Los Viajes de Sarah: Birthday #22!

I cannot believe I am celebrating my January birthday in a tropical climate! I thought I would always be freezing to the bone on my birthday, but not this year! I do however want to start with last weekend since I haven't updated since then.

Last weekend I got a great opportunity to travel to Granada, which is about 45 miles from Managua. We ate at a place called Kathy's Waffle House and had a good ole' American breakfast. The city is beautiful and it was nice to walk around and see the volcanoes and lakes that are present throughout Nicaragua. I can't be sure on the exact number, but I know that there are over 40 volcanoes in Nicaragua. We then had an entertaining and comical evening in the ans "village" (apartment area) with the other teachers that lived here. There were many laughs and drinks for all. Sunday consisted of a drive to the Laguna, which we had seen from above on Saturday. The Laguna is a beautiful, clean body of water that is a crater made from a strong volcanic explosion. It eventually filled up with rainwater and is now surrounded by lots of lush, green trees!

Man, oh man I am really starting to get to know all of the crazy personalities in the 5th grade! They are all so unique and I learn something new about each of them every day. I taught my first lesson a few days ago and as the students were working, a mouse runs across the entire length of the classroom! Of course, the girls scream and stand on top of their desks while the boys chase it and try to catch it. Needless to say the students were not very focused for the rest of the class period! The students are really starting to warm up to me this week, which is really nice. Today, I can't even count how many times I heard "Happy birthday Ms!" They are so sweet, and it didn't stop with just some well-wishes. During the first break, three of the boys in my class gave me cookies. During the second break, they push me out into the hallway. When re-entering the classroom, they all start singing happy birthday to me. Just melting my heart is what they're doing! They all spread apart to reveal some pizza for the class and two birthday cakes! My birthday would not have been as special as it was without the students. They are beyond wonderful. Sure, they misbehave, but they have good hearts, which is all that really matters anyways.

Just a few little tidbits that are unique to my experience here:

All of the students call their teachers "Ms." All of the time, over and over again. "Ms., can I get a drink of water? Ms., what am I supposed to be doing right now?" Sometimes this gets stuck in my head even after the students have left for the day
They are obsessed with my Toms shoes. Not all of the students, but a few. I will be explaining something and they will say, "Ms. I like your shoes! Are those Toms?" Goodness, no focus whatsoever sometimes!

Hopefully this weekend will lead to some sort of adventure and more time putting off my TWS (oops) :)