I made it!!!

Well, where to start....Let's see...I have made it to Nicaragua and I am loving it. I feel right at home. I arrived and have already begun working with the Nicaraguan Doctor named Karla. I am staying at a mission house where I sleep on a bunk bed, common bathroom, fan, breakfast and dinner provided by lovely ladies (Juanita and Yolanda). There is a big kitchen with eating area and big living room with a few couches. Most do not sit in the living room and instead sit on the many rocking chairs on the porches. The temperature has been in the mid/high 80s during the day and lovely low 70s at night. There is a breeze that cuts the sun a bit, but don't worry I am wearing sunscreen. My diet has been mostly rice, beans, tropical fruit, and salad with the occasional ice cream for dessert. Breakfast is at 7am and dinner is at 5pm. The time is central time but Nicaragua doesn't have daylight saving...so when you spring forward I will still be on the same time.


The first day I was here I went to visit several churches and communities that this organization (Nicaragua Resource Network) serves. It was good to see the big picture of what they do, but I was eager to get going on the healthcare work. The following day, I was picked up at 7:30am by Dr. Karla and we went to one of the schools called Rey Salamon to give parasite treatment/prevention pills to the students. We went from classroom to classroom and passed out the pill and everyone took it together. It was chewable but didn't taste very good. We had water to help. We also did a little age-appropriate teaching in each classroom about illnesses caused by parasites. Here in Nicaragua the elementary school (colegio) comes in the morning 7am-12pm and then the high school (secundario) comes in the afternoon 12:30pm-5:30pm. There is not middle school just Pre-School, Elementary which is 1st-6th and then secondary school which is 7th-11th grade. There are 4 schools where I will be helping each with about 500 students. There are a lot of needs and I am excited to work along Dr. Karla and see how we manage the task ahead of us.


The plan is to go to one school a day Monday- Thursday and then on Fridays have a day to do paperwork or other tasks. We will do the parasite prevention/treatment, physical exams on each student including the special education students, nutrition education, mouth and general hygiene, and hearing/vision screening. We will also see the sick children as needed and are working on the documentation. Woo-wee...this is going to be fun!


I'll keep you posted now that I have internet access. WOOHOO!!.......


Love,
Ayla Landry


"Go Heart First."