Nicaragua

This weekend a friend and I took a trip to Nicaragua...we had so much fun!! Nicaragua is very different from Costa Rica. It is a whole lot poorer, so it looks WAY more like a Third World Country (that's not a hard feat...Costa Rica is not very Third World at all). Anyways, we stayed in Granada, which is one of the more touristy towns. There were tons of vendors on the streets and everything was way cheaper, which was nice!! I somehow managed not to buy anything, though-mainly because I don't need most of it. El Centro, or downtown, had a big park in it, which was pretty, and, of course, a Catholic church that was uniquely beautiful, as they all are down here. One sad thing was the kids-they come up and ask for money relentlessly. It's hard to not give them some, but you can't give money to every single child or you would go broke. The dogs are also very sad...I will not go into detail about them.

Saturday we went to a lagoon that is in the crater of a volcano. It was beautiful!! The hostel that we were staying at has a sister hostel on the lagoon, and we were able to go for the day and hang out there. The water is perfectly clear and so calm, and rather cool, which was refreshing. We kayaked out to the middle of the lagoon and stayed there for a while, then came back in and I took a nap while Juliane went and took a ton of pictures (she's a photographer). It was so wonderfully relaxing to not have to go anywhere or do anything, just sleep or look out at the beauty of the lagoon!!
Sunday we got up early and took a chicken bus (public bus) into Rivas, which is about an hour and a half away. That was an experience!! The chicken buses there are old school buses that are painted with bright colors. Everyone comes and gets on with their gunny sacks, big baskets full of food, bicycles, 5-gallon buckets...I wouldn't have been surprised if someone got on with an animal!! Anyways, it's crazy because there's no set stops, people just sit on the side of the road and flag the bus down. So you never know how many stops will be made. And the payment system is ridiculous-every once in a while someone just comes down the aisles and collects money from the people that have gotten on since the last collection. I have no idea how they keep track of this-it makes much more sense to pay at the door, like they do it here (in Costa Rica). Anyways, once in Rivas, we took a ferry across Lake Nicaragua to Isla Ometepe, an island with two volcanoes on it. The two islands used to not be connected, but lava from the eruptions fused them together. It is beautiful over there, too!! We stayed in a nice hostel and basically did the same things we did Saturday-kayak, sleep, and read. It was just so nice!!
Monday we had to get up and start the looooong journey home...excruciating chicken bus ride to to the ferry (2 hours long), ferry to Rivas, barter with a taxi driver to get us to our bus stop. There are 3 bus lines that go to other countries, and we were using TicaBus. Basically you buy a round-trip ticket but your seat on the way back is open, and you have to reserve it when you get to your destination. We had reserved seats for 1:30, but the woman told us it would be coming at 2. So around 2, we went to sit in the sun and wait for the bus. 45 minutes later, we saw a bus coming and stood up, but it flew right by us! I was so sure we had just been left in Nicaragua and wouldn't make it home for another day, but it turned out it was the wrong bus and ours came shortly after. Thank goodness...I was very ready to leave!!
Border crossing was horrible...probably 2 hours long. They have a double border-you exit Nicaragua and get your exit stamp, get back on the bus, and go to the Costa Rica station. Get back off the bus, get your entrance stamp, then go back to the bus, get your luggage, and wait and wait and wait for them to come by and decide whether they want to check it or not. They usually don't. So FINALLY, you get back on the bus and leave. Mind you, this is in sweltering, humid weather. Anyways, after the Costa Rica border, it is 5 hours to San Jose. Once we were back in the city, I was strangely relieved and excited to be in the "safety of home." I never thought I would think that, but it really did feel like I was coming home!!

Overall, the trip was a lot of fun. It was nice to travel with only one other person, and she is very laid back. We never felt like we had to have plans or spend a lot of money on some tour, it was more just a time to experience a different culture and the beauty of another country, and to just relax. I am glad I had that opportunity!! I would post pictures, but since my computer is broken I can't download them off my camera. :-(
That's all for now-thanks for your prayers-I know God was definitely involved in keeping me safe this weekend!! Until next time, adios!!