A year in Guatemala

I've taken a very long break from writing on this blog, somewhat for a lack of time but also for the sake of safety. For the last year Jean and I were living in Guatemala, which as most know is not a very safe country. Kidnappings are commonplace and being foreigners we were already kind of big targets. Writing publicly on a blog about where we were would not have been wise so now that we're no longer there I will fill in some of the missing details.

We decided to go to Guatemala because immigration there does not require a visa for Nicaraguans wanting to enter, or for Canadians either. So both of us were allowed to stay in Guatemala freely without any lengthy paperwork or applications to fill out. A lot of things were less than ideal, but we really had no where else to go. Guatemala does not get a lot of tourists, at least in the area we were living, so we felt very out of place. even after a year in the same place people would still stare at us open mouthed or make strange comments as if we couldn't hear or understand what they were saying. It felt like they didn't see us as real people. Aside from this overall Guatemala is a beautiful country. It is often called the country of eternal spring, as the climate is cool and the environment is lush the entire year, the weather changes little if at all from one season to another. The high altitudes make a lot of the areas much cooler than you would normally see in central america. The food in Guatemala is also quite varied as you can find a lot of fresh foods in the market quite easily. The good weather makes it so that people in Guatemala can grow things that were difficult to find in Nicaragua. We were able to enjoy blackberries, strawberries, peaches, and lots of greens as well.

A frosty morning in Totonicapan, Guatemala.

Thanks to the help of the local congregations we were able to find places to rent where it otherwise would have been quite difficult. We lived in a relatively safe part of Guatemala, in Totonicapan which is a Maya community 2,500 meters above sea level. It is very mountainous and quite cold. Toto as it is called, a long with other communities that are given permission by the government to enforce their own laws, are much safer to live in. Their justice system is said by some to be brutal, but if you can feel safe in a town that is inside a country ruled by gangs, obviously they're doing something right. They can be very closed to outsiders which can make it difficult or impossible to move into and rent in the community, but thanks to the brothers we did not have that problem.

We still faced some danger when we had to go to specific offices and specific private doctors that the Canadian government required for Jean's residency application, and I wasn't too pleased with this. There were a lot of completely unnecessary steps that put both of us in danger that the IRCC forced on us. But in the end, we knew we were facing these trials because we insisted on doing things the right way. Jean could have stayed in Nicaragua where it would have been easier and safer, and I could have come back to Canada to find a job and work through the process there, but we knew that this would be wrong from Jehovah's standpoint. It would make us no different than those that abandon their families to go and work in a wealthier country to send money back home. Mark 10:9 says "what God has yoked together, let no man put apart."

Knowing that we were doing the right thing, and that we were suffering because of doing the right thing gave us the courage to push through. It was hard to go to Guatemala city. Mass shootings happen on the public buses on a regular basis in that city, and Jean has even lost a close relative in one of these shootings. When we had to go in once we heard on the news that there had been two more shootings the day before, but it helped me to think about Psalm 23:4 "Though I walk in the valley of deep shadow, I fear no harm, For you are with me; Your rod and your staff reassure me."

Against all odds we made it through. We completed all the ridiculous steps, got around corrupt officials that tried to stop us, and managed to survive.

Jean's application for Canadian residency was approved in November of 2019.

By nothing less than Jehovah's mighty hand we were brought through. Jean and I are still together and we are together in Canada now. Thanks to Jehovah, and thanks to my parents who helped us through it all and never doubted that we were doing the right thing, as well as our friends and brothers who helped us along the way, we have won this battle. Where will we be in the future? It doesn't matter.

Nova Scotia, Canada

March 23rd 2019

Well we finished our move up higher into the mountains, but then found out the situation was quite different than what we had been told. Without going into detail we had to move again in a hurry into an empty house and buy furniture so as not to be sleeping on the floor. Its been a bit of a chaotic few months but things are going well overall and we have had lots of fun. We're still in the same town we had planned on moving to, and serving in a newly formed Spanish language group.

