Visiting Nicaragua

The method by which we first arrived in Nicaragua was via a one day trip there from our hotel in Costa Rica. The hotel was offering one day trips to Nicaragua and I really wanted to go. The cost of the trip was expensive or so we thought. It was $145 US.

This made my husband reluctant and like everyone else, he thought that Nicaragua was dangerous. We thought of renting a car but then decided against it. I mean, what if Nicaragua was dangerous. We didn't speak Spanish, the roads are not great in Costa Rica and the drivers are kind of awful.

However, another couple said they wanted to go. I guess people are afraid of going to Nicaragua. I mean, the last thing you heard in the news about Nicaragua was about their civil war, but that ended in 1978 or 79. Then they had ten years of communism. Then you might have heard about some assassinations here and there and then nothing new about Nicaragua. No wonder people are afraid to go there for vacation. But the next day when we were to book the trip, they chickened out. Needless to say, I wanted to go, so husband bitching, we were going. He was bitching about the $145 US mostly.

The bus left at 5:55 a.m., and we made it.

Our tour guide was a nice Costa Rican guy.

The trip to the border was about an hour and a half. We were glad we didn't rent a car because, for one, our guide knew the roads and he could speak Spanish. And he knew how to speed things up through the border. Ten dollars US and a cold can of pop will get you through the border. Mind you, we had to wait at the border for a while and there were all kinds of guys walking around with wads of cash, trying to exchange money with you. Forwarned, we did not do our currency exchange at the border. I kind of like real banks.

We were tired when we crossed the border and we were told that breakfast would be in a half hour when we arrived at the town of Rivas and were taken to a splendid little hotel where I'm sure only the rich of Nicaragua dine. Breakfast was excellent and then we hopped on board the little tourist boss and headed for the town of Catarina.

Along the way, I looked at the houses of the people of Nicaragua. There is a lot of poverty. Sort of like the poverty of the countryside of Cuba. What Nicaragua needs is a large dose of tourism, and I'm sure that will start to cure the problems of poverty here. We will see.