Nicaragua High School Exchange Program

TRAVEL.

Traveling with GSE means working alongside our Nicaraguan peers, hiking up a volcano through the mist of Lake Nicaragua, and visiting beautiful colonial Leon, a center of culture and history with many beautiful murals and cathedrals. Students experience Nicaragua through discussions about the countries social and environmental history. GSE Nicaragua staff and students welcome groups to their community and share their experience working on their school farms. Participants sample delicious local cuisine served at family farms, at local restaurants, as well as meals specially prepared for us and brought to our hostel.

LEARN.

Hands-on service-learning projects and cultural exchanges provide students with life changing learning opportunities. Students develop organic farming skills, practice Spanish, and participate in grassroots international relations while building crucial 21st century skills such as cross-cultural communication and collaboration.

IMPACT.

This spring students helped to build an irrigation system for a 1.5-acre school farm, a 10 x 15 meter greenhouse, and two medium-sized school gardens. The overall focus is on expanding production, building new garden sites, and developing a capacity to harvest plots year round by installing water tanks and well systems which will increase the number of harvest cycles by 40%. 100% of the produce grown will go to feeding hundreds of local students. Crops grown include: mangos, bananas, yuca, corn, tomatoes, peppers, cabbage, and many others.

GROW.

Plants aren’t the only things that grow! International travel facilitates profound transformation for students. Students return home with an understanding of a new culture, with new friends, and an inspiration to make change in their local and global community.

Summer Program Dates: June 16-27

Cost: $2,200 all inclusive- airfare, all meals, lodging, ground transportation and travel insurance. There are multiple fundraising opportunities! Email Kate (below) for fundraising packet.

Questions? Contact Kate Crigler at gsecommunity@gmail.com / 707 228 8831

SAMPLE ITINERARY

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SAMPLE ITINERARY

Day 1 — Travel to Leon, Nicaragua

Day 2 — Leon City Tour and First site visit

Day 3 — Orientation Workshop, History of Nicaragua Workshop, & Project Initiation

Day 4 — Service Work Day, Organic v Industrial Ag. Workshop, & Soccer Game

Day 5 — Service Work Day & Tour of Neighboring Communities Organic Farm

Day 6 — Service Work Day, International Relations Workshop, & Salsa Dancing

Day 7 — Travel to another region of Nicaragua (varies depending on program)

Day 8 — Option for adventure activity of relaxation time (i.e. volcano hike or swimming in a lagoon)

Day 9 — Option for adventure activity of relaxation time (i.e. waterfall hike or relaxing on the beach/kayaking)

Day 10 —Travel back to USA

*Note: This is not a fully accurate itinerary for any particular trip. Sample is given to show the basic break down and potential program elements.

Do students need a visa for traveling to Nicaragua?

Students will receive a tourist visa upon entrance to the country. When you arrive, you will need to pay $10 at immigration for your visa. It is easiest to have a $10 bill with you.

Do students need to carry a copy of their vaccination records with them?

No.

What should I pack?

Pack light! You can hand wash clothes or pay to have them cleaned.
Buy or borrow a backpacking backpack. This is a large backpack that can hold all of your travel items and be carried on your back. Rolling suitcases or duffel bags will be difficult to manage. Your large pack should still be a carry-on size (the maximum is usually 45-50 liters).
Bring a small backpack that you can take on day trips, to fill with carry-on items on the plane, and keep close to you on bus trips with your valuable items (camera, passport, ATM cards, etc.) Limit your luggage to 2 bags only.

Clothing:

Jeans (1 pair) – FOR SUMMER TRIPS ONLY
1 nice shirt or outfit for celebrations and formal events
Comfortable lightweight T-shirts (5-7)
Shorts (1-3)
Socks, bring some high socks for hiking (7-10 pairs)
Underwear
Lightweight rain jacket
Hiking shoes
Sandals
Sweatshirt or long sleeved shirt
Sun hat
Sleep clothes (shorts, tank top, etc—it will be hot at night)
Swimming gear
Travel towel
Bandana

Other Important Items:

Passport
Any medication you need (malaria medication, travel antibiotics etc.)
Durable water bottle (at least 1.5 liters but the bigger the better)
Toiletries (tooth brush, floss, shaver, toothpaste, etc.)
Sunscreen
Aloe vera
Bug/mosquito repellant
Sunglasses
Work gloves
Flashlight or headlamp
Journal or something to write in
$10 bill for your tourist visa

Optional Items:

Power bars/Cliff Bars/etc – nice to extra snacks during garden work days & hikes
“No Jet Lag”- natural supplement for helping with jet lag- nice to have for flight
“Emergen-C” or other vitamin supplement you can add to water, any other supplements you’d like to bring to keep your immune system strong
Money belt (for money, passports, vaccination cards, etc.)

Deck of cards
Pictures of family, loved ones to show Nicaraguan students
Frisbee, hacky sack
A good book
Spending money- ($100-200 in U.S. dollars for extra drinks, souvenirs etc.).
Camera/iPod, bring at your own risk and remember that we do not need to be bringing these out with us at all times

Can my son or daughter bring any food with them, like Clif Bars?