Our three month tourist visa expired so we had to do a visa run, for Jean this was the first time. Because she is Nicaraguan while we were there only I had to leave the country to renew my visa, but in this country since both of us are foreigners we both had to leave the country together. I never appreciated before how easy we Canadians have it. For Nicaraguans everywhere we want to go, Jean needs to fill out forms and sometimes go for an interview in order to get a visa to enter another country. Some countries make it utterly impossible or very expensive so its not even viable for a visa run. We decided on Mexico as there was no fee for the visa, but it was still quite a bit of paperwork.

Thankfully, the visa was approved and we were able to travel together to Mexico. Some old friends of ours that had been serving in Bluefields Nicaragua who were forced to leave Nicaragua for very similar reasons to us are now in Chiapas and they offered us a place to stay and hospitality when we needed it the most. Jean and I got to explore another new country, city, food, and culture together which is an experience I'll never get tired of. We ate so many tacos, drank horchata and micheladas, and even went to a party.

I've come to a new philosophy on street food and being careful with sickness in other countries. When I first left Canada I was told by nearly everyone not to eat street food or drink the local water. I think this was bad advice for several reasons. One being that you miss out on some really amazing things, another is that you will offend the local people. Countless times I've found I was the only foreigner invited to some event because "well Matthew eats cabbage salad so we can invite him too".
No matter what country you go to, the people there are also human beings. If it doesn't kill them, it won't kill you either. It may have "different" bacteria to what your immune system is used to, but once you've been though a few belly aches you won't get sick anymore. I've been eating a lot of street food and I can't remember the last time I got ill from eating something.

The trip to Mexico was refreshing and felt like the vacation we needed. Just as we were leaving we got word back from the Canadian immigration. They are ready for Jean's medical and police certificates which means we won't be waiting much longer. Provided we can get all the documents. The Nicaraguan embassy is not being very helpful with the documents they are supposed to provide, but that isn't new. We ask them for a document that we need from them, and their go-to answer is "no that doesn't exist", when actually it does they just don't feel like doing it.

Just a few more steps though, after this is in all that's left is to wait.

December 31st, 2018

Its been a few weeks now since we sent our application for Canadian residency, now we just have to wait. Meanwhile we are moving again. This time a little higher up in the mountains. It is getting a bit tiring moving all the time but circumstances are just that way. The place were moving to will make things a bit easier for us while we wait for an answer from the government, as well be able to save a bit of money and also be able to avoid a bit of the problems in the place were currently living, nothing too big just minor inconveniences.

Were looking forward to getting out of the city. We will be helping to look after a place that belongs to some brothers as they will be out of the country for a bit. it is just on the outskirts of another city, and part way up a mountain. I'm not sure of the exact elevation but its somewhere between 3,000 and 4,000 meters. We've definitely adapted to the altitude by now in these 3 months here so the change should be barely noticeable. It will be a bit colder but the house has a wood burning stove for heat. We're looking forward to enjoying the more natural environment as its surrounded by pine forests.

We really are hoping to become more permanent somewhere as soon as our circumstances allow for it. One thing we've found challenging is that each place we go we are forced to leave for one reason or another, and we leave before we ever start to feel at home. The last place we really felt at home (as a couple) was Corn Island, we had a lot of friends there and felt like we could be ourselves as we were in our own culture so to speak. I even had other foreigners around so I didn't feel isolated.

I never really thought that living outside of my culture would be such a challenge. I'm always surprised by how many things are different that I didn't expect to be different. Its really hard to explain what I mean by that exactly... But if you've spent a good amount of time in a foreign country, and more importantly among people that don't speak your language you may understand what I mean. Our mother tongue affects the way we think, the way we process information and how we react to situations and behavior on a very deep level. People do things here that to me are so incredibly rude, or completely wrong, and I'm more than certain they think the same thing about us. When I started traveling I thought "I won't let that bother me, I'll just adapt and try to be as much like them as possible". Well that doesn't work. It takes years to really become comfortable with things that deep inside you feel are wrong.

My family no longer lives in Alberta, they've all moved over to the maritimes and are in Nova Scotia now, so when we go to Canada thats where we will be going as well. It will be a completely new environment for both of us. I've never been to the maritime provinces and until recently I couldn't even name them all or place them on the map. We will have to learn a new culture again, but this time our hope will be to stay for a long time in the town where my parents live until we really feel home there. At least there no one can make us leave. We won't need any more visas or to ask permission to stay longer every three months, not knowing what we would do if they say no. I'll be able to look for a job that lets me work in the day so I can finally get a good night's sleep.

