Kerry and Mike here, after two long days of traveling. Yesterday, we got up at 5 AM in Manuel Antonio to make reservations for a bus to San Jose so that we could get back up to Nicaragua; the first bus we could catch wasn´t until noon, so we had a very long wait at the bus station. That was after a great night of hanging along with the rest of the people in our hostel, people from all over the world, and learning card games from them in exchange for playing a fun-filled game of dominoes with the ones Mike got.
From San Jose, we caught a bus to Canes, where we spent a few hours sleeping only to get up again at 5 to catch another early bus. We were on our way to Managua when we decided to get off in Masaya, a place renowned for its arts and crafts, in order for Mike to buy a hammock and for me to do some souvenir shopping for the fam. The driver let us off God-knows-where on the Pan Am, so we asked a whole bunch of people for directions. They all pointed us in the same place, so we figured we were heading in the right direction to the market.
Wrong. We somehow ended up in the middle of a small rodeo in the middle of a field with a soccer game. People had their faces painted and wigs on, there were small bands playing triumphant mariochi music, and horses dressed to the nines ridden or led by men dressed up as rancheros.
We left the strange rodeo, found our way to the market, shopped and ate, then booked a night in a cheap hotel in town. Tomorrow we again plan to get up at 5 am to catch another bus up farther north, to a town called Estelli.
Mike says: it surely has been two tiring days that have blurred together in many ways. sleeping has proved to be impossible for me on the buses, leading to much crabbiness. kerry has been very patient with this. were excited to make the most of our last few days in esteli, a town well known for its natural reserve, laid back country vibe, and excellent cigar production. i guess when the cuban govt socialized tobacco growing around mid century, some of the finest tobacco seed and farmers found their way to Esteli. so well probably chain smoke whilst hiking up this beautiful reserve, all while somehow managing the necessary communication it will take to stay with a rural nicaraguan family. bye!
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