So, you ask, what have we been doing for the last year? Here we go...
We moved to Granada




We took spanish lessons and lived with a nicaraguan family



We rented a vacation house in Granada



We endured daily power and water cuts until Ortega came into power in January 2007


We went to Las Isletas on Lago Colcibolca



We visited Masaya and the huge crafts market



We climbed Volcan Mombacho and saw howler monkeys



Christy began volunteering with La Esperanza Granada



We visited the volcanic islands of Ometepe



We spent many blissful days at la Laguna de Apoyo




We found a kitten in the gutter



We left Granada in September 2006 to travel to Esteli, Matagalpa, Jinotega, and the Selva Negra


Eric took a full time position as a reporter for the Nica Times and freelanced for the SF Chronicle
We returned to Granada in October and rented our second home for a year
Since then we've been working and volunteering and gardening. Michelle came to stay with us for 3 months and Christy's parents were here for 2 months - January and February. Jeannine and John, friends from NYC, came to visit us as well and more are welcome and scheduled to arrive!
And now that we are really settled, we promise to be better about emailing and updating our website - as long as the power stays on.
love, c & e

Sacuanjoche

Plumeria (common name Frangipani; syn. Himatanthus Willd. ex Roem. & Schult.) is a small genus of 7-8 species native to tropical and subtropical America. The genus consists of mainly deciduous shrubs and trees. P. rubra (Common Frangipani, Red Frangipani), native to Mexico, Central America, and Venezuela, produces flowers ranging from yellow to pink depending on form or cultivar. From Mexico and Central America, Plumeria has spread to all tropical areas of the world. In Nicaragua, the plant is known as Sacuanjoche and is the national flower.

April 26 - tiny buds!!





May 8






May 15







May 22




May 23






May 26

Plumeria is related to the Oleander, Nerium oleander, and both possess poisonous, milky sap, rather similar to that of Euphorbia. Each of the separate species of Plumeria bears differently shaped leaves and their form and growth habits are also distinct. Plumeria flowers are most fragrant at night in order to lure sphinx moths to pollinate them. The flowers have no nectar, and simply dupe their pollinators. The moths inadvertently pollinate them by transferring pollen from flower to flower in their fruitless search for nectar.
May 27