October 2, 2018

We spent a whole three months in Pearl Lagoon, our plan was to stay there much longer. At least a year was our idea. We kept ourselves busy while there, and I hardly had time to write anything for this blog. We've kept on with our struggle to stabilize our situation, only to be continually let down by the system. At least we are in good health and still together.

We've kept on in our attempts to get into Canada. Its been more than 4 years now since I left and I haven't been back even once. I am not willing to go without Jean. The political situation in Nicaragua still has not affected the brothers in the Atlantic coast significantly so this wasn't a concern for us. We decided to keep on pursuing the possibility of me getting residency in Nicaragua so that we could both be legal permanent residents of the same country. After going through lawyers, spending money we didn't have to spend, lots of visa runs, and fixing papers that the judge had filled out incorrectly we finally had everything in order.

Unfortunately, now there is no way for me to get residency in Nicaragua even though I am married to a Nicaraguan citizen. The reasons are unclear, but I know I'm not the only one in this situation. I met a man with his lawyer in Managua who had just been told to start over again because all the requirements have changed. Furthermore, immigration told me that I have to leave. I am no longer allowed to cross the border into Costa Rica and return (even if longer than 3 days) because I have been in Nicaragua too long. They wanted me to return to my country. In effect we are being forced to leave Nicaragua. Obviously, we leave together.

Since Canada is also making it impossible for us to go to my country, we've decided to consult the internet for a list of countries where both of us can go without a visa. The number of options was actually quite surprising and encouraging. There are a lot of exciting, interesting, and beautiful countries (affordable too!) that will allow us to live there at least for a time without having to worry about immigration papers. This should give us enough time to finally get the papers for Jean to come with me to Canada.

Because the country we are currently in doesn't enjoy the same level of safety as Nicaragua, I'll be deliberately vague on our exact location. But its cheap, the food is amazing, and I'm wearing a winter jacket while typing this. And the town we live in does have a reputation for relative safety.

I'll admit i'm surprised how difficult its been for me, a 4th generation Canadian citizen to bring his own wife into the country, even after being married for three years. It isn't impossible, in theory we can go eventually. The problem is the first two times we tried to go, our intention was not to stay in Canada. We wanted to return to Nicaragua after a quick visit with my family. So naturally we applied for a visitor visa. It was denied both times, for reasons that I couldn't understand at the time. Interestingly though, there is a provision where Canadian citizens can demand information pertaining to them from the government. Its similar to the United State's "freedom of information" act.

Imagine my surprise on reading the immigration officer's personal comments to his supervisors that were written on my wife's application. He didn't read it. He saw "Nicaragua" "Canadian husband" and denied it. He saw a clever Nicaraguan trying to cheat her way into Canada to steal jobs, with a fake marriage to a Canadian that doesn't exist. Its very disappointing to be called a liar by your own country, to be denied the right to go home by someone that might not even be a Canadian themselves. I did some digging, the application was processed in Mexico, and in Mexico just like Nicaragua most of the embassy workers are locals. The only person working at the Canadian embassy in Nicaragua for example can barely speak English at all.

Our only option now is to go for the complete Canadian residency. Jean can apply for this from outside the country and hopefully they actually read this one. For this one we only have to prove to them that we are really married. Maybe the fact that I haven't come home for four years will convince them? Or maybe they will even read this blog. It would be a nice change of pace if they started reading things they're supposed to.

In any case were having a great time where we are. We are high in the mountains at an altitude of over 2,000 meters. Thats right, meters. The first week or so we felt short of breath but now we're feeling normal again. Actually, with the cool weather we feel like we have even more energy to get things done. The city we live in has a reputation of enacting "street justice" on thieves and as a result the crime rate is surprisingly low. Its common to see people walking in the street at night, unafraid to use their smartphones in public. The cost of some things is higher than in Nicaragua, as its a more developed country by far. However the cost of food is much lower, probably due to the amount farming in the area, especially of green veggies and fruit. In the end we spend less overall, and we have the opportunity to go places like McDonalds once in a while. There is even a Walmart here.

