Complete recount of my trip to Costa Rica
Complete recount of my trip to Costa Rica.
We left on Thursday a little after 3 pm to Tegucigalpa, even though Mom and Dad had run a bit late doing things last minute. The trip was an easy 7 hours of sleep and music, for me anyways.
When we got there, I was so tired. I didn't feel like socializing, so I said hello and good night, didn't even had dinner.
We said our farewells with Aunt Dea and grandma and took off, with the addition of Isis Mercedes. The seating arrangement in the backseat was uncomfortable but not enough to make me complain aloud. Mostly I listened to music. We stopped near the exit of the capital and in Danlí looking for some road safety stuff.
When we approached the border, the road was jammed with rastras, so we advanced slowly. We get to the aduana in the Honduran side and Dad lets some guy help him with the car papers. Meanwhile, Mom and the rest go figure out the passports stuff. We change money there, lemppiras and dollars, into cordobas. We pass into the Nicaraguan aduana, where they fumigate the car. Again we get out to take care of the papers. We had to pay 6 cordobas to go pee.
At last we go through onto Nicaraguan soil. I was really excited, even though it basically looked the same as Honduras, except with better roads and drier lands. 50 kilometers in and we get pulled by cops. They found that the information about the car was completely wrong so they give us a chance to go back and fix it. One of them said to Dad, "Ay, Catracho."
We go back. The 50 kilometers. Two hourse of trip lost. Dad fixes the mistake and we're about to take off but the car won't start. We wait for a while and some men help Dad push it forward. It turned on but Dad wanted to visit a mechanic so one kind Nica took us to a town called Ocotal, where we knocked on three people's doors asking for a mechanic until we finally found one way into the town. While the car was bing fixed, we sans Dad walked around and saw this really pretty baseball field. Apparently, baseball is Nicaragua's favorite sport.
So we take off again, already having lost many hours of travel. We manage to make it to Managua, although our original plan was to stop and rest in Rivas. We get to the Nica capital and spend like an hour driving around because we were lost. After many turns and many roads and many rotondas, we stop at The Ambassador hotel. We check in then go to Friday's across the road to have dinner, at 9 pm! I was in a not so good mood since Mom had hit me for a reason I can't remember. I think I was a smartass and said something.
Anyway, we get back and go to sleep, parents in one room, daughters in another. I got the bed without headboard. Whatever.
We wake up, had breakfast in the hotel, took some pictures by the pool, which was too dirty to swim in. Dad wanted to go see a mechanic so we venture into the city. At this point I think I had already discovered and pointed out to the family that we could use the GPS in the tablet as a map.
We find a mechanic and spend all morning waiting for a car part to arrive and be installed. We sat in the corridor of a really old house, which was odd because we were in the city. The women there were making bread, and it smelled so good. We bought and ate some. It tasted so good. The grandma was 90 years old and the business was founded in 1937 or something like that. Wow.
Finally, the car got fixed and we took off again.
We traveled through Nicaragua wary of the car's wellbeing but that didn't stop me from enjoying myself. We drove by Lake Nicaragua and by some wind turbines. Both looked awesome.
At around 3 pm we arrived at the aduana. Nicaragua was done with no trouble and we pass into the Costa Rican side. We have to pass through a contraption to fumigate the car again. It's just peroxide though.
The process here was similar to the rest: we had to arrange ou passports then the car. The former we did fine. So was the luggage. But then we had to go to an insurance for the car. I had gotten out of the car to pee. Before I realized it, the Tico on duty was telling Dad and Mom that there was a typo in one page of the car's documents. The stupid, arrogant, mothertucking Tico was saying, "No se porque hacen estas cosas en Honduras. Esto está malo. No sirve."
We spent five hours trying to solve the problem. FIVE HOURS!! We had to find a lawyer and make this document that would basically let us continue. FIVE HOURS! I always demonstrated a relaxed attitude about it, saying it was all part of the adventure. And it was, really. Who else can say they spent FIVE HOURS in the Costa Rican aduana, counting rastras and singing into the night while they waited for a lawyer who lived a town away? I can.
