Satisfied Wages for Nicaragua

It has been a long time since Jari and I have had a chance to meet up with some of the entrepreneurs in Chinandega. I have tried to call a few of them but phone connections and times were not very good. Since the start of this political crisis in Nicaragua it is very dangerous to go on long trips away from home. The trip to Chinandega can take up to 2 hours. You also have to pass through the city of Leon on your way there. Leon has been a hot spot of violence, roadblocks and protests. So when a fellow missionary said she was going to go to Chinandega to meet with some of the pastors she works with I decided we should all go together. We decided, "Vamos a Chinandega, con cuidado." Let's go to Chinandega, but carefully. Like any trip in Nicaragua it is an adventure. You don't know what you'll encounter on the way there. However, in these days it can be more dangerous. Our trip was going well, we arrived safely to Leon, but this highway bypass showed the scars of p

Shut down Oriental Market Thirty-seven days have passed since we arrived in a completely changed Nicaragua. A national economic strike is going on today, on day fifty-eight of the Nicaraguan political conflict.This has been the quietest morning I have ever awoken to while living here. We live a few blocks from a main highway and you can always hear cars, buses and trucks blowing horns and engine braking in the morning rush hour. Today is peaceful, with only the songs of birds. This national economic strike was called for by the major labor, business boards and associations of Nicaragua in response to stalled national dialog with the president and government. Another reason for the strike is the demand for an end to the violent oppression of protesters. To date an estimated 150 people have died, many missing and thousands injured. To put the number of dead into population perspective, it would be 6,900 deaths in the United States. Mercado Israel Lewites - close to our home