East Africa, September 2015
When I walked by the nurses station at 3:57pm there were two families sitting on the bench waiting for their children to be admitted to the hospital ward. One of the children was unconscious, the other had her eyes wide open, a grimace on her face, small arms and legs rigid and jerking in a full scale seizure. I immediately medicated her with diazepam and then glanced over both children's charts. And I was horrified. I had given the child an appropriate dose of diazepam because I was familiar with the dosing, but the dose the doctor had prescribed for her would have been a tenfold overdose, which would have almost certainly killed her. Many of the nurses in this hospital would have simply followed the order as written. The child had been correctly diagnosed with malaria, but whoever had seen her had failed to do any differential diagnosis (meningitis, perhaps?) and instead of prescribing artesunate, the first line drug for severe malaria, had prescribed quinine, the third line medication. Nowhere on the child's chart was there listed the child's temperature (which by that time was 40.7 C or about 105 F) or an order for tylenol, which would help decrease the child's fever and therefore chance of seizures.
The second child was totally limp and unresponsive. The parents reported she had been seizing until about 10 minutes prior, when she had also been dosed with diazepam. The dose she was given was, thankfully, close to appropriate. However, without doing any diagnostic testing the practitioner (a different one than had seen the first child) had diagnosed severe malaria and had also written for quinine instead of artesunate. He had also failed to listen to her lungs or check her oxygen saturation, which was 85% (normal for a child is greater than 96%), so her main problem had gone completely untreated.
Both children were critically ill. Both required immediate and appropriate treatment and careful care. Our total nursing staff at that moment was two: myself and one other. Caring for two critically ill patients is enough to keep two nurses busy, to say nothing of the 43 other patients on the ward, many of whom were also very sick. It was physically impossible for the two of us to provide adequate care for even half of the patients.
I could say this was an exception to the quality of medical care here. I could say it, but I'd be lying.
What do you do with that? How do you face conditions like this and not totally lose hope? If you come into this setting with compassion in your heart, desiring to give each patient the best care possible, how do you possibly reconcile that desire with the reality of the situation? I am only one person, and I can only do so much. While I can attempt to teach and encourage the other staff, I can't force them. There is no escaping the fact that even my best efforts will be inadequate to satisfy the convictions of my heart.
This is a recipe for burnout. It's a recipe for standing in the nurses break room crying because you are trying so hard to help these patients but at times it feels like everyone else in the hospital is actually working against you, intentionally or unintentionally. It's a recipe for getting angry with other staff when they are sitting while you are running, or at doctors who disappear to who-knows-where when it's their turn to see patients. It's a recipe for snapping at a patient's family member when they come and ask you to please come and check on their loved one because something seems to be really wrong and nobody has come to check on them at all today. And then you catch yourself and realize that you came here to love people, and the frustration you feel at not being able to love them the way you want to is actually leading you to be entirely unloving.
Ouch.
So far I've only found one remedy for this problem, and it's to beg God: please, please give me the strength to get through this day in a way that glorifies You. Work through my hands and my words and sustain me so that at the end of the day they recognize Your heart as one of love and mercy and compassion. Grant me the humility to remember that it is not my work but Yours that counts here, and grant me the honor of taking part in Your work. Abba, my Father, don't leave me alone! My strength alone is simply not sufficient for this work.
I'll be honest, the pain is still there. It is impossibly heartbreaking to live in the tension between the care I want to give and the care I am able to give. There is no way around that, but to be honest, I'm not sure there's meant to be one. The suffering of our fellow humans hurts our Creator far more than it could possibly hurt us. If my pain over a situation reflects God's pain over the same situation, might He be glorified in it? I will (sometimes gladly, more often begrudgingly) give of my personal comfort in service of my King. But only because He daily provides me with the heart to do so.
Sunday, September 20, 2015
Monday, February 11, 2013
RN, baby!
WOOOOOHOOO I got my NCLEX results today and I passed! I'm a nurse! I remember the moment 3 1/2 years ago when I was digging in my garden one late April day in Montana and thought "I want to be a nurse". And since that day everything in my life has been geared towards making that goal a reality. Today I got there. How do you even describe what it feels like to reach a major life goal? I don't think you really can. I'm not even going to try. Just know that today I feel a tremendous sense of achievement.
