Collen gave Reagan and I a "date night". We got to wander around Granada, enjoying a few cafes. At one point, we stopped for a drink on the veranda of Hotel Alhambra, one of the nicest hotels in Granada.; While there, a beautiful stray cat came up. We noticed it had a badly injured ear. Reagan wanted to take it to the vet, but we quickly learned there are no animal hospitals in Granada. Heck, there is poor health care for people - let alone stray animals. ...

Nothing better than a fresh fruit smoothie for breakfast! How do you do that in Granada? Wake up, walk 2 blocks to Parque Central, pay about 40 cents for two bags of freshly cut fruit (papaya, mango, pineapple, banana), blend and serve! With some Nicaraguan coffee, its a great way to start the day!

One of Reagan's favorite activities is taking photos of different wildlife. While hiking Mombacho Volcano, there was a small area that had some of those funky little Central American frogs. The last time we saw one was while rafting in Costa Rica about 15 years ago. This frog is so cool looking, and can fit on your finger!

We spent an afternoon visiting a school in one of the poorest parts of Granada, Barrio Pantanal. Education Plus Granada is the group that recently opened a school there, and a Delaware-based charity we are involved with, Neighbors to Nicaragua, provides some of the funding for the school. During our tour of the Barrio, it started to absolutely pour. While walking in the rain, our kids were invited to join some local kids in a soccer game. Not quite like the f...

One of the charities our family is involved with is KIVA (www.kiva.org). Kiva is a micro-finance lending site. It's basic premise is - better to give a hand up, than a hand out. People have the opportunity to lend small amounts of money to either small entrepreneurs, or social projects. Groups of small funds are pooled together to fund a single project. Kiva lenders provide their funds at zero interest. It is not a donation - just a chance to use our money ...