My Trip To Nicaragua

Places Visited: Managua, Nicaragua (2 days)

Leon, Nicaragua (2 Hours)

El Sauce, Nicaragua (4 days)

Background on Cities:

All Cities on the Western Coast of Nicaragua

Managua pop. 2 million

Leon pop. 200,000

El Sauce pop. 30,000

Total country population: 6 million

Managua-Capital City

Leon-Colonial City

El Sauce- City for bottle upcycling project

Day 1 Travel to Nicaragua-

Flight out of Toronto 5:40 PM

Layover in Huston for ~1hour

Flight to Managua at 10PM

A lot of college groups headed to Managua for mission trips, health initiatives, etc.

Arrived in Managua 1 am on Saturday

Arriving in Managua:

Picked up by Marta and Alvaro- Kellan’s mother in law and her partner

Did not stop at any red lights in the city because it is safer. This is okay to do after

10pm most evenings

City had paved roads, LED traffic lights, many retail, hotel, and restaurant chains

found in the United States including:

o McDonalds

o Papa John’s

o Pizza Hut

o TGI Fridays

o Hooters

o Burger King

o Wendys

o Walmart

o Hilton

o Crowne Plaza

o Best Western

o Nike

o Adidas

o Etc.

Popular modes of transportation in Managua seemed to be

o Cars

Kia

Nissan

Toyota

Motorcycles

o 1 to three people riding on each motorcycle

o Just as popular as cars

Trucks and Large Passenger vans

o People often rode in the back of pickup trucks

o Large passenger vans also a popular form of transportation

Large public transportation network

o Large bus system that runs back and forth between cities (Managua, Leon,

El Sauce)

o Bus system can be school busses or charter buses depending on where

someone is going

o Relatively inexpensive to travel. Only $1.00-$3.00 US for round trips to

far away destinations

o No railroad system. Government sold it off to generate capital at some

point

Road System

o Paved roads and highways (limited number of highways)- In Managua

o Side streets are brick and some longer side roads are brick

o Roads in Rural communities are poor and dirt/stone only

Managua Hills Hotel:

Hotel in a nice community within Managua

Gated hotel in the hills of Managua

Nicely landscaped (Watered during dry season)

Lobby was nicely furnished and comfortable

o Wooden framed couches and chairs with cushions

o Wooden Bar with bar stools in the corner under the stairwell

o Wooden staircase that led to second level of hotel

Building overall had Spanish influences with architecture

Arches, stucco walls, wooden doors, and window frames, Spanish tile roofing

Metalwork on railings, bars for windows, and framing of some furniture

The room

o On the higher end of hotel rooms

o Floral artwork on the walls

o 2-3 lamps. 2 on the nightstands one on the floor

o Normal US 120V AC voltage

o Wooden nightstands

o Wooden desk

o Separate bathroom with wooden door and tile floor

o Shower with Hot and Cold water

o Floors were tile

o TV in each room and Air Conditioner in each room

o Comfortable Queen size bed

Hotel cost $35 USD

Day 2 Exploring Managua and the Journey to El Sauce-

Breakfast at the hotel- rice and beans, eggs with bacon, and toast

Breakfast served in the courtyard of the hotel

Served on porcelain plates with metal Utensils

Courtyard filled with palm trees, flowering vegetation, Birds of Paradise

Hear birds chirping and roosters from the surrounding area

Fresh Mango juice served with breakfast. It was delicious

Talked to the worker at the front desk about things to make out of plastic bottles and

plastic bottle houses were mentioned

Stop #1 Claro

Cell Phone store

Most people in cities have smartphones

2 main companies for service

o Claro- Mexico Company

o Movistar- Company from Spain

Both companies are satellite providers

Service in most urban areas of Nicaragua, some areas in the mountains and very

rural areas do not have cell service

Stop #2 Currency Exchange

Exchanged currency on the side of the road

To get the best exchange rate from cordobas to USD you need to know someone

to get the best deal

29.5 Cordobas = 1 US dollar

Stop #3 Colonia Supermarket

One of the largest supermarkets in Managua

Smaller than an average US grocery store

They are used for convenience and imported goods

Most other goods can be purchased from a market

Aztec inspired Art, pyramid/Triangular ceiling, bright and colorful décor, upside

