Pictures

Here is a link to the pictures of my trip so far:

http://www2.snapfish.com/share/p=42091215655418245/l=407710902/g=128548298/otsc=SYE/otsi=SALB

Masatepe, Messiah and Laguna de Apoyo

It's hard to believe that I will only be in Nicaragua for 12 more days! Time flies! This past weekend was especially fun for me though. On Friday I went with work to a town outside of Mangua called Masatepe. There the FDL was holding a borrower assembly where the borrowers with the best credit records are invited to come and speak their mind on FDL's services and their experiences as a borrower.

The borrowers are split into smaller focus groups such as solidarity borrowers (groups of four), individual borrowers and commerce borrowers. They are then asked a series of questions like:

1. What are your main concerns with respect to the credit you receive from FDL? What
worries you on the personal or familiar level?
2. What do you think FDL should improve to provide better service?
3. What new things should FDL offer besides credit?

It was very interesting to here the borrowers speak. Many of them had nothing but good things to say about the FDL. Some of the responses of the borrowers were as follows:

- My loan right now is not that big but it will help me increase my level of living and give me
dignity in my work (agricultural borrower).
- I would like credit for housing construction, as my dream is to own my own home.
- We would like emergency loans for when people die or get sick.
- Rain was a problem for my crops and I have had trouble making my payments because of
this.
- FDL has given us the confidence and support that we can make the repayments.

Overall the borrowers were extremely satisfied and grateful for the services offered by the FDL. The assembly was not however all business! There was traditional Nicaraguan dances put on by a dance team, a raffle, lunch and of course dancing for all of the borrowers. They did try to teach me how to salsa but it was almost a lost cause. When I realized I looked like a rhythm-less white girl I resorted back to the classics: the shopping cart, cabbage patch and the sprinkler (haha, or jaja as the Nicaraguans would write it)!

After the borrower assembly we headed to Messiah where I met with someone at the FDL branch there who went through the lending process with me. I then got to go for a motorcycle ride with one of the loan officers to a borrowers home. This particular borrower used her loans to expand her chicken farm and vase making business. They had over 1500 chickens whose eggs they would sell at market, and then they made vases from wood to sell as well. The woman (It's terrible but I cant remember her name, I need to work on that) said she has been a borrower for 6 years and has received 5 loans. She has a very good credit record. Many of you would be shocked at the conditions the family lives in, but they have improved considerably with the loans. There home is a one room shack with a dirt floor. There is a wash basin outside to do laundry as well as an out house. I do have pictures which I will post a link to soon.

After visiting the borrower it was time for a little shopping! Messiah is well known for its market, where they sell many handmade items. I was determined to find the perfect hammock, which I did and am excited to put to use when I get back. They also had many hand made shoes (which I bought), purses, leather made items, liquors, trinkets, clothing, jewelry, etc! I made a good dent in the wallet and justified it as doing my part to contribute to the Nicaraguan economy and early birthday presents!

The trip to Masatepe and Messiah was a great start to the weekend. Saturday I mainly relaxed and did some reading, but Sunday I went with two friends and their families to Laguna de Apoyo, which is Nicaragua's cleanest, bluest, and deepest swimming holes trapped inside the crater of the Apoyo Volcanoe. The water was so warm and made for a great swim. The weather was cloudy for most of the day and while swimming we got to watch the storm role in! It looked incredible coming over the hills, and definitely did not ruin our fun! We continued to swim as the water poured down on us and I felt a little like Forest Gump when rain was even coming up from the ground, haha! It was an amazing feeling to look around at the green landscape that surrounded me and just take it all in.

But Natalia just made me a great dinner, gallo pinto and chicken with salsa! So I'm going to go enjoy it. Hasta Luego.

You learn something new every day...

While at work I came across an interesting fact about Nicaragua so I thought I would share...

Nicaragua, the largest country in Central America, is known as “the land of lakes and volcanoes.” The region’s largest lake, Lago de Nicaragua, is home to the world’s only freshwater sharks.

I definately will not be swimming there!

Entiendes?

I have been in Nicaragua for about a week and a half now and my Spanish is begining to pick up. I am understanding a lot more of what others are saying, but my own speaking abilities are still pretty weak. Even when I am saying the correct words people often don't understand me because of my accent. I am however able to understand most of what I am being told at work, which is an improvement.

Yesterday I met with Lucia who is in charge of women's development. Out of all of the managers I have met with so far her work interested me the most. Sixty-one percent of FDL's borrowers are women, as the FDL is dedicated to improving the economic well being of Nicaraguan women. FDL also tries to provide more than just financial services to women such as working to increase their self-esteem and improve their education and health.

