Friday, December 11, 2009

La Purisima

Once again our street was alive with celebration on the night of Dec. 7. La Purisima is the celebration of Mary's mother's conception of Mary, which according to Catholic doctrine was also by the Holy Spirit. Some people set up altars to Mary and invite people to come and sing. They then give away gifts such as oranges, rice, cups, bowls, sugar, toys, etc. to the singers. Other people go from street to street carrying sacks and little song books, collecting as much free stuff as they can. Fireworks add sporadic excitement, with particular pyrotechnic displays at 6 p.m. and again at midnight. The following videos show our neighbors' altar and the festivities, as well as part of the midnight fireworks. Simon slept through the whole thing...we're not quite sure how.

Friday, December 04, 2009

pre-dawn parade



We wrote last year about the Purisima, the biggest holiday celebration in Nicaragua. The Purisima celebrates Mary's conception (when her mother conceived her). The Purisima is on Dec. 7-8, but the nine days leading up to it are filled with pre-dawn celebrations that involve statues of the Virgin parading through neighborhoods, accompanied by crowds, brass bands, fireworks, and other assundry loud things. Sleep is impossible, so you might as well get up and see what all the racket is about.

Yesterday the Virgin passed by our house. The music started at 4:45 a.m., and our neighbors mingled and lit a few fireworks for about 45 minutes before the real action started. Around 5:30 several kids ran down the street shouting, "The Virgin is coming! The Virgin is coming!" Sure enough, several hundred people rounded the corner escorting a statue of the Virgin on a litter. Our next door neighbors brought out a huge painting of Mary so that the parading Mary could stop in and say hello. The videos capture a little bit of the fun on our street yesterday morning.

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

update on the marches

Two large marches took place this past Saturday here in Managua. One march was by opponents of President Daniel Ortega and his Sandinista party, particularly protesting an October decision by the Nicaraguan Supreme Court overturning the ban on reelection. The second march was by the Sandinistas, celebrating the fact that the Supreme Court overturned the ban. There was much talk about violence, as the two marches were going to happen at the same time and be only blocks apart on their respective routes. Also, the police announced that they would not ban homemade mortars. Most inter-city transportation shut down on Saturday as close to 250,000 people showed up for the 2 marches. University classes, including Alan's, were cancelled.

Fortunately, there was little violence in spite of the tensions. The police made sure the marchers avoided contact, and the atmosphere ended up being more festive than divisive. We are thankful that a spirit of peace was on Managua. Thanks for your prayers.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Praying for peaceful marches

Tomorrow (Saturday, November 21) there will be 2 marches in Managua--one of Sandinista government supporters and one of opposition leaders. Unfortunately for the economy and the security of the country, almost everything is shutting down due to the fear of violence in these marches, including Alan´s classes on Conflict Transformation (ironic).

To give a very brief background: about one month ago, the Supreme Court changed the Constitution to allow for re-election. The parties not currently in office are very upset about this change, which happened rather suddenly and by means that some have called undemocratic. This is one of the reasons that several citizen groups and opposition parties have been planning a march to protest the lack of transparency of the current administration. The government decided to plan a march for the same day. Nicaragua is a country that still has very fresh wounds from living through a recent revolution and war, so people take very seriously these kinds of threats of violence.

Monday, November 16, 2009

View from a bus window

We spend a lot of our time riding buses (and taxis) in Managua. Some days we carry books to pass the time, but sometimes we put the books down to take in the daily bustle of Nicaragua's largest city. Here are some things we see:

- small, green parrots for sale, offered to you on small sticks

- iguanas for sale (to make into soup), usually held up by their tales

- bags of green mango slices, usually sold with salt and chili sauce (chile sauce always poured from old soda bottles)

- clown jugglers who toss a few balls or bowling pins at stop lights and then pass their hats to waiting cars

- old school buses from places like Harrisburg, PA, Mojave, CA, or Albuquerque, NM

