Payaso Pipo, Pachangas, and Felizidades

Wow 6 extra people makes a huge difference in noise. As the Nicaraguans say "Que alboroto." They don't go back to the house they're staying at until late and come again early. I'm so ready to go home. I've been really out of it too. I feel like I have mono now more than ever :P
My uncle Chris ended up getting sick because he broke the golden rule of no ice and no salad at the Rosti Pollos. My stomach hasn´t been feeling so good as it is but I´m glad I don´t have what he has.
On Thursday my aunt wanted to celebrate my littlest cousin's 1st birthday so she got this restaurant to cater and a clown. We ate crapes and sat outside in the little rancho that's in my grandparent's backyard. The clown, Payaso Pipo, arrived in a car you would expect a clown to arrive in... a convertable punch buggy. He was amazing. Really funny, interacted really well, did magic, played games, made things out of balloons... everything a clown should be. But after 3 hours I was ready for something different. After he left we broke 2 piñatas, a birthday tradition. Even I got a turn lol. I think its funny how I get included in all the kids stuff even though some of the others are only 2 years older than me and they count as adults.
Friday we went to the Artisania which is the Market in Masaya. My mom and I spent at least $70. I tried to use my best spanish... I´m really getting into it now... but my terrible accent made it obvious that I deserved the ¨Gringo Price¨ so mom ended up doing all the talking. But they would take one look at me and charge us more anyway so I might as well have just spoken English the whole time. Luckily my mom is a good haggler. She doesn´t have much of a voice left though. It went somewhere and so whenever she´s trying to get people´s attentions it doesn´t work.
Friday night my mom´s cousin invited us over for dinner. It was a great party. Both the husband and the wife are doctors and have+- a lovely house. The party was in the backyard and the food was all really good. They had a marimba player and some of my mom´s relatives... I guess they were cousins... perfermormed folkloric Nicaraguan dances. And they were all dressed up and stuff. It was very cool. They also had fireworks and they did this thing I´ve never seen before and probably will never see again. It was this ¨bull¨ or a wooden frame that looked like one. and they put fireworks/firecrackers/sparklers on it. and then they lit it. and then this guy held up the wooden frame and ran around with it and there was smoke and sparks and it was amazing and funny and crazy all at the same time. I met 2 girls who were about my age and they were my mom´s cousin´s daughters so technically we were my cousin´s too. The younger one is studying political science and international relations at a college here where the classes are all in English. I liked talking to her because I could speak to her in English. My mom kept getting angry at me for not speaking in Spanish. She left though so I ended up talking to the other one who didn´t know that much English. She was about a year older than me and was studying architecture. I actually spoke to her in Spanish but my mom wouldn´t believe that I wasn´t speaking in English because she kept coming at the wrong time. I really liked talking to both of them.
And then last night is where things went completely wrong. I was going through the pictures I had taken and then I was just messing around with my camera when I stupidly erased all 510 pictures we´ve taken. and it wasn´t just an erase all it was like wipe the card clean. Hopefully we´ll be able to undo this stupidity. that thought is the only thing keeping me sane. I mean I bought the camera to take pictures of Nicaragua and now half of my trip no longer exists. I think enough people took pictures of the same things that its not completely lost but it still won´t be the same. In any case, I´ve been trying to make up for lost time.
Today was the reason we even came to Nicaragua in the first place. We celebrated my grandpa´s 80th birthday. It was exactly what I would want my wedding to look like. It was all very pretty but not over done--simple. We rented the bus again and drove to the hotel it was at in Managua. The food was SO good. It was half inside and half outside... outside was hot and inside was loud lol. There was a pool, but I had spent so much time getting ready I didn´t think I was going to want to swim so I didn´t bring my bathing suit. I sort of regretted it because it was so hot in Managua, but I ended up taking a nap in the shade... it was nice. The water was apparently really cold anyway which is surprising. The music was loud but good. You can´t have a party without some good latin music and dancing. I danced with my dad and my grandpa, it was a lot of fun but really wears you out if you aren´t used to it. The party was mostly boring but like I said the food was good. I really wanted to read but felt that my mom wouldn´t approve so thats why I ended up taking a nap instead lol.
I´m not sure what the plans for the next couple of days are. I know we´re going to kill and cook a pig so that should be fun. They got the pig today and it reminded me of Michelle´s show pigs. I want to go to the Chocoyero and to visit Mary, but I´m not sure how plausible these things are. It´s so hard to plan anything. My aunt is leaving tomorrow though and while that means I´ll have the bed to myself, the task of keeping the privacy of my room falls to me. I´m not quite sure how that´s going to work.
I just wish I could get rid of this feeling inside of me that wants to go home.