Mek wi get fahn here

It is now June 3rd, 2018 and we no longer live in Tola. We spent one entire year there, and it was time to move on. It was definitely worthwhile to spend the time in a Spanish congregation and become much more comfortable with the language. After a while though we started to feel like it was time to go back to the Atlantic coast.

There isn't a congregation in Nicaragua that doesn't need more brothers, but Jean has relatives in Pearl Lagoon, and my family are no longer in Nicaragua. If they do come back it won't be to the Pacific. So after weighing our options we decided to move back to Pearl Lagoon.

We had left Pearl Lagoon initially for a variety of reasons, one being that we were newly married and wanted space. Another being the need for online work. Taking Jean back to Canada requires jumping through endless and seemingly impossible hoops. Thus, since I am unwilling to live away from Jean for months at a time we must support ourselves as other "digital nomads" do, by making our living off of the internet.

A few years ago, you could forget about getting a stable internet connection in Pearl Lagoon. Or even stable electricity for that matter. Things have changed a bit. A few new telecom companies have made their way into Nicaragua and brought some stiff competition for the existing internet providers. This has encouraged the well established ones to provide better services in more remote areas. The result being that one can now get a DSL broadband connection in Pearl Lagoon. It isn't cheap, but it works. This gave us the opportunity to go back "home" to the place we first met, and where both of us had spent most of our time in Nicaragua.

There were some snags in our move. We had some things we wanted to take with. We had bought our own furniture in Tola and didn't like the idea of losing on all of that. So we looked into hiring a truck to drive us there with all our furniture, now that the road is much better as well. We also didn't want to make the cats endure a 10 hour bus ride in the heat and in a tiny carrier.

The truck ended up being too expensive, so we considered renting a truck and hiring someone to drive it for us. I can legally drive in Nicaragua with a Canadian licence, but I wasn't comfortable doing this because of how foreigners are seen by police.

Then a couple interested in visiting Pearl Lagoon offered to drive us and our things in their own truck. This was by far the best option, but the plan was "mashed up" when Nicaragua was hit with a wave of political unrest. Although we haven't been affected by the protests that are going on right now directly, there are roadblocks on the major roads from time to time and this would add some major delays to a cross-country roadtrip. After having delayed our trip for an entire month we decided it was simply time to go. We had found everything we needed in Pearl lagoon: A house to rent, an internet connection, and even furniture. So we sold everything and bought a plane ticket.

We hired a taxi, driven by a local brother from Rivas (who by the way was a fantastic driver, well done Jose). Who managed to sneak by every single roadblock by going down back roads and through small towns on the way to Managua. We skirted around Granada and popped out near Tipitapa, bringing us to the Managua Airport without coming across any trouble or entering Managua itself.

Nicaraguan cat carrier

We spent that night in a nearby hotel and the next morning flew to Bluefields. The cats absolutely hated the trip. It was hard to find nice carriers for them, will definitely try to find something better by the next time we travel. Also the tranquilizer was too small of a dose and didn't do anything. They seemed to prefer the backpack we carried them in to Managua more than the airline approved carriers we got from the vet in Managua.

Just in case our trip sounded too easy, our panga from Bluefields broke down twice for a combined period of half an hour. The words "throw the anchor" are not words you want to hear when you're tired and eager to get home.

Everything we own

Whiskey in "his" hotel room

Roadblocks? Where we're going we don't need roads!

A surprise layover in Paradise

Our first meeting back home in Lagoon

The new building used as a Kingdom Hall in Pearl Lagoon

But in the end, we made it and its good to be home! We found a place to rent that was furnished with all the things we had to leave behind, and our cats Whiskey and Brandy are settling in well.

Whiskey helping me get back into blogging.

March 22nd, 2018

I haven't had much time to post on the blog lately, that tends to happen once one is married and working full time while also trying to spend as much time as possible in the ministry, But this post will be a little update on whats been going on with us in Tola.

We've moved to a new house, as we were finding that our old place was just too noisy and that was threatening my ability to work. Processions and loud parties are pretty common at 5:00 AM in Tola... who would have guessed? Its pretty hard to explain that to my students when teaching online as well. I'm not sure I know the answer to questions like "Why do people have pigs if its in the city? Why are they having a party at 5:00 AM? Why don't motorcycles have mufflers there?"

