The CIA world factbook says Nicaragua is the second poorest country (after Haiti) in the Western Hemisphere. I saw some areas with poverty but life here is the same as many other places I have visited. People eat, study/work, sleep, and socialize with others. Money helps but I try not to judge people by their money.
After being in strict COVID enforcement in Panama, we enjoyed travelling freely in Nicaragua. I am convinced that the COVID problem is bigger in rich countries, especially with high obesity rate. Some people here live in a hut covered by thick black plastic vinyl stretched between dry wood frames that they cut in the forest. No running water or electricity. Their immune system must be as strong as one possibly can be.
Our adventure in Nicaragua, started by taking a local bus at 5:20am to visit a rental car office. There are two bus schedules nearby the marina: either at 5:15am or 6:30am. If we miss them, we have to wait for the next day or call for a taxi coming from 40 km (or 25 miles) away. Both John and I like to take local buses when they are available. Taking buses, I observe more about the people and culture.
In order to take the bus, we got up at 4:30am. When a big yellow US school bus showed up around 5:10am, we thought kids were just going to school real early. We didn’t hop on that bus. The driver didn’t mind waking up everyone in town, by pressing his air-horn often or using a flashing white light all the time. Roosters, dogs, birds, and most people in town seemed to be awake already, around 5am. It was like a party starts soon. It turned out that it was the public bus we should have taken. Luckily, we were at the three way intersection. This bus went to the first town and came back 10 minutes later and we managed to get on it.
Tourism brings money to another country. Most people like to travel, and travel brings understanding. When can all these countries lift the COVID restrictions and welcome everyone? In order to cross the borders in this area, travelers still need to show a negative COVID test result. In this region, each test costs about $150 to $160. This amount is close to the minimum monthly wage in this country!
