El Mercado Central: A Day Visiting Kiva Clients
17 November 2009 at 15:05 Meg 6 comments
By Meg Gray, KF9 Nicaragua
How to describe one of the markets in Nicaragua? It’s hard and there really isn’t anything like them in the States to compare to. When I visited the Mercado Central in Chinandega, a small city that serves as a supply hub for the farms surrounding it, the heat was stifling. A few aisles are well lit with a sprinkling of fluorescent bulbs, while others are dark and cave-like. At the same time, the whole building is bursting with colors, smells, and noises. Every aisle is packed with people and very few aisles are wide enough for more than two people to walk side by side. And did I mention it’s hot. Chinandega has a well-deserved reputation for being one of the hottest places in Nicaragua. My guidebook accurately describes it as feeling like a rotisserie chicken the moment you leave the AC behind. In the end I decided, it was too hard to describe my day visiting clients in the Mercado Central. I decided it would be more fun and easier to try to figure out my video editing software and give you guys a taste of what my day was like. So here goes my first attempt at making a video…
Meg Gray is currently a Kiva Fellow in Nicaragua, where she is working with Kiva’s field partner CEPRODEL. Support a loan to a CEPRODEL entrepreneur or introduce a friend to Kiva with a gift certificate.
Entry filed under: blogsherpa, CEPRODEL, KF9 (Kiva Fellows 9th Class), Nicaragua. Tags: blogsherpa, CEPRODEL, KF9, Kiva, Meg Gray, microfinance, Nicaragua.


1. Kimia | 19 November 2009 at 07:33
That cant be your first time editing! Great job!
2. Mary Riedel | 18 November 2009 at 18:13
awesome video Meg – Yeah, like eva said – Filipion markets feel much the sam so I can almost smell your video – if that makes any sens
3. New Post on Kiva Fellows Blog: El Mercado Central « Meg's Travels and Other Thoughts | 18 November 2009 at 06:32
[...] 18, 2009 · Leave a Comment Check out my next post on the Kiva Fellows Blog. It includes my first attempt at making a movie. Maybe JM will be proud of my fantastic computer [...]
4. Eva, KF9 | 17 November 2009 at 18:35
Wonderful video Meg! It really conveyed the bustling movement/colors of the market. Markets here in the Philippines also look and feel much the same
5. Zal | 17 November 2009 at 16:42
Wonderfully edited video, Meg! Great to see the similarities and differences across Latin American markets vs. my experiences in Ecuador.
6. Jan & John, KivaFriends | 17 November 2009 at 16:25
thank you Meg, that was amazingly detailed, I need to watch it again:) jan