When we finally fix the papers, I even sung out "Let it go!"
We left on Thursday a little after 3 pm to Tegucigalpa, even though Mom and Dad had run a bit late doing things last minute. The trip was an easy 7 hours of sleep and music, for me anyways.
When we got there, I was so tired. I didn't feel like socializing, so I said hello and good night, didn't even had dinner.
We said our farewells with Aunt Dea and grandma and took off, with the addition of Isis Mercedes. The seating arrangement in the backseat was uncomfortable but not enough to make me complain aloud. Mostly I listened to music. We stopped near the exit of the capital and in Danlí looking for some road safety stuff.
When we approached the border, the road was jammed with rastras, so we advanced slowly. We get to the aduana in the Honduran side and Dad lets some guy help him with the car papers. Meanwhile, Mom and the rest go figure out the passports stuff. We change money there, lemppiras and dollars, into cordobas. We pass into the Nicaraguan aduana, where they fumigate the car. Again we get out to take care of the papers. We had to pay 6 cordobas to go pee.
At last we go through onto Nicaraguan soil. I was really excited, even though it basically looked the same as Honduras, except with better roads and drier lands. 50 kilometers in and we get pulled by cops. They found that the information about the car was completely wrong so they give us a chance to go back and fix it. One of them said to Dad, "Ay, Catracho."
We go back. The 50 kilometers. Two hourse of trip lost. Dad fixes the mistake and we're about to take off but the car won't start. We wait for a while and some men help Dad push it forward. It turned on but Dad wanted to visit a mechanic so one kind Nica took us to a town called Ocotal, where we knocked on three people's doors asking for a mechanic until we finally found one way into the town. While the car was bing fixed, we sans Dad walked around and saw this really pretty baseball field. Apparently, baseball is Nicaragua's favorite sport.
So we take off again, already having lost many hours of travel. We manage to make it to Managua, although our original plan was to stop and rest in Rivas. We get to the Nica capital and spend like an hour driving around because we were lost. After many turns and many roads and many rotondas, we stop at The Ambassador hotel. We check in then go to Friday's across the road to have dinner, at 9 pm! I was in a not so good mood since Mom had hit me for a reason I can't remember. I think I was a smartass and said something.
Anyway, we get back and go to sleep, parents in one room, daughters in another. I got the bed without headboard. Whatever.
We wake up, had breakfast in the hotel, took some pictures by the pool, which was too dirty to swim in. Dad wanted to go see a mechanic so we venture into the city. At this point I think I had already discovered and pointed out to the family that we could use the GPS in the tablet as a map.
We find a mechanic and spend all morning waiting for a car part to arrive and be installed. We sat in the corridor of a really old house, which was odd because we were in the city. The women there were making bread, and it smelled so good. We bought and ate some. It tasted so good. The grandma was 90 years old and the business was founded in 1937 or something like that. Wow.
Finally, the car got fixed and we took off again.
We traveled through Nicaragua wary of the car's wellbeing but that didn't stop me from enjoying myself. We drove by Lake Nicaragua and by some wind turbines. Both looked awesome.
At around 3 pm we arrived at the aduana. Nicaragua was done with no trouble and we pass into the Costa Rican side. We have to pass through a contraption to fumigate the car again. It's just peroxide though.
The process here was similar to the rest: we had to arrange ou passports then the car. The former we did fine. So was the luggage. But then we had to go to an insurance for the car. I had gotten out of the car to pee. Before I realized it, the Tico on duty was telling Dad and Mom that there was a typo in one page of the car's documents. The stupid, arrogant, mothertucking Tico was saying, "No se porque hacen estas cosas en Honduras. Esto está malo. No sirve."
We spent five hours trying to solve the problem. FIVE HOURS!! We had to find a lawyer and make this document that would basically let us continue. FIVE HOURS! I always demonstrated a relaxed attitude about it, saying it was all part of the adventure. And it was, really. Who else can say they spent FIVE HOURS in the Costa Rican aduana, counting rastras and singing into the night while they waited for a lawyer who lived a town away? I can.
When we finally fix the papers, I even sung out "Let it go!"