first few days

My time in Nicaragua with Soccer Without Borders has begun! 

It is hot here, in case you were wondering. 

Hopefully this pic fits? 

I arrived Sunday night with Boss/Friend Mary. We headed to Granada, found the house we're staying in, and rested. We are staying with a family that has supported SWB and hosted visitors for years. With each investment on our part, the family adds extra bedrooms to the house. Its nice! And on our first morning, mom served us some fresh mango juice. I was sold. 

The first few days have been typically slow, but full of learning, sweating, meetings with new partners and introductions to the extended team of SWB staff, friends, participants and admirers. It is overwhelming, 

Monday's most excellent icebreaker was a soccer game with staff and one of the men's teams here. It was the day after Independence Day here, so everyone had the day off, and we took advantage by doing what we love and what we're here for, to play as much soccer as possible. 

Tuesday, I checked out a couple of apartment options and met with a couple more partners. It was also my first time observing and participating in activities, which included a mini game of Steal the Bacon, an obstacle course, a motivational pep talk, and plenty of girls making loud noise. I left deaf. Last night, probably 60 girls fit into the three-story office and broke up into their age-appropriate teams to participate in the various games. 

Afterward we kicked around a little bit with the kids in the office, before heading home to avoid the rain. 

I'll keep you up to date as more comes along.