The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

- Robert Frost

the 1 less traveled by

A move to Nicaragua

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Areas of Nicaragua

The front of our new home
By Jenna Reid 1 comment 180 Views

Moving In Nicaragua

On the move

Although our house was priced well at $1,000 per month for a North American style residential home with a pool, we were surprised to see our first month’s utilities equate to almost $650.  This was an unexpected, unbudgeted for cost.  We did what we could to lower the payables in the next months by cancelling cable, raising our air conditioners to 30°C (86° F) and being aware of the amount of time they were on.  Our son Titus, took most of his naps without A/C except for the hottest days.  We also unplugged our hot water heater and stopped using the clothes dryer. We asked the gardener only to water 2 days a week instead of 5 and explained that the pool didn’t need to be filled to the edge. We were able to cut our initial $340 electricity bill down to about $260 and our water bill from $114 to $107, but the bills still added up to more than we were willing to spend.

The higher cost of living was causing us to have to restrict our spending in ways that weren’t in line with the goals of our move.  One of the reasons for our move to Central America was that it would be easy to visit the surrounding countries, so we had planned on spending three days in Costa Rica over Memorial Day weekend.  This was about the time that we needed to renew our 90 day tourist VISAs so we’d be getting that taken care of and enjoying a neighboring country. Sadly, because of a depleted savings account, we opted to do a quick in & out of Costa Rica so that some money would remain in our savings account. It became clear that we couldn’t afford our beautiful home if we wanted to accomplish all the things we desired while living abroad.

We started putting feelers out for other housing options, hoping to find a place with a pool that was priced unusually low.  We signed a 6 month lease and were prepared to stay in our home until it was up, but thought we might be able to find someone to take it over if we found a new place.  I saw something posted for only $550 on one of the Facebook pages.  It included all utilities except electricity, we jumped at the chance to have a look if for no other reason but to see what other options looked like. It was a beautiful home with lots of windows to open up and take advantage of the breezes.  Every room had a ceiling fan and every door and window had a screen. The home was available immediately and at such a low price we knew we didn’t have much time.

We started searching for someone to take over our lease right away, but the task was harder than expected.  This time of year (the start of the rainy season) there seems to be more available than people to rent.  The next night the owner of our house called to just chat and my husband, Kharron mentioned that we were looking for someone to take over the lease because of the utility bills being so high.  The landlord is a nice man and said he wanted us to enjoy our time in Nicaragua and not to worry about it.  Kharron hung up and we smiled at the possibility that we’d get to move sooner than the 6 month lease.  We wanted to make sure that the owner was serious about letting us out of the lease and that he was agreeing to letting us move in 4 days.  He told Kharron yes and we immediately contacted the owner of the new home.

The owner surprisingly said the place was still available and unlike in the US, we saw and home and planned a move in 4 days.  Luckily we had Juanita to help us pack up and thoroughly clean the home after our move! She is the only reason this quick move was possible without much stress.

The new place is furnished, but did not come with linens, dishes, towels, or cleaning supplies.  The first day in the home, Juanita and I (and a friend) took an expensive trip to Rivas to buy all our household items.  Unfortunately, as is always true in Nicaragua, basic items can be harder to find than you ever thought possible so little things like pot holders and ice trays remain on my To-Buy list. It was kind of fun picking out our own dishes, bath mats, and beach towels!

So now we’ve officially been in our new home for 4 nights and it already feels like home.  I feel very safe knowing we have a cuiador (person who watches the home or property).  The property is completely fenced in so the dogs and Azalea are able to roam without any worry of cars.  There are only 3 homes built and 26 empty lots so its very quiet & peaceful. I do already miss having a pool to dunk my feet & body into on the hot afternoons, but for what we expect to be more than a $1,000 monthly savings, it is worth instead visiting the local restaurants that have public pools.

SUV getting tires put on
By Jenna Reid 20 Views

2 Stores and a Person

This is a little joke my husband, Kharron, and I have about what is needed to get anything done in Nicaragua. Its not always 2 stores that is needed, sometimes its only 1 store, but 2 people. The general rule is that you will not find what you need in one place by just yourself searching. You will need to speak to a local who either knows where or knows a person who can get it, but once you have it you will need to find a store that will put it together/on/fix it…

Having a “guy” seems to date back to the 1980’s when food shortages were rampant in Nicaragua, a biproduct of the Sandinista government controlling the price of most essential items. A black market or “bisnes” were created and industrious people in the busier cities hired themselves out to wait in lines for the wealthier or became “drivers” who’s sole purpose was to find what their employer was looking for. These men were and still are worth every penny. (*Blood of Brothers: Life and War in Nicaragua by Stephen Kinzer)

The first time we experienced this  two-stores-and-a-person phenomenon was prior to us even moving. We had a friend who was already living in Nicaragua so we asked if he might be able to find us a car, so we didn’t have to spend our first week running around scrambling for a car. He obliged and found us an affordable 4×4 SUV. Being an American and not having residency in