El Rama Bound

So week 5 here is almost upon us, who can guess what that means? It means Volunteer Site visits, and a nice break from 6 hours of a language classes a day. This is something g I’ve been waiting anxiously for over the past two weeks or so, as it’s my first chance to get out the Masaya district and really see the country. Sitting in the training session on Wednesday morning was completely nerve-wracking, waiting to find out where we would be heading. If I was anxious then, I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like the hours leading up to my site location.

But after those few restless minutes, I found I was one of the three aspirantes going to R.A.A.S (Region Autonomo Atlantico Sur), the wild east of Nicaragua. Most Nicaraguans call it the “other” Nicaragua, as it’s completely different. Similar to the wild east of New Canaan, apparently anything goes, and is somewhat separately governed and autonomous. While Spanish is still spoken there, Meskito and Creole are also spoken there, and much of the population has Caribbean ancestry. Unfortunately I’m not making it all the way out to Bluefields, like my boy Ronaldo, but I’ll still be smack in the middle of the department, right on the river that empties into the Caribbean ocean alongside Bluefields. The climate and nature is suppose to be wild. The way I look at it, since no business volunteer is going even as far east as El Rama for site deployment, this is an opportunity to explore a part of the country I may not have otherwise. And it’s on the Peace Corps dime, which is even better. And I’m excited to see what a day in the life of a business Volunteer is to. Diriamba in the morning for more training, spend the night in Managua, and off to Rama early Sunday morning. I’m ready for an exciting couple of days.