- new Russian buses that were recently "donated" to the Nicaraguan government and then "sold" to the Managua bus cooperatives

- countless pickup games of baseball and soccer

- scrawny horses pulling carts laden with tree trimmings, empty plastic bottles, or discarded metal appliances

- a horse cart with a Washington State license plate (pretty sure the horse and cart had never been to Washington)

- pickup trucks whose beds are so full of avacados, oranges, or green plantains that the bumpers are practically dragging on the ground

- flatbed trucks carrying huge canvas sacks filled with plastic bottles that lean precariously to one side

- families of five or six traveling together on one motorcycle

- a woman breastfeeding on the back of a motorcycle

- a man on a motorcycle answering his cellphone and removing his helmet at the same time (see previous post)

- signs for Coca Cola, Pepsi, and a Nicaraguan soda called Kola Shaler

- pink and yellow billboards announcing government programs or displaying huge photos of President Daniel Ortega

-signs insisting "6 squares of toilet paper are enough"

-volcanoes rising up out of Lake Managua

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Working

I (Beth) have disappeared from the blog for a number of months, and it may appear to you readers that our lives consist primarily of Simon and going to fun events like baseball games and circuses. What I want to tell you is that we also are still working! :) I will now answer some frequently asked questions:

Q: Who cares for Simon while you are working?
A: We take turns. We have divided our work so that we are each doing some of our tasks from home. Also, Yolanda Cruz, a wonderful woman who has worked for MCC for years, joyfully cares for Simon in our home 1 day per week. We are so thankful for this time to share equally in parenting responsibilities!

Q: Have you had any visitors or exchanges happening lately?
A: In September we received a group of North Americans for a Learning Tour about Global Family in Nicaragua. Nicaraguan university students who receive scholarships through Global Family accompanied the group, and we traveled through Nicaragua. My favorite part was seeing the students' encouragement at the positive changes that Nicaraguans are promoting all over the country.

We are in the selection process for IVEP and YAMEN!, two programs in which Nicaraguan young people spend a year serving and learning in another part of the world.

I have also been helping to orient and support the SALT, YAMEN!, and short-term volunteers.

Q: Alan, are you still teaching? What are you teaching?
A: I'm wrapping up my 3rd year of teaching in the Bachelor's in Theology program through the UPOLI and the Baptist Seminary. This trimester I've taught 2 classes - the final of a 3-part research methods class, and an intro class on conflict transformation. Students from the research class have been doing community research projects to identify areas in their communities and churches where there is a need for peace. Topics range from addiction problems in local neighborhoods to marital satisfaction (both inside and outside the church) to domestic violence to gang participation. I've been impressed with how the students have courageously confronted some very dicey issues.

Q: When does the school year end?
A: Saturday, Nov. 28 is the last day of classes; Graduation is on Saturday, Dec. 5.

Thursday, November 05, 2009

More about baseball






After a month and a half of blog-o-sphere silence, we're back in the game with more baseball action, this time Nica-style.

Last night we finally made it to a Nicaraguan baseball game after 3 years in Central America's baseball capital. Managua's team (Bóer) took on León (los Leones). Tropical storm Ida dampened the diamond, but not the spirits of the several hundred fans that showed up in spite of the rain. We bought our $3 tickets and had dry seats under the roof, and we watched five innings of action before the game was eventually postponed. Managua -Bóer was up 3-0 on a 3-run homerun in the bottom of the 4th.

It was Simon's first trip to the ballpark - he loved the attention from the vendors and fellow fans. And he gripped his little Dodgers cap tightly the whole time. One girl who sold fried pork rinds with yucca asked if Simon was for Bóer or for León; we said that he's nine months old and really doesn't care who wins. "Oh, well, we'll just say he's for Bóer (boerista)," she replied.

