Welcome Home:)

So the last few days have been such a whirlwind! Alli and I arrived in Managua on the 5th, made it through customs unharmed but confused (there were THREE forms to fill out! THREE!) and almost missed seeing our ride( who is both the HS principal and my supervisor) excitedly waving and jumping up and down. She promptly gave us both hugs (I apologized for smelling awful) and she laughed and said to not worry about it. Her first official words to me were “Can I help you with anything?” Then she grabbed my biggest bag and we were off. We had to pick up one more teacher with her two daughters, so we did not go far. But I did get my first view of Nicaragua! It was warm and sunny with palm trees everywhere I immediately felt suffocated in my sweat shirt and jeans. We waited about 30 minutes in the airport before heading out to our new home.
As we were driving along, I was trying to take in everything while listening to the principal explain everything. Everything is in Spanish and it’s beautiful. I can actually understand it- which is the coolest part. There were also people everywhere! People were standing, walking, crossing the street, talking. It all seemed slightly chaotic to me, but I know to them it all makes sense. The weird thing about Managua is that there are no tall buildings- even though it is a city. I was told they were all destroyed in an earthquake several years back and no one has bothered to rebuild them. That would explain why all the people around were confusing to me. All the people around make sense if it’s a city, but I was thinking we were in a suburb due to the lack of tall buildings.
We finally made it to our new home- La Quinta Allyson- and spent about an hour unpacking before the principal came back to take us to the store. In that hour a lot happened. We realized we had no hot water, that the tv does not work and that there was a lot of stuff we needed. We also met some very nice Nicaraguan ladies- not quite sure who they were- and Alli’s teacher stopped by to invite us over for dinner and to ask what we still needed. She was able to provide me with a lovely pillow I knew it would all work out. The principal also came back with a pitcher of water and some kitchen stuff for us. It’s amazing how willing everyone has been in helping us get settled in. (Apparently we are the first student teachers to have our own apartment; the others have all stayed with other people.) We went to the grocery store and I hate to admit it, but I had some expectations about this place that were quickly proven wrong. I am used to not being able to get “familiar products” outside of the States such as peanut butter or marshmallows. Most of the time, the product looks familiar, but the packaging is way different (such as ketchup being in bags and so on). In Nicaragua they not only have familiar products, but the packaging is just about the same- only in Spanish. I felt like I was in a grocery store in the States and I bought Kraft macaroni and cheese if that tells you anything. Weird.
The rest of the weekend was quite a whirlwind. We had a teacher retreat and I have to admit, it was quite the nice way to meet people. What better way to get to know your supervisor then through a friendly little game of Dutch Blitz. I won I also had my first taste of rice and beans. I like it, but I could see it getting old after a while. The teacher retreat lasted Friday and Saturday morning, then it was back to the school to do a little planning. My teacher is super awesome and I think we are already going to get along quite well. I am excited to actually get into the classroom and start planning. That starts Monday! Tomorrow it’s Spanish church and more getting used to life here. So far, my Spanish is pretty good, I just need to work up more guts to use it.