Ok, now for the road trip portion of the evening. This episode is titled "Why Utah is awesome". Here's why:
After a full day of riding (yay Porcupine!) and a quick dinner, I left Moab around 4pm on Friday, heading for Hurricane, UT. Hurricane is clear on the other side of the state, by St. George. It's home to some pretty excellent biking, as well as Zion National Park (see above). I enjoyed my drive for as long as the light held, stopping at a rest area just as the sun set to catch a picture of the moon rising over the desert. Then it became a little less fun. With the help of a little caffeine and some loud music I managed to push through till a little after midnight, when I finally found a camping spot about 15 minutes outside of Zion. I don't really like getting to my camping spot after dark, but it was well populated and the truck makes me feel safer. And the upside to getting there after dark is that you get to experience that awesome surprise in the morning of seeing where you are. This is where I was:
Lovely, isn't it?
In the morning I took a quick trip over to the entrance to Zion, then went apple picking, then went down into town to Over the Edge Sports to get beta about trails. My advice? Don't go in there with your ride already picked out. Go in there and tell them what kind of riding you like and let them tell you what to ride. I did it the wrong way. Thor and I rode Jem trail, which was a mediocre jaunt through a more or less flat, non-technical section of desert. Granted, I tend to favor seriously technical rides and bomber downhills, so this was pretty much the exact opposite of my style. Some people might love it. Not this gal. On a previous trip I had ridden Gooseberry Mesa, which I would definitely recommend. But if you like techy rides, just skip Jem.
After Jem, Thor and I were hot and very dirty (having now done 2 rides in the desert with no shower). Thor didn't care. I kinda cared. So we hopped in the lovely Virgin River and took a bath. I know, looks like it would make you dirtier, right? Whatever, at least it was refreshing.
After the so-called bath, it was time to drive again. LA, here I come!
Ok, now for the road trip portion of the evening. This episode is titled "Why Utah is awesome". Here's why:
Do I really have to say more?
After a full day of riding (yay Porcupine!) and a quick dinner, I left Moab around 4pm on Friday, heading for Hurricane, UT. Hurricane is clear on the other side of the state, by St. George. It's home to some pretty excellent biking, as well as Zion National Park (see above). I enjoyed my drive for as long as the light held, stopping at a rest area just as the sun set to catch a picture of the moon rising over the desert. Then it became a little less fun. With the help of a little caffeine and some loud music I managed to push through till a little after midnight, when I finally found a camping spot about 15 minutes outside of Zion. I don't really like getting to my camping spot after dark, but it was well populated and the truck makes me feel safer. And the upside to getting there after dark is that you get to experience that awesome surprise in the morning of seeing where you are. This is where I was:
Lovely, isn't it?
In the morning I took a quick trip over to the entrance to Zion, then went apple picking, then went down into town to Over the Edge Sports to get beta about trails. My advice? Don't go in there with your ride already picked out. Go in there and tell them what kind of riding you like and let them tell you what to ride. I did it the wrong way. Thor and I rode Jem trail, which was a mediocre jaunt through a more or less flat, non-technical section of desert. Granted, I tend to favor seriously technical rides and bomber downhills, so this was pretty much the exact opposite of my style. Some people might love it. Not this gal. On a previous trip I had ridden Gooseberry Mesa, which I would definitely recommend. But if you like techy rides, just skip Jem.
After Jem, Thor and I were hot and very dirty (having now done 2 rides in the desert with no shower). Thor didn't care. I kinda cared. So we hopped in the lovely Virgin River and took a bath. I know, looks like it would make you dirtier, right? Whatever, at least it was refreshing.After the so-called bath, it was time to drive again. LA, here I come!
Sunday, February 10, 2013
fall road trip, episode 1
Well my NCLEX is done (and I think it went well...), now I'm just waiting for my results. Apparently me changing my last name freaked them out and they had to review my test. They swear up and down they'll tell me tomorrow. Believe it when I see it.
In my last post I said I'd try to catch up a little bit on what has been going on in my life since September. And so I shall.
I spent most of September in Glenwood Springs for my Public Health clinical rotation. The most memorable part of that month was the living situation - I was couch surfing (as in couchsurfing.org) in an apartment with two other humans, 4 dogs (including Thor), 2 guinea pigs, a tortoise, a few fish, and a miniature potbelly pig. Controlled chaos is the appropriate descriptive term.