They serve women in both rural and urban areas through solidarity groups. In order to obtain a loan women must form groups of four. The group is like a team, and if one woman is not able to make her full repayment the remaining three pick up the slack. This helps lower the default risk for FDL. In addition to providing the loan FDL also provides training services through a partnership with Nitlapán Research and Development Institute of the Central American University. Workshops they offer teach women about credit and credit management as well as new agricultural techniques and products. For example they may put on a workshop that shows all the products that can be produced from a cows milk so that borrowers may expand their product lines.


This Friday I will be going to Messiah, which is about an hour outside managua. There I will get to meet with the manager of the FDL branch, as well as a loan officer and borrowers. On the way there however we will be stoping in another town where one of FDL's annual assemblies is being held. At the assembly borrowers are able to speak their opinions on the services provided by the FDL as well as make recommendations for new products they would like to see offered.

So overall work is going pretty well, and I am moving along on my report for the FDL. At the guesthome I am begining to feel like one of the family. Most travellers who come to stay at Hostal Dona Ida are only there for a few days, but I will be there for at least three weeks. Monday I went with the dad and son to their horse ranch in Ficha. They have four horses right now (two lil ones!), and the two big horses are both pregnant. It's been a while since I've ridden a horse, but I got the hang of it again after a while. Then Alfredo and I rode them through the rural areas of Ficha.

It was nice to finally get out of Managua, and the surrounding areas were beautiful (my camera was dead though so no pictures to show)! Palm trees, lush greens, bright flowers, pastures and hills surounded us everywhere. The people who live in the area were very poor, as it is more rural, but Alfredo was telling me how he wants to study marketing in the University next year because he and his dad want to turn their ranch into a get away resort for tourists wishing to ride horses and enjoy Nicaragua's more rural landscapes (At least I'm pretty sure that's what he said because he only speaks spanish).

The traffic here is pretty crazy, but no where near as ridiculous as China. I would probably be in an accident within two minutes though if I ever tried to drive here. They also love to honk their horns, so Gido would feel right at home (sorry I had to call you out Gid). But anyways I'm off to lunch.

Hasta Luego

Home is where you make it

Well I have been here over a week and am all settled in. Today started off pretty badly, some kind of food sickness and lots of regurgitation, but it happens and ended up being a pretty good day anyways. Washed all my clothes, and am very glad that our Fern house has a washer and dryer because it makes things a lot easier. Then I had lunch with the family I'm staying with. It was delicious! It was an argentine dish, and the best steak I've ever had (although I'm not knocking your grilling abilities dad). This evening I went to church with the housekeeper Natalia, and hell didn't freeze over (aren't you proud ceecee?). The mass was pretty much the same as a mass in a Catholic church in the states.

So overall I have had a pretty good weekend. Yesterday I went to the Mercado Oriental, which was pretty much the same as all the ones in China. Hot, smelly, crowded and lots of people trying to pull you towards their stand. Sounds fun huh? Well it's something to experience none the less.

Last night I went out for my first night on the town with some girls from work. It was a lot of fun and the beer here is pretty good. I was however told that Nicaragua is best known for its rum, which I'm supposed to try when we go out Wednesday for ladies night! Nicaragua has no drinking age; however, a lot of the bars and discotecas are only supposed to admit people that are 18 or older. There are also a lot of casinos in Managua.

So as I continue to backtrack through my time here, my first week of work went well. I'm so impressed by the work that they do at the FDL. Everyone is always very busy. Most of the day I'm just sitting at my computer doing research for my report, but this coming week I'm supposed to conduct interviews with the managers. It's a little difficult at times because most of the people at work do not speak English, so it is hard for me to be as hands on as I would like to be, but my spanish is slowly improving and I am trying to make the best of the situation anyways. I have already learned a lot about the industry and funding NGOs.

I will be with the FDL for three more weeks, and then I think I am going to go to Xela, Guatemala to take classes at a spanish school for three weeks. I am excited about that because it's five hours of class a day, and it's one on one with the profesor so I should be pretty good by the time I come back!

Overall I am really enjoying my time here. Everyone has been so nice to me and I am looking forward to travelling around Nicaragua more. I miss everyone at home, tell my little porkchop of a boyfriend I said hello! haha y hasta luego.

Vida Tranquila

Today was my first day of work with the FDL. Excited to be out doing something for the day I awoke to my alarm ,got ready, and was about to go get breakfast when I looked at my watch and realized it was only 6:30, and I didn't have to be there until 8:30. Looks like I forgot to adjust my alarm to the time change...oops!

You can check out the organization I am working for at http://www.fdl.org.ni/index.en. They are an NGO and one of the largest Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in Nicaragua. The difference between them and other Nicaraguan MFIs is that the majority of their portfolio consists of the poorest rural farmers, rather than the richest of the poor (not that there's anything wrong with helping the richest of the poor-oxymoronic?). While interning with the FDL I will be developing a report and action plan to obtain funds from the United States to improve such things as information systems which help to regulate MFIs.

