I think I have an audience now so I'll try to make this post really really good!

I'll start with the fact that I fed a monkey from my hand this weekend! Her name was Lucy. She lives on an island with 3 other monkeys in Grenada. We toured Las Isletas (the tiny islands) and our tour guide stopped at a tree to get some fruit so we could feed them. One of the monkeys does not have a tail because he tried to leave his island on a power line and electrocuted himself. Apparently monkeys hate water. Did you know that? I didn't. You learn something new everyday.

So, this Saturday morning we left bright and early for Managua on a micro. Micros are public vans that take you short distances to other cities. They cost C$46, which is less than US$ 3. They do not have air conditioning, but the drivers travel very fast so you always have a breeze. They are very efficient; I like them a lot. Then we got to Managua and took a public bus to Laguna de Apoyo. The public buses in Managua are a little nicer than in Leon. They cost C$ 22. That's about US $1. Eventually we made it to the lagoon. It was about a 4 hour trip (for that cheap!).

Laguna de Apoyo is just about the most beautiful place you could ever imagine. It is a lagoon that is inside of a volanic crater. The water is very warm and crystal clear. There are hardly any fish, so it is very clean. We had our own private cabin, which was very beautiful. We kayaked, dove off floating docks, drank, and swam. It was hard to leave such a wonderful place. On our way back to the city, I said a vulgar phrase to the cab driver that I heard once. He was SHOCKED! It was probably the funniest language experience I have ever had. I think it was shocking to hear such vulgarities coming out of a woman's mouth. He laughed--and then we all shared a laugh. I still don't know what it means, but now I know not to ask!

On Sunday, we went to Grenada. Grenada is the oldest city on the continent. They spend a lot of money maintaining the city; all the buildings are very old but gorgeous. In Nicaragua, many of the buildings are only one story because they were destroyed in the earthquake, but there are a few two story buildings in Grenada, so that is cool to see. We walked through the market--"que buscan?" (what are you looking for?)--and eventually we decided to take a tour of Las Isletas on Lake Nicaragua.

During our tour, we saw an island with a beautiful house owned by the Pellas family. These are the bad guys here in the Foundation. They own like 95% of the country. They own the sugar cane plantations and the rum company. It's hard to know how the country feels about them because it seems that the family has commanded a lot of respect among the people. Of course, here, we think they are evil because they treat the people as if they are disposable.

And this brings me to the reason I am here: work. Today we are going to the community of La Isla. We will take public transportation to Chinandega and then a taxi to the community. The Foundation does a lot inside the community, like giving school supplies and English leessons to the children. Today is a tour day for all the new volunteers. I am supposed to have a meeting with the two lawyers here about what my exact role will be.

And in other news, I am taking advanced Spanish lessons to expand my vocabulary and more effectively convey other tenses of speech. I speak fluently, but can only read at about a 4th grade level, so there is a lot of room for improvement.

Next weekend I believe I am going to Costa Rica. I'll update again soon.