Masaya, Masatepe, Catarina oh my...

Can you believe that this is in Nicaragua, neither could I

Shopping for Hammocks in the market

Welcome to the Masaya Market where all your dreams come true

Mama and me at the Mirador in Catarina looking at Laguna de Apoyo

Already Mama and I have covered a large portion of the country and had traveled to 4 different cities. I couldn’t let Mama rest now and on Monday evening we headed off to Managua to spend the night and prep for the next leg. On Tuesday we headed out early for Masatepe, my old training town. We met up with my family for lunch and it was so cute to see them meet my mom. Sol was quite excited and Andres kept trying to wisk me away to play videogames. Luckily Soledad was home from work to meet Mama too and Hilda is still recovering from the motorcycle accident. After a nice lunch and little gift exchange we did a little photo op and I took Mama around town to show her our old drinking hole, the park, and the school where I taught. I guess if you haven’t lived it there really isn’t much to see, but for me there is so much sentimental value in Masatepe. From there we headed off to Catarina which is known as the touristy town in the region. It is another training town and is famous for the lookout over the laguna. We passed through town and for some reason today it was living up to it’s touristy title because it was packed with extranjeros. When we finally made it up to the mirador the lady tried to overcharge us because we looked and were gringos. Luckily I had my Peace Corps ID and the rate changed from 20 cords to 2 cords, not bad. Best of all, she apologized to me and said, “I thought you were one of them”. Ha, I love it, I guess I am starting to fit in. Mama and I went up to the look out and from there you can see the entire lagoon and Granada off in the distance.

After our quick little jaunt at the look out we headed into Masaya. Now this is the capital city for the department and is therefore the largest. It is famous for it’s big market, artisans, and el Hipico which is when the cowboys come and make their horses dance. Well, Mama and I of course skipped the touristy market and headed for the real deal, the Nica market. It is your less glamorous place and has no shiny bells or wistles. It is littered with trash, smells of urine and god knows what else, and is so narrow that you are always bumping into someone. I have been warned countless times about being robbed there so of course it probably wasn’t the smartest bringing Mama. Now I have never been to India,, but this market is what I imagine. However, for how negative I make it out to be, I can’t help but fall in love with the place. There is something raw and untouched about it. You can find things much cheaper than anywhere else and it brings out your natural desire to just bargain and get it all. We were there for one mission and one mission only… buy a hammock. It seems to be a Volunteer right of passage to have a hammock and I was not going to miss the boat. Let’s just say mama and I walked away mission accomplished.

One our way back to Managua Mama and I decided last minute to stop at La Galeria Santo Domingo… a mall. Now I know what you are thinking, a mall, there are countless in the states and a place I always avoided. Well, I don’t know what has changed, but these are like holy mecca’s to me now. I love the mall and I was blown away by this one. It is known as the American mall in Managua and all the prices are the same as the US and in US dollars. It doesn’t matter we didn’t go to buy anything, but I felt like I was transported to a place in FL. I felt so comfortable and removed. All my stress seemed to melt away and in an odd way I felt safe. For how much I bitch about consumerism and product identification, that is exactly what I wanted. Just when I thought I couldn’t take anymore a little train drove by me. Well just pinch me already, I thought things were already unbelievable when a little kids train goes passing by filled with waving children. Every turn seemed to unlock another secret and the best was when we made it to the outdoor entertainment area. There is a 10 screen movie theater and real restaurants. I mean fancy Italian, French, Wine Bar, Wings, Mexican, a bar, all of it. I couldn’t believe my eyes, I hadn’t had this type of food in five months. Mama and I couldn’t decide so we went to two restaurants. The first was to get chicken wings. I even got to have a beer and the hottest damn wings I have ever eaten. I mean my eyes were tearing, my tongue was trying to sever itself and my throat was pleading for me to stop. After we managed to stomach all we could we did another lap of the mall and snuck into an Italian restaurant. It had trendy fixtures and music and best of all drinks with an elaborate menu. I was able to get fillet minion with gorgonzola sauce and Mama got sea bass with herbs. It was the best meal I have eaten since I left and I savored every bite.

The following day it was time for Mama to leave and go to the airport. It was sad to drop her off, but it didn’t really hit me until I was standing outside looking at her through the glass. Perhaps I was still on a high from the night before, but it was almost as she was just finishing visiting me from Boston. It seemed so surreal. It was a fast but good week having Mama come visit. Next time I would cut down on the travel and have her see more what life is like here, but who can blame the urge to do everything.