Day 67

I spent the first two hours this morning in maternity, organizing and helping with paperwork. After I finished what I had started, I headed to the lab to help out there.

I started helping out in the lab a bit last week - one day, I just went and asked if they needed any help. They said they absolutely needed help (and it was very obvious, judging by the line-up out the door of patients waiting to have tests done, and by the 5 lab techs on shift...). Because I have lab experience, I understood how to use most all of the equipment, and the lab tech only had to teach me a few specifics of the different (older...) equipment. Within 20 minutes, I was doing glucose, triglycerides, and cholesterol tests on over 50 blood plasma samples. Pretty neat stuff. They're all very simple procedures, and I felt very comfortable working in the lab. Although, take comfort in knowing that in Canada, you could NEVER just walk into a lab and handle human blood without extensive training...haha Only in Nicaragua.

I feel like I am a huge help in the lab - every extra set of hands increases the amount of testing they can do by that much more. I like this kind of work, because I can physically see the work that I am accomplishing. It's very satisfying to know that I can actually help in this way. I even was helping them figure out some of the specific operating instructions of certain equipment, because the instructions are only in English.

I've been spending the majority of the evening sorting things out here - uploading pictures and sorting through them. I've decided it's too big a job for right now, and it might be better suited for my 7 hour plane ride on Friday.

Day 64/65/66

Bitter-sweet weekend...my last in Nicaragua!

We left after work on Friday for Leon. I had already been to Leon in June, but it was where the new volunteers were headed this weekend, and there were many things I didn't have the chance to do while I was there the first time!

We had a relaxing Friday night exploring the city and enjoying some great live Spanish music. We woke early on Saturday morning to go "Volcano Boarding", which is basically sledding down a volcano over the volcanic ash. We hiked up the Cerro Negro Volcano (about an hour away from Leon). We checked out the craters and learned all about the volcano. After a "How to" tutorial and putting on our gear, we volcano boarded down the volcano! The slope is at a 43 degree angle, which is extremely steep. I clocked in at 35 km/h! Couldn't believe how fast I got going! It was an adventure and a half...and probably one of the most intense things I've ever done! The hike itself made the experience worthwhile - the views were just incredible!

We spent what was left of the day exploring the city. We sought out a well known Vegetarian restaurant for dinner, which was delicious. On our way back to the hostel, we encountered a horse in downtown Leon, holding up traffic. Apparently, locals will ride their horse to the bar, and the horse will find it's way home after. No drinking and riding! That's something I don't think I'll ever see in Canada...haha

We spent Sunday admiring the incredible churches. We spent a few hours at the beach, and then headed back to Jinotepe.

It's hard to believe that next weekend I'll be back in Canada. Actually, I can't believe it! The fact that I've been here over 9 weeks just blows my mind. Where did the time go!? As much as I've loved my time here in Nicaragua, I'm definitely feeling ready to come home.

Day 63

I spent the entire day today at the rural clinic. I had very different tasks from what I did last time - I was helping with sexual health education. More than half of the patients today had come from Canas Blancas and it's surrounding communities to receive birth control. All forms of birth control are completely funded by the Nicaraguan government. Typically, women under 25 receive a monthly injection of something called Norigynon, and women over that age receive Depoprovera every 3 months. They also use IUDs and oral contraceptives, although not nearly as commonly as the injections.

It was an extremely interesting day...a lot of thought-provoking experiences and conversations.

Day 62

Today was a slow day in Maternity, so I had the opportunity to visit the operating room! I saw a foot surgery and an appendix removal, both of which were pediatric surgeries! It was really interesting!

Day 61

So guess what? There were NO babies born at all yesterday. All day. It's the first day of the year that there haven't been any babies born! Crazy, eh?

To make up for the lack of babies yesterday, there were 4 births this morning! Busy, busy, busy! It's as if all of these moms were waiting for today, because they didn't want to miss out on yesterday's festivities!

Day 60

Today was a holiday - the independence day of the Carazo region! The public health clinic was closed, and even though I spent my morning at the hospital, you would think that was closed too! There was half the staff there usually are, and a third of the patients. For the first time yet, not ONE baby had been delivered yet today. Even if a baby is not born while I am on shift, there was surely a birth between midnight and 7:00am - not today! The other girls, all working in schools, had the day off completely!

