The Cultural Train

We spent Monday morning in Spanish classes and attended dance lessons at night. In the afternoon, we split up for a while with Emma and Porter studying and waiting for a visit from Emma’s host mom at Casa Xalteva, Elizebeth and Jasmine walking to the bus station to look for Emma’s host mother, and Kurt and Gianni touring the Cultural Train in a nearby park.


The Cultural Train is a mobile exhibition funded by the United Nations and organized by the University of Central America in Managua. It articulates the history of an award winning literacy campaign, which was implemented in 1980. Through the efforts of 95,000 volunteers (mostly youth), Nicaragua's literacy rate went from 50% to 90% in less than a year. The exhibition ends with a brainstorm session where participants make pledges to implement new efforts to improve Nicaragua. The exhibit was both profoundly impressive (with its demonstration of what people can do when they join together) and inspirational.