Baseball is the biggest sport in Nicaragua. It was introduced by US Marines back in the 1920s and 1930s after they were "invited" by the government and then decided to stick around, which seemed suspiciously like an "occupation" for most Nicaraguans. But one lasting benefit has been a love for baseball. The season starts in late October as the rains subside, even as the US World Series heats up the chilly northern fall. Typically Managua and León field the powerhouse teams, and every once in a while Granada or Estelí or Matagalpa put together good teams. Nicaragua's best players get sucked up in the US baseball system, and fans here follow them closely (see our last post about baseball from Sept.). The remaining players take the field mostly for the love of the game, hoping that perhaps a stand-out season will catch the eye of an MLB scout and earn them a professional contract. Otherwise, their meager salaries cover only the basics.

Our trip to the ballpark (named after Dennis Martinez, Nicaragua's most successful son in the majors) reminded me of a minor-league game in the US - cozy atmosphere, families with little kids enjoying the game, hotdogs and soda. The atmosphere was decidedly Nicaraguan, however. Also for sale were fried pork rinds or pork strips with yucca, pizza with ketchup, and french fries with grated white cheese, all served on flimsy paper plates. Vendors walked right in front of our seats every 3-4 minutes selling everything from food to beer to individual cigarettes to little noisemakers to bags of plantain chips with chili sauce. Women vendors all wore the frilly white aprons, the 'uniform' of nearly every Nicaraguan woman who sells something. Several women took time from their selling to hold Simon; the fans across the aisle whipped out their cameras to snap photos of him. They were all free with their opinions about how we should dress Simon on a rainy night, the care we should take with him leaving the stadium, whether or not we shave his head (we don't...he's naturally that way). There were also plenty of opinions about the play on the field, although we still have a lot to learn about the nuances of baseball vocabulary - heckling is our next phase of language learning.

Friday, September 18, 2009

Baseball in the papers

Baseball is a big deal in Nicaragua. It's bigger than soccer, and about on par with boxing, in terms of national popularity. Every day the front page of the newspapers' B section is covered with something baseball-related. As a baseball fan, I'm usually quite pleased to keep up with the baseball scores from the US. But I've had to adjust my expectations of what gets covered. When Vicente Padilla, a Nicaraguan pitcher, was picked up by the Dodgers last month, I thought, "Oh, great! I'll be able to read more about LA's team in the papers now!" But I was wrong. Individuals - Nicaraguans playing in the big leagues - always take precedent over teams, unless it's the Yankees or the Red Sox. Take yesterday's paper, for instance (photo above). Half the page is taken up with an article about how Vicente Padilla is fitting in on the Dodger's club, but it mentions nothing about whether they won or lost (they won...I had to look it up later online). The right column is about Everth Cabrera, an infielder for the Padres, who are at the bottom of the NL West...note the length of story about him. In the bottom right corner are three paragraphs about the rest of North American baseball that's interesting for most fans here, namely, the Yankees and the Red Sox. In spite of all the current government's anti-imperialist and anti-yankee rhetoric, the ball club from New York has a large fan base, as do the Red Sox. No matter what else happens in baseball, I'll always get to read something about these two teams.

El Niño in our garden

When Simon was born on Feb. 3, we happened to have a bunch of new papaya shoots popping up in our garden. It was a good time to experiment with papayas, as they need a relatively hot and dry climate for maximum growth. February is smack in the middle of the dry season, so we thought the little plants would get off to a good start. We were doubtful about ever getting a harvest, however. Papayas are apparently quite finicky with water - too much and they'll die. Since we normally get lots of rain between May and October, we thought it unlikely that our plants would survive.
Our one surviving papaya plant is actually doing quite well, in large part thanks to El Niño. No, it's not thanks to Simon, but rather the weather pattern. 2009 is another El Niño year, where warmer ocean currents in the Pacific cause changes in rainfall patterns. I (Alan) remember the El Niño year 1997-1998, when Los Angeles got an inordinate amount of rain. For Nicaragua in 2009, El Niño means the opposite: hotter, drier weather, and significantly less rain.
This is good for our papaya plant - it's shot up to about 7 feet tall (above) and is already showing some tiny papayas (below). But in general it's bad for Nicaragua's agriculture sector. Lots of small farmers are preparing for drought and wondering if the corn and bean harvests will provide enough for their families.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Church News

