Settling in and getting going.

I arrived Thursday to my welcome committee in Rivas, and we had lunch together before the ferry journey and travel to my hotel.

Jose, Marvin and Jordy

The approach by ferry.

 En route we dropped off one suitcase containing only items for donations and collected my motor cycle gear. This time I shall just be riding pilion, mostly with Allan, who has offered his services.
My hostel this year is superior to last year although the same amazing value and almost opposite. It has access to the beach where I have walked a couple of times, although they seem anxious to keep it closed.

  There is a lovely flower garden in the centre and my room is cleaned daily.  

However, I mistakenly left a banana today and came back to find a gheko, feet upwards and lots of ants coming from behind the socket. The owner swept and sprayed, I wiped with bleach wipes and finished off with a squirt of repellent! But further ants corpses have appears in the night.
So far I have had fifty/ fifty personal and project time. Yesterday, Friday,  I was invited to lunch with the family who prepared nacatamales. Every member of the family, their partners and offspring turned up at some point, plus some cousins. All the gifts were distributed and gratefully received and everyone is on hand to help. 

It's great to get a community perspective on the school too, and has prompted some questions I might want to ask. Like who uses the computer and who has access to the Wi-Fi. There are a lot of mutterings about the ongoing and outgoing head teachers and each is talking about each other! I will have to be circumspect with my opinions.
Today I met with Jose and Amada, the ex deputy head.  Despite us having arranged to meet with her in Altagracia, she had gone on the bus to Moyagalpa, an hour away to pay the latest internet bills. I had been asking her to do this since November. So I arrived in Altagracia on the bus st 9.30, the 9.30 bus having left Santa Domingo at 9.10, Jose arrived sometime after 10 and Amada at 12.30!  This was really good practice for me to go with the flow and live in Nica time. Let's hope that sitting and looking at the waves will be successful with destressing! Eventually we were all there just in time for lunch, then we managed to clarify the account and balance, which after a lot of frowns and sucking of teeth was actually pretty close. I am happy that it is accurate.

We all continued to Urbaite. Amada thanked me for supporting her degree. She was actually missing the celebration today because of lack of funds. This really makes me  cross in such a poor country, that there are so many barriers to completing educational aspirations. In Urbaite Jose and I began the purchase of markbooks and pens for the teachers of the two primary schools. 40 in total. We have to sort into bags for delivery, but the most essential thing is sorting the uniforms, so they can be delivered this week. I had been told term started on 15th whereas it actually starts on 4th. A bit like last year when I was going to help in school and found they were on holiday. Communication, information and planning are very different- a big challenge for someone like me!

Today we have a family outing to the beach. I am going to walk with Marvin and have booked a microbus for the others. I am told that going for a walk is not usual, except at Easter and special holidays. I imagine when you have to walk everywhere, collect your wood and look for food, it's just part of life and not the relaxing activity we perceive.