Anyways, our new place is on the far edge of town, close to the graveyard. So far its been quite a bit calmer. Now that the dry season is back we have the new challenge of rationing water. We get running water now only for a few hours each day, from 3:00 AM to 11:00 AM. Sometimes for an hour or so in the late evening around 9 or 10 PM but not every day. I'm not sure if this is to "save" water or if its because of problems in the water lines, I suspect the latter.

Fun fact: The room is being lit in this pic
by a light connected to this same battery.

With the dry season also comes wind, and more power outages as a result, so we've made an upgrade to our UPS. After watching some youtube videos, learning to solder, and voiding the warranty we've upgraded it with a 12 volt deep cycle car battery in place of the smaller 12 volt battery that came with it. With the internet router, laptop, and LED lights for the workspace running at about 50 watts total I shouldn't have anything to worry about if I get up in the morning without electricity. 

I'm always impressed with how willing people here are to try new things mechanically, especially things that go against the user manual of any given device. The results are often even more impressive. I would have been afraid to try something like this before but following the example I've been able to find all kinds of fun DIY projects that have made life a bit easier here. My next goal is either upgrading to solar power, or maybe some kind of backup water system so that were not left having bucket showers (AKA the original ice bucket challenge) after 11 AM.

We also squeezed in a trip to Pearl Lagoon. We had to fix some of our marriage documents for any future residency applications we may make, so this required us to go and visit, which was something we had been wanting to do anyways. It was really nice to be back in the Atlantic coast, and it still amazes me how different the two sides of this country are. Pearl Lagoon has come a long way as well. The road into town is now mostly paved thus making the trip a lot shorter. Kukra Hill, which is a town less than an hour away now has a bank, so going to the ATM no longer requires an exhausting river trip to Bluefields. Kukra hill used to be a much bumpier ride before the road too.

I think what I miss most about Pearl Lagoon and the atlantic coast is how its never dry. Dry air and low humidity is my worst enemy. I have sore throats and I'm uncomfortable all the time in dry places. Tola is still more humid than even the raniest days in Alberta, but Pearl lagoon gets rain all year long so things never dry out. Its always green too, VERY green. The trip took us two days each way, so now were taking a few days to rest and recover.

Working online while abroad

Its now December and we have been in Tola for about 8 months now. There have been some unexpected challenges, but overall we have managed to pull through and our circumstances are much better now than before. We deeply miss Corn Island and just can't stop thinking about our time there. Its still our hope to some day go back.

Remembering Corn Island

The main reasons we were forced to leave the island were A: The time it took to make necessary trips off-island, and B: No job. We had no way to make a living on the island. We were able to scrape by selling pizza on the street, but it wasn't enough to cover the unpredictable travel and immigration expenses. I had to keep going to Costa Rica every 6 months, and extending my visitor visa in Bluefields ever 3 months in between. With each trip taking a week minimum that got costly fast.

Once we moved to Jinotepe I was able to get a job teaching English over the internet, which was quite a blessing for a while. Sadly the company I worked for gradually changed their policies and their contract (Apparently they have a different idea of what a 'contract" is). In the end I was making about 1/4 the income and doing 2x the amount of working hours. I won't mention the name of this company because they don't deserve the publicity.

The good news is, I've been hired now by a better company that offers about 4x the pay per hour, even more than I would expect to make per hour in Canada. They use the same type of software and teaching materials so its a really smooth transition. I will include a link later in the post to their application page for those interested in working for them. I will confess also, at this point, that if anyone uses my link to apply and gets hired I will personally receive a bonus, so if you're looking to work online please USE THE LINK ON THIS PAGE it will help me out a lot.

Below I have assembled a quick guide to how you can get started working online. I will specifically talk about my company DaDaABC, but the principles apply to most ESL teaching businesses you might apply for.

What you need:

A good headset and microphone

- I want to emphasize the word "good". in this case you really can't cheap out. The quality of the microphone is very important and makes a huge difference. 

- Over-ear headphones tend to be better in my experience and help you understand the students pronunciation, which might be terrible so you need to listen closely to know what they are saying.

