Day 3

I feel as though I have learned and experienced such a significant amount and we are only on Day 3. Every second, my mind and spirit are stimulated by the amazing people we have come across, learning about Nicaragua in political, social, and economic contexts, and the overall energy that I constantly feel around me. Nicaragua is the 2nd poorest country in the hemisphere yet it is so rich in human connection. Time with others is valued and I don’t feel the urgency of having to go from one task to the other in a quick manner like in New Jersey. I have witnessed seemingly small acts of kindness everywhere we go and it truly is a beautiful thing. The “hellos” and “how are yous” are accompanied by genuine smiles that exude kindness and warmth and the notion of “genuine” has gained new meaning. The children here in particular, are indescribable. They have a light, a radiating light about them that does something to me and I think I can speak for everyone here when I say that.
This morning, we learned about the significance and influence of private and public sectors in regards to the working economy and system. Rachel, one of our delegation leaders, helped me further understand the importance of knowing about free market and trade, as well as the natural resources that Nicaragua has to offer. We also learned about the extremely high amount of debt that Nicaragua is in which comes with another huge price to pay. When the government is using a great deal of the country’s money to off their debt, many important areas have terribly little funding (like education and public health). The concept of Neoliberalism, “new freedom”, was discussed and how the country’s development, resources, and trade all come into play.
We also had the pleasure of meeting with Senor Julio Sanchez from the Humboldt Center, an environmental protection group. He was not only hysterical, but he was full of hope, ideas, and presented his realistic idealist views about the environment and peoples. The need for clean, running water is so important and the social aspects of education and health were discussed. To have the ability to read and write are so very important because many people are capable of thinking up amazing ideas but not able to express them. Senor Sanchez expressed his views on the difference between development and growing economically. Before this meeting, I thought of these two ideas as one in the same. But now, I realize that a country can be developing but not necessarily have an abundance of money.
We also met a wonderfully inspirational woman named Yamileth Perez. She is an important figure in Acahualinca, a garbage dump. Her words and the experiences she shared brought me to tears. The number of families grew significantly in the past decade and how they live is heartbreaking to me. We went into her home and met her family members and this whole experience became even more real to me.
What I have learned thus far is that humor and kindness transcends cultural and language barriers. Amazing.

-Jessica Ha