significant security risk, so the entire mission had to be rescheduled.
My camera is SO EXCITED to go. Me too. Hope there will be some network coverage so that I can share some insights. Anyhow, I have been told there is no electricity in the communities we will be sleeping in – and in that case I will most probably be offline at least until Friday. Just so you know.
The reggae artist El General from Panama is often referred to as the father of reggae in Spanish. During the early 1990’s he initiated the Spanish spoken dancehall, the beginning of what we today know as reggaeton.
This song is very often played in the clubs, shops and restaurants around here and when people dance to it they start cheering and throw their hands up in the air. There’s mostly a screen around as well, and I just had to share this video – it’s the Central American MC Hammer!
Suddenly found out that I will be going to the field this Monday instead of next week. Three nights in different communities in the Prinzapolka municipality on the Carribean coast of Nicaragua. Cooking facilities or access to food is not to be expected.
I’m waiting to be picked up by some friends by the office. Normally, I take a taxi outside and one of the security guards help me to write down the registration plates of the car I am leaving in, this leaves the responsibility of me and my things with the driver and they stay waiting by my gate until I wave that all is fine and close the door.
As I already told you, cabs are one of the worst places to be in here in Managua – and walking around by yourself in the evening is completely out of the question. Giving up the personal freedom to move around the way one wishes takes some time getting used to. I miss my spontaneous photo strolls and random encounters – but still, there are ways to get around these limitations. Taking a photo of the guard, for example.
Here’s how much I can share with you from the video that was aired on Finnish National TV in March. It’s from the field trip I went for with the actress, singer and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Iina Kuustonen, and the Finnish National Committee for UNICEF. The several videos that we planned and filmed last year in Mozambique’s poorest district were aired during a live children’s fundraising TV gala in Finland, and my emergency Portuguese interpreting abilities and I are very happy to have supported this initiative.
The person that became my best friend in China in 2008 suddenly answered an email I wrote a couple of years ago:
“Dear Xinmin!!!!
How are you??? It has been a long time!!!!!
My email account in yahoo has been hacked and totally mess there so I did not use it anymore. Today I check what it is going on with that email and I find you!!!!!!!!!!!!
I did not use facebook for a while cause lots of my friends are not there.
I’m on my first year of PhD studies and…
/…/
Many Hugs!!
X
P.S. I have read 1984 soooo many times and became my most favorite……Thank you…………!“
.
Made me so happy – couldn’t have thought of a better place to bring that book than to the world behind the golden firewall.
My colleague Natalia would probably fill my inbox with “The importance of work-life balance” TED talks if she knew that I got home from the office less than one hour ago. Luckily, I’m actually enjoying my workload.
I left my computer in the office as I didn’t feel safe about taking it into a cab, and also to prevent myself from continuing working. So now I’m home, ready for bed, and trying to relax my mind which still is I’m working mode.
I trust my ambient playlist and Jónsi and Alex to come to the rescue. And my IKEA vanilla candles that I bring along everywhere, perfect for placing in closets and among stuff to make everything smell nice and homey.
“Stokkseyri is a small town in Southern Iceland, with a population of around 445 inhabitants.
Founded around 900 AD by the settler Hásteinn Atlason. It was an important fishing and trading village in previous times, and now it’s become more of a tourist attraction. The town is founded on the Great Þjórsá lava.
The experimental artistic collaboration Jónsi & Alex wrote a song named after the town which appears as track 4 on their album, Riceboy Sleeps.”
As I don’t have time to get out if the office to eat today, I’ll take the opportunity to be fair in relation to yesterday’s post and show you today’s lunch.
Here’s how you can eat for 1.7€ – ordered by phone in the morning, prepared at home by a certain doña Evelina and delivered to the office around noon.
This Monday has been just the way Mondays are supposed be. Busy, packed with planning and coordination, 2do lists, exciting Skype meetings and a beautifully presented traditional Nicaraguan lunch co-starred by a fruit smoothie with strawberries, mango, orange juice and papaya.
“That’s a lot of food!” My mother exclaimed last time I sent her a photo of a Nica plate.. and yes, they really serve proper portions over here. Basically, when I eat like this for lunch, I’m not hungry during the rest of the day and usually just grab a banana, mango or avocado in the evening. It’s a perfect set up as I usually get home around 8pm and find most things in life more interesting than cooking for myself.
“But you can’t eat out every day, that’s really expensive!” Well, you know what’s expensive? Buying groceries and cooking for one person. Buying small quantities turn out much more costly than when shopping for an entire family, vegetables get wasted really fast in this heat, I don’t have a big freezer to store food, and I would basically need to go grocery shopping every third day – by taxi. This plate, in one of the nicer (more expensive) places around, along with the freshly mixed fruit smoothie, cost me 4.5€. I often eat for around 2€.
That puts my absolute maximum monthly food & drink budget at 120€ per month. Including smoothies, excluding cooking, and saving me a huge amount of time – for blogging, and other important stuff. (Such as dancing.)
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After work today – Monday just wouldn’t let me go – instead, it dragged me out of the office at 6pm and took me all the way to a collective salsa class at El Quetzal here in Managua. For 15$ a month, twice a week, I shall learn how to twist and turn my limbs just like these pro’s that were showing off in the break during the class.
Three things to notice in the video below:
1. How the full age-range is covered.
2. Remember when I wrote that there were arms everywhere?
3. Those smiles and little playful twists that make dancing magical.
A very interesting place for people watching, and the class was actually a lot of fun despite being very basic, with clapping, counting and the instructor going “turbo!” for us to go faster. In some weeks, hopefully soon, the advanced arm twisting and spinning practice shall start. I need a pair of heels.
Yesterday I attended a wedding that I had been invited to just a couple of days earlier, actually, the decision to get married was taken by the couple only last week.
Julio and Carol have known each other, studied together and been good friends for more than ten years. Three years ago, they decided to become a couple, which proved to be difficult due to the expectations and rules set by the society and Nicaraguan culture. So about a year ago, they came to the conclusion that it would be easier to go separate ways.
Telling me their story while we were having lunch last week, Julio explained that he has very much in common with his wife to be. “I play the guitar, she sings, we like travelling and doing things together, we always have a lot of fun, she’s great!” he said with a huge smile on his face.
“And guess what – last week we decided to meet again after almost a year apart, and realized that we have always loved each other and that we will continue doing so forever.. so I said: So it’s done, we’re getting married right away! And she said yes!”
The date was set to a week later.
Honoured to be invited, I offered to take some photos of the ceremony. Julio was glad “Great! And you can put them in your blog as well!” Well, obviously. :)
The ceremony took place in the house of Julio’s father, on the outskirts of Managua. It was a civil wedding with the presence of friends, family and a representative from the state who was talking about the responsibilities, rights and duties in a marriage. A man with a bible spoke about how the fear of God was the cornerstone of a lasting commitment and how the couple had to respect each other, be loyal and love each other forever and beyond death. The papers were signed, rings exchanged, there was a kiss, a long and warm hug, home cooked food, fantastic cake – and an atmosphere filled with smiles.
After a honeymoon to the beautiful city of Granada, the bride will now finally be able to move in with her husband, and the young couple will start their new life on their own, married, independent, and happy.
Muchas gracias por dejarme ser parte de su día importante y hermoso, Julio y Carolina. Les deseo todo lo mejor y felicito una vez más!
