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Published: August 12th 2009
Miami Beach
All extremes of people are to be seen on the streets of Miami Beach. Paris Hilton wanna-bees include both skinny girls and football player sized guys. Shirtless studs looking at each other and shirtless big-bellied vacationers just looking cool. Lots of mentally handicapped and still stoned hippies from the ´60´s all seem to have found a comfortable home on the streets of Miami Beach. But, most common are the bikini clad women carrying around their newly adopted huge breasts; those helium filled balloons struggling to break free and float away before they can do their job and attract one of the Ferraris cruising around. The beach is beautiful and crowded. I decided to buy a camera in Miami, even though it was probably cheaper in
Toronto, before going to Nicaragua.
From one of the richest concentrations of wealth in the Americas I decided to fly to one of the sparsest. Hello Nicaragua!
Managua, Nicaragua
I´m getting more cautious as I get older which is another way of saying I think I'm turning into a wimp. Rather than the cheap flight which left at midnight and got in two hours later, at midnight Nicaraguan
This guy has been here forever!
Travellers ideal packer. He travels with a duffle bag smaller than most guys carry to the gym!time, I took a slightly earlier flight. Unfortunately it still arrived after dark.
My fears weren´t completely unjustified, as I found out later. That week a German guy had been mugged by
a taxi with accomplices and left standing in his underwear on the side of the road. Ever had that dream? Don´t ever let your cab pick up other passengers. If the driver makes a cell phone call while driving, get out!
The accommodations here are really primitive for budget travellers. When you are travelling awhile overland you wean yourself into this quality of accommodation. But just opening the door to a one of these rooms can give you a jolt
that makes your face grimace.
The area in Managua between the hotel and the nearby plaza is a notorious no man's land patrolled by muggers.
Years before myself and another fellow were attacked by two fellows with machetes. Fortunately, they
weren't that adept.
Today four young travellers had been relieved
of their valuables and were frantically trying to contact their banks in the USA to cancel
credit cards. As luck would have it, and maybe because the new passports have chips in them,
a local
girl with two guys came around and said she had found a passport discarded on the street and was offering to return
it
for a reward. She wanted $40, the negotiator offered $15, "take it or leave it" he said. She held all the cards
but still accepted the offer. It's to be seen if this provides a precedent for robberies to come.
Earlier that week two girls had lost their passports along with other valuables and weren't so lucky.
What a hassle and expense to get them back.
The only good thing about the muggers is that it keeps the number of backpackers down in Managua.
They usually head for Granada, León or San Juan del Sur.
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Alex Mumzhiu
non-member comment
John I remember Managua I cris_crossed it on bike On foot it would be deadly dangerous You have to switch to folding bike(: Best Wishes Alex