Live Grenades

<--- Picture with my "son" at the market (not really my son, people just say he's my son because he looks kind of white).

Hola, hola!! Mom's in town! We're in Matagalpa right now, which is in the cooler, mountainous region of Nicaragua as opposed to the desert where I live. It's AWESOME. I can actually wear pants.... as opposed to shorts.
Spent the better part of last week in Managua (the country capital) for a special conference of English teachers from all over the country. My friend Stephanie and I did a presentation on the use of nametags in the classroom (sounds lame but it's really not!) Then I stuck around in Managua an extra night to pick up mom from the airport. We stayed in a nice hotel and then made the trip to Chinandega the next day. We stuck around Chinandega and went to the gym, the park, the plant nursery, etc. before we skipped town on Thursday morning to go to Leon. Friday I was due back in Managua again to help train the new group of English volunteers that got here a few weeks ago. From Managua we caught a bus to Matagalpa, and here we are! Ok so enough of the play-by-play...
New things I've learned:
1) Peace Corps Volunteers (and all other federal "employees" affiliated with the U.S. Embassy are not allowed to go to this one market in Managua because on top of just being plain old dangerous, they actually sell live grenades.
2) Some Peace Corps Volunteers who live in more rural areas suspect that volunteers who live in urban areas lead "close to normal" lives. I may steal cable television and have a semi-functioning shower instead of a bucket bath, but my life is in no way, shape, or form NORMAL. I can't walk down the street without being harrassed, even my neighbors aren't really sure what my job is here, and I'm constantly confused for being a regular old tourist. Few people recognize me or take the time and energy to say hi to me on the street. My rent is 100 dollars a month, as opposed to the country bumpkins who may pay 30 to 50 dollars a month. If I don't want to eat rice and beans 3 times a day, I have the option of going to a fancy supermarket and buying whole wheat bread and romaine lettuce, but does that fall within my Peace Corps living allowance? Don't think so. Ok, got that off my chest. Phew.
So, my mom almost drank a scorpion/dragonfly cocktail the first night she was here. It happened like this. A few weeks ago I had more "roommates" than normal, so after killing a scorpion and a dragonfly I saved them in a plastic cup to show her when she got here. So she's brushing her teeth at the sink and I handed her the cup with the critters in it, not thinking, and she filled it with water and started to put it to her mouth to rinse. "AGHH!!!!!" I screamed. She dropped the cup. So, close call. We had a good laugh about it. Or at least I did. Hers was more nervous laughter.
I have quite a bit more to write about our trip to Matagalpa, but I haven't had a chance to upload pictures onto the computer yet. I actually rode a horse for an hour today on a coffee plantation. Pretty neat. Anyway, I'll save that one for next time. Adios!

Elizabeth