A good laptop or desktop computer

- Again you don't want to get just any computer. Your entire income depends on this machine so make sure it is up to the task. Remember that with computers more expensive doesn't mean better. I know a lot of people that teach with a Macbook and do fine, but a $300 windows computer might have double the processor speed and three times the RAM. A good graphics card also matters so make sure to know what you have. The custom applications used by DaDaABC and many other teaching companies actually demand quite a bit from your computer for live video feeds, interactive whiteboard and animations etc.

REALLY GOOD Internet

- This one is probably the hardest. We had internet on Corn Island but it wasn't stable enough. DaDaABC requires that you have UNLIMITED internet with a minimum download speed of 10 MBS, and upload of 2 MBS. It must also be a wired internet connection. Which means you have a router in your house with an ethernet cable connecting it to your computer. They feel that wifi is less reliable and require that you use ethernet. Claro offers a package in Tola with 10 MBS download and 2.5 upload for about $80 per month. Isolated communities do not have this service so that really limits where you can go, at least in Nicaragua. 3G and 4G are not permitted (aka the claro stick)

- If you're not sure what any of these numbers mean you definitely want to do some research, its important.

A Quiet place with lots of lighting

- Kind of self explanatory. You need a really quiet place to be teaching. There can't be roosters or dogs barking or traffic in the background. I'll be investing in a slingshot soon to deal with the former myself.

A UPS/Backup battery

- To work for an online tutoring company like DaDaABC you need to be more reliable than the services of the place you live. Power outages happen fairly often in Nicaragua and many other developing countries. You have to keep teaching, so having a backup power supply can be useful. Furthermore, standards for electrical work are different here. I've already had one computer get fried by faulty wiring and don't care to repeat that. A device known as a Utility Power System (UPS) can help. It plugs into the wall, and then has its own outlets for your important devices. It contains a self charging backup battery that automatically kicks in when the power goes out, so if you're teaching and your router, lights, and laptop are all on the UPS... you're students won't even know anything happened. Most UPS also protect against power surges and irregular voltages, thus protecting your devices as well. I got one for about $50 at maxi pali that lasts my laptop, the router, and a bright LED light well over an hour without power.

Those are my tips, Finally here is the company I mentioned earlier. They are called "DaDaABC". I don't know, maybe the name makes sense in Chinese. They are based in Shanghai, and they pay quite generously by the hour. The actual rate is based on your experience and qualifications (TESOL etc), but even their minimum rate is significantly more than minimum wage in most of Canada. Working hours are very early in the AM for the americas, so that means working 4-7 AM. It sounds horrific but its not that bad after a while.

I've only just started with them but I will say they seem very professional. There are two others in the congregation here in Tola working for them and they are very happy with their jobs. I was hired within a week of applying via a link just like the one below, and there was a lot less nonsense I had to wade through than with some other companies (i.e. hours and hours of training videos). They use their own software rather than Skype or zoom, which includes a whiteboard and lets you see the student, as well as their mouse cursor. They also provide ample lesson material so you don't spend much time at all preparing in advance for a class. More like helping them read slides and asking them questions on it, with the occasional grammar game/puppet show. Most students are children.

Click here to apply for DaDaABC: https://www.dadaabc.com/teacher/job/p0R2Y2G5o005

Once you apply, they will contact you on skype or by email and walk you through the rest of the process. It usually involves a skype interview and a demo class after watching some training videos.

Tola, September 2017

We have a few months in Tola now. We're really enjoying the change so far, and starting to learn more about the area and the community. Its been somewhat challenging being completely immersed in Spanish for the first real time, that is to say being in a Spanish congregation with completely Spanish territory. But at the same time not quite as hard as expected.

We also got cats!

Their names are Whiskey and Brandy. We adopted them from a sister in Masaya whose cat had kittens. When we got them they were incredibly tiny, but in just two months they have grown very fast. At first they were terrified of everything and wouldn't come out from under the couch, but within a short time they became very social, affectionate and even jealous for attention. They never scratch or bite, and they help keep down the insects like scorpions and other pests like mice and rats.

Getting pets has also brought to light for me some more cultural differences that I wasn't aware of before. I've gone through all the stages of culture shock over again since we moved to Tola, not realizing how deeply different it was here from the Atlantic coast and from my own culture. 

