Tales of a Traveling Maymar: Santa Isn't the Only Reason for a Parade

Hola!

About an hour ago I turned on my computer with the intention of writing a blog post. I didn't really have many interesting things to say until I began hearing a faint roar of drums coming from a few blocks away. My friends and I went to the window to see what was going on and found a parade passing by. We ran outside to watch the people dancing and playing Latin music using a variety of drums, what I assume was a Xylophone, and a few other instruments I've never seen before. The dancing was well coordinated and the music was great, but I wanted to know what was going on. As it turns out, the parade was a public health promotional tool. The message: get tested for HIV and use condoms. What a great way to get the public's attention! I wish we could have a parade about eating fruits and vegetables...

I finally saw surgeries last Wednesday! One of the doctors in Maternity told me to follow one of the "Medico Internos", Marginee, because she knew some English. I was able to see 4 cesarean sections, 2 tubal ligations, a hysterectomy and some sort of laproscopic knee surgery. Surgery was interesting to watch, but I wished I had been able to ask questions about what I was seeing. Also, my knee hurt from volcano boarding, making it difficult to stand in the OR for long periods of time. This week is supposed to be my last week of volunteering...I couldn't find Marginee on Monday (I like to follow her around because if I really can't communicate in Spanish, English is there to fall back on) so I came home early and made a food guide poster for the health clinic using typical Nicaraguan foods as examples. On Tuesday, I found Marginee at 8:30 am. She had finished all her work already... entonces we went to the hospital library. She read a book in English and I read one in Spanish. The afternoon was highly productive as well, I browsed Avon catalogs with an OB-GYN. Thus, I think it's easy to understand and rationalize why I decided Tuesday would be my last day.

Today I went to Granada with Matt and Daniel (one of the November volunteers who is now coming to Costa Rica and Panama as well), because it would be Daniel's only chance to go. The plan was to try to see a movie (I was hoping for Harry Potter). I feel going to a movie in Nicaragua would be a cool experience. The movies were closed though. Maybe I'll be able to see Harry Potter in Panama City! The day was still good. I had an amazing piece of pecan pie and went to the Chocolate Museum again. Tomorrow I need to pack for the rest of my travels, bring my food guide to the clinic, and perhaps take some more pictures of Jinotepe.

Last Saturday we went to Mombacho volcano. It is an inactive volcano covered in cloud forest. I paid the $10 to take the truck up to the visitor's center due to my knee which still hurts. The others decided to hike. Two and a half hours later they reached the top, drenched in sweat. The hike wouldn't have been bad at first, but after a certain point the incline is practically vertical. There were 2 trails at the top of the volcano. I really wanted to hike the long trail but had to settle for the shorter trail with my knee still healing. We spent Sunday on the beach, working on our tans.

This may be my last post for awhile as we head to San Juan del Sur on Friday. If hostels have computers I can use, I'll most like write some stuff, I just won't be able to post pictures. Blogger has a page where I can see the stats of my blog: how many times each post is read, what browser it was read on, the countries people were in, etc. It's strange to think that random people might be searching for something and my blog turns up in the results. The stats show people reading in Canada (obviously), Nicaragua (probably me, haha), South Korea (Anisa I think!), the US and Peru. I can't seem to figure out who I know in the US and Peru that would be reading and it's made me curious! As long as its being read, that's good I suppose.

Gracias por leiendo!

Maria