Hey all! Sorry for the delay on blogging but I am on “Nica
Time” nothing here is really on time. A lot has happened this month so I will
do my best to sum it up.
Time” nothing here is really on time. A lot has happened this month so I will
do my best to sum it up.
In the beginning of this month all the teams regrouped inGuatemala City before embarking on the 20 hour bus journey to Nicaragua. Some
of the team members decided that they wanted a little of America and heading to
Taco Bell… not that great an idea after all. Mike, one of my teammates, got
violently ill. After being sick all night my teammate, Melina, and I took him
to the hospital. We were supposed to leave for San Salvador that day but
instead waved goodbye to the other 41 squad members. At first I was
disappointed to see the rest of the squad go but God blessed that time in the
hospital. It was a time of relaxation and a time for great conversations, a
time to really get to know Melina and Mike. Mike was miserable and slept for
most of the first day as he received fluids and antibiotics via an IV but got a
lot better the second day. I was really glad to see that the medical care was
up to standard, in fact, better than some I have seen in the states. Mike was
finally released late the third morning. After a quick stop at the hostel to
pick up our bags we booked it to the bus station. While I guess it wasn’t
booked as the taxi driver got lost for close to an hour but thanks to the Tica
bus being delayed two hours we made it right on time (Guatemalan time that is).
The first leg of the 20 hour journey was a 6 hour ride to
San Salvador the capital of El Salvador. The bus was a really nice Tica charter
bus so the ride went fast. The exciting part came when we got to San Salvador
and were able to have Wendy’s (except Mike who was a little over America fast
food for the time being) and a two nob hot shower! The shower was the first of
the trip to have both a hot nob and a cold nob instead of one nob and an
electrical shower head heater they fondly call “widow makers.” Most hostels in
Central America do not have hot water heaters because they are expensive, so
they do have these little devises on the shower heads. The showers are
also not built for people that are 6’1″ so if I ever stood up straight I would
get a healthy reminder shock that I needed to squat more. This shower in contrast
was very refreshing and prepared us for the next mornings 4am departure and 12
hour bus ride to Managua, Nicaragua. After a half dozen stops for boarder
crossings and passport checks we made it to Managua. Our logistics man Andy had
graciously set us up with a minibus driver Angel for our last leg to Jinotepe.
Angel had different plans though and dropped us off at the minibus station to
switch minibuses so they could have a full load. During the transfer several
workers grabbed our bags and transferred them to the next bus. As if Mike
hadn’t gone through enough in the last three days when we finally got to the
hotel in Jinotepe we found that one of Mike’s bags had not made it. We made
some calls to Angel, the hostel owner who gave us Angel as a contact, and the
minibus company owner. Several hours later after we had given up hope on
getting his bag back we got a call from Angel saying he had gotton ahold of the
bag. Not only did Mike get his bag back but who ever had stolen it had put a
bag of animal crackers in it. I guess they felt bad for stealing it after all.
San Salvador the capital of El Salvador. The bus was a really nice Tica charter
bus so the ride went fast. The exciting part came when we got to San Salvador
and were able to have Wendy’s (except Mike who was a little over America fast
food for the time being) and a two nob hot shower! The shower was the first of
the trip to have both a hot nob and a cold nob instead of one nob and an
electrical shower head heater they fondly call “widow makers.” Most hostels in
Central America do not have hot water heaters because they are expensive, so
they do have these little devises on the shower heads. The showers are
also not built for people that are 6’1″ so if I ever stood up straight I would
get a healthy reminder shock that I needed to squat more. This shower in contrast
was very refreshing and prepared us for the next mornings 4am departure and 12
hour bus ride to Managua, Nicaragua. After a half dozen stops for boarder
crossings and passport checks we made it to Managua. Our logistics man Andy had
graciously set us up with a minibus driver Angel for our last leg to Jinotepe.
Angel had different plans though and dropped us off at the minibus station to
switch minibuses so they could have a full load. During the transfer several
workers grabbed our bags and transferred them to the next bus. As if Mike
hadn’t gone through enough in the last three days when we finally got to the
hotel in Jinotepe we found that one of Mike’s bags had not made it. We made
some calls to Angel, the hostel owner who gave us Angel as a contact, and the
minibus company owner. Several hours later after we had given up hope on
getting his bag back we got a call from Angel saying he had gotton ahold of the
bag. Not only did Mike get his bag back but who ever had stolen it had put a
bag of animal crackers in it. I guess they felt bad for stealing it after all.
