Bizarre Foods Nicaragua

Back by popular demand—my critical analysis of travel channel shows involving Nicaragua!  This edition is dedicated to Andrew Zimmern’s “Bizarre Foods”.  I didn’t find the episode as interesting as “No Reservations” but I had to share this one clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rs8S8IMm05Q

This is from the middle of the show so feel free to youtube the part before it.  To set the scene, Andrew just finished up eating boa constrictor with a couple PCVs in La Trinidad (a city about 45 minutes south of Esteli).  Now on to something I experience nearly every day, public transportation!

Again, just like Tony (and in dozens of my personal travels), Andrew starts in Mercado Mayoreo.  See the white bus behind him at 1:44?  I’ve ridden it several times.  Which brings us to the first problem.  At 1:54 it shows Andrew boarding a bus that says “R Huembes” and is a bus from Tipitapa to Managua.  That won’t take him anywhere near his hopeful destination of Matagalpa...

On the other hand, he did nail it by saying the buses are “tricked out”.  I’ve ridden in buses with extra speakers, PA systems, TVs, flags, neon lights, you name it.  Anything besides a bathroom.

“Two, two and a half hours”?  That’s not long by PCV’s standards.  I regularly take buses that take 3.5 hours and some PCVs are on buses for 10 hours.

Also, that is the least crowded bus of all time.  On some of the buses there are people riding on top or hanging off the back.  Standing in the aisles for the duration of the journey is not only legal but necessary on many routes.  No joke, I've been on a standard yellow school bus with 200+ other people.

The on-bus venders could not be more accurate.  Practically every time the bus stops, 1 to 20 people get on and try to sell something.  In the video, they only showed food salesmen but there are also people selling medicine/vitamins and bible wielding people who will preach for 5 minutes and ask for money.  Oh and it doesn’t matter if there’s 40 passengers already standing in the aisles.  The salespeople will grind all up on you to get to customers in the back of the bus and then return to exit out the front at the next stop.  Keep in mind, this all occurs at 60 mph on curvy one lane highways.

The food, spot on again.  Vendedores ambulantes will sell all kinds of food imaginable from roasted chicken to coconut candies.

Fail on the bollo (corn bread) though.  “You can taste the charcoal”.  No, no you cannot because nobody cooks with charcoal in this country.

And yes, I’ve drank things out of bags before.  And I wonder why I get sick so often?  Exhibit A.

YUM!

Last note, after you’re done eating or drinking whatever, waste disposal is to throw it out the window.

Anything else you want to know, holla atchya boi!