getting the bug ...

Well, it was only a matter of time before I got sick here. I was stupid and against the advisement of my guide book, I bought a bag of fresh cut watermelon, mango and papaya on the street yesterday. It was hot out and I couldn´t resist. About four hours later I really regretted the decision. But fortunately people who have been traveling longer than I have gave me some Pepto and some kind of anti-parasite pill, and after a little bit of feeling like total crap, I now feel great. I think the orange pop made with pure cane sugar helped as well.
I´ve been enjoying my Spanish classes with Rolando. He´s been telling me about the history of this country, as well as century-old government corruption on levels that would even make W. shake his head.
The FSLN revolution of 1979 and the following Civil War of the 80s are still very fresh in the minds of the people here, and it is very interesting to hear them talk about it. And, much like my experience in Cuba, people in Nicaragua know a great deal about U.S. history. Mostly because ,like most countries, the US has had a firm hand in the history of Nicaragua, both good and bad, for centuries. I am always surprised by how much people in other countries care and pay attention to what happens in other parts of the world. In the U.S., granted it´s not everyone, but a lot of people just don´t give a crap about anything that doesn´t directly affect them. Or that they perceive doesn´t directly affect them. Rolando and I discuss the U.S. a lot, and it´s really wonderful to be able to see someone else´s point of view on my home country. And also, to clear things up for him. It´s difficult to explain the complexities of the U.S. to people here. All of our gravest problems are so sugar-coated, to people in other countries it seems they don´t even realize they exist. But many of the issues in Nicaragua - poverty, corruption - exist in the U.S. as well, but they are not quite as blatant. But, I´m not really comparing the countries. After all, NICA is the second most impoverished country in the western hemisphere, and the U.S., of course, is the most properous, over all. At least for now.
I love traveling to places with such an interesting history, and such welcoming people. I am learning a million things every day and so far, it´s one of the best trips I´ve ever been on.
I´ve met a lot of interesting Nicaraguans, and other gringos as well. Gringo, by the way, means anyone foreign, not just Americans. But I get called Chela or Chelita more often. I´ve been hanging out with two girls and a guy from Alaska who spend six months a year in Skagway (which they call the Disney World of Alaska, getting like 10,000 tourists a day) during which they work at restaurants and bars, and live in a campground with other workers, making enough money to travel for the other six months of the year. They keep telling me I should go up there this summer and work, and honestly, I think I might be a fool not to do it.
Anyway, there are great people here. But also, as anywhere, there are shady individuals and I have heard some horror stories. Nothing really too bad about NICA, but about other countries in the area. Though I have heard some scary stories about theft here, namely involving cab rides in Managua. There are little scams around the area too. Namely a really pretty Nicaraguan girl who targets male tourists at the popular backpacker hotel and bar in town, gets them drunk or volunteers to show them around, and while they are enamored - or hammered - robs them of all they are worth. That´s the rumor anyway. Also, it´s important to look out for people who get a comission for bringing you to certain stores to buy things that are way overpriced. It´s a Third World country so it happens, and a lot of the same things happen in the U.S.
Oh, one thing that sucks is that my brand new Winchester multi-tool got stolen from my checked back. The knife´s blade wasn´t long enough to be confiscated for safety reasons, and something makes me doubt they would do that here anyway, so I think someone just saw it and decided they wanted it. Oh well, there was a reason I didn´t the most expensive one. I´m going in search of a knife at the market today. Siempre debe de llevar un cuchillo afilado.
But ... I feel safe. I´m not an idiot, so I feel that cuts down my chances of something bad happening by ten fold. Still, I take a lot of precautions.
But at the same time .... I am having an amazing time. I love learning and seeing new things - especially in tropical destinations.
I think I am going volcano boarding this Friday. Which involves climbing up Cerro Negro volcano and riding down it on a piece of plywood. It´s one of the many things people come here to do. But tomorrow, first thing is first, I´m going back to the Las Penitas beach with my classmates after class.
Que lindo!!!!