I left Glenwood Springs on a Thursday night at the end of September for two weeks on the road. The first night took me out of Colorado and down through the desert to what I'd have to say is one of my favorite places on earth: Moab, Utah. I slept in my truck by the Colorado River in the shadow of the massive canyon walls. There are no words to describe what it feels like to wake up in a place like that. The first thing you notice is the cool, clean morning air, then you stick your head out of your tent (or truck, as the case may be) and realize you are 300+ feet deep in a brilliant red streaked sandstone canyon and it's a beautiful day to ride your bike and the whole universe is smiling on you. I'm not even exaggerating.
My friend Nick and his parents were in town, so I met them for breakfast and then the parents shuttled us up to the top of Hazard County Trail for an epic downhill. The aspens were in full color, blazing neon yellow across the entire mountainside. It was fantastic. Poor Nick broke his bike about an hour into the ride and had to bail, but I got to ride the Whole Enchilada for the 4th time in a year. It's a classic Moab ride for a reason; the challenging flowing turns and kickers of Hazard County give way to the break-neck speed and rolling jumps of Kokopelli, which dumps you out onto pedal-friendly technical Upper- and Lower- Porcupine Singletrack that snakes along the edge of the mesa right onto the Rim itself, where you have to decide whether to watch the trail (a very good idea, because it's pretty tough) or the incredible views of the river 300 feet below you. It's just an epic ride.
After the ride I grabbed a quick dinner and hit the road, heading for Hurricane, Utah. And that will be a story for my next post.
In my last post I said I'd try to catch up a little bit on what has been going on in my life since September. And so I shall.
I spent most of September in Glenwood Springs for my Public Health clinical rotation. The most memorable part of that month was the living situation - I was couch surfing (as in couchsurfing.org) in an apartment with two other humans, 4 dogs (including Thor), 2 guinea pigs, a tortoise, a few fish, and a miniature potbelly pig. Controlled chaos is the appropriate descriptive term.
I left Glenwood Springs on a Thursday night at the end of September for two weeks on the road. The first night took me out of Colorado and down through the desert to what I'd have to say is one of my favorite places on earth: Moab, Utah. I slept in my truck by the Colorado River in the shadow of the massive canyon walls. There are no words to describe what it feels like to wake up in a place like that. The first thing you notice is the cool, clean morning air, then you stick your head out of your tent (or truck, as the case may be) and realize you are 300+ feet deep in a brilliant red streaked sandstone canyon and it's a beautiful day to ride your bike and the whole universe is smiling on you. I'm not even exaggerating. 
My friend Nick and his parents were in town, so I met them for breakfast and then the parents shuttled us up to the top of Hazard County Trail for an epic downhill. The aspens were in full color, blazing neon yellow across the entire mountainside. It was fantastic. Poor Nick broke his bike about an hour into the ride and had to bail, but I got to ride the Whole Enchilada for the 4th time in a year. It's a classic Moab ride for a reason; the challenging flowing turns and kickers of Hazard County give way to the break-neck speed and rolling jumps of Kokopelli, which dumps you out onto pedal-friendly technical Upper- and Lower- Porcupine Singletrack that snakes along the edge of the mesa right onto the Rim itself, where you have to decide whether to watch the trail (a very good idea, because it's pretty tough) or the incredible views of the river 300 feet below you. It's just an epic ride.After the ride I grabbed a quick dinner and hit the road, heading for Hurricane, Utah. And that will be a story for my next post.
Friday, February 1, 2013
this is how you study for the NCLEX...
It's been about 4 months since my last blog post. Oops. A lot has happened since then, mainly a ridiculous amount of traveling. I'll work on catching up, but it'll probably mostly consist of pictures.
Right now I'm supposed to be studying for the NCLEX, the nursing board exam, which I am taking in 4 days. Instead, I'm geeking out on food. Don't worry, I've only invested $200 in the test, and only have two potential job offers riding on my success. No biggie.
If you know me you know I love food. Especially chocolate. And cereal. And fruit. And anything yummy. But I've reached a new level of food obsession, sparked by a combination of living with a foodie, having more time on my hands than I've had in over a year, and being an excellent procrastinator. So I'm going to dive in and write a blog post about food.
I've been thinking about food intolerances for a while now, but finally got to the end of my rope with the vague and annoying symptoms that have been bugging me. It got too embarrassing to have my stomach growling loudly in public all the time. REALLY loudly. ALL the time. I decided it was time to take action and try an elimination diet, starting with the most likely culprit: dairy. Within hours of going dairy-free I had a mini panic attack about my chocolate options and started Googling recipes for dairy-free chocolate treats. Funny thing, apparently there are other dairy-free chocoholics out there! My first foray into lactard chocolate 'baking' is an adaptation on a vegan recipe I found on www.sarahcupcake.com (by way of Pinterest, my other favorite procrastination pasttime).