down umbrellas hanging from the ceiling

Store had a combination of imported goods from America, Costa Rica,

Guatemala, and China

Attached food court

The Store Carried

o Plastic Goods

Flip Flops made in Nicaragua

Plastic Containers-Guatemala/USA

Plastic Plates-Costa Rica/Nicaragua

Cheap Plastic goods-China

o Clothing

o Meat/Seafood/Bakery

o Produce

Bananas and Mangoes in Season so they are cheap. Apples are

imported so they are pricey

o Nicaraguan Candies

o Nicaraguan Cookies

Popular use during festivals and holidays

Also a favorite snack in the country

o Freezer Section

Many 1L-2L soda and water bottles

Some bigger containers for water were sold as well

Mainly PET

HDPE containers like milk jugs found here

o Personal Care products

Many use HDPE bottles

Groceries overall cheaper than in the United States

Stop #4 La Plaza De Reveluccion

Large Plaza near lake Managua

Used for parties, contains old Managua Cathedral

Pays Homage to Sandino and the revolution in Nicaragua in the 70’s and 80’s

Sandino is a huge figure in the culture and revolution and was a martyr whom

instilled change in the government

Sandinistas currently in control of the government

Took over from dictatorship rule under Samosa

National palace in location as well as the tombs of major revolutionary figures

Celebration in July to celebrate revolution. Is getting smaller and smaller every

year as the generations begin to shift

Large party in the square

Many parks in the area used for memorials or for places to liven up the downtown

area

Stop #5 Lake Managua and Old Downtown

Trees of life

o 300 throughout Managua

o Put in by Current Presidents Wife to replace “Revolution Poles”

o 50-60 feet tall and covered in LED Lights

o Mixed public feelings about the trees, They look nice but are very

expensive

o Made of metal

o They are white, yellow, purple, blue, pink/red, and green

o $50000 USD to create one

Revolution colors, monuments, and symbols can be seen throughout Managua

******FILL IN GAPS FOR REST OF The DAY IN Managua AND Trip TO Leon/El

Sauce

Exploring El Sauce

Town used to be called Valle De Guayabal

Story of Santo Cristo de Esquipula (Black Christ)

Santo Cristo de Esquipula found in a Sauce Tree hence the name El Sauce

Heavily influenced by religion

Gigantic Festival with hundreds of thousands of people every January

******FILL IN GAPS FOR REST OF Touring El Sauce

Meeting with Businesses and Stakeholders

Business #1 Bicycle Shop

Alejandro Solano (Alex)

2 Wheels project

o Bikes for children in Nicaragua to attend school

o Enlace helps fund the project and with business development

o Money comes in from USA and Australia for project

Welds/builds framing and all parts of bicycles

Obtains parts and new bikes from the city of Estelí

Created a 4 wheeled bicycle

o 4 passengers

o Custom invention

o Hoping to use for tourism

Fixes old bikes and works on and sells new bikes

Sells Spare Parts

Pricing:

o 2300 Cordobas for a new bike

o 1900 Cordobas for a used bike

o Aluminum frames are more expensive

o Most bikes made of steel

Works on 50-60 bikes a month for sales

Makes more money selling bicycles

o 70% selling bikes

o 30% fixing bikes

Buy used bikes from surrounding cities

o 20 bikes purchased every 2 months

Fragua

o Human powered machine using bicycle power

o More on this later

o Band goes around metal wheel to bend/use it

o Can adapt human powered machinery to pumps as well

Idea to create bike powered smoothie maker for tourism

Can make us a bicycle power supply for shredder for relatively inexpensive-$100USD

Works 8-5 Monday-Saturday

2 part time employees

Family members work with him when they are not in school

Business #2 Clothing Business

Alex’s Sister has a clothing business

Makes dress clothes, school uniforms, fashion items

Learned about making clothes in Costa Rica

Father made sundials

Every 3 months she travels to Costa Rica to buy more supplies

o About 200 lbs. of material

Made dresses for dolls when she was little and went to Costa Rica to learn how to make

clothes

Works with her mother

Has 2 kids

Young Girls major target market

Also school uniforms are popular

Uses electric sewing machine

Repairs clothes

Can replicate designs from magazines and can design custom fashions

Pricing:

o 800 Cordobas for a large dress

o 180-300 Cordobas for a short dress

o 200 Cordobas for a girls school uniforms

o 230 Cordobas for boys school uniforms

People sometimes bring their own material

4-5 hours to make an item of clothing

Peak season November –December since School goes from February- December

Popular time around holidays as well

Works 6 days a week, 8 hours a day when demand is high.

