This ecotour is now over.
Thinking about bringing your students to Nicaragua? Then this trip is for you! Come on this summer adventure with other teachers to see firsthand what a Sister Communities-led cultural immersion ecotour is like. This trip includes four nights in the town of San Ramón, two nights in the coffee farm and eco-lodge Finca Esperanza Verde, and one night in the beautiful colonial city of Granada.
Itinerary (SUBJECT TO CHANGE):
Day 1: Arrive to Managua and receive a warm welcome from the San Ramón staff who will be waiting to take you directly to San Ramón. Meet SCSRN’s friendly staff, get some cultural orientation, and then be welcomed into the home of your host family. Receive a tour of this small town from local guides and learn about a day in the life of a local. In the evening, visit the local library, where you’ll enjoy a dance performance by a local children’s group and learn about how SCSRN supports education efforts.
Day 2: Coffee, the second most-traded commodity in the world (after oil), is an essential part of the Nicaraguan economy. After breakfast with your host family, you will visit Selva Negra eco-lodge and coffee farm, where you will learn about the entire coffee process, from plant to cup. After enjoying a delicious lunch at their restaurant, you will return to San Ramón to visit a small coffee cooperative of indigenous women in the rural community of La Laguna in San Ramón. You’ll learn about their understanding of the link between the material and the spiritual, and then watch the sunset over the mountains as you participate in a traditional indigenous ritual. Return to San Ramón to have dinner with your host family and a discussion about the day’s experience.
Day 3: In the morning you’ll visit the ecological farm of the Padilla family, and learn about their story – how the revolution shaped their family history and their approach to farming. You will enjoy a delicious lunch there, prepared by the family with products from their farm, and then head back to San Ramón. On the way back, you will visit a few homes where SCSRN installed improved wood stoves. Learn about how these stoves improve the lives of the families that have them. In the afternoon, you will visit our partner in the stove project, Fundación Denis Gonzalez Lopez, to learn about why ecological practices and food security are urgent issues in Nicaragua. In the evening, you’ll take a trip into Matagalpa, the neighboring city, to enjoy a night in the city.
Day 4: After breakfast with your host family, you’ll go visit a rural school that participates in our Rural School Partnership. You’ll have a chance to interact with the children and teachers of the school, and learn more about how this program benefits schools in San Ramón and in the U.S. After returning to the town of San Ramón, you’ll have a conversation exchange with English students from the local high school, and learn about the differences between rural and urban education in Nicaragua.
Day 5: In the morning, attend a craft fair where you can see all of the beautiful handiwork of local artisans. Throughout the day, you’ll visit the homes of many of these artisans – weavers who use traditional indigenous practices, jewelry-makers who use local seeds, and a group of women who make stationery from recycled paper. Learn how they make their crafts and the important role they have in the local economy. End the day with a cooking lesson, to learn how to prepare traditional Nicaraguan “nacatamales,” followed by a delicious dinner accompanied by musicians.
Day 6: Enjoy a leisurely morning with your host family, learning about what home life is like for a typical Nicaraguan family. On your last day in town, choose from a number of optional activities: visit Los Pipitos (a center for children with disabilities that does miraculous work), hike up to a rural community for more bird-watching and swimming, take a Latin dance class, or enjoy a Q & A session with a local historian to learn more about Nicaragua’s turbulent past. In the evening, enjoy a night of music and dancing in the park.
Day 7: Have your last breakfast with your host family, and say farewell to your new friends in San Ramón. Next you’ll arrive to Granada, the oldest colonial city in Central America. After checking into your beautiful colonial hotel in the center of town, you’ll go visit the active Masaya Volcano, known to the ancient Spanish colonizers as “the mouth of hell.” In the afternoon, take a boat tour in Lake Nicaragua to the tiny islands inhabited by monkeys and exotic birds, with fascinating true stories of pirates and old Spanish fortresses. In the evening, you can have a leisurely stroll along the Calzada, the main thoroughfare with restaurants and bars of all types.
Day 8: After breakfast and a little free time for some last-minute souvenir shopping, you’ll head back to the airport in Managua, where you’ll bid farewell to the Sister Communities staff – until next time!
Price: This trip is ABSOLUTELY FREE for all teachers who are seriously considering bringing students on a future ecotour. Teachers also receive a $750 stipend for airfare. Trip includes all lodging, transportation, food, and scheduled activities in country.