Every year, for the past 25 years, we’ve traveled to Nicaragua to connect with our local partners, Check out what we’ll be doing over the next two weeks, as 10 people from New Jersey will be on the ground in Nicaragua listening to stories, building friendships and extending solidarity with those working on some of Nicaragua’s most difficult problems. Take a look:
Monday, Jan. 9. Arrival
Tuesday, Jan. 10. Masaya Market and Visit to Axayactl Women’s Collective in Masaya. At the Axayactl Women’s Collective we’ll meet with with women working to combat domestic violence, build self-esteem, encourage civic engagement and organize for social change. We will then accompany them to the campo to learn about their economic development work with rural women.
Wednesday, Jan. 11: Northern Nicaragua — we’ll begin our time with FEDICAMP and travel into the countryside to meet with their community development associations doing reforestation and sustainable agriculture. We’ll also meet with the Roncalli Association in Palacagüina.
Thursday, Jan. 12: 2nd day with FEDICAMP — We’ll meet with the Youth Network, a project FEDICAMP launched over the last year to train and engage young people in their work to promote food security, address climate change in Northern Nicaragua and secure the future of these rural communities. We’ll also walk to the community of Rio Abajo to visit the homes and plots of families participating in the association’s sustainable agriculture work.
Friday, Jan. 13: 3rd day with FEDICAMP. We’ll travel to the municipality of San Juan de Limay to see some of the gardens and farms FEDICAMP and the association have supported, as well as reservoirs they have created with support from Peace Works to combat the drought conditions that are becoming all too common in the region as climate change advances.
Saturday, Jan. 14: Travel to Leon. We’ll have the late afternoon and evening to explore the city, which has some good museums (including Museo Ortiz Guardian, a highly acclaimed art museum), picturesque churches and great colonial architecture.
Sunday, Jan. 15: Travel to El Porvenir Coffee Cooperative and Las Peñitas. We will travel for 2 to 3 hours up to the mountain-top cooperative. We will see all aspects of the cooperative’s work, leaving by 4 for the slow descent down the mountain. (www.their-buckscoffee.com/elporvenir).
Monday, Jan. 16: Las Peñitas beach (http://www.laspenitas.info/), La Isla de Juan Venado Wildlife reserve
We will have until mid-afternoon to enjoy the beach, swim and explore! In the afternoon we will travel through the estuary by boat, stopping to visit a turtle protection project that PeaceWorks has supported. We may stay there into the evening in the hopes of getting to release some baby turtles that have just hatched.
Tuesday, Jan. 17: Return to Managua We’ll visit with Jubilee House in Managua, the organization that handles PeaceWorks’ shipments on the Nicaraguan end and operates many programs for residents of Ciudad Sandino.
Wednesday, Jan. 18: First day with Inhijambia, Managua. We will spend a half day with with the street children project. We will see the breadth of their work, from working with the kids on the streets, to their programs and independent living sites, ending with a cultural celebration and dinner back at their office. In the afternoon we’ll visit the San Juan de Oriente pottery village and then Laguna de Apoyo, where we can swim and eat dinner.
Thursday, Jan. 19: 2nd Day with Inhijambia We’ll visit their Phase 2 programs, and eat dinner and party with them at the end of the day.
Friday, Jan. 20: Visit Mariposa Spanish School & Tierra in San Juan de la Concepcion. We will visit the school and one of their projects, Tierra (Los Pipitos), a program for children with disabilities that PeaceWorks has supported. Then on to Granada to explore this beautiful colonial city.
Saturday, Jan. 21: La Boquita beach. A wonderful day with the Inhijambia’s staff. We get to the beach around 12 noon and leave with the sunset.
Sunday, Jan 22: Explore Granada or Mombacho. We will explore either Granada or take a stunning hike through the cloud forest of nearby Mombacho,
Monday, Jan. 23: Return home.
PeaceWorks 