Hitching my way through Nicaragua

So far I have found the people of Nicaragua to be extremely friendly and helpful. Everywhere I go they are helping me out-- and giving me rides. Whenever I find myself questioning my mode of transportation, a ride comes along. When I first got to the Nicaraguan border after a long morning of travel (starting at 5 am, many connections in pickup trucks along the way, 2 border crossings) I found myself semi stuck there for awhile because the nearest town, Somoto, was about 20 km away and the bus service was very infrequent, and I did not have the energy to walk. It's not a very popular border crossing. I asked around and it seemed like taxis were the only option (I try to avoid taxis whenever possible because I trust them the least out of anyone). I hesitantly went to talk to a taxi driver and there was another Nicaraguan family talking to him and they were in my same situation. The taxi driver was trying to overcharge us all (at least it wasn't just me) so we walked down the road a little to figure out what to do. Next thing a truck drove by and pulled over and we all jumped in the back and he gave us a free ride to Somoto. It was great and the family I was with was really nice, and I felt kind of like one of the locals.

The next day I was in Matagalpa and I wanted to go to the Selva Negra (Black Forest) outside of town about 10 km. I started off walking and probably made it a few meters when a truck of men with large machetes who were going to cut from the forest pulled over and I jumped in the back and got another free ride... plus it was really exciting to me to ride with them, haha, I pulled up to the park in style!

The best yet was when I was leaving the Selva Negra-- I had planned on walking back to Matagalpa and then catching a bus to Managua (which is a slow 4 hour ride). Right when I got on the road a car drove by and stopped. It was a couple who had also spent the night in the park and they were going back to Managua, which is where he was from, she was from Spain. They gave me a ride the whole way!! It was sweet, they were so nice and they told me a lot about Nicaragua and explained a lot of the things that were going on outside the window as we drove by. It was really hot out and they put on AC and I was in paradise! We also stopped for lunch along the way at their favorite place and I got to try the famed quesillo and Javier insisted on buying it for me since he invited me. They asked me where I was staying Managua and I told them that I didn't know and that I didn't have much of a plan. The girl (she had a tough name) had lived with a family in Managua for a year a few years ago and she told me they have rooms to rent, plus the mom cooks up good food, and she offered that as a suggestion. I said sounds great, so they drove me right there and we all sat around and talked after we arrived-- they were like family and they instantly made me a part of the family too (even though they found out I was just a random person picked up off the side of the road) and it was a great environment. I stayed the night and ate a few meals with the family and hung out with the kids and it was the best part of my stay in Managua.

I was joking to myself that I should try and hitch my whole way through Nicaragua (that would be a good challenge), but I won't press my luck. Today finally I took one of my first buses, after my new Nica mom took me to the bus station. I have been so indecisive recently about where to go, and I finally was like okay I'm going to San Juan del Sur. I hopped on the bus and for some reason something just didn't seem right and I jumped off right as they were pulling out and I jumped on a bus to Grenada instead, haha, so now here I am in Grenada. We'll see how this works out. But anyway I love Nicaragua and this country has been treating me right!

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