After a long series of three flights from rural Brazil to Nicaragua, the taxi ride from the airport on a sultry evening, passed with a feeling of relief as I spoke labored but passable Spanish with the driver about politics (they have a elections coming up for mayors and such) and security of Managua and Nicaragua as a whole, always a subject to be discussed with locals rather than the briefing page on the State Department website).
Safest in central America, by the way.
After a week of trying to extrapolate meaning from Portuguese conversations, translation fatigue had set in. When I am working in northern Mexico, I have the same experience with my Spanish, and yet to my surprise, now, Spanish was a welcome respite. I could communicate without help! In the last place I spent some nights in Brazil, I could barely communicate with tte desk clerk and ha to take a translator to cover important stuff like checkout.
After a day of R&R, I will travel with a CRS staffer to Esteli in the north. The week will mostly be spent looking at projects that are designed to improve farming techniques and stabilize the farmers' access to the markets, both national and international. This, of course, will allow them to establish a sustainable income to improve their living standards.
When you wonder what can be done about poverty, well, this is one of those things.
I hope to have a moment to post some pix soon, so please stay tuned.
R
Safest in central America, by the way.
After a week of trying to extrapolate meaning from Portuguese conversations, translation fatigue had set in. When I am working in northern Mexico, I have the same experience with my Spanish, and yet to my surprise, now, Spanish was a welcome respite. I could communicate without help! In the last place I spent some nights in Brazil, I could barely communicate with tte desk clerk and ha to take a translator to cover important stuff like checkout.
After a day of R&R, I will travel with a CRS staffer to Esteli in the north. The week will mostly be spent looking at projects that are designed to improve farming techniques and stabilize the farmers' access to the markets, both national and international. This, of course, will allow them to establish a sustainable income to improve their living standards.
When you wonder what can be done about poverty, well, this is one of those things.
I hope to have a moment to post some pix soon, so please stay tuned.
R
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