The festivities have definitely continued on today - there have been fireworks all night, and the marching band has yet to lose momentum! Cindy, the volunteer who just arrived on Friday evening, thinks all people do here is party! Too funny...

Day 59

Hipica!

We enjoyed a traditional Nicaraguan breakfast this morning - nacatamales. It's basically a cornmeal-like dough, filled with chicken, pork, tomatoes, peppers, green onions, and spices, wrapped in plantain banana leaves. It's then steamed for several hours, giving it a super unique flavour. It definitely tastes like nothing else I've had before!

Despite the pouring rain, the town was full of festivities! Music and street performers were everywhere, as were people selling handcrafts, clothing, and food. The streets were packed with people! We were told they come from all across Nicaragua for this festival. Hipica is a grand horse parade. You would think it was the Calgary Stampede the way people were dressed! I wished I had brought my cowboy boots, hat, and my plaid shirt, because I certainly would have fit in better!

The parade was beautiful. The horses were traditionally groomed and tacked, and there was no doubt the riders were proud to be showing their horses! It was really something to see. And the entire town was full of life!

The festivities continued late into the night - it seemed like people of all ages were out to celebrate!

Day 58

We had made plans today to spend the morning at the beach, and the early afternoon/evening doing a night tour of the Masaya volcano.

We woke up bright and early at 7am for breakfast, and headed out to the beach. We enjoyed the morning basking in the warm sunlight and splashing in the waves. We even rode horses for a bit!

Around 1:00pm, we headed back home for some lunch. We were bummed out to hear that our trip to Masaya wasn't going to work. There is no appropriate public transportation to get to Masaya volcano. The tour, especially because it is done after dark, requires you to have a personal driver (ie, a taxi). The BaseCamp taxi driver called to let us know something had come up.

We were actually happy to be hanging around Jinotepe for the night, as we quickly discovered the Hipica festivities had already begun! We walked around central park, enjoying music and food, and admiring the market crafts!

Day 57

So, I got my test results back today. Parasite.

The good news is that parasites are extremely common here, and therefore they are fairly easy to treat! The other good news is that, other than abdominal pain after I eat and a churning stomach through out the night, I am feeling fine! Totally functional, for sure! I'm happy that I can healthily go to placement and continue to volunteer. And I did! I went to placement all day today, and it was only afterwards that I went to get my test results. The doctor wasn't in though, so I couldn't get the appropriate treatment. I'll have to wait until Monday!

This is the first weekend we haven't left Jinotepe, and the reason for this is because one of the largest festivals in all of Nicaragua, Hipica, is taking place on Sunday right here! And conveniently enough, it seems everyone is in need of a bit of a chill weekend. Everyone is a little run down, and just really needs to catch up on some extra rest.

So the girls went to Managua for the evening. I didn't go because I went to pick up my test results after placement, and because I was feeling very tired.

A new volunteer, Cindy, arrived at the house late tonight. She's from UBC, studying history and Spanish. I can tell she's an awesome person already - I can't wait to get to know her better over the next 2 weeks!

Day 56

Happy Canada Day!

Seeing as we are all Canadian volunteers, we decided to throw a Canada day party! We bought cake mix from the supermarket, and sprinkles (they only had red, white and blue sprinkles, so we bought them and picked out the blue ones!). We made potato salad and barbecued some hot dogs. We invited our friends from our volunteer placements and from other organizations. We wore red and white, and even bought some face paint. We had quite the turn out for our little BBQ! We even sang "O Canada" as proudly and loudly as ever. It was a Canada day I will never forget, and the first I've ever celebrated in another country.

It was Sara and Brittany's last night here. After 8 weeks with them, it was incredibly hard to see them go. Especially because I felt like I was supposed to be going home too! We've done everything together since we've arrived. We were on the same flight here. We took Spanish classes together every day. We've been roomies. We've travelled on weekends together. We've hardly spent any time apart at all. And as I watched them pack and prepare to return to Canada, I felt as though I too should have been preparing to go home. But, I'm grateful to have the opportunity to spend another 2 weeks in this beautiful country, and I plan to make the most of my time left here!

I stayed up and watched a movie with the girls, and at 2am, we decided to sleep. Their cab came at 3:30am, and we were all up to say bye. It was so sad :(

So here's to Sara and Brittany for all the laughs and good times - I'm so happy to have been through this journey with the two of you. :)