Architecture and the Nicaraguan House

In the United States often when we look at the houses around us, we equate them with monetary value that speaks volumes on how we assume a family lives, and the type of socioeconomic class they belong to. However, few people realize that even back home that there is a psychology to the architecture, that houses are constructed with a purpose in mind.
Obviously one of the first things that stood out for the students here is how the houses lack a front yard and a back yard, but rather have a garden in the middle of the house. Although this may be the type of house that the majority of us are staying in, there is a reading that points out that there are four types of houses that exist here. The first is made of straw, the second of mud, the third has walls made of straw that are able to be moved around, and the last is colonial in appearance on the outside, but not what I consider to be colonial on the inside. In one of the readings, they refer to living in these styles of houses as living in a tree.
We talked about the reason for the high cealings here, for the lack of windows and although they are valid points to discuss, we didn't really talk about how the structures affect community. This is what I mean by how there is a psychology to building. In the United States, after World War II, there was a man named Levit who created houses that were not only affordable, but as my dad would call them, houses that are built right on top of each other. There are two towns named after him, one on Long Island, called Levittown. How does architecture promote, or dissuade, community? For a long time architects have tried to promote community back at home, and they have tried to break down barriers between ethnicities and for the most part it works among a race, however it hasnt been as successful between races. What is the purpose of a porch at home? Architects hope that families will sit outside, and engage in conversations with their neighbors, but it is often to no avail. The first thing I thought of when noticing that there essentially is no front porch here, and that families although seem like they are outside because it is open to the sky, are really inside, and I thought, this cant be good in means of promoting community. If youre inside all the time, how will you ever chat with your neighbors? There is a derrogative word called porch monkey, and it usually refers to either african americans or hispanics that sit outside on their porches for long periods of time. In fact, our government, especially Connecticut's, recruited Puerto Ricans to work the fields in Bridgeport and after work when they'd go home they would sit outside their porches and get harassed by police for loitering.
There's a funny thing about expectations, because what I expected about the architecture of the houses dissuading community turned out to be false. The second day I noticed that when people were walking on the streets, they were greeting each other, they knew each other. That doesnt happen in Manhattan, even when people live in the same apartment buildings. They are in such a hurry, New Yorkers expect to have had things done yesterday, while Nicaraguense dont care if it happens tomorrow. And as a native New Yorker, I can tell you that not having a set plan all the time is very hard at times, but you learn to just breathe and like you would do as the Romans do in Rome, do as the Nicas do in Nicaragua.
So I started looking more as I walked in the streets, observing what it is they do that allows for this sense of community. Although they lack a porch, they essentially sit in the living room with the doors open, so if visitors walk by, they can see they are home and ready for company. I think if architects want to learn a little something about how to promote community, they should take a trip to Granada.