MFIs and other related organizations have proven to be effective in helping relieve poverty. Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in Central America with 46% of the population living in poverty (less than $2 a day) and 15% living in extreme poverty (less than $1 a day).

The majority of the poverty is concentrated in rural areas; however, it is still prevalent in big cities such as Managua (where I am). Just the other day when I was waiting for a taxi after the theater I looked up across the street to see a big field filled with tents made from tarps and garbage bags. They were homes to hundreds of men, women and children. Should I even mention that it had just stopped terentially down pouring?

Suddenly my problems felt pretty insignificant. I hailed a cab and headed back to my hostal. The taxi ride back took about five minutes, and once in the neighborhood of los robles you would think you were in a different country. The street I live on is lined with cute homes that often serve as businesses as well. All of them are walled in, open aired and brightly colored. They generally have a garden in the front or back and a nice car or two parked in the driveway. Grant it I have a few critters crawling around my room, but they are just good company (except for the spiders which I killed...all by myself).

The Hostal, or guesthome, where I am staying is run by Dona Ida (Dona is a term of respect, like Mrs.), and there are 5 bedrooms for guests. Also living in the house are her husband, son and two housekeepers. The one housekeeper, Natalia, takes good care of me. She works every day from about 5 in the morning until 10 at night. She and the other housekeeper clean, cook and do all the laundry. Natalia is only 19. She attends school on Saturdays and is trying to learn english. Most nights we sit together in the kitchen and I help her with her English homework, and she laughs at my attempt to speak spanish. I can't help but wonder when she ever gets to go have fun, but I know she is probably a lot better off then the rest of her family that lives in a rural town outside of managua.

Often times I have gotten irritated by the fact that my travelling is limited because I am alone, and that I can't go out after 7:00 because it gets dark. I felt like I was going to miss out on seeing and doing so many different things, but now I'm begining to realize that if other people were here with me I would probably miss out on the relationships I'm forming with the local people here.

That's all for now, but if anyone reading this is interested in getting involved with microfinancing I strongly encougae you to check out the website www.kiva.org. It's a great example of how technology can be used to make a difference, as it allows you to help people from all of the world with a few simple clicks.

Hasta Luego!

Chica Loca y Mas Joven

The plane rides to Managua were quick and painless, I slept most of the way and was very excited for my new adventure. Few doubts entered my mind about whether or not I was capable of doing this. I was confident and derived strength from my crazy past experiences in China and Alaska. The only difference this time though is that I have no travel buddies, and I am finding that it makes a big difference.

I was picked up at the airport by a man holding a sign that read, "Senor Jordan, FDL." I figured that was me despite the fact that he thought I was a man. He took me the the headquarters of where I will be working (FDL, fondo de desarollo local) where I was met by the woman who I had been in correspandce with (Elizabeth). She was also surprised to find that I am a girl, and a young one at that, so they all keep telling me (mas joven!).

Very few people speek english at the FDL, and as I sat there I began to wonder what I had gotten myself into. I do not understand a whole lot of what they are saying unless they talk directly to me and slow it down a bit. Elizabeth began to explain to me what the plan would be for me for the day, and I understood the majority of what she said but was a little overwhelmed with uncertainty, as she could tell. She then went to get an assistant who spoke English.

She then told me that today they would take me to where I would be staying and give me some things to read about the FDL and monday we would go over a work plan for me. She then asked how long I would with them for; and I replied until August 10th of course. The look on their faces was not comforting! How long they both said! So now I sat there overwhelmed and confused because I had cleared the duration of my stay with Elizabeth earlier. They suggested that I may want to change my flight to an earlier day, but all of that will be disucussed further on Monday I guess!

The guesthome I am staying is beautiful and quaint. It's located in a nice barrio (or neighborhood) and has five bedrooms. It's clean and my host madre is so very nice and is trying to help me with my spanish, lord knows I need it. I am currently sitting outside in the jardin (garden) and enjoying the nice day.

Earlier I went for a walk to a near bye park where boys were playing soccer and then went to the mall and grocery store. I am somewhat shocked by the differences here compared to China. The poverty is much more extensive here, and it humbles me completely to look at the shambles that most of these people live in. Nicaragua has two classes, the very rich and the very poor, so you see extreme differences when you go from one neighborhood to the next. The city has still not recovered from the earthquake that devasted it in the 70's, and tourism in Managua is somewhat limited.

All of the people that I have encountered thus far have been so nice to me; however, I am still hesitant to travel a lot by myself. Tomorrow I plan on going to the theater and exploring some other historical parts of managua (but don't worry mom, I won't go out alone when it gets dark!).

So for now I think I'm going to go do some reading. I'll post again soon and no worries I'm safe!