8 Jan 2012

*Unfortunately my roommate, Carmen, had some technical problems with the blog...so she is going to post through my account today! Here it is:

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Today was officially our first full day in Nicaragua. We spent the day in Managua doing lots of touring, eating delicious foods, and listening to the stories of various business owners.

First we ate breakfast at the hotel restaurant where we were able to choose from a variety of foods at the buffet. There was French toast, lots of fresh fruits, bacon, cereal, and an omelet stand, just to name a few. The buffet also included a stand where a lady dressed in traditional Nicaraguan clothing served tortillas. Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to try them, but definitely plan to do so before we leave. After breakfast, we gathered our cameras and water bottles and headed into town to visit Codice: Galeria de Arte Contemporaneo y Artesania Nacional.

Riding through town heading to the gallery gave us a chance to see the people of Nicaragua in their daily routines about the streets. There were men pushing carts filled with various goods, people standing on the curbs waiting for the bus, and many families busy at work in the front rooms of their homes. It was amazing to see the number of people who run businesses out of their homes, in particular grocery stores.

Upon our arrival to the gallery, we met Juanita who thoroughly explained to us how she started the gallery and keeps it running on the day to day basis. She works very closely with local contemporary artists as well as Artisans to fill her gallery with their works of art, which range from paintings, to pottery, to baskets, etc. Her story of how she became interested in starting the gallery is interesting as she wanted to give the local artists a chance to display their work. Once we left the gallery we headed to the mall to take a quick look at the style of the Nicaraguan mall and then headed off to lunch.

While the mall was quite similar to the malls in the U.S., the restaurant where we had lunch, Ola Verde, was new to me. It is a vegetarian restaurant which was founded by the owner to inform Nicaraguans on how to eat healthier by including more fruits and vegetables in their diets. The owner was very passionate about the topic of nutrition and continuously uses her restaurant as a way to promote healthy eating habits in Nicaragua. In addition to the nutritious menu, which does include meat, the restaurant offers cooking classes to teach those in the community how to prepare healthier meals. Once we finished lunch we visited the traditional Nicaraguan markets.

Many of the stores in the markets were similar to one another in that they either sold pottery, souvenirs, or groceries. This too gave us more exposure to the Nicaraguan culture because we were able to see how some families rely on tourists to make a living and keep their businesses up and running. There is the young man who wants you to buy the beautiful rose that he made out of a palm tree leaf or the young lady that wants you to buy some gum both continuously circling the market trying to make a few sales. Once we finished touring the markets and getting a few souvenirs we made a quick ice-cream stop and then visited Susan’s bookstore Libreria: Frontera Books.

At the book store we got a chance to walk around and see the various books that were available to the locals both in English and Spanish. Susan was also kind enough to give us a short lecture on how she ended up in Nicaragua and her experiences as a business owner in Nicaragua. We also were able to get the scoop on politics in Nicaragua considering that there are a few visitors coming to town Tuesday. After our visit at the bookstore we walked over to Pane E Vino, an Italian restaurant, where we enjoyed dinner. We ate flat bread with cheese, vegetables, pasta, pizza, and delicious desserts. This was a great time for us to bond and reflect as a group on our first day in Nicaragua. Now, everyone is winding down and preparing for the day ahead. Breakfast at 8 A.M. Don’t be late!

Visit to the Nicaraguan Embassy

Last Friday, December 2, our group took a very exciting trip to DC to visit Ambassador Francisco Campbell at the Nicaraguan Embassy followed by lunch at the University Club. Joining our group for the day were Karen Watts, associate director of CIBER and John Hardisty, a Smith School advisory board member who arranged our visit to the embassy. Both Ms. Watts and Mr. Hardisty were a pleasure to meet and without them, our trip would not have been possible.

Mr. Hardisty was very helpful not only in navigating our trip through the city, but also in making the walk seem almost like a city tour. In front of a building we passed, he pointed out a decorated plastic statue of a donkey, which he explained to be one of the “DC Party Animals”. In the summer of 2002, The Party Animals exhibit, consisting of 100 colorful donkeys and 100 colorful elephants spread throughout the city, helped to promote tourism and raise money for the local arts community. This $400,000 project is the largest public arts display in DC’s history. Before eating lunch, we stopped outside of the University Club to admire its two Party Animals- a statue to represent each party.

Our visit to the University Club was a pleasure. We were welcomed into the building, led past a beautifully decorated Christmas tree to check our coats, and immediately seated in a private dining area. Mr. Hardisty explained to us that in addition to the formal restaurant we dined in, the Club includes a more casual restaurant, a library, a spa, a gym, an indoor pool, and a number of sleeping rooms. Karen Watts generously treated the group to lunch; the food was delicious and the elegant atmosphere was very fitting with our earlier visit to the Embassy of Nicaragua.

