After three years away from Nicaragua, I have returned! I always knew that I would come back to this beautiful country one day but could not have possibly guessed that it would be under the circumstances under which I now find myself. (I’m filming a documentary about water, for god’s sake. I suppose that life has a tendency to be unpredictable in often-wonderful ways, though, so here I am.)

What has struck me the most over the past week of traveling through this country are the vivid memories that have been endlessly recalled from forgotten recesses of my brain by the oddest triggers: The smell of burning wood as soon as I stepped out of the airport reminding me of street food purchased on the side of a rural highway in Estelí, the familiar rumbling of the oddly-shaped paving stones that cover this country evoking a humid sunset journey by scooter on the island of Ometepe. It is difficult to believe both the power that such insignificant triggers have in recreating memories and the fact that I ever could have forgotten these memories to the vagaries of time, in the first place.

-Richard Hansen

P.S. Because of time pressures, I will write more about the substantial work that we’ve done during the past week in a bit. Suffice it to say that things are looking up and we have an embarrassment of riches in choosing between compelling stories to film.

OMG isn’t it so beautiful? Said the teenage girl next to me on the plane. As I opened my eyes from a daze, I looked over the window and below us I saw a blanket of water with some patches of lush green forest and volcanoes. That was my first view of Nicaragua. Water, in form of big lakes and lagoons covering the country. As we landed, I had this great feeling of being in the right place with the right intention.

Managua has welcomed us greatly. Many warned me before my trip that Managua was unappealing and not like many capital cities. Although the latter maybe true and the poverty does reveal itself the minute you walk out of the airport (unlike other cities where it is somewhat hidden from the tourist on purpose) Managua, and Nicaragua overall, has an indescribable and welcoming charm that still, after some days of being here, bewilders me. People are very lax and endearing and the city has a town feeling that is very heart warming. After a weekend of acclimatizing, meeting wonderful people and having fun in the stunning Laguna de Apoyo with our lovely friends Natalie and Karla from MIIS, we (meaning just Manu and I, still waiting for Ricardito) started our very busy and fast-paced film journey.

From logistics to lunch meetings with people from civil society, the international cooperation community, filmmakers alike, and government, we are in the process of trying to decipher the puzzle of water access and management here in Nicaragua. The prospects are incredibly interesting and I am so happy that I am again in my home, America Latina.

Cristina Lopez