Chinandega!

        I just got back to my town a couple days ago after spending a week in Chinandega, arguably the hottest department in Nicaragua, teaching, learning, laughing, and sweating my huevos off! It was hands down one of the most rewarding weeks I've had thus far here in Nicaragua. The ability to experience a new part of the country and roam around a large city with five other volunteers was incredible, but my favorite aspect of Chinandega was the high school. It is the second-largest instituto in the country. We worked with six other Nicaraguan counterpart teachers currently working in the instituto, all of whom were amazing and did a wonderful job of welcoming us into their team!
        We each taught four classes and observed three taught by the other trainees in our group. Three of the classes we taught were with our assigned counterpart, while the last one we were completely on our own. Throughout the rest of my service as a Peace Corps Volunteer I will never be allowed to teach a single other class solo; the experience by myself was only to get an idea what our counterparts have to do/deal with on a daily basis. That being said, I feel like I didn't have to "put up" with much at all. The students were extremely well behaved and receptive to the material we taught. All in all, I would be more than happy to be placed there for the next two years!

        Aside from teaching, our counterparts and students organized a Piñata for us! Bob Esponja! (Spongebob Squarepants). It was a ton of fun - and actually more difficult than I thought it would be. One student had control of the piñata and was constantly avoiding my blinded assaults on Bob Esponja.  I guess I forgot what being blindfolded and swinging a stick at a moving target felt like. Still, I got my hits in ;)

        Aside from the Piñata, we learned how to make tortillas, ate some street food around the city, took a trip to the beach, and played card games with our boss, Greg! As our APCD (Associate Peace Corps Director), Greg is pretty much the main man in charge of the TEFL sector and has a major say in what site we end up working in for our service. We all really benefited from getting to know him and vice versa. After observing one of my classes, he complimented on my energy and ability to command a classroom, and then hinted that I most likely will be placed in a bigger city here in Nicaragua... exciting! I'm going to avoid jinxing it though and go ahead and say anything is possible. (Knock on wood for me)

14 days until we find out where we will spend the next two years of our lives. Let the countdown begin!!

Talk to you all soon,

Z