Yes. In fact, we encourage it. Many of the service workdays involve long hours or challenging labor. Water and snacks are always provided but students should bring additional energy bars that they can snack on throughout the day.

Where do groups stay?

Students stay at a hostel in Leon, Nicaragua during the service portion of the trip. During the travel portion, groups also stay at hostels in other regions of Nicaragua. In each case, all accommodations are rented out for GSE and extremely safe and secure.

Is airfare included in the program fees?

Yes, we work with a travel agent to buy tickets in bulk, which allows us to keep costs down.

How can I communicate with my son or daughter while they’re abroad?

During break time when in town, students often have access to internet, skype and phones. Email is usually the easiest way to keep in contact with your child. Our programs offer the students the opportunity to be away from home and explore their independence. Please arrange with your students to have them check in with you if you are interested in hearing updates.

Who should I communicate with if I have concerns while they are gone? In case of emergency, how do I get in touch with my son/daughter while they’re overseas?

During our program cycle, a full time GSE staff member is on call 24 hours a day and 7 days a week to support US families and our groups overseas. Please contact Kate Crigler at gsecommunity@gmail.com (707) 228−8831.

What if my son or daughter cannot pay the full price of the trip?

That is a great question. We actually have many students who cannot personally fund the whole international trip. For this reason, and because fundraising is an important part of advocacy and organizing, we have developed training and projects to help students fundraise. With the support of GSE staff, students have even fundraised their entire program costs! GSE’s fundraising packet will be sent out after the first parent meeting through email.

Should my son/daughter bring money with them on their trip?

Everything that your son/daughter needs will be provided on the trip. However, if he/she would like to buy gifts or memorabilia then they should bring some additional spending money. They may also want to have some money to buy snacks at the airport.

Is it safe to travel to the developing world?

Global Student Embassy has built a vast network of in-country contacts in all of our partner locations and communities. We stay in dialogue with these partners regularly and are constantly receiving the most up-to-date information about our destinations and how it affects our groups and programs. We do everything we can to safeguard our selves and our possessions, but students are also responsible for their own safety by following our policies, guidelines, and advice.

What about the drinking water?

Filtered drinking water is available to students 100% of the time. Students should bring canteens or water bottles to re-fill throughout the trip.

Does my son or daughter need international travel insurance?

Global Student Embassy does not have a policy about international travel insurance and therefore, leaves the decision making to each individual family. Many US-based insurance plans will cover you for medical expenses overseas, but since each plan is different you’ll need to call your provider to verify coverage during your GSE program. Many homeowners and renters policies will also cover you for lost/stolen items during your travels. However, they can have high deductibles and a variety of clauses that can make this more troublesome than you’d prefer.

Does GSE have insurance for students while traveling?

Yes, GSE has foreign liability coverage for each student participant, which includes emergency medical evacuation and health coverage.

What safeguards does GSE have to ensure that my son/daughter wont get sick and what will happen if he/she does?

Different environmental factors exist when traveling abroad and our bodies may not be used to the challenges posed by daily life in a new country. While a certain amount of travelers’ diarrhea is to be expected, our leaders have the travel experience and medical training required to determine when an illness is potentially severe and when it is more routine. GSE has a wilderness first aid trained staff member on each trip. Should a student ever need to go to the doctor, a leader will accompany him/her to make sure he/she asks all the relevant questions and gets the best medical care possible. It is important that you notify your program directors and leaders of ANY medications you are taking regularly, or before you begin something new during the program.

Where is the closest hospital?

In Leon, a few miles away from our project.

Who do you typically hire as program leaders? How are your field staff qualified for this experience?

We recognize that the quality of a students’ experience is directly related to the quality of their leaders. For this reason, trip leaders undergo a meticulous interview and training process then ensures we are working with the best. Our leaders are typically 25 – 30 years old and love working with youth. They often have traveled sufficiently to the relevant regions, speak the local language, and are experienced in youth leadership.

There are 3 International Program leaders on each trip, as well as the Executive Director or Director of Programs. All leaders undergo basic CPR and First Aid training as well as rigorous programmatic training to ground them in program itineraries, safety issues, and how to be a positive peer mentor.

What is GSE’s policy on drugs and alcohol?

GSE has a zero tolerance policy on the use of drugs or alcohol. Our programs are focused on community service and building relationship and students are prohibited from seeking out or using intoxicants. Students will be kept by the side of a chaperone in the event that these rules are broken and may be sent home at their family’s expense if their behavior is endangering themselves or the group. (Please see the release waiver for more info on this subject).

“I feel empowered regarding communities working together to promote change, mostly because of how accepting the local [Nicaraguans] were. Never did I feel not welcome or not immediately accepted. Also the relative ease with which we communicated through a language/cultural barrier at the worksite impressed me. I feel as long as us and them were both working towards a common goal, we were hardly considered different at all.”
— Lucas Rohrer