November 8, 2008

Greetings all. I just returned from a weeklong visit at my future site. My home for the next two years is a place named El Charcón, or a large mud puddle in English. El Charcón sits in the very bottom of an enormous ancient volcano crater. Located in the department of Jinotega, one of the most temperate, mountainous, regions of Nicaragua, one would think I would have scored the jackpot as far as heat goes. Unfortunately, that is not the case as the crater serves as a sort of greenhouse, making the whole area very very hot. Obviously, this was not my top choice, not by a long shot, but after visiting I think that it is a good site, with lots of opportunities to do good work.

The area itself is beautiful. As you drive along the road literally falls out from under you and the crater expands in all direction as you snake down the narrow road. The walls are a beautiful patchwork of fields and forest where farmers on the margin try to eke out a living out of the rich volcanic soil.

My host family seems very nice. The house is modest, and full to the brim. There are about fifteen people who call it their home, with many more in and out as the whole extended family lives within a couple hundred yards. There are lots of chickens, ducks and couple of pigs in the yard, which will make sure I don’t get too much sleep. My host dad has a farm of around thirty acres where he grows coffee, bananas, corn and beans. I will be living here for the first six weeks before I move into my own house, built by the previous volunteer.

I am the third and final volunteer in El Charcón, which has its advantages and drawbacks. The community is already very familiar with Peace Corps and many projects are already in the works. On the other hand, for the first little bit I am committed to continue the previous volunteer’s projects, luckily they seem really great. My main focus for the initial months will be working with three community banks and one silo project. I will also be inheriting most of the things left behind by the previous volunteer, including a house, a bike, and a horse. So my dream of becoming a cowboy looks like it will be coming true, although, the horse is tiny and I think my feet will be about a foot off the ground, but that’s alright. The house is nice, two rooms, spacious and safe. I will be working to put in a cement floor in the bedroom and a front patio, as well as building a showering area and planting a garden.

I am optimistic about going to my site, while nervous at the same time. My site is about 3.5 hours from the nearest city, so it is quite the trek, but there are a couple of volunteers about an hour away. We are entering our last week of training in Esteli before we go to Managua for another week and then swear in on Thursday the 20^th. I have a new address, don’t be afraid to use it:

Austin Turner

Apartado Postal 8

Jinotega, Nicaragua, Central America

Congrats everyone on electing Obama, I am so excited for America now and kind of jealous I wasn’t there for all the excitement. Yall take care.

Austin