living in Leon

Leon is about an hour drive from Managua on the carretera to the north. There is a beautiful section of the drive right where Lago Managua and Momotombo (the volcano) are visible from the highway...tons of gorgeous vistas, valleys, and hills everywhere...though it does get a little browner as we head out of town to the drier region of Leon...
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Something didn´t work out with the Maritza, the woman I was supposed to live with, so I spent the night with Chris and Phil Wilson of Living Waters instead. They have a huge house with lots of spare bedrooms for teams that come down to work with them. I was grateful for the bed and the air conditioning (very rare here), but anxious to move in with the other family Anne (one of the other FHI staff living here) had worked out.
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Leon is a very colonial city, tons of Spanish influence everywhere--the food, the architecture, the cobblestone narrow streets with colorfully painted walls--you have to look carefully or you will walk right by the place you intend to go. 20 minutes will get you to the center of town and anywhere you want to go. Even though it is an old city, there are a lot of modern conveniences, including a huge supermarket where you can buy almost anything you want, a movie theater (which is showing MI 3 right now, if you can believe it), and vegetarian restaurants.
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I´ve met way more expats here than I ever expected and that has been both a blessing and a challenge, because it means the temptation to speak English is more present that I would like, but I have very much enjoyed my new colleagues in ministry here--Heather, who teaches at a couple schools here in Leon, and Anne, who lives here but works primarily with a community called Santa Maria about 30 minutes north of here (I go there on Thursday and will post my observations next weekend).
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Sunday was the first day I wanted to cry. The stress of not being settled by Sunday afternoon got to me a little bit, and when things didn´t work out with the second family, I was feeling very frustrated....I tried to remember that flexibility is the most important thing in situations like this, so I am very grateful that Anne, who was helping with this whole process from this end, took the initiative to investigate some other options yesterday evening with me, and I wound up at a boarding house owned by a Dona Leticia and her brother. They are very nice people and the room I am staying in is just big enough for a bed, nightstand, fan, chair, and storage rack. I also have my own bathroom with a small mirror and cabinet (though the water pressure leaves something to be desired). The best thing about this place is the patio. Right outside my room there is a patio full of lush green plants, which I am sure I will enjoy seeing every day.
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More to come.