Helping two communities

To see how this project started click here.Ometepe Project

To donate Ometepe project

January 2018. During the first week here we have sorted many of the items that I brought and calculated outstanding needs. This week Santa Teresa told me that exercise books were a priority, so we have purchase enough for all the children at Santa Teresa School. We also purchased books for all teaching staff in Rafaela Herrera and it's satellites, Santa Teresa and the secondary school. So in total 50 packs. I had enough paper bags with logos for the primary schools, trying to set an example with sustainable materials. We also had biros and pencils and a few felt pens, but some additional markers were included.

The school uniform had already been purchased by Joe and Amada. Once we obtained the lists, Jose, Hermes and I spent a morning sorting and bagging up all uniforms for the two schools. There were a few errors , so two additional uniforms were purchased in the local shop. We have already decided to use Peace and Hope's system next year, which will require the parents to go to the shop and I will pay the bill once everything is selected. Thst way we will have fewer errors.

Given that we bought a computer last year, I don't understand why the list was handwritten. An excel spreadsheet is more likely to result in an accurate list. We have also been gathering date and cost on technical equipment and instruments ready for next week's shopping trip to Rivas and so thst I can ccalculate what is possible.

Santa Teresa.

This school is situated at roughly 3 k from the main road and educates people from the community around Dreamland Tours. People ride bicycles, horses, walk, use motorbikes or go on foot according to their income. They can be seen with loads of bananas or sometimes collecting wood, herding their animals , As it is on the beach some fathers go fishing, and people also do their washing in the lake.

When we arrived, the parents and children were cleaning the school and playground ready for the start of term. There are 62 students, 14 are prescolsr and 7 staff. Children attend in two shifts, morning or afternoon. However there is also secondary education on Saturdays for those who have not completed it or who cannot get to the secondary school in Urbaite .

Whilst Jose returned to collect the uniforms, I had an interview with Yasmina, the head teacher and Jorbin, the responsible teacher ( when the Headteacher is in Los Ramos). Yes I am getting plenty of practice with my Spanish. At the end of the discussion I was clear on their priorities and how we could help, but needed to make calculations.

Parents and pupils then assembled. There had been talk of fruit, so I imagined a tea party, but discovered later that the box was for me. It was their gift from the things they had to give. Coconuts, mandarins, bananas, oranges and breadfruit. I accepted it graciously, kept a few items for me and asked Jose to take it home for the community and family.

I was asked to kick off the speeches, difficult to summarise how we got here in a few minutes. I tried to emphasise the link with Dreamland as they want to engage the community in helping to protect their property. Jose continued with more information, then the names were read out and the children came to collect their uniform. Some children I recognised from Sunday's outing. Parents were invited to speak and several did so. Their words were full of gratitude, mentioning their challenges and lack of resources.

The families dispersed walking in various directions, whilst we got in the bus to return to our homes. There were many waves as we went past.

Urbaite community.

Urbaite is classed as a more urban area. Rafaela Herrera is called an urban centre of education and oversees three smaller schools, Tilgue, Sintiope and las Pilas. There are 260 pupils overall and 30 staff. Similarly the children attend in two shifts. Urbaite is clustered around the main road from Moyagalpa to Altagracia, the two main towns. There is also a secondary school, a church and a few shops. There are no petrol stations or Banks. Other dirt roads radiate out into the surrounding countryside where a variety of properties are found. The best will be brick built, next come breeze block or bloques and there are many made of wood, posts, plastic and wire. There is running water and electricity.

Facilities include a latrine that the family build, a concrete or wooden seat, over a deep pit. Some form of construction is around it. That which I have used has a curtain across the door, pulled across and hooked to a nail. The curtain appears to be washed and changed regularly, there is a little hole allowing you to see if it occupied, an open view across the land, therefore ensuring plenty of air circulation. I carry my equipment in a polythene bag, but soap and water are always on hand.

This week we took some tee shirts Rosa, my Nicaraguan friend had given me, and distributed them in the community.

The father of this family is a fisherman. He has no boat so makes a float out of plastic bottles. Others may do a little construction when work is available, care for their animals and crops around their homes, work in the fields, and a few will work in government posts, schools and other professional posts.

Surprisingly there are some modern buildings in good shape such as a local bus stop.

But the little dog that approached me was certainly in need of food. In a country where people struggle to eat the dogs have left overs and what they can find. Hence Paulette' s work at La Mariposa.

There are signs of previous projects such as the laptop project by Zamorro Teran, dated 2012. It sounded like a grand project but the masts fell into disrepair, the laptops had restricted programs and there was no general internet access or standard programs. So perhaps could gave been better thought out.

There is a local university, and there is a cost to attending. Students normally go on Saturdays for around 25-40$ plus materials. The onus is on the students.

My different life

My meals have been cooked by Sylvia, Jose's sister. She is an excellent cook and works in an outside kitchen using a traditional fire, there are a few saucepan and I think a pressure cooker, a fairly limited range of instruments, no electrical gadgets. Yet the meals are exquisite. Today she cooked a stuffed potato, having seen a photo I sent from the Baltic states. I think it was better than the authentic version. She has no recipes. She has also sourced avocados, knowing I love them. She makes various herb teas.

My day usually begins with a cup of tea in my pyjamas watching the sunrise or padding onto the beach. Once I am showered( cold) I go down to the beach for a walk. Today I met confrontational dogs, so backed into the water until the owner rounded them up. My breakfast cooked by Elisette, can be completely traditional with cheese, Gallo pinto, plantain and banana, or it can be eggs and toast.

Then I go off to my activities, using either bus, taxi or riding pillion on on a motor bike. The rest of The day includes sitting and talking, having traditional coffee, sometimes shopping locally, visiting the school or local families. I have many visits from Jose's family and friends, and frequently meet people I recognise in the streets. I am introduced to everyone, and have had more hugs in a week than I get in a year at home! I am rarely home before mid afternoon. Then it's time for tea, a walk, a rest and sometimes a little snack some time later. I now have two fellow residents, Patrick and Tom, whereas the first few days there was no one else.