Blogs from Central America Caribbean - page 4

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My week in Matagalpa continued with more great meetings with women. Before I continue with additional stories, I thought I would share more about why I am making these visits. I am hopeful that I will be able to partner with CEPAD to expand the work they are doing to empower women in Nicaragua. They have an impressive program to give women the knowledge they need to start or improve their small businesses. A goal of CEPAD is that the women will share what they have learned with other women in their village along with some oversight from CEPAD. But there are not funds available to for these mentees to receive loans for their businesses. That is one way I hope to create a partnership. This would allow us to utilize the program CEPAD already has ... read more
Anita
Marisa
Reyna and Harold


I had a great week in Matagalpa. It was definitely my favorite weather and the prettiest views. This is the cloud forest area of Nicaragua. There are no volcanoes in this area, but there are mountains, lush vegetation and temperate weather. Before I arrived they had 3 days of torrential rain, but it only rained a few times while I was there. I didn't need A/C due to a great breeze blowing through my little cottage. A few times I even put a sweater on :). I had some very interesting village visits outside of Matagalpa. The first village we visited was Jamaica. There is an interesting belief in this community that changes in temperature will cause them illness and harm. So if the women spend several hours cooking over heat they spend the rest of ... read more
Leanna's Bakery
Yolanda and Her Husband
Amparo Shops


After a great week with the women I had the weekend free to explore before meeting back up with Harold for our next round of meetings. I decided to spend the weekend in Leon where I was told I could learn a lot about the country's history and political situation. Leon is the second biggest city in Nicaragua with a population just over 600,000. While I found the temperature to be higher than I would like, this town has been my favorite yet for its blend of culture, architecture, and history. I went on several walking tours that taught me a lot about the past and current struggles of Nicaragua. At this time Nicagaura is somewhere between socialist and communist. Their closest allies are Russia, China, and Cuba. In November of 2021 after months of repression ... read more
Royal and Renowned Basilica Cathedral
Royal and Renowned Basilica Cathedral
Food Tour


We had a busy week traversing the north central part of Nicaragua to meet with several women entrepreneurs. We started in the Somoto region and visited a village called Unile. The only way to get to this village is a 40 minute dirt bike ride. Fortunately we did not have rain until after we arrived back to the office. Below I am sharing a little bit about each woman I met with to learn about her business, challenges, and dreams for her future. Deysi: Is a single mother with 5 grown children. Her sons' wives have helped her start a bakery to service the community. Previously Somoto, a 40 min motorbike ride, was the closest place to buy baked goods. She said one of her biggest challenges is finding firewood, especially in the rainy season. Once ... read more
Deysi's Bakery
Dailea
Dailea and her shop


Nicaragua economy has been severely effected over the last 5 years. In April of 2018 there were violent protests and riots. It followed a move by the government of Daniel Ortega to reform social security. Following the deaths of protesters, demonstrations intensified and grew into a large anti-Ortega movement seeking his removal from office. Prior to this, their economy was growing at ~4.5% per year. The riots and violence brought the tourism industry to an almost complete halt. Foreign investment declined 90% in the second half of 2018. The World Bank estimated that the Nicaraguan economy shrunk by 6% in just 6 months. As they were attempting to climb out of this hole COVID hit. They are just now trying to repair their economy and tourism business. Currently tourism is only 14% of what it was ... read more
Ometepe
Kayaking
Kayaking


My travel this year is starting with time in Nicaragua to meet with an organization that has been in existence for over 50 years. CEPAD (Council of Protestant Churches of Nicaragua) was started just after the earthquake of 1972 that took place in the capital; Managua. Upwards of 10,000 people were killed, 20,000 injured and 300,000 left homeless when the capital was brought to the ground. With financial support from The Presbyterian Church of America, Dr. Gustavo Paragon started CEPAD just 5 days after the disaster. A few years later the organization transitioned to development work which now includes sustainable agriculture and gardening and newly economic development of women among many things. Their goal is to work with the 'last mile' villages that other organizations do not reach. For example, one village they currently work in ... read more
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CEPAD is based on Managua the capital, but their work is done in the rural areas. They are focused on regions that are arid as that makes their life of farming more difficult. In these areas residents normally grow corn and wheat, but CEPAD is helping them to expand their crops to include more nutritious items like veggies. When I am not visiting rural areas I am staying in Managua. I have a cute little studio casa in a safe neighborhood that has a place to part my tiny white rental car (that I have nicknamed pipsqueak). The sun is up by 5:15am so I rise early to walk different neighborhoods to learn the area. I had my first rural visit yesterday to an area they work in that was about an hour from Managua. One ... read more
Pabloa and her shop
Maria's Bakery
Maria's Bakery

Central America Caribbean » Panama » Panamá » Panama Canal September 5th 2023

Monumental feats of engineering have always fascinated us and this artificial canal splitting the American continents is one such marvel. A must-see destination on almost every tourist’s bucket list, the Panama Canal opened in 1914 fulfilling a dream over 400 years in the making. How is it possible that what appears to be a simple 51-mile-long waterway can generate such interest, excitement and wonder in all who view it? It may indeed be just that, but the answer is far from simple! Let me explain…… A Little Bit of History: The idea of creating a water passage across the Isthmus of Panama to link the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans dates to at least the 1500’s. After explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa realized that a narrow strip of land separated the two oceans, King Charles I of ... read more
Bridge of the Americas
Agua Clara Observation Tower at Visitor's Center
Agua Clara Visitor's Center at the Panama Canal


Pointe des châteaux, bain de boue, « méduse », pas de mangroves et retour de voiture Samedi 26 août direction pointe des châteaux. C’est à l’extrême est de l’ile de la Guadeloupe. Il fait 8 000 degrés, gros soleil. Avant de commencer la rando, je demande à Geneviève si elle a de l’eau. Elle me dit oui. Je vérifie quand même… on a 1L. On est 5. Il fait 8 000 degrés, gros soleil, 0 ombre. J’ajoute 1.5 litre d’eau. Heureusement. La randonnée n’est pas trop longue. On peut grimper jusqu’à une croix et constater l’absence de châteaux… Il y a bien un panorama (j’aime les panoramas. Celui-ci est magnifique.) Mais c’est tout. Cela dit, tout le monde est un peu assommé par la température. Et avant même d’être revenu à la voiture, nous avions bu ... read more
Les mangroves en arrière plan
Pour une peau douce douce douce...
Pointe des châteaux... sans châteaux


Mardi 22 août. Vous aurez deviné par le titre que l’attrait du chocolat ne fut pas de taille face à l’attrait de la désagréabilité… De tout le voyage, les filles ne sont jamais levées après 7h. Jamais? Pas exactement. Elles se sont levées à 8h une fois. C’était la fois qu’on devait tout ramasser pour quitter à 9h. Cela dit, Geneviève est une ninja alors on a quand même réussi à tout ramasser à presque temps. Pas de crevaison ce matin. J’ai mis un peu de Schumacher dans mon café et hop, on est arrivé pile à l’heure (Delphine avait un peu mal au cœur, mais ça passera avec le chocolat). Début de la visite donc à 9h30. On entre, on paie et la fille de nous dire : « C’est une auto-visite. On fait juste ... read more
Nos attentes
La réalité (ajoutez dans votre tête l'odeur de putréfaction)
Romy insatisfaite de l'odeur...




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