Getting back in the Flow!

Not so different from life in the U.S. after a long weekend it can sometimes be a challenge to get back into the flow of things. I can report that the waves were wonderful this weekend, and it's really nice to get out and surf with some good friends. I love the beaches here in Nicaragua, and if your reading this blog you should probably consider coming down sometime to visit. Work here is really slow right now because it is raining every day, and when it rains here it is not the same as an afternoon thunderstorm in North Carolina. Usually the rain starts in the early afternoon and does not stop until after I'm already asleep. During the 6 or 7 hour downpour's electricity is nonexistent, the streets flood, and it is impossible to do anything outside of your house. It's actually impossible to do anything inside of your house. We patiently await the last rain which will come sometime in November and then for 6 months we won't see a single drop. Of course the temperatures will average somewhere around 110 degrees for the dry season, but at least you can leave your house. It's hard to understand how difficult it can be to travel from my town to others pueblos when the rains are bad, but if you can imagine walking through waist high puddles of water, climbing onto a packed bus, riding into the center of a Central A merican market and changing buses, only to have the second bus break down and return home later in the afternoon water logged, you are starting to have an understanding of what it's like in the rainy season here in Nicaragua.

Many of the homes are without much needed rough repairs so during these storms the buckets are scattered throughout the rooms, sometimes on top of beds and collect water so fast that it is a full time job to empty the buckets and replace them throughout the night. If you neglect even one bucket the dirt floors in the homes will rapidly turn to 2 inch deep mud without realizing it. This is not a reality that is reserved for the poor here, but for the general population in Nicaragua. Sure there are folks that have tile floors, and others that have homes that would rival some of the more decorated pads in downtown Raliegh, but they are few and far between.