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Tranquillo Backpacker
Funky fun style in an old victorian mansion.After a light breakfast, a few quick emails, checking out of my hospedaje, 3 bus rides, one failed attempt at border crossing, one successful treck across the border, several lines, $7.50 in bus fares, a six dollar cab ride, and 12 hours I finally made it. I'll admit that this has been one of my most exhausting, warmest and coldest, but most of all longest day here so far. It was a great adventure though and I had many great encounters along the way. As I was leaving my hospedaje in the morning I returned the key to the woman who had checked me in. She rambles something off so quickly that I wasn't able to catch it all. Then she asked me if I had my passport. I though that she might needed to check me out because I had needed it to check in. But then she asked if I had my camera too. Then I realized that she was making sure that I hadn't forgotten anything. Like a watchful mother she was checking to see if I had everything with me. I assured her that I had everything, thanked her, and then walked out to the street to
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This place is everything that I ever expected a hostel to be, pot smell and all. the bus 'stop'. I ended up walking right onto the bus as it pulled away. I thought that it was a sign that things were going to run smoothly for me today and that everything would come together. Lets just say that the raod was a bit bumpier than I expected. From San Juan Del Sur to Rivas we stopped about every 10 minutes to pick up more passengers By the time we got to Rivas I wasn't sure that we were going to be able to get off we were so closely packed in. The Rivas bus station was a busy place crowded with people selling and buying, waiting and running. As I got off the bus a man was herding people off of our bs to the Granada bus, another popular destination. He asked if I was going to Granada I shook my head and told him that I was going to the border. He nodded and told me to have a seat to wait. After about a half hour wait a bus, that had the border town of Penas Blanca painted on the frount, drove up to the station. I looked at it wondering and then the
Tranquillo Dorm
This is my living quarters while here in San Jose. man motioned that that was the one for me to take. I gathered my stuff Walked over to the bus where my backpack was tossed on top and before I knew it we were flying down the PanAm luggage packed on top and people hanging out the sides. A few hours later we came to a hault at what I assumed to be the border but didn't really look like such. I retrieved my luggage and followed the crowd. I have to say that it was a bit like traveling by brail. Basically I had no idea what I was doing! It was great! I got in a long line with everyone else at the Nicaraguan migration office. Once I got up to he front they took my passport and my two dollers and emmerged ten minutes later motioning for me to head on. I followed the slow trickel of people walking down a dirt road with tons of Semi trucks. I came to a pair of uniformed officers and handed them my passport, they handed it back after a quick glance and I moved on. Ten feet later there was another officer. He took my passport and flipped through it, then flipped through again, and again. What's going on?!? ''No'' he said that I didn't get my exit stamp from Nicaragua so I couldn't enter Costa Rica. WHAT!?! I had to walk back to Nicaraguan Migration and go inside, show them my reciept, and ask them to please stamp my passport. Then back across th border I went to Costa Rica migration and another long line. Once I made it though migration, changed money to Costa Rican Colones, and peed like a race horse I went off to find the next but to San Jose. Turns out that the next beu didn't leave for two hours. We eventually loaded the bus and began the very very long drive to San Jose. We got in to Some random street in San Jose at about 8.30 pm. I caught a taxi and finally made it to the Tranquillo Backpacker hostel a mere 12 hours later. Sorry this one is so long but as was my day and I needed to share about my wild ride.
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Mallory Sandoval
non-member comment
cool hostel!!
Hey jen! long time no talk to! that seems like a pretty exhausting day! The hostel looks like it is a pretty cool place (pot smell and all) I hope that you are having a peachy keen good time down there and tell Monda that I said Hi!!! I am going to Kim and Alex's for the 4th and I will tell them to light a fire cracker for you. hope you have more awsome adventures to come and that more good luck comes your way!! love Mal