Two weeks ago our Brethren in Christ congregation here in Managua welcomed 12 new people into church membership. We celebrated their commitment to the local church community with a special worship service that included communion. Several of the new members were baptized the week before in Lake Nicaragua. Unfortunately, we were unable to attend due to scheduling conflicts. Check out our blog post from last August, however, for a view of what a baptism is like.
In other news, Alan has preached twice in the last month, and Beth is set for preaching next Thursday, Sept. 24. We are glad to be more involved in the life our congregation.


New MCC team members

The last month has been a blur of activity for our MCC Nicaragua team. In July we welcomed Vanessa, a Goshen College senior doing a practicum with the MCC Peace & Justice commission. A few weeks later, we welcomed 1 YAMEN and 3 new SALT workers for 11 months of service. Melissa, Amanda, and Diana are working in and around Managua; Abby is working in the countryside of Matagalpa, helping out the Forry family on their MCC project - check it out...they're doing really cool work. They've all adapted very quickly to Nicaragua and are doing a great job. Here are a few pictures: the first is from our visit to Abby's host family outside of Matagalpa (Colleen and Amanda enjoy a soup lunch). The others are from our visit to Diana's host family on the southwest side of Managua.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Institute for Gender Studies

The university where Alan works is home to the Institute for Gender Studies. The Institute was founded 5 years ago to promote gender studies and gender issues in Nicaraguan higher education. The first five years have witnessed the development and implementation of a sexual harrassement policy at the university, something rather uncommon for Nicaraguan institutions. The institute also promotes a healthy view of masculinity and femininity among students, staff, faculty, and administration.

Two weeks ago the Institute celebrated its fifth anniversary with a special celebration that included a student drama and a brief concert by a group from the national choir. Dr. Jerjes Ruiz, Alan's boss and director of the Institute for Humanistic Development gave the meditation. Here are some photos from the event.

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Circus

Last weekend we took Simon to the circus! Actually, mommy and daddy were probably more excited than Simon, but we all had a good time in the end. Here are a few photos from our time.

You had to see it...

The other day I was running an errand here in Managua and saw something that was almost too hard to believe. I saw a guy riding a motorcycle and also wearing a helmet. That in itself is rare. But then I noticed the guy take off his helmet as he drove. With his helmet occupying his left hand, he reached with his right hand into his pocket, pulled out a cell phone, and answered it. Now both his hands were full, leaving no hands to hold the handle-bar. He even went over a speed-bump like this! He wrapped up his phone call, put his cell back in his pocket, put his helmet back on, and continued on his way as if nothing had happened. Amazing.

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Homecomings and Goodbyes

We've had lots of comings and goings here at MCC in the last three weeks. Three weeks ago, we said goodbye to Maritza, a 1-year volunteer from Bolivia. She returned home a few weeks early so that she could participate in the Mennonite World Conference in Paraguay. Maritza served in Nicaragua through MCC's YAMEN program.
Then two weeks ago we welcomed home two Nicaraguan young adults who spent the last year in the US & Canada as part of the IVEP program. Sugey is a university student from Estelí who spent the year working near Ontario, Canada. Violeta is a univeristy graduate who worked as a Spanish tutor at Eastern Mennonite University in Virginia. Both girls are from Brethren in Christ churches here in Nicaragua.
We went to the airport and welcomed them back; their families also came, and there was much cheering when they came out from baggage claim. We then traveled to Estelí for a special welcome-home service at Sugey's church (the photo shows Sugey sharing a bit of her experience at church).
The next week we said goodbye to our SALTers from this year - Rachelle, Matt, and Kayon. While the homecomings were heart-warming, the goodbyes were bittersweet. We will miss these SALTers greatly. The outgoing SALTers pose for a photo with Cecibel, an IVEP participant from last year.
YAMEN is a program designed to give young adults from globally 'south' countries a 1-year service opportunity in other globally 'south' countries. Nicaragua received one YAMEN participant, sent another to Mexico, and will receive a young adult from Colombia in August.
The IVEP program allows young adults from around the world to spend a year of service in the US or Canada. Nicaragua has now sent 4 young people, with another young man headed to EMU in August.
The other side of the program is SALT, which allows young adults from the US and Canada to spend a year of service in other countries. We have received 7 SALTers in the last few years, and we will receive 3 more in August.
For more information on all these programs, visit MCC's website.


