We have all arrived safely in Matagalpa with only a few bumps in the road. Some of our group began feeling ill, but we seem to be on the mend and look forward to our time with Seeds of Learning.
In our final day with Witness for Peace, we went to the US embassy in Managua and had the opportunity to hear a presentation about the work that the embassy does in Nicaragua and their interactions with the Nicaraguan government. We came with questions prepared, ranging from topics about the upcoming canal build, free trade zones, positions on upcoming US elections, as well as how Nicaraguans may acquire immigrant and non-immigrant visas. We felt as though our questions weren’t answered clearly, and were often skirted around to prevent revealing too much of embassy policy and beliefs. The presentation consisted of what the embassy does, its goals, economic cooperation, citizen security cooperation, economic and commercial section, public diplomacy, and US agency for international development. The speaker also touched on the history of the US in Nicaragua, and she expressed that the US is attempting to make up for their past mistakes and reinvent the US image.
It was very interesting to go from hearing stories of Nicaraguan people emphasizing its not us their mad at, its the US government, to hearing the embassy speak about how much the US government does for Nicaragua. Many of us felt as if we walked out of the talk with unanswered questions, but also a better understanding of the relationship between the two governments.
After we returned to the hostel, we had the time to think about how we can use what we have learned over the past week and a half, and implement those things into our daily lives. Specifically, what we can do on our own campus, for instance how we can express the themes and messages of the stories we heard of the Nicaraguan people to other UP students. Some of the ideas we came up as a group included trying to get more fair trade items in the UP bookstore, buying fair trade coffee, trying to get the commons to buy bananas from local organic companies, and selling art from the Arte y Pintura group that we met with. After coming up with these potential ideas, we decided it would be easier to split our goals into monthly and yearly processes, to help organize our goals and helpfully have more success in achieving them. Next, we had a closing ceremony that consisted of each of us talking about what we had taken away from the trip and what would stick with us after we left.
We then said goodbye to Managua and headed to Matagalpa. The two and a half hour car ride turned into four and half hours, but we made it! We are now enjoying cooler weather and rooftop hammocks. We are excited to spend the remainder of our trip working with Seeds of Learning!
– Megan & Audra