Holy delicious, Batman! 10 minutes, 9 ingredients, and hellooooo yummy cookies! Not even kidding, these are the quickest and easiest cookies I've ever made. They've been added to my list of "oh crap someone's at my house I need to feed them quick what can I make?!" recipes.
I meant no disrespect to Miss SarahCupcake, but I couldn't resist tampering with the recipe. It's just how I operate - I can't play by the rules when it comes to things creative. What's the fun in doing it the way you're told? Plus, there are just so many delicious things that play well with chocolate.
Like coconut.
Or toasted almonds.
Or dried cherries.
Or more chocolate....
To be fair, I didn't adapt it much. Here's the recipe, as I made it:
Vegan No-Bake Cookies
6 dates, pitted
20 unsalted, roasted peanuts (yeah, 20)
1/3 c oats
1/8 c shredded coconut, unsweetened
2 Tbsp peanut butter
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
splash of vanilla extract
1/8 c chocolate chips
2-4 Tbsp milk alternative (I used vanilla soymilk, SarahCupcake called for almond)
Whatever toppings strike your fancy!
Put the first 7 ingredients in a food processor, process till pretty smooth and crumbly. Add chocolate chips, process for a few more seconds. Add milk substitute 1 Tbsp at a time, processing between additions, until a thick dough forms. Think firm playdough. If you accidentally add too much liquid you can just add a few more oats. When the dough is the right consistency it should clump up into a ball while the processor is on. Roll the dough into balls, flatten each ball, and top with something fun! You can chill them, but I'm all for immediate gratification and they're delicious at room temp.
As you can see from my pictures I topped mine with shredded coconut, toasted almonds, dried cherries, and dark chocolate chips (make sure to read the ingredients for dairy-free!). I imagine cinnamon, crystallized ginger, sea salt, a dusting of cayenne, raspberries, fruit preserves, candied orange peel, or any number of other things would be equally delicious and interesting.
Now to go study off the 6 cookies I just ate...
Saturday, September 22, 2012
on the road
This week I left Denver for what is essentially a month-long trip. This makes me very happy. I hit the road Monday evening with my dog and my new truck to come back to Glenwood Springs for the rest of my Public Health clinical. The drive was incredible - it was a clear day, the sky was that deep, rich blue that only seems to happen in the fall, the aspens were brilliant yellow, and there was a fresh dusting of snow on the peaks. It was so beautiful I spent the whole drive smiling. Not often you get a day like that.
Stage 1 of my trip is two weeks in Glenwood Springs. I've been here almost a week now, and I really like it! It's a lovely little town of about 10,000 that is squished into the Roaring Fork Valley. It looks like someone poured a bunch of houses and businesses into a valley and they slid down the sides and settled at the bottom. The sides of the valley are steep - like really steep. I tried to hike straight up the valley wall behind our apartment the other day and was seriously challenged to even keep my footing. But the view was worth it. The town is full of interesting shops and restaurants (including a delicious ice cream shop...) and cute little houses. I've started seeing people I know around town, which makes me so very happy. I love small towns and the feeling of community that you get in them, which is so much harder to develop in big cities.
Couch surfing has turned out to be a great thing. Allie has been a great hostess, introducing me to her friends, showing me around town, and making sure to include me in all the fun things she does. Last night we went to an awesome film festival in Carbondale. You should look up liquid mountaineering, it gave me a good laugh.
I'll be in Glenwood through Thursday night, at which point I'm done with my clinical and ready to hit the road for stage 2 of my trip. The current plan is to head to Moab Thursday night, ride Porcupine Rim (yay!) on Friday morning, and then breeze through Zion on my way to LA. We'll follow the coast up through San Fransisco, then on to Oregon and across to Montana, where I'll spend the better part of a week visiting with all my old friends in Missoula. As with almost every trip I've ever taken, I'm already feeling like I don't have nearly as much time as I'd like to have. So many things to be seen, so little time!