Sunday, July 19, 2009

Farm Show

This afternoon we decided to take a family outing to the Managua Expica, or Farm Show. The fairgrounds are about 12 blocks from our house, so we enjoyed a pleasant Sunday afternoon stroll for Simon's first up-close look at farm animals. We enjoyed seeing the cattle and part of the horse show. Simon squealed with delight, but we couldn't tell if the excitement was about the horses or about the attention he received from other spectators. Here are a few photos from our outing.

Friday, July 17, 2009

a trip to the pulpería

One mainstay of Nicaraguan life is the local pulpería - or a general store. Sometimes it's called 'la venta' - simply 'the store'. Most of them are small, perhaps the front room of someone's house, where you can buy lots of little 'general' things. And they are everywhere. At latest count there are no less than 7 pulperías in a 1-block radius of our house. And so we can conveniently get everything from milk to gum to soda to fresh fruit juice to cooked beans to raw meat (we avoid the meat).
On Tuesday Simon and Alan went to the pulpería on the corner and came home with the following:
- 12 limes
- 6 oranges
- 6 tomatos
- 6 bananas
- 3 medium onions
- 2 lbs. of potatos
- 1 stick of butter
- 1 carrot
- 1 bunch of mint
- 1 cantaloupe
- 1 medium avacado
- 1 tube of medium Colgate toothpaste
Total: $8.50
(photos forthcoming)

Tuesday, July 07, 2009

More Information on Honduras

Our MCC friends in Honduras have written more describing the situation in Honduras - check out their blog here. We also recommend the link to the article that our friend, Andrew, coauthored for Christianity Today's website.

Wednesday, July 01, 2009

Managua in the news

News broke this morning about the death of Managua's mayor, Alexis Argüello. The former boxing champion was found dead in his home; officials suspect suicide, but no conclusion has yet been reached. Argüello won the mayorial election in Managua amidst rumors of voter fraud. Here's an article from the LA Times.

Monday, June 29, 2009

Central American update

Many of you have likely heard about the delicate political situation developing in Honduras. Today Nicaragua is hosting a meeting of Central and South American leaders, including the ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya.

For an informed perspective on the Honduran political crisis, check out our friends' blog (Andrew and Amanda, MCCers in Honduras).

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Fresh Fruit

One thing we love about Nicaragua is the fresh fruit that's readily available. Some sort of yummy, healthy fruit is available during every season of the year. Granted, the Nicaraguan climate means that some of our favorite fruits don't grow here (like peaches, strawberries, and blueberries). But there's more than enough other flavors to make up for it.
One of our favorite fruit creations is a papaya fruit smoothie. We put papaya, bananas, the juice from 2 or 3 oranges, and plain yogurt into a blender and enjoy a delicious and healthy snack for only about $0.35 a serving. Sure beats the $4.00 smoothies that you can buy in the US!

