Back in December when Rachel and Ashley were visiting, Aaron had a research trip up to Matagalpa and we all decided to tag along. On the way to Matagalpa, which is about three hours north of Granada, we saw a sign for petroglyphs and decided to investigate.
Sebaco, a name derived from the nahuatl name Cihualcoatl (literal translation: feathered female serpent, Goddess of Purity and Fertility), is a town in the middle of a plain right before heading up to the highlands of Matagalpa. It has a water table under it, making it a very fertile area for agriculture, and a village outside of the town named Chaguitillo (literal translation from nahuatl: Valley of the Deer), has been settled since ancient times. Chaguitillo has a riverbed surrounded by rocks and foliage where deer used to come and drink water - an excellent location for hunters to hunt and get in touch with their artistic sides.
We entered Chaguitillo and followed directions to a small museum paid for by the French government and picked up our guide, Sergio - a 20-year-old fourth generation indigenous resident of the town - to take us to see some of the petroglyphs. Since we were tight on time, we only got to visit one of the sites with petroglyphs, the more extensive site was a good half-day trip to reach with hiking in and out. Sergio took us to a a shaded riverbed right outside town where petroglyphs were carved all over stones around the water - some easy to miss without his pointing them out, and some painted on and quite easy to find.
A non-painted-in petroglyph - kind of looks like a human head with crazy hair to me, but I think it was an animal...
A painted-in petroglyph of a turkey. Sergio told us that a few years back many of the petroglyphs were painted to make them more visible, but then it was discovered that it hurt the petroglyphs to do so, so they stopped doing it, though the paint has really stood up well.
More painted-in petroglyphs, looks like a monkey on the lower left
The biggest concentration of petroglyphs in the shorter tour area - notice all the deer, these petroglyphs are right above the pool where deer used to come drink.
With Sergio at the water pool
Sergio shared that the petroglyphs dated back to 300 BCE - 300 CE, and that they were discovered years ago along with a lot of pottery and ruins. The French government helped pay to establish the museum and train a few guides, but in the past few years funding has dried up and it is difficult to keep the museum going. I commented how cool it was that Sergio lived in a place where his family had so much history, unlike my family which has moved around quite a bit over the years, and he said that having history was nice, but lack of opportunity in the town made it hard to stay. The village of Chaguitillo had just five families living there a few generations back and has grown a lot with people moving in, but now migration out of town is becoming necessary for younger people looking to make an income, and the town is kind of becoming a retirement community of sorts. Our visit to the petroglyphs was an interesting opportunity to learn a little bit about the ancient and more modern history of the area.
While Rachel and Ashley were visiting in December, I also got some exciting news on the job front. After months of looking for interesting opportunities, reading Designing Your Life (great book, highly recommend it), applying, and interviewing, I found out in the same week that two positions I had applied for at different non-profits were offering me positions! One job was based in Guatemala, and another in Nicaragua, both jobs starting in the new year. It was very exciting to get multiple offers, and after careful consideration I chose the job based in Nicaragua with Global Glimpse. Starting in March 2017, I will be a program coordinator based in Granada, working with another program coordinator to plan out three two-week trips for groups of American High School juniors coming in summer 2017. During the two week trips, the high schoolers will learn about leadership, Nicaraguan history, Nicaraguan culture, international development, American interventionism, what life is like for Nicaraguans (going to 'work like a Nicaraguan' for a day and going to high school with Nicaraguan students for a day), undertake a community development project while they are here,and more! From March to May my co-coordinator and I will be planning out the trips, and from June to August, we'll be implementing them. I am excited to work with 16-17 year olds and really excited to learn more about Nicaragua and meet more Nicaraguans through my work. Knowing that it is coming up, and needing to ensure my visa gets renewed, we have a few trips planned before March, which you'll be hearing about soon.