For a good while I was just frustrated and upset with everything that was "wrong" but I've come to terms with it now. A lot of the big differences I've noticed lately is in regard to animals. Admittedly, animal cruelty and neglect is a big problem in Nicaragua and its often quite hard for tourists and foreigners to deal with when they see it. But not everyone is completely cruel to them, for the most part they simply have a different view of animals, one very different from that we have in North America. Back in Canada people pamper their animals too much, sometimes treating them better than human children. This is obviously wrong as well, but on the other end of the spectrum.

Its a bit hard to express accurately, but from what I can tell here in Nicaragua people do not see animals as "alive"... What I mean is they don't think of them being able to feel pain or any kind of suffering or pleasure. They seem to put them in the same category as plants. Having a chicken is like having a fruit tree, a dog like a shrub to keep nosy neighbors out.

The idea of having a pet is completely foreign. Pet stores are rare and cater to foreigners who bring their pets with them. Veterinarians do exist but the majority of their work is vaccinating cows and pigs. Of course they are capable of looking after your cat or dog as well. 

As I mentioned dogs are kept for security, but when it comes to cats things get really different. Cats are not pets, in fact many see them as dirty animals, some people even having a phobic response to seeing them. One lady said she would much rather have rats in her kitchen than a cat. This may stem from some superstitions or possibly misinformation. We were told by a few people that we shouldn't have cats in the house because their hair will make you go blind. 

Now normally I couldn't care less what people think if I have two cats in my house, but it gets hard when you try to find the basic necessities. If someone here has a cat, firstly they do not feed it, they expect it to hunt. So don't expect stores to sell cat food. Then comes the litterbox. Since cats make you go blind no one would ever have one in the house, so obviously they relieve themselves outside. If they get fleas, rabies, or any other disease is the cat's problem. We made our own box easy enough, but getting the sand was hard. We managed to find some bags at the maxi pali in rivas, but they were in the food section (I think the staff actually thought it was cat food). Unfortunately there wasn't much available and the bags were not big enough to even properly fill the box. But we made due. 

Then the food. They do sell it in big stores like Pali, but because only foreigners buy it, it is priced accordingly. Cat food costs more than many basic staples for human beings, ranging from $1.50 to $2.00 per pound. Cat litter (AKA grey catfood) is even more expensive.

I'm beginning to understand and accept the differences in thought now though. Its actually quite reasonable that someone wouldn't bother buying food for an animal when they can barely afford their own food, and why buy something for the animal to poop on when you have no toilet paper.

I still find it amusing though when the neighbors or friends come and see our cats and their jaws drop because of their size. The cats are only 4 months old but because they are fed regularly and given parasite medicine and needed shots they are already bigger than most of the street cats.

In other news were looking to move to another house soon. Another cultural quirk of Tola is that everyone has to have a rooster. Even though we made it clear to the landlord we needed a quiet place it seems they spent the rent money on pigs and chickens. My clients are starting to complain so if we stay here I risk losing my job. The place we've found is much quieter so hopefully it will be a good move. Internet is still good though and it sounds like moving our connection to the new house won't be an issue.

Island of Ometepe

This month we had the chance of going to visit Ometepe Island, which is really not far at all from Tola. In fact, from some parts of town one can see the principal volcano on the island, Volcan Concepcion.

Jean and I along with my sister and her family went together, cramming 6 of us in a small car. Our trip started early in the morning as we left from Tola for the port of San Jorge near Rivas. I was really surprised to see how different the transportation systems are here on the Pacific than on the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua, and felt a bit sad for the people on Corn Island and what they have to put up with.

To get to Ometepe, one can take a ferry from San Jorge. There are several different boats run by different businesses that travel several times every day, usually once in the morning and once in the afternoon. The boats are very large and also comfortable and well maintained. You can also take your car, so we hopped out just before my brother in law drove onto the ship, where he was told to cram it into the corner so tightly the doors wouldn't open, so he had to get out of the passengers side door.

El Rey

Deck 4

The boat we went on was called "El Rey" or "The King" in English, which we read in some places was the nicer of the boats, and it certainly was a nice one. There are 4 decks, the top being open air with benches, and the other floors having more comfortable padded seats and tables, but being closed in by windows. The lower deck also had a small store selling phone credit as well as snacks. The trip to the Island takes about one hour, and is generally very calm as it is across a lake rather than the ocean.