Friday, June 12, 2009

Money, Money, Money

Nicaragua has new money! About a month ago the Central Bank released new bills into circulation that are supposed to resist wear and tear longer than the old ones. Old bills were your typical paper money...the new ones are plastic in nifty colors and sizes. They've also changed the amounts a little, too. We used to see old bills of 10, 20, 50, 100, and 500 Cordobas (examples are on the left in the photo). Now, there are bills of 10, 20, 100, and 200 (examples are on the right...we have yet to see new bills of 50 or 500). The current exchange rate is about C$20 to the dollar. Here's a list of common things we buy and the prices in Cordobas, to give you an idea of how we use these bills:
- 1 liter of milk: C$16
- 1 bus fare anywhere within Managua: C$2.50
- 1 taxi ride from our house to the airport: C$80
- 1 dozen bananas: C$12
- 1 newspaper: C$7
- 1 Big Mac Combo at McDonald's: C$84
- 1 plate of food at a local cafeteria that Alan buys for lunch: C$40
- 1 papaya that weighs about 8 lbs.: C$35
- 1 large avacado: C$8

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Garden

We were amazed at how quickly our garden sprung up during our 3 weeks away. The rains and intense sunshine apparently are working wonders for our papaya tree, basil plant, and two cantaloupe plants. We're still waiting to see if we'll actually get any cantaloupes...there are flowers but no little melons yet. We've also had bad luck with papayas, so we'll see. At least we are enjoying the basil leaves. :-)

Wedding, Graduation, and Family Time

From mid-May through June 5 we were with the Claassens and the Thrushes in KS and CA. We attended Peter's graduation from Greenville College in Greenville, IL. We also celebrated the wedding of Andrew and Brie in McPherson, KS. A short trip to Chino, CA, gave us time with family and friends from SoCal, including a baby shower at Gateway. The trip was fast and fun...we ate good food, stayed up late with family, and enjoyed passing Simon around. :-) Here are some photos from the wedding and our time in general.

Monday, May 04, 2009

A Common Place - Nicaragua feature

For a glimpse of some of the great work of one of our partner organizations.

http://mcc.org/gallery/09_05/

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Team Meeting and Volcano Fun Day

On Monday we had MCC Nicaragua team meetings in Managua. Thirteen of us plus Simon gathered at the MCC office for a toasty day of sharing about our work, as well as hearing updates on budgets and various MCC projects. Simon enjoyed the meetings, provided he was held by someone.
On Tuesday we had a team fun day. We traveled about 60 kilometers south of Managua to the Mombacho volcano where we enjoyed a day of hiking, spectacular views, and cooler temperatures. Simon tagged along in his sling and was most interested in napping.
Here are some pictures from our two days.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Simon's Dedication

Last Sunday (Palm Sunday) we dedicated Simon to God. From the moment of his birth we recognized that he was a gift from God for us to love and nurture. We wanted to make our commitment public, however, and we wanted to do it while some of our family (Mom and Dad Thrush) were present. Last week we had a chance to share the testimony of Simon's pregnancy/birth. Our pastor led us and the congregation in statements of affirmation, we prayed for Simon, and then we shared a verse and poem that we selected for Simon. The verse comes from 1 John 5.14 - "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us."
The poem was a translation of the text "Like a mother who has borne us." Here are the words:
Like a mother who has borne us, held us close in her delight,
fed us freely from her body, God has called us into life.
Like a father who has taught us, grasped our hand and been our guide,
lifted us and healed our sorrows, God has walked with us in life.
Though as children we have wandered, placed our trust in power and might,
left behind our brothers, sisters, God still calls us into life.
When we offer food and comfort, grasp our neighbor’s hand in love,
tread the path of peace and justice, God still walks with us in life.
By Daniel Bechtel, 1986
Afterwards we shared cake with our friends from church and enjoyed taking pictures of Simon.

