in nicaragua, adios echos throughout the streets. adios when you are greeting someone briefly, when men and boys are hoping to get your attention, or when you are leaving an encounter. adios when you are coming and adios when you are going. i appreciate the reminder that god is all around and moving us through each of our encounters, since grace seems to be organizing this trip more than i am.
tonight is my last night in nicaragua. it is hard to believe that i have been here for weeks already. my plan was to have left days and days ago, but there was so much that i kept wanting to do before i moved on. i revised plan after plan until eventually, i had to let go of making plans beyond the next day or so.
last tuesday, i arrived in esteli in northern nicaragua. it is home to mama leche (who was a practicing midwife that now educates women about breastfeeding); cecalli, a medicinal herb farm, laboratory, and treatment center; and multiple co-ops for women, for farmers, for any number of good causes. there are more shoe stores here than i am able to count, more natural and herbal pharmacies than anywhere else i have been, and a high concentration of universities. in addition to being a relatively progressive nicaraguan town, esteli is nestled amidst beautiful hills and mountains.
wednesday afternoon, i took a day trip to a 35m waterfall and swimming hole. friday through sunday, i traveled to miraflor, which is a nationally protected area of small farms, or fincas, at cloud forest elevations. i stayed at a place called posada la soñada, where the views are spectacular and the nurturing of the clouds left me with a feeling of rejuvenation. the homecooked meals were also amazing, particularily due to the green vegetables that we were served! my soul felt refreshed after being there.
tomorrow i leave for guatemala. well technically at 4 am in the morning. so now i bid adios to nicaragua. it has been great!
things i dont want to forget, but may not make sense outside of my head:
-talking to teenage boys about hiphop post their breakdancing performance
-eskimo ice cream
-miguel´s finca outside of esteli: machete action, sopa with noodles, potatoes, platano and coffee
-accidentally going to a funeral
To experience a place where it becomes impossible to ignore the presence of a greater power, where the landscape and culture exhibit a beauty that cannot be forced but must evolve over hundreds and thousands of years is truly an amazing gift. Even after all our own government has done to try and shape this into a country with goals more congenial to our own, it's good to hear that Nicaragua's identity has persisted through it and that it remains a beautiful land with rich cultural heritage that can still be appreciated today.
ReplyDeleteContinue to grant your whims the opportunity to lead and you're sure to find yourself in more amazing places than you had ever expected to be. Vaya con Dios a Guatamala, Julia :)