Deck 3

The trip costed about 50 Cordobas per person, and as we came into view of Ometepe we had some breathtaking views of the two volcanoes that make up the island.

Jean giving me attitude

What stood out about the Island the moment we arrived was how lush and green it is. It is the rainy season, and its true that all of Nicaragua is relatively lush and green. But something about Ometepe takes it to another level. Not only are there a lot of trees but they are also huge. Perhaps it is due to the local government's strict rules on protecting the islands ecology, or maybe because of the rich volcanic soil. Whatever the case, this place is intensely green, and everywhere you go you are overwhelmed by the majestic view of the enormous volcanoes. I really had no idea of how big they were until we got closer. For perspective, the larger volcano was even visible from our balcony in Jinotepe.

Jean has always been a bit nervous about volcanoes, talking about stories she always heard about Mt. Vesuvius and Pompeii. I kept reassuring her that although Concepcion (the bigger one) is indeed active, its not "that kind of volcano". To reassure her further that it was safe I did some research on volcanoes, different types, and the history of concepcion. To my surprise, Concepcion IS in fact "that kind" of volcano. According to wikipedia it is a "stratovolcano", some famous stratovolcanoes are Mt. Saint Helens and Mt. Vesuvius... And Concepcion's last major lava spewing eruption was in 2015...

Anyways... Ometepe is pretty. We stayed at a hotel on the eastern coast of the Island, between the two volcanoes. On one of the days of our trip we went to visit a really amazing place called "Ojo de Agua" which means "Eye of water". It is a naturally occurring spring reinforced into a swimming area in the middle of the jungle. Despite being a popular tourist destination it was very quite and peaceful. There is a well equipped restaurant up the hill and vendors by the water serving rum inside coconuts.

Another highlight of the trip was when we went horseback riding up to a waterfall on Volcan Maderas, which is definitely not "that kind" of volcano. It is in fact, extinct and has a lake in the crater. For our horseback tour we went down the town of Merida on the south west side of the Island. Along the way we met some of the witnesses who were out in the ministry, completely at random as they were walking along the dirt road in the forest, Coincidentally we knew one of the couples as they were old friends of Jean's from Bluefields. There are 6 congregations on the Island of Ometepe despite its relatively low population.

We understood that it would be a 2 hour ride on horseback to a waterfall. We weren't sure if we were going up the volcano very far, we imagined not because it would be a really long distance. As it turned out we were confused, the ride was 5 hours and we were climbing the volcano on horseback. The waterfall was right at the point where the volcano pokes into the clouds. 1 hour in we were already feeling sore, none of us having any experience with horses. Once we started to climb the views were spectacular. The road narrowed into a rocky path through the rainforests which blanket the bottom of the Maderas Volcano. As we got higher the bush became more and more dense, we heard and saw howler monkeys and many other exotic animals and birds. According to the information we had, at certain altitudes Maderas changes from rainforest to cloud forest. What this means is that because of the extreme humidity and cooler temperatures brought by the clouds the plant species in the area are completely different. By the time we reached this point we were a little light headed, and it was time to get off the horses and climb the rest of the way. The plants were absolutely enormous. There were ferns with branches the size of a house hanging from cliff sides overhead. the white haze of the lower fringes of the clouds drifted across the pathway. despite exhaustion and some dizzyness we made it to the waterfall. Words really can't describe the place, but the cool mist spraying off the fall was very refreshing.

The way back was less exhausting as the horses were a bit tired and didn't feel like going so fast. Except for the part when they realized they were going home and decided to gallop at full speed. Its been about a week now and my blisters from the saddle are just starting to heal. For a couple of days all of us had problems walking, but it was worth it.

I really liked Ometepe. Too much in fact. It has made me realize that I have a problematic addiction to exploring new places. When I go to a new place, I tend to like it so much and be so excited about it that I have a burning desire to go and live there. We JUST moved to Tola and that is just not an option, and theres no really good reason to do it either. The congregation needs us here, plus it was a lot of work to move all our crap. So, definitely not moving to Ometepe. Even though part of me wants to. Being on an Island again brought back a lot of nice memories from our year on Corn Island. We're looking forward to the next time we can go back there, maybe this time I'll actually have the money to get a diving licence.