Travel day! Always at least a little bit of mystery involved. Today, a lot of that!
I woke early, opened my door and listened to the variety of birds greeting the day! Awesome!
After breakfast, packed and ready, I left and walked to the bus station to figure out what was going to happen to get me to Esteli! Ideally, there would be one comfortable bus leaving at 9:00, direct to Esteli and that would be it. However, I knew some combination of things would come together and I would get here one way or the other!
People remembered me. Answers I got yesterday were different today. The 9:30 minvan was NOT. It was at 11:00 now. A line was already forming two hours before the bus would leave. I walked across the lot to where the Esteli bus should have been parked and talked with a driver. Not today he told me, only the little vans.
I walked down the other bus like double checking to see if one of the buses had that name on it? Toward the end, a man recognized me! They were loading people and possessions onto a bus. He was excited to see me.,..this bus goes to Esteli! Only one change, change in San Isidro and at the same station, another bus goes to Esteli!
I didn’t like that idea so headed back to the minivan area. The bicycle taxi driver was most helpful! He explained the difference in cost and comfort plus that ideas that even waiting for the 11:00 minivan, I might not get a seat! Perfect!
I walked back to the big bus and got on in time for the last seat! Once all the seats were full, we addes about 20+ people! Packed!
People had flowers and food and such. As we left for Esteli, the bus stopped often for people to get on and others to get off. It is November 2, the day families go to the cemetery and celebrate at the grave of deceased family menters.
It was only 100 kilometers to San Isidro, the first 25 k took an hour! That’s about 15 miles! But! The windows were open, the air fresh and cool and I got to see a lot of countryside!
Video clips of the day
Words can’t accurately describe the process of the day! I made another video but it apparently got deleted rather than saved. So I pieced together clips from my experience this morning! Oddly, this is one of the fun parts of travel! Uncertainty without definite relatable schedules yet, everything works! I was the only tourist at any of the stations or on any of the buses! And I love seeing the countryside first hand! It really changed throughout the course of my day!
What now in Esteli?
No one was around the hostel when I got here except someone to open my room. I took a shower, went out to eat and then walked around a little bit. It was still quiet when I got back. I walked about the main office area looking for information on some of the tours available here. A man walked in asking if I needed anything?
I told him I was staying here and had a room. And, I was looking for information on coffee and cigars. He explained that another person had all the details and would come talk with me. His name is Ariel! He had a faded copied map of the area as we sat at the table. He explained how the coffee farm tour works. In detail….I mean including to make sure I knew exactly the names on THE bus that would take me there. And the name of the stop to tell the driver. And he will call ahead to the farm and they will meet me at the bus stop and take me to the farm! Wow! I was impressed.
On overnight stay at the coffee farm including all meals is $35 US. It is 2 hours from here, higher and cooler. It is a similar terrain to what I’ll se in my next two stops but farther North and slightly different. The altitude is higher so it is cooler and perfect for coffee farms.
Then, he remembered that the cigar tour is only on Monday and Friday! So, I might stay put tomorrow, do the cigar tour on Monday, then could feasibly take the bus to the farm later that morning. All that was and is too much for my tired mind to process. He will be here in the morning so we can talk about options! Perfect! That came together great!
Settling in to the next phase of my adventure!
I wanted to get that video together. Internet connection seems good here. Once I have more stories and photos from the coffee farm and the cigar experience, I’ll be posting that here! Once again, it’s nice having you along! Ciao!