Now for the part you all have been waiting for…

It was an absolute honor to meet and hear from Ambassador Francisco Campbell. He is extremely well spoken and obviously very knowledgeable about Nicaragua. He is friendly, welcoming, and was happy to answer any questions we had for him…he even cracked a few jokes! He is a native of Bluefields, Nicaragua’s chief Caribbean port. Prior to becoming the Nicaraguan ambassador to the United States in May 2010, he studied at the University of Hawaii, was recognized as a scholar of The Fulbright Program, taught classes at a university in Massachusetts, and held many diplomatic positions including Nicaraguan ambassador to various South African countries.

Our visit to the embassy was everything we expected and more. As we will be leaving for Nicaragua on January 7 to work with small business owners and entrepreneurs, Ambassador Campbell’s insights on the economic, political, and even geographical structures of the country were extremely informative to us. Although nearly 50% of Nicaraguans live below the poverty line and inflation for 2011 is at a forecasted 10%, Ambassador Campbell informed us that the country is finally approaching its “take-off point”- it is becoming a truly developing country, rather than the underdeveloped country it has always been.

Drug trafficking and organized crimes are two major security issues in Central America. Ambassador Campbell explained that because the production of these illegal drugs is in the South but their market is here in the United States, they pass through Central America in the process. While the South has to be more effective in stopping production and the United States has to do more to reduce demand, it is equally important for Central America to be more effective in intercepting the drugs. We were encouraged to hear that Nicaragua has been widely recognized as the best country in Central America for reducing drug trafficking and organized crime. Specifically, the close relationship between the community and the police facilitates the control of gangs, organized crimes, and other security threats. Furthermore, Ambassador Campbell assured us that Nicaragua is considered the safest country in Central America, and one of the safest in all of Latin America.

In my opinion, the most interesting part of our discussion with Ambassador Campbell regarded Nicaragua’s efforts to increase its use of renewable energy. By 2017, the goal is for 90% of energy in Nicaragua to be renewable. Geothermal, hydro, solar, and biomass energy are among the practical options. The country will eventually be able to export electricity, which is just one thing that makes it a very attractive place for investment. Some businesses from other Central American countries have even decided to move to Nicaragua because of its favorable environment. Because oil is a quickly depleting resource and an expensive source of energy, the transition to more renewable sources will broadly improve the economy.

Growth in Nicaragua’s economy was at 4.5% in 2010. We learned that most of the country’s banks are privately owned, and that the government actively encourages them to provide loans to small businesses such as the ones we will be working with during our visit. In addition to some private banks, there are also government agencies that provide micro loans.

In general, Ambassador Campbell is very optimistic about the future of Nicaragua. As ambassador to the United States, he is especially interested in improving the relationship between Nicaragua and the U.S. By maintaining some control over its crime and security threats, implementing social programs, and substituting the use of oil for renewable energy sources, Nicaragua is working every day to improve its economy and fight against poverty.

Thanks to Ambassador Campbell's time and willingness to share his knowledge, we have a much better understanding of the current economy and structure in Nicaragua. We hope to use our new knowledge as well as our basic understanding of business and finance to make a positive impact on entrepreneurs Richard, Cecelia, Roxanna and Lionell. Now that we have had a taste of Nicaragua, we can't wait to hop off the plane and step on true Nicaraguan soil!

Back row: John Hardisty, Pat Herron (librarian), Chelsea DeBernardis, Ambassador Campbell, Dillon Hagius, Amiel Snyder, Pratik Dixit, Scott Shuffield. Front row: Lily Griner (librarian), Zaida Diaz (librarian), Leslie Popp, Sue White, Stephanie Chon, Dipti Badrinath, Matt Kannan, Nikita Shenoy, Karen Watts 

Back row: John Hardisty, Pat Herron (librarian), Chelsea DeBernardis, Ambassador Campbell, Dillon Hagius, Amiel Snyder, Pratik Dixit, Scott Shuffield. Front row: Lily Griner (librarian), Zaida Diaz (librarian), Leslie Popp, Sue White, Stephanie Chon, Dipti Badrinath, Matt Kannan, Nikita Shenoy, Karen Watts. 

At lunch at the university club 

Karen Watts and Pat Herron 

Karen Watts and Pat Herron 

Karen Watts, associate director of CIBER, and John Hardisty, president of Hardisty and Asso., Smith School advisory board member, who arranged the visit with the Ambassador 

Nicaraguan ambassador Francisco Campbell and John Hardisty 

Lily Griner and Zaida Diaz 

Welcome!

Welcome to the University of Maryland Nicaragua Winter Term Study Abroad blog! The students will update the blog daily when we're in Nicaragua. We've been busy already. We talked with the four entrepreneurs we'll be helping via Skype. They are:
Richard - he owns three taxis and wants to expand his business
Cecelia - she has a very small grocery store in her home and wants to move to her mother's home, where she'll have more room.
Roxanna - she sells clothing and has a catering business
Lionell - he has a microfinance business where he lends money to other small business owners
We hope to help them with financing, business plans, marketing, and more.

On Dec. 2 we will visit the Nicaraguan Embassy and speak with Ambassador Francisco Campbell.