Day 12: Coffee Bar, Feeding Centre, & Folkloric Festival

A very busy day 12 began with a visit to a ritzy coffee bar in one of the few high rise buildings in Managua.  We seemed to all enjoy the change, although I could sense some tension as we were a little surprised to find ourselves in such a beautiful and expensively decorated place after seeing so many with so little.  I had an even more surreal moment when I discovered an Ontario Travel book sitting on the counter that contained 7 of my photos.

The coffee bar was followed by a trip to a feeding station, where we helped give out food to the hungry.  Although it was a worthwhile thing to do, some of us found the contrast between our first stop and the second a little too much to deal with.  After fixing a small mechanical problem in one of our vans, we returned to Jenny's for a late lunch and then it was off to Huembes market again for our last chance to purchase gifts for our friends and family at home.

After supper, we attended a folkloric festival, where we once again had a chance to do a little shopping.  We also listened to some traditional music and watched some Nicaraguan dancing.

The elevator ride to the cafe.

Looking down at the outside of the building.

Arriving at Cafe Don Paco.

The smell was divine.

And so was the view.

A place to relax.

The book featuring my photos.

Why do I always look so goofy in photos?

The hostess was nice enough to ask me to sign one of my photos.

Jacqueline and Stevey.

The coffee bar.  We also had a chance to purchase some fair trade coffee.

The world champion barrista at work.

Another shot of the bar.

Delicious espresso.

Our interpreter, Samuel, and Stevey.

More rain on the way to the feeding station.

The line had already formed by the time we got there.

Waiting.

The leader led the children in some Bible songs before lunch.

This little girl caught my eye.

As did this one.  She was very happy, despite her situation.

Tessa serving some food.

No cutlery.

The line continued to grow.

Emma met this girl who did a great job introducing herself in English.

A typical home on the street.

It is estimated that Nicaragua has an 80% unemployment rate.  Guards must make up a large portion of the employed.  This one was watching a Coca-Cola truck.

Father and son play at a busy intersection while mama sells sliced mango to the waiting cars.

Loading up the vans again.

The old wall surrounding the folkloric festival.

A vendor who was not open had locked his chairs to the door.  Theft of anything not locked up is very, very common in Nicaragua.

Some very strange chicken baskets.

Traditional dancing.

This young couple was very cute.

The crowd, made up mainly of tourists.

More traditional dancing.

Beautiful movement.