It is a bit ironic that I have been on complete vacation for two weeks and yet I have not been blogging at all during this period that I have the most free time. I guess I have just had too many parties....
Before Christmas I got to see the lovely process of a pig slottering. Luckily, I did not have to attend the killing however I was there for a good portion of the division of meat. I believe that I have seen enough that I do not have to ever see a dead animal become food again. The background of this story is that I went to Managua with my host family to stay with my host mom´s brother and sister. Her host brother had a pig that was ready for slaughtering on the back patio. In the middle of the city. Thank god I was at the other house while that happened... So I had quite the cultural experience there and call it a success because I did not faint and did not get sick. There are pictures of which I may share later...
Christmas was a struggle to keep some of the traditions alive while in a hot country. I made piñatas (a Christmas tree and a snowman) a few days before to break at the Christmas Eve party with all of the family. Then during the day on Christmas Eve (as is tradition in my family) we baked and decorated sugar cookies. I had to cut them by hand because we didn´t have the cookie cutters. It was a fun experience and interesting because everyone kept telling me they could not decorate cookies. After I showed the five year old that he indeed could people started to open up and decorate. It was fun to share that experience with them! That night we had a party and it snowed in the form of flour and paper from the piñatas. Everyone was caught off guard with that surprise but I simply told them I could not have a Christmas without some sort of snow. We danced and waited until midnight when they set off fire crackers and sparklers in the street and we greeted eachother with wishes of a Feliz Navidad. Christmas day here is spent doing absolutely nothing, so the majority of the holiday is celebrated on Christmas Eve.
Though my family kept making fun of me for escaping during New Years, I traveled with a couple of friends to a beach place down south. It was so gorgeous and relaxing, a perfect get away. After the few days I spent away I was actually really excited to get back to my new home and reconnect with my host family. Its always a good sign that I feel so connected to this community and I have yet to really start my real work here.
So this week we all headed back to work. My host mom began to make fresco and will sell enchiladas and other fried foods this weekend. I started back up with my English classes and my work with the Environmental club at school. Our garden is growing pretty nicely, though there were chickens digging in it a bit. It will be a while before we see the produce, but it´s nice to have something started. It took a bit to get myself back in the mentality of work and that is just for the two hours a day I spend at the school. We will see if I will be ready when school is about to start in February.
I continue to have new experiences (this week I am trying to learn the process of making enchiladas) and will leave with so many new skills. My host mom continuesto tell me that I am now a Nica which here is pretty much the best compliment a volunteer can get. For now, I´m so happy to be out of the cold and melting into the Nicaraguan culture.
So, you are missing out on -22 F temps [-30 C] while folks here do ice fishing and make snow sculptures. As for the butchering, I grew up on a farm where it was routine, but I agree that you don't have to see the whole process to appreciate the blessing of having good food - often taken for granted in the USA. Really, you are at a great learning site.. One of my biggest complements while traveling in Latin America was to have someone mistake me from an adjacent Latino nation because my Spanish, even with its broken phrases, was understood well enough to do most basic functions. Your knowledge and cultural adaptation will be a big help as you guide your students.
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