IST

On July5^th, I travelled to Managua to meet the other business volunteers for our In Service Training. We were at a beach resort from Friday evening until Wednesday morning. It felt quite fitting for the time of year. Here it is the rainy season and the low season for the beach, which is why we were there. It only rained on Tuesday. We were in charlas all day, from about 830-5 so we didn’t get much beach time. Since I’m not a beach person, I didn’t mind. I really enjoyed the time with the other volunteers. Friday night and Saturday the business volunteers of the earlier groups were there for an idea exchange. One group was getting ready to leave Nicaragua after 2 years of service and the other has been here a year. It was very powerful to be in a room of people of all different stages with the same overall goal. The trainings were very useful; I learned a ton. And they also gave me more confidence in what I am here to do. I understand the curriculum a little more and now have materials to do business advising/consulting, personal finance consultingand also entrepreneurship and personal finance classes. I have to do a community analysis over the next 2 months to see what my community needs.

My host sisters have never been to the beach so I brought home a bag of shells for them. They loved them! We played with them for quite a few days. They have asked me a million questions about the ocean. Since it’s far away, the nearest ocean is probably 6 hours, they have never been and most kids they know have also never been. They are completely fascinated by the waves and keep asking me about sharks. Hopefully they will be able to make it to the beach one day!