Thor, the bike, and the camping gear, ready to hit the road
Stage 1 of my trip is two weeks in Glenwood Springs. I've been here almost a week now, and I really like it! It's a lovely little town of about 10,000 that is squished into the Roaring Fork Valley. It looks like someone poured a bunch of houses and businesses into a valley and they slid down the sides and settled at the bottom. The sides of the valley are steep - like really steep. I tried to hike straight up the valley wall behind our apartment the other day and was seriously challenged to even keep my footing. But the view was worth it. The town is full of interesting shops and restaurants (including a delicious ice cream shop...) and cute little houses. I've started seeing people I know around town, which makes me so very happy. I love small towns and the feeling of community that you get in them, which is so much harder to develop in big cities.
view of Glenwood Springs from the super steep hillside
Couch surfing has turned out to be a great thing. Allie has been a great hostess, introducing me to her friends, showing me around town, and making sure to include me in all the fun things she does. Last night we went to an awesome film festival in Carbondale. You should look up liquid mountaineering, it gave me a good laugh.
I'll be in Glenwood through Thursday night, at which point I'm done with my clinical and ready to hit the road for stage 2 of my trip. The current plan is to head to Moab Thursday night, ride Porcupine Rim (yay!) on Friday morning, and then breeze through Zion on my way to LA. We'll follow the coast up through San Fransisco, then on to Oregon and across to Montana, where I'll spend the better part of a week visiting with all my old friends in Missoula. As with almost every trip I've ever taken, I'm already feeling like I don't have nearly as much time as I'd like to have. So many things to be seen, so little time!
Monday, September 10, 2012
alright, already, we all float on
Tomorrow begins my next adventure. This one is neither so grand nor so glamorous as my last one (Nicaragua is pretty hard to top), but it has equally important implications for my future. My clinical in Public Health begins tomorrow. For a variety of reasons, I requested and was given a rural placement for this clinical rotation. I'll be in Glenwood Springs, CO at the Garfield County Public Health Department. Glenwood Springs is a little town about 2 1/2 hours west of Denver on I-90. It sits right at the mouth of Glenwood Canyon, which may be one of the most breathtaking stretches of interstate I've ever been on, and I've been on a lot of stretches of interstate! The canyon is a several-hundred-foot-deep chasm, complete with dramatic rock faces and the mighty Colorado River. The highway runs through the bottom of the canyon, next to the river, at times so cramped for space that the westbound lanes are stacked right on top of the eastbound lanes, which are stacked almost on top of the river. If you live in Colorado and haven't taken a drive out there yet, it's time.
I'm excited about this clinical. At one time, several years ago, I had considered pursuing a Masters in Public Health. Clearly that went by the wayside. Somehow, in spite of the fact that I knew I was interested in public health, it didn't occur to me until about 3 weeks ago that I should be excited about this class. But now I am! If you've heard me talk about my life mission and my goals, you know that I feel a pretty strong pull towards working in developing countries. In situations where basic healthcare is lacking, public health nursing can have a huge impact on the overall health of a community. I'm excited to see what I can learn that will be applicable to my future career.
My lodging situation during this clinical is going to be yet another new experience for me. Ever heard of couch surfing? Essentially, it's a network of people all over the world who open their homes, free of charge, to travelers who need a place to stay for a few days or a few weeks. It's an indirect exchange system; I go stay with Allie in Glenwood Springs, and because Allie is part of the network, she might go stay with Sarah in Phoenix, and Sarah might go stay with Andrew in San Francisco, and maybe Andrew might come stay with me in Denver. By inviting people into our homes we gain the opportunity to stay with others when we travel. It's a great way to meet interesting people and learn about the world, and get free lodging in the process! Over the next 3 weeks I will be staying with Allie and her roommates for 3 or 4 nights each week, and more than likely will be sleeping in the woods on weekends. Which brings me to the other thing I'm really excited about: my new home on wheels.
This may be more exciting to me than to anyone else, but this week I acquired a 2003 Toyota Tacoma pickup truck! Today I had it outfitted with a lovely blue camper shell, so I'm pretty much ready to go hobo and live out of my truck. I've got a big road trip planned in October to break in my new toy. In the mean time, I'll be testing it out on weekends around here. The aspens are changing but the weather is still pretty warm. It's a great time to be loose in the mountains in Colorado.
I'm excited about this clinical. At one time, several years ago, I had considered pursuing a Masters in Public Health. Clearly that went by the wayside. Somehow, in spite of the fact that I knew I was interested in public health, it didn't occur to me until about 3 weeks ago that I should be excited about this class. But now I am! If you've heard me talk about my life mission and my goals, you know that I feel a pretty strong pull towards working in developing countries. In situations where basic healthcare is lacking, public health nursing can have a huge impact on the overall health of a community. I'm excited to see what I can learn that will be applicable to my future career.
My lodging situation during this clinical is going to be yet another new experience for me. Ever heard of couch surfing? Essentially, it's a network of people all over the world who open their homes, free of charge, to travelers who need a place to stay for a few days or a few weeks. It's an indirect exchange system; I go stay with Allie in Glenwood Springs, and because Allie is part of the network, she might go stay with Sarah in Phoenix, and Sarah might go stay with Andrew in San Francisco, and maybe Andrew might come stay with me in Denver. By inviting people into our homes we gain the opportunity to stay with others when we travel. It's a great way to meet interesting people and learn about the world, and get free lodging in the process! Over the next 3 weeks I will be staying with Allie and her roommates for 3 or 4 nights each week, and more than likely will be sleeping in the woods on weekends. Which brings me to the other thing I'm really excited about: my new home on wheels.
This may be more exciting to me than to anyone else, but this week I acquired a 2003 Toyota Tacoma pickup truck! Today I had it outfitted with a lovely blue camper shell, so I'm pretty much ready to go hobo and live out of my truck. I've got a big road trip planned in October to break in my new toy. In the mean time, I'll be testing it out on weekends around here. The aspens are changing but the weather is still pretty warm. It's a great time to be loose in the mountains in Colorado.
Friday, August 24, 2012
back...
I'm back in Denver. I'm not terribly happy about this. So, I'll spend a few more minutes pretending that I'm still in Nicaragua and tell you about my last few days.
Last time I wrote, on Sunday morning, I was still in Granada. I went to mass, which was an interesting cultural experience that would have been even more interesting if the speaker system in the cathedral worked well enough for me to understand the priest. After mass I dropped by another hostel to see what my friends Will, Julian, Kyle, Hanna, and Ellen were up to. Turned out they were about to hop on a boat to tour las isletas de Granada, a set of islands in Lake Nicaragua just outside of Granada. I joined them for a lazy afternoon boat ride through the tightly clustered little islands, which are about what you would expect if a jungle and a mangrove swamp had a few hundred babies. Each island had its own character. Some were uninhabited, some had ruins of old manor houses or hotels, some had falling-down but still inhabited shacks, and some had private houses of the sort you might see in a travel magazine. Most were between one and three acres in size. Very interesting place.
After our boat ride we all piled into Julian's truck (6 of us in a truck that is supposed to seat 3, max) and drove up to the treehouse hostel. I had been there Friday night, and Will had been there a week or so before, but the rest of the group wanted to check it out so we went along. I think the treehouse is one of the most magical places I have ever been. The hostel itself is fun, the attitude there makes for a good time, but the location and the structures are what really hook me. The richness of the jungle, with its hundred shades of green and endless little bits of mystery and wonder, combined with how completely safe and at home I feel there, is completely irresistible to me. I absolutely adored just sitting on the deck looking out through the trees into the valley. Now that I am back in the US, when I think about the one place I loved the most on this trip, the treehouse is it.
I left the treehouse Monday afternoon (I had meant to hit the road earlier in the day, but I had a really hard time making myself leave) and followed my friends to Leon. They had left that morning in Julian's truck, but I wasn't terribly inclined to spend 3 hours crammed into a 3-seater truck with 5 other people on a hot, humid day. So I rode the bus. Unfortunately I managed to miss 2 connecting busses in Managua, and miss dinner in the process, so by the time I got to Leon at 8pm I was exhausted, starving, and very cranky. When I realized that the hostel I was staying at was yet another party hostel, complete with VERY loud dance music, I was not excited. I spent about an hour being very pissed off, and then I found dinner and my friends and suddenly life was really good again. Gotta love problems that are easily solved.
Tuesday we went volcano boarding, which is almost exactly what it sounds like. Cerro Negro is an imposing, visually stunning cinder cone volcano just outside of Leon which has become probably the biggest backpacker attraction in the area. Everyone who backpacks in Nicaragua has heard of volcano boarding. Our guide explained to us that the volcano always erupts to the east, but because of the prevailing winds all the ash and lighter debris from the eruptions gets deposited on the steep, black western slope. Which makes it perfect for sliding down on boards. I envisioned that it would be something like snowboarding, but, as usual, I imagined wrong. It's more like sledding. You spend 45 minutes hiking up the volcano, then put on a gigantic, ragtag orange jumpsuit that makes you look something like an escaped convict who has been on the run for 6 months, slap on a pair of goggles straight out of chem class, plop down on your board, and take off down the mountain. For about 30 seconds you blaze down the hill on your board, trying not to get bumped off, flipped sideways, or smile (because then you get a mouthful of rocks) until you get to the last 200m, when it's time to let it all loose and see how fast you can go for the guy with the radar gun at the bottom. The all-time speed record is somewhere around 89kph. I made it to 61kph and am still picking volcanic rocks out of my hair.
Wednesday morning my friends left pretty early to head north through Honduras to El Salvador. After saying goodbye to them (which made me quite sad) I spent my day exploring Leon. The coolest thing I did was to go to the Museum of the Revolution, where I got to hear the story of the Nicaraguan Revolution from a war veteran. I wasn't aware of how large a role the US played in Nicaraguan history, and I can't say that I'm exactly proud of us for it. I recognize that it's almost impossible to find a storyteller who isn't biased in one way or another, but regardless of the politics involved, I was moved and inspired to hear about how fiercely and passionately the Nicaraguans fought for what they believed in. We in the US are lucky to not have to fight for our liberties in that way, although I do believe a little struggle now and then might give us more cause to appreciate how truly blessed we are. The other cool thing at the museum was the bazooka they let me play with. The rest of my day was taken up by shopping for gifts and visiting historic cathedrals (including the largest one in Central America) and then traveling to Managua. I spent the night there and then woke up at 3:45am to catch my flight back to the US. I arrived back in Denver around 3pm and have been working on readjusting to home life ever since. I'm having a hard time throwing toilet paper in the toilet.
At the risk of writing too much and possibly over-sharing, I'm going to write a little more. This is mostly just my philosophical thinkings, with a bit of soul-baring, so feel free to stop reading if it's not something that interests you. This trip was life altering for me, but not in the way I expected. When I planned the trip I had no idea what to expect, so I planned on what I thought would be best. As usual, I had no idea what I really needed, but was lucky enough to get it anyway. What I got from this trip was myself. After years of being shy and insecure, I found a way to be comfortable with who and what I am. I learned how to relax and connect with the people I like, and not worry about trying to connect with the ones who don't value me for me. I discovered how much I like being alone, but also how gratifying it is to have a group of cool people to spend time with. I found out that people really do want to be my friend because of who I am. All of this is elementary stuff, the kinds of things that I've known for years but never really got around to believing. This trip, and the people I met while I was traveling, made me believe it. Almost by accident, I also learned to live fully in the moment, enjoying life for whatever it is at any given time and not dwelling on the past or worrying about the future. And I rediscovered my love of traveling, my deeply rooted desire to live and work in another culture, and the joy of finding somewhere that really feels like home. In other words, I'm totally hooked on this travel thing. I'm back in the US now, and I'll enjoy it for what it is (because goodness knows there's plenty worth enjoying here!), but you'd better believe I'm already looking for opportunities to get back out on the road.
Last time I wrote, on Sunday morning, I was still in Granada. I went to mass, which was an interesting cultural experience that would have been even more interesting if the speaker system in the cathedral worked well enough for me to understand the priest. After mass I dropped by another hostel to see what my friends Will, Julian, Kyle, Hanna, and Ellen were up to. Turned out they were about to hop on a boat to tour las isletas de Granada, a set of islands in Lake Nicaragua just outside of Granada. I joined them for a lazy afternoon boat ride through the tightly clustered little islands, which are about what you would expect if a jungle and a mangrove swamp had a few hundred babies. Each island had its own character. Some were uninhabited, some had ruins of old manor houses or hotels, some had falling-down but still inhabited shacks, and some had private houses of the sort you might see in a travel magazine. Most were between one and three acres in size. Very interesting place.
After our boat ride we all piled into Julian's truck (6 of us in a truck that is supposed to seat 3, max) and drove up to the treehouse hostel. I had been there Friday night, and Will had been there a week or so before, but the rest of the group wanted to check it out so we went along. I think the treehouse is one of the most magical places I have ever been. The hostel itself is fun, the attitude there makes for a good time, but the location and the structures are what really hook me. The richness of the jungle, with its hundred shades of green and endless little bits of mystery and wonder, combined with how completely safe and at home I feel there, is completely irresistible to me. I absolutely adored just sitting on the deck looking out through the trees into the valley. Now that I am back in the US, when I think about the one place I loved the most on this trip, the treehouse is it.
I left the treehouse Monday afternoon (I had meant to hit the road earlier in the day, but I had a really hard time making myself leave) and followed my friends to Leon. They had left that morning in Julian's truck, but I wasn't terribly inclined to spend 3 hours crammed into a 3-seater truck with 5 other people on a hot, humid day. So I rode the bus. Unfortunately I managed to miss 2 connecting busses in Managua, and miss dinner in the process, so by the time I got to Leon at 8pm I was exhausted, starving, and very cranky. When I realized that the hostel I was staying at was yet another party hostel, complete with VERY loud dance music, I was not excited. I spent about an hour being very pissed off, and then I found dinner and my friends and suddenly life was really good again. Gotta love problems that are easily solved.
Tuesday we went volcano boarding, which is almost exactly what it sounds like. Cerro Negro is an imposing, visually stunning cinder cone volcano just outside of Leon which has become probably the biggest backpacker attraction in the area. Everyone who backpacks in Nicaragua has heard of volcano boarding. Our guide explained to us that the volcano always erupts to the east, but because of the prevailing winds all the ash and lighter debris from the eruptions gets deposited on the steep, black western slope. Which makes it perfect for sliding down on boards. I envisioned that it would be something like snowboarding, but, as usual, I imagined wrong. It's more like sledding. You spend 45 minutes hiking up the volcano, then put on a gigantic, ragtag orange jumpsuit that makes you look something like an escaped convict who has been on the run for 6 months, slap on a pair of goggles straight out of chem class, plop down on your board, and take off down the mountain. For about 30 seconds you blaze down the hill on your board, trying not to get bumped off, flipped sideways, or smile (because then you get a mouthful of rocks) until you get to the last 200m, when it's time to let it all loose and see how fast you can go for the guy with the radar gun at the bottom. The all-time speed record is somewhere around 89kph. I made it to 61kph and am still picking volcanic rocks out of my hair.
Wednesday morning my friends left pretty early to head north through Honduras to El Salvador. After saying goodbye to them (which made me quite sad) I spent my day exploring Leon. The coolest thing I did was to go to the Museum of the Revolution, where I got to hear the story of the Nicaraguan Revolution from a war veteran. I wasn't aware of how large a role the US played in Nicaraguan history, and I can't say that I'm exactly proud of us for it. I recognize that it's almost impossible to find a storyteller who isn't biased in one way or another, but regardless of the politics involved, I was moved and inspired to hear about how fiercely and passionately the Nicaraguans fought for what they believed in. We in the US are lucky to not have to fight for our liberties in that way, although I do believe a little struggle now and then might give us more cause to appreciate how truly blessed we are. The other cool thing at the museum was the bazooka they let me play with. The rest of my day was taken up by shopping for gifts and visiting historic cathedrals (including the largest one in Central America) and then traveling to Managua. I spent the night there and then woke up at 3:45am to catch my flight back to the US. I arrived back in Denver around 3pm and have been working on readjusting to home life ever since. I'm having a hard time throwing toilet paper in the toilet.
At the risk of writing too much and possibly over-sharing, I'm going to write a little more. This is mostly just my philosophical thinkings, with a bit of soul-baring, so feel free to stop reading if it's not something that interests you. This trip was life altering for me, but not in the way I expected. When I planned the trip I had no idea what to expect, so I planned on what I thought would be best. As usual, I had no idea what I really needed, but was lucky enough to get it anyway. What I got from this trip was myself. After years of being shy and insecure, I found a way to be comfortable with who and what I am. I learned how to relax and connect with the people I like, and not worry about trying to connect with the ones who don't value me for me. I discovered how much I like being alone, but also how gratifying it is to have a group of cool people to spend time with. I found out that people really do want to be my friend because of who I am. All of this is elementary stuff, the kinds of things that I've known for years but never really got around to believing. This trip, and the people I met while I was traveling, made me believe it. Almost by accident, I also learned to live fully in the moment, enjoying life for whatever it is at any given time and not dwelling on the past or worrying about the future. And I rediscovered my love of traveling, my deeply rooted desire to live and work in another culture, and the joy of finding somewhere that really feels like home. In other words, I'm totally hooked on this travel thing. I'm back in the US now, and I'll enjoy it for what it is (because goodness knows there's plenty worth enjoying here!), but you'd better believe I'm already looking for opportunities to get back out on the road.
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