Thursday, April 02, 2009

Water management, part 3

We've received some comments about our water situation, so we thought it time for an update. Fortunately, the situation was improved a little bit. About two weeks ago the water would turn off around 8 a.m. instead of 6 a.m. We still have no water for most of the day (until about 6 p.m.), but it makes a huge difference to have water during those two extra hours each morning.
Also, we should note that while we have the capacity to store 110 gallons of water, we only use about 40-50 gallons per day.
And in spite of the fact that our water situation is a little better, there are still many communities in Nicaragua that have water one day a week or less.

Simon's travels

Beth has been directing a work & learn team of high school students from Canada this past week. The students joined up with several young adults from Honduras and Nicaragua for a cross-cultural learning experience about life in Nicaragua. But this group has been different because it also included a newborn. Simon tagged along with the group, visiting the market and tourist sites and MCC projects. He has sweated in the Managua heat and enjoyed the shade of big trees. And he has enjoyed chilling in the arms of more people than we can count. Here are a some photos from Simon's travels: visiting a pottery project that receives support through MCC, on the bus at the Masaya volcano, and in the group photo in front of the Laguna de Apoyo (he's in Beth's arms but behind a girl's head).

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Simon Photos

Simon is growing quickly...just passed the 7-week mark yesterday and is somewhere around 13 lbs. these days. Here are a few photos from the past few weeks.

One More Year

We're almost at the 2.5 year point of our 3-year term of service with MCC. So we've had to make some decisions...end our term in Dec. of this year (2009) or extend until Dec. of next year (2010). Right before Simon was born we decided that we'd like a little more time here in Nicaragua. We've learned a lot over the past 2.5 years and we feel that God will be able to use our gifts for continuing service in an extra year. Also, we like our jobs, we love our neighborhood, and we think Nicaragua is a good fit for us at this stage of our lives.
We'll have a 60-day home leave in the US sometime in Dec./Jan./Feb. of this coming year. After that, we'll return to Managua for our fourth year of service. We appreciate your continued prayers and support! - Alan & Beth & Simon

Sunday, March 08, 2009

What's in a nombre?

We wanted to share some of our inter-cultural experience of trying to get all of Simon’s paperwork. A few days after he was born, Alan went to the city offices of Managua to register him and get his birth certificate. In Nicaragua (as well as most of Latin America), naming children generally works in the following way: Maria del Carmen Martinez Hernandez and Jose Guillermo Medrano Lopez have a child and want to name him Jose David. Little Jose gets the dad’s first last name and the mom’s first last name (no one changes names when they get married . . . if they get married). Jose David Medrano Martinez. Easy!


We strange North Americans show up in the office with passports showing the following names: Elizabeth Jill Claassen Thrush and Alan Geoffrey Claassen Thrush. Alan explains that we would like him to have only one last name (Thrush), with Claassen as a middle name. They write “First name: Simon” “Middle name: Claassen.” Then they come to the last names. According to the law, he has to have the first last name of the father followed by the first last name of the mother. Simon Claassen Claassen Claassen. Alan shows both our birth certificates and our marriage license to explain what our family names are, what we did, and what we would like to do. Unfortunately, the law cannot budge.

Alan continues to try to push. What if the mother doesn’t know who the father is? In that case, the child can have the 2 last names of the mother. Good! We could do that. But, you're the father, they say, perplexed by this gringo who can't decide what he wants--first he takes his wife's name (strange!) and then he wants his name recognized. They insist that, for the baby to have the last name Thrush, he cannot appear as the father.

So, little Simon has a birth certificate identifying him as Simon Claassen Claassen Thrush. He is the child of a single mother, with a married boyfriend.



(We got it worked out OK on all his official paperwork for the US government :)).

Thursday, March 05, 2009

Simon's first birthday party

On Sunday one of our neighbors turned 2. She threw a party (well, her parents did) for all the kids of the block, including Simon. Not only was it his first invitation received, but it was also his first round of pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey, his first party hat, and his first piñata. Going to the party was just too much, however, and he slept through all these events, waking up only at the end. Here are a few pictures, including the birthday girl hitting her Barney piñata and playing musical chairs.