Michelle Trip Part 1

Good news, my guapa novia has arrived (her words, not mine)!  At the risk of being the most adorable couple ever, we decided to team blog about her trip.  Let’s begin!

Don Pedro: Soooooo, what do you think of my new home??

Guapa novia: Es un pais muy bonita. La gente es amable y generosa. (It’s a beautiful country and the people are nice/generous). I have literally been asked what I think about Nicaragua (and/or Palacaguina, Condega, etc.) more times than I can count. I was starting to run out of creative/new/interesting responses, so Pedro gave me his stock reply (see above). People smile when I say this…so far, so good.

Pedrito: You phrase stealer!  Well I’m glad we’re at least on the same page.  So the first night we stayed in Managua, how was it?

Michelle: A first-world bubble.

Livin' the high life

 Pedro the Explorer: No kidding.  We crashed at the Holiday Inn Convention Center which was off the hook nice (see photos below).  Air conditioning, hot water, full service restaurant, pool pretty much everything that I’ve been missing.  Your thoughts?

 

Gringa: We also had a non-third-world dinner at Galerias, a shopping with center with lots of upscale options for dinner, drinks and/or clubbing (we had tapas and sangria in honor of our mutual study abroad spot). I did not really feel like I was in Central America – they were dressed in clothes very unlike the ‘conservative’ outfits Pedro mandated that I pack and I saw a confusing amount of nice cars.

Pete: Indeed.  And for all of my concerned followers, Michelle was given the ambitious task of fattening me up.  Her crusade of force-feeding me anything that has calories has been enjoyable.  Sunday morning we ate bacon and it was AMAZING.  After we checked out of the hotel, we began the journey up north.  Did you enjoy Nicaragua’s very public transportation?

Look mom, I'm eating probiotics!

 MK: Ha – yes. We made the three hour journey to Condega in the standard school-bus filled with a combo of Nicaraguan music and the sweet sounds of the eighties. Little did I know that the 80s music would be my constant companion until I return State-side (seriously, I do not think I can hear ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’ one more time). In Condega, we ate dinner at the Mexican restaurant and got ice cream at the shop off the main public square. Readers, when I say Mexican restaurant, though, try not to picture Front Street in Wheaton. We ate in plastic chairs in a one-room building off of a dirt road, and a citywide power outage imposed romantic lighting for at least ten minutes of the meal. I loved it, but certainly different from the US. Also, little did we know that was not the last power outage of the night…

 

PS: For sure.  After eating our eight tacos and drinking four beers (for less than $10 may I add) we returned to our cabanita.  Photos!

Me at the front door

Michelle on the path leading to the cabenita

To beat the English major to it, I think the best way to describe it is Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  By day it was this quaint little cabin surrounded by rain forestry.  But by night.  Well, how did you sleep Michelle?

 

MK: Things got real. First, the power went out – unexpectedly at nine – and never came back. We had both been in the process of unpacking, so instead shoved all of our things off of the bed and went to sleep in the pitch black. Until, of course midnight. The next morning, I described our visitors as what the love-child of a bear/tiger/vulture mating might be. Pete less dramatically thought we had mice or iguanas. Either way, wildlife was scratching/clawing at our walls, running across the roof and (loudly) landing on the roof after what sounded like a running leap from a nearby tree. It didn’t help that this was all happening without power, in the pitch black. Quite frankly, it terrified me and with my adrenaline/heartbeat/over-active imagination all going at full-throttle there was no hope of anything more than about an hour of sleep the rest of the night. Pete (more accustomed to jungle animal noises) was brave, but still unable to sleep due to the combo of freaking-out-girlfriend and the sounds made by our own personal zoo. Pete, anything else to add before we unveil the identity of our visitors?

PS: Sure.  Thanks to living in a rural site during training, I’m used to roosters cawing, dogs fighting and buses honking at all hours.  This was something else entirely.  I didn’t have my beloved earplugs so I even struggled sleeping.  In short, Michelle (on this occasion) is not overreacting.  So when we’re checking out, the nice lady asked us how our stay was.  In true Nicaragua fashion I start by complimenting how nice the food was and how beautiful the scenery is.  As an afterthought I mention that throughout the night there were some noises.  And hotel lady calmly states that they were…

MK: ZORRITOS! (FOXES!) Yes, our first night in Condega we had FOXES clawing at our walls and running across our roof for HOURS. However, I guess we did forget to compliment the nice parts enough. After we made it through the terrifying fox-filled night, the place was gorgeous in the morning: jungle-like with lots of beautiful greenery everywhere, and we ate a delicious Nica breakfast both mornings in a tiki hut next to the pool.

PS: Indeed.  Well, we’re going to call it quits for now.  Some late afternoon cocktails are calling our names.  Tune in for part 2 tomorrow!