Business #3 Washing Machine Repair

Removes material from old machines

Sells useful parts

Scraps not useful parts

Melted metal used for construction

4-5 clients a week

2-3 similar businesses in town

Welding capabilities

Has most tools that can be found in the USA

Missing a smaller tube cutter and a tool to bend tubes

Fixes electric problems with devices

Fixes leaks in lines of devices like refrigerators as well

Welds with iron and aluminum

Copper is also used heavily in the tubing

Refrigerant R-104a Freon

Plugs holes in lines to repair them

Uses pliers to hold items in place while welding

Uses a small welding gun

Works with circuit boards and control systems

Has replacement parts sent to the business or occasionally travels to Costa Rica or

Managua to find replacement parts

Picks up machines using Bike Taxis found in EL Sauce

1-2 machines worked on per day

Works 8 hours a day 6 days a week

Scrapped parts go to the dump

Prices for Scrapped Material:

o 10 Cordobas/lb. aluminum

o 1 Cordoba/lb. Iron

o 18 Cordobas/lb. Bronze

o 35 Cordobas/lb. Copper

Has a collection of plastic items he doesn’t know what to do with

Mainly large HDPE drawers, fans, shelves, etc.

o Used to sell for 3 Cordobas/lb. to a neighbor

Makes 2-3 dollars an hour

Charge 250 cordobas for labor

Factors in cost of electricity/food when finalizing the bill

Has one permanent assistant and occasionally has a second. Pays them 250 Cordobas a

day

Business #4 The Bottle Collector

Someone in El Sauce used to collect bottles to sell to an outside company

Sold to a company in Mexico

Started collecting 4 years ago and the company stopped two years ago

3 cordobas per kg of plastic

Middle man made about 10-11 cordobas per kg

Bags still sitting outside of Managua

100 cordobas tax collection/yr on business from mayor’s office

cleaned crushed bottles

Had all types of plastic including broken chairs, fans, shelves, drawers, broken products,

and bottles

Wind was an issue with storage with bottles blowing around

Put plastic into giant sacks to store and transport

Large trucks picked them up

Strong focus on cleaning up the environment

Strong public response at the time

Process worked good and there was no lack of space

Product ideas:

o Whistles

o Toys

o Chairs

o Plastic Containers

Business #4 El Molino (Mill)

5am start time to wake up and clean the grinders. Cleaning occurs the night before and

early morning to prevent contamination

Grinder always washed between uses

Corn is boiled and cleaned before entering the mil

o Cal is added to the corn to become soft for use in the mill

Pinoil is made from one of the mills. (Toasted corn)

Machine runs on 220 volts per unit

One mill requires water (pinol) other does not

One mill can make material for tortillas the other makes cornmeal

Main breaker powers the circuit to run the machines

Main breaker hooks up to the motors

30 people a day come to grind corn

Grinds meat on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday as well on a different

machine

Can only operate one machine at a time with current setup

Process can be done for 3 Cordobas a lb. He charges 10- 15 cordobas per pound

depending on labor

Caters to whatever the customer need is

25 cordobas per large pot of material

People on average bring 6-7 lbs. of corn at a time

Some of the ground corn only has a 4-5 hour shelf life if nothing is done with it post

grind

Motors can be found in Oriental Market in Managua.

o Largest market in central America

Coffee and cocoa also ground in mill

Grinder is cleaned between every use to ensure no cross contamination

Minimum of 500 Cordobas of profit a day

Three people work at the mill

Maintenance is done completely in house

Bearings are the main source of issue with the machine

o Replacements can be easily found

o Chinese parts not favorable and break more often (only last 4 months)

o USA parts are better

o Bought in car parts store

10 mill businesses in town

Nails, Cans, Coins, iron get stuck in Mill occasionally

Usually hear a metal item enter the mill

o Immediately kill the breaker

o Happens only 1-2 times a month

Plates on Mill need to be replaced every 2 years

People in El Sauce can fix them with files and they need to be filed every 3 days

When cleaning machine bands that join motor to the shredder are completely removed

Machine is greased for functionality

Machine bought in town about 300 km away

Beans are also ground at the mill for a popular snack ante frijoles

Business #5 4 Walls Construction Manager

Pepe- 4 Walls On site construction manager

Since 2008 4 walls has had hundreds of volunteers

2008-2010 only built two walls of a house to improve structural quality

Have helped 121 families since 2008

80 full house designs

Roofs used to be made of wood, now they are all metal

Strong walls made from bricks, metal, and cement

Use only high quality materials to build houses

4 Walls has a Board of Directors- 5 members from different neighborhoods

Look for applicants that meet different parameters to apply.

Parameters:

o Need to own land for a year

o Need a house to replace

o House needs to be made of plastic, wood, adobe, sheet metal, or sticks

o Need government ID of some sort

Changed priority from adobe houses to also poorly constructed brick houses

Prioritize women with children whom are either married or not married

Family project, must have lived on land for at least a year.

6m x 6m houses

o 6m x 4m if land is strange

o Want to keep house design consistent so everyone gets the same thing

City is in decent shape with housing, 4 walls focuses more on the rural areas on the

outskirts of town

35 families apply per year, usually 20 of those homes are built within the year

Currently 16 families in need

Each house costs $2000 USD

$1600-$1700 for materials alone

Houses built for domestic workers. The jobs they do is:

o Make tortillas

o Wash clothes

o Field work

o Taxi workers

Bigger houses in the city exist through

o Hereditary inheritance

o Making money abroad

o Government allocated land

Pepe and board members find families

Families that reach out to 4 walls are visited by board members to evaluate eligibility

Families provide large stones for foundation of house

Pepe works extensively with the mayor’s office

Adheres to all building codes (the limited ones that exist)

Codes for certain public buildings but not for 4 walls houses

Codes apply to restaurants, schools, pharmacies, and stores

Families like houses more when volunteers come down and work on them. Gives them a

little something extra that is special

Product Ideas:

o Roof Protection

o Break in Protection

o Gutters

o Culatta

o 600cm long by 30cm high addition to 4 walls houses

If products are well developed, 4 walls will help with implementation

ADDITIONAL BUSINESSES TO ADD NOTES FOR:

Carpenter

Welder/motorcycle Repairman

Forge

Leonidas (Refrigerator Repairman)

Waste Management Department

Stories

Marta’s Story

At 16 years old, Marta had the opportunity to be a part

of the Nicaraguan Revolution. As part of a literacy

initiative for the country, she left Managua and went

to a small village in the mountains to teach 9 grown

men how to read and write. With thousands of other

young people helping the initiative, the anti

government movement did not support literacy

workers since they were sent by the government. The

workers were targeted by the opposition and often

times killed for educating the people. One victim was

Marta’s neighbor. She finished teaching her students

and discovered a passion for teaching. Marta now

teaches at a French School in Managua.

Alex’s Story

Alejandro (Alex) Solano owns a bicycle shop in El Sauce. He

repairs broken bicycles, works on new bicycles, and invents new

creations using bicycles. He has invented a 4 wheeled bicycle,

bicycle powered machines, and works extensively on three

wheeled bike taxis used throughout the town. Alex will be a

great partner moving forward for making our machine bicycle

powered.

The Bottle Collector

We were able to track down someone who

used to collect bottles to sell to Managua.

She collected for a few years and liked the

initiative of cleaning up El Sauce and

being able to reuse a product. She stopped

because the company she sold to was no

longer buying plastic. She was interested

in the fact we were starting the initiative

again and gave positive feedback to our

shredding idea. She seems to share a

similar sentiment to many of El Sauce’s

residents who want to see a cleaner place

to live.

Pepe -4 Walls Construction Manager

Pepe is a mason in the town of El

Sauce and is the construction manager

on site for all of 4 walls houses. He

has been able to build over 100 houses

for people and is constantly receiving

applications to build more houses for

the residents of El Sauce. Pepe was

enthusiastic about the recycling

project and was interested in some

building materials that could be made

with plastic. 4 Walls would be willing

to use our products as long as they

were of good quality and were useful

to the people.

Product Ideas:

Building Materials

o Windows

o Doors

o Culattas

o Flooring Materials

o Gutters

o Room Dividers

o Plastic Roofing

o Awnings/Shades

Art

Household Items

Storage Containers

Tables/Chairs

Covers for Electronics

Garbage Cans

Statues of the Trees of Life

Other Items

Polyester for filling cushions

Covers for MotoTaxis

User Feedback:

Overall positive reaction to project!

Strong campaign and initiative to clean up the environment and sort waste

Blocks designed by Afifi fit in well to the culture: Similar blocks throughout the city

Building Materials was the most popular category of product suggestions

Shredder looks like a lot of machinery that exists in El Sauce

We have partners to develop some of the parts of the machine

Shredder will add value to plastic bottles and condense waste until future parts of the

business are developed