Three of my friends and I recently decided to apartment hunt together in the coming months. In tribute, I dug up one of my first posts to yet another travel blog at marylooram.wordpress.com.
Casa Libertad, as mentioned in my previous post, is the largest of the volunteer houses and is adjacent to the office of La Esperanza Granada. I’m not sure how many people currently live here, but it is separated into a living room, kitchen area, courtyard, two dorm rooms, and five or so private rooms. I learned from other volunteers that last week the house was emptied and fumigated to rid the place of chinches (bed bugs). Strangely enough, this was comforting news. Partly because it meant there shouldn’t be any bugs left*, and partly because it explained how empty the house was when I first arrived.
I remain skeptical of the kitchen being exposed to the elements. The sunlight is, however, quite nice.
Drainage is an interesting process in Nicaragua. Most water drains directly into the street or into drainage ditches where it’s left to evaporate in the hot sun. I’m oddly curious about how the toilets work, since in Central America toilet paper is thrown out instead of flushed (which is one societal difference I have trouble accepting).
This shower is my favorite, because the water pressure is greater than a trickle. There’s no hot water, but, if anything, that’s a blessing in this heat.
This sink works two ways!
Bonus: my haul from the market today. I’m not sure how much I spent, but the plate of salpicón, frijoles, arroz, and ensalada that I ate for lunch was 80 córdobas (roughly $3). A highlight of the trip was when a man working one of the booths asked, “¿Eres española?”
*There were still bugs left.