· We finished job training
· We hiked to a waterfall
· We got a washing machine
· Our toilet broke
· I discovered the “cow path”
· I became a guava addict
· I learned about archiving on Gmail
· I started CrossFit
· I made a pizza
All of these things are, of course, equally important.
I shall elaborate.
WORK
Tuesday was our last day of training. After orientation in Boston, we still had 5 days of job-specific training to get through when we arrived. I’m sure I’ve already forgotten a lot of it but we have step-by-step guides to get us through most scenarios. I keep saying I’ll review my notes at some point but then I get home and am tired and hungry so I never do. Either way, we’ve officially transitioned into our new jobs, with all the responsibilities that entails. Days are full of responding to emails, setting up calls, and migrating between two offices and various cafes in search of functional internet.
WATERFALL
On Saturday we went on a group hike to Estanzuela, a beautiful waterfall about four miles away from the city. We were guided by Max, one of the senior advisors, who graciously agreed to show us the way and hang out with us for the day. We took cabs to the waterfall, which was about a mile and a half down the Pan-American Highway followed by three miles on bumpy, extremely hilly dirt backroads. Then we had a 10 or 15 minute hike up and down more very steep hills until we arrived in the waterfall canyon. The beach was strewn with rocks and fire ants, but the water was cool and beautiful. We were able to swim behind the waterfall and had lots of company in the form of an American-Nicaraguan family, a group of young local men, and a huge group of Germans (that part’s a mystery). We spent the morning and afternoon there, then hiked back out, sunburned and sated. We planned on trudging the 3 miles back to the highway but most of us ended up hopping on the back of a nice man’s truck, which brought us quickly back to the highway, where we could take cabs back into town. Not all of the group made it onto the truck and they were quite mad when we passed them, merrily on our way.
CLEAN CLOTHES!
We got a washing machine!! The dryer is not yet hooked up, but I was able to do a very large load of laundry and hang it up on the 2nd floor balcony fence to dry. Today I discovered one of my tank tops inch-deep in dirt in the courtyard, but for the most part my laundry mission was a success. The washer fills at the rate of a weak sink, so it takes about 2 hours. Nothin’ to do about it.
TOILET TROUBLES
Our toilet broke. The water bowl does not refill, even if the water’s on (which is most of the day except from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., when water in the barrio is shut off). So Tiffany, Danielle and I have alternately been filling up big buckets to self-empty the toilet or just avoiding our bathroom altogether. Perhaps it will be fixed, perhaps it will not. We live in a state of mystery and anticipation.
LAS VACAS
The cow path, so named by me, is one of the roads that lead out of town. It goes in a northeasterly direction. It’s just a normal paved road but it leaves the city and goes out by lots of cow pastures. I had wanted to run there ever since hearing about it from Brett (he’s the old advisor manager, but is leaving in 2 weeks). Brett took me running there at the beginning of the week and I’ve since introduced it to the other runners in the group – Sarah, the Bens, and David. The first ¾ of a mile are just getting out of the city and are not especially pleasant, but after that it’s a wonderful place to run, full of clean air and nice views and much less traffic and exhaust than in the city. There is even a nice little cow sculpture next to one of the paddocks.
SUPERFRUIT
Guavas are my new best friend. Every morning before work we will buy guavas from the “guava man,” an enigmatic figure who sells hundreds of guavas all day long by the side of a main road. He can’t diversify his offerings because he’s right next to a woman selling literally every other fruit besides guavas. We can get 3 guavas for 10 cordobas (about 40 cents). Most people would probably tell you not to eat more than 2 a day, because they are insanely vitamin and fiber-rich. I ignored this sage advice on Friday and ate 4. So those are guavas. Read about ‘em! I think they are a “superfood.” Either way they taste good in smoothies. They are sort of like sour and soft apples, in a really good way, if that makes sense. And you can eat the whole thing, seeds included (which are the best part)!
GMAIL LEARNING CURVE
My knowledge of Gmail became exponentially more powerful this week when I learned about “archiving” at work. This means that instead of trying to remember which emails I have and haven’t responded to (and with usually 50 or more emails to respond to a day, this wasn’t easy), your inbox becomes your to-do list. Once you’ve done it, you archive it. I have labels on labels on nested sub-labels to keep everything in order, too. I feel like a Gmail wizard.
CROSSFIT OOH RAHH AHHHH FEEL THE BURN I AM WOMYN
I went to my first CrossFit class on Tuesday. A lot of us here do it – most of the senior advisors, and in our group, Phill, Pat, Alyssa, Carolyn, and me. I’m sure my misadventures at CrossFit will feature prominently in my account of this year. It’s $20 a month for as many classes as you want, Monday through Friday. So far I’ve gone twice and my body was legitimately sorer than after running a marathon. I fell down the stairs because my quads couldn’t function. I whimpered my way through our waterfall hike. I lay on the very dirty floor of our house because I was unable to sit comfortable in a chair or hold my body upright for another second. Unfortunately I love the workouts (as well as our very attractive instructor, Edgar) so I won’t be quitting anytime soon. The perpetual soreness, however, is a definite downside.
GIMME PIZZA
And finally, tonight I made a pizza! A few people made one together last night and I was inspired, so today Ben Claxton and I went in for pizza supplies together and baked a huge, cookie-tray sized behemoth pizza full of mozzarella, avocado, peppers, onions, tons of sautéed garlic (both inside the crust and on top of the pizza), and more. I was pretty proud and very satisfied. A great end to a great week!