The morning started early, especially in Mayra, Mary, Sochil, and Cristina's room as Umberto, Sochil’s father, provided a wakeup call at 5:15. We were reluctant to get up, but this time there was water, so showers were finally possible. Hot water is not really a thing in Nicaragua, and the cool water in the showers helped clear any grogginess quickly! Ask Sue about her shower scare. She was heard exclaiming, "What happened to the water? I'm all covered with soap!").
CEPAD was a busy place in the morning = beautiful voices wafted over the courtyard as CEPAD staff began their morning meeting with song (see picture below). Another group, Warriors for Peace, finished their breakfast and began brainstorming while we devoured yummy pancakes, hot coffee, and freshly squeezed juice (see picture below). Then, as CEPAD staff were busily setting up the conference rooms for a delegation of 100 pastors, we packed up the bus and said goodbye to Nehemiah house and the city of Managua.
On the bus, many tired heads drifted off to sleep and eventually awoke to beautiful views of the Nicaraguan countryside. As Oscar, our talented driver, weaved in and out of traffic, we were treated to spectacular scenes of tree covered mountains, steaming volcanoes, lush green valleys, and busy farms and small towns.
Finally, it was time for a pit stop. We pulled into a cute little restaurant and descended on the toilets. While we waited, we admired the cute little kids living in the back of the restaurant and those who could speak a little Spanish, chatted with some of the women working there.
(image in restuarant)
We continued the drive and soon, through the bus windows, viewed many uniformed children coming home from school. Sonia, a member of the Cooperative who is a school teacher, and Luis, our translator, explained that in Nicaragua, children attend school from 7 am until 12 noon.
We stopped briefly in Madagalpa at the CEPAD/CEPANA office so that we could pick up some supplies and use the toilets again. Then, it was one more hour on the road. Oscar navigated the bus deftly up into the mountains, and soon we pulled into the CEPANA farm.
Chuck was famished, so we quickly deposited our bags, claimed a bunk, and sat down for a delicious lunch!
After lunch, it was time to tour the farm. We were in good hands with our guide. The first thing he showed us were CEPANA's beehives (see picture below). We were nervous, but we needn't fear as the bees would not sting us. They were local bees, which were much smaller than an African bee. The beehive project was sponsored a couple years ago by a group who visited CEPANA, noticed the bees, and wondered why CEPANA staff did not collect honey. The hives now produce a few litres a year. Currently, the honey is consumed by visitors to the farm, but CEPANA hopes to eventually get more hives and sell the honey. Not only do these bees produce yummy honey, but the project is also an example of conservation, something that is very important to CEPANA. There are very few of these indigenous bees left in Nicaragua and because of this project, this bee population is protected.
The next stop was the passion fruit orchard. The passion fruit plants that CEPANA has are still quite new and not too dense, so CEPANA staff have planted corn in the orchard as well. We also viewed wild dragon fruit and coffee plants in the orchard. Next, we visited the water purification system, which was installed with help from Living Waters. The water comes from a well and is sent through the pipes to be purified using electricity. It then runs, using gravity, down to the kitchen. A few brave souls decided to climb up to the system to get a better look (and a photo). The, we continued to walk through the farm, examining other interesting plants, some of which produced exotic fruits. Some of us sampled green mangoes and learned how cinnamon is grown and harvested.
Next, we viewed CEPANA's fish pond, which was full of very large frogs, but sadly, no fish. CEPANA abandoned their fish pond project when they realized that many of their fish were being taken by people in the area when CEPANA staff were not present.
After the fish ponds, we stumbled through a heavily-wooded area in order to view howler monkeys high up in the trees. Humberto helped to attract the monkeys by howling like one, which proved to be very entertaining. We spent a good deal of time viewing the monkeys and exclaiming about how cute the little babies were while also being eaten by ravenous mosquitos.
Our final stop on the tour was to view the water well and capture a group photo. Much laughter could be heard on the walk back as we enjoyed God's amazing creation, each other's company, and the cool, light rain that took the edge off the steamy temperature!
After we returned, we all sat around chatting until Tracey King-Ortega, the Presbyterian World Mission Regional Liaison and facilitator of our covenant agreement discussions, and Anita, a long-time CEPAD staff member, arrived. Soon after their arrival, dinner was served. During the meal, we were instructed to partner up with someone who was not from the same country as us and to ask, in Spanish, about that person’s favourite colour, favourite food, and favourite flavour of ice cream.
After dinner, we gathered in the conference room for a time of discussion. We first had to introduce each other, explaining what we learned over dinner. Tracey then gave us an overview of the next day and led us in some games, including a game in Spanish that translates into English as "Mixed-Up Basket". We finished up by introducing ourselves to the group. The newbies explained what motivated them to get involved in the Nicaragua partnership, the Cooperative's leaders spoke a little about how they became leaders because of the leadership training that CEPAD offered to them after Hurricane Mitch, and the Presbytery veterans explained what has kept them coming back to Nicaragua. Throughout the evening, Luis provided amazing translation, proving that he is incredibly skilled at retaining and regurgitating information!
It was late when we finally finished, so everyone was keen to get to bed. Water bottles were refilled and bug spray was reapplied. Then, the men laid their sleeping mats down on the floor in the conference room, and the women climbed into their bunks.
Amidst the gentle sounds of the bugs and the bullfrogs, we all journeyed off to the land of Nod.
