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Published: August 29th 2010
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1. Taking Risks
2. Stupidity
Sometimes these two concepts can end up being the same thing. I think there is a time and a place to take a slight risk when you are travelling, as long as your gut feeling is good. I mean, we take risks all the time whether it be riding on the roof of a bus or in the back of a truck; if it gets you form A to B for the cheapest amount of money most people are happy to take a slight risk to achieve this.
Then there is the issue of trusting people. I will be honest here, I usually don´t trust anyone unless they have done something to gain my trust. I know this has shut out alot of opportunities that could have been great but sometimes I like to be in control when I am travelling. I still remember an old lady I talked to for 4 hrs on a bus from Sorata to La Paz in Bolivia and when she invited me to stay at her house I just couldn´t say yes. I knew it would be fine but I just couldn´t do it. Well, I kind of
crossed the line the other day, and this is how it happened.
I started the day in Comayagua in Honduras and was aiming to cross the border to Nicaragua and try to get to Esteli at least, maybe even Leon if I could, to stay the night. I started early, took a bus to Tegucigalpa and then took 2 more buses to the border town of Las Manos. This is the stupidity part of the story!! I didnt have too much money on me but I figured I had enough to cross the border and get to Esteli where I could get out Nicaraguan Cordobas and be on my way. Well, I underestimated how much it would cost to exit Honduras and enter Nicaragua. Lets just say that I crossed the border with absolutely no money on me whatsoever after even changing some Guatemalan Quetzales that were intended for souvenir purposes.
Anyway, I had to take a bus to the next town of Ocotal which was 15 km away. I boarded the bus and began to think of what I could barter to pay the fare. I had a really cool cowboy hat that I picked up in
Lago Atitlan but I dearly didn't want to part with it. Or my sunglasses??
Near the end of the journey the conductor came around to collect the fares and as much as I hated doing it I had to lie. When he came to me I explained that I had 200 Cordobas in my pocket but it must have fell out before I boarded the bus. Maybe I could pay him at the next town? He didnt seem to impressed and luckily a young Nicaraguan guy across from me volunteered to pay my fare (10 cordobas). I was ever grateful and started talking with him and his friend for 5 minutes to which end he asked me if I wanted to stay at his house in Ocotal and maybe go out partying tonight?
Mmmm... This is the "Taking a risk" part of the story. Like I said earlier, usually I don't trust anyone unless I have gained their trust. His goodwill gesture of paying for my fare sat highly with me. He seemed genuine and he wasn't putting any pressure on me to make a decision. Should I take a risk? Thoughts swirled through my head for what seemed like minutes but were merely seconds and next thing I knew I was getting off the bus with Joshua wearing my cowboy hat. Had I made the right decision? I was second guessing myself on the walk to his house. I stood outside his house while he explained to his mum why there was a foreigner with a backpack hoping to stay for a night. His mum however invited me in and showed me amazing hospitality immediately. As I sat down on the couch still feeling slightly nervy Joshua said to me "Don't worry, nothing bad is going to happen, this is Nicaragua." And I honestly believed him.
I was given a room, had a shower, had something to eat and chatted with them, recounting my trip and trying to learn about their lives. It was great practice for my spanish and I was happy to be learning about Nicaragua from its citizens rather than a book.
Joshua showed me around Ocotal for the afternoon and in the evening we got kitted up and went to a rodeo where there were a few bars and a mini fair in full swing. His cousin came as well: he was on the bus with Joshua earlier. We drank alot, chatted about girls (Joshua had a wife, his cousin had a child on the way) and generally just had a good night. We hit the town later, ate alot of food and met some of his friends. We all had a good time and I was happy that I accepted his invitation instead of heading to Esteli.
The next day I left in the morning for Leon which was having a festival later that night. They invited me to stay for a few more nights if I liked but I had a short amount of time in Nicaragua and wanted to explore the country. I gave Joshua's mum a present for her hospitality and thanked him for showing me around: I truly appreciated it.
It was the best welcome to Nicaragua that I could have hoped for. Would I take a risk again like that in the future? Yes; again, their trust would have to earned.
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