Sensory Overload

This was going to be a long, well thought out post. I´ve been on this computer for way too long, though, so instead it´s going to be a long rambling post that I make just for the sake of getting some memories out...

Wednesday: When someone dies in Nicaragua, the family, friends and awkward foreign girl sit around in plastic chairs on the sidewalk outside the deceased´s house. Some people stay all night, drinking soda and coffee and eating cake. Most of us just stayed until 10 or 11. The cousins also thought it was hilarious that I was sitting there "funeraling" with them. In my defense, I thought it was normal "hang out on the sidewalk and talk" time, not "remember our departed friend" time. The 2 are easy to confuse.
I also had an incredibly frustrating conversation with one of the cousins on why I have friends who aren´t Nicaraguan (ie dutch and from the US) here. I was going to rant about that, but I don´t have time now. I managed to bite my tongue during our conversation because I didn´t want to offend the family by telling off one of their sons in perhaps more than 1 language, but I did go home and spend half an hour writing out my frustration and my counterpoints in my journal.

Thursday: Took my laundry to the laundromat in the morning. This turned out to be one of my best decisions yet. I honestly had forgotten what truly clean clothes smell and feel like. Then went to school, where we had a piñata with the kids. Went home for lunch, went back to school and taught my 2 afternoon students. Picked up my laundry, dropped off everything I´m not travelling with at my friend Trista´s house, got home just in time for Angela Cristina´s birthday party. 3 hours later, I emerged from a house that contained cake, ice cream, a giant Dora the Explorer piñata and 15 groggy preschoolers to go talk to my friend Caroline about our upcoming weekend of travel. Ended up going out dancing with Caroline´s neighbor Nami, who just got here Tuesday. We went with a couple of other Americans who are here studying and Nami´s host dad, who is 36. We had a really great time and it was nice getting to laugh a lot in English and Spanish.

Friday: Last day of teaching. The kids were so badly behaved today that I cut class 45 minutes short and used the extra time to go say goodbye to the employees and kids over at the daycare. Went home for lunch, and now here I am. Today I have to buy a daypack for hiking, pack all my stuff, drop by 2 friends houses, change some money and go say goodbye to the other US girls at 8:30. They are going out to a disco by the lake but a big part of me wants to spend my last night in Granada absorbing the city, rather than other people´s sweat.

Caroline, her brother and I are leaving for Isla de Ometepe at 10 in the morning. I´m not sure what my internet schedule will be like after that, but I will update as often as possible until I get home on August 1 (3 weeks from today). Prayers for protection would be greatly appreciated. Keep sending emails about your lives at home, I love reading them even if it takes me a couple of days to respond.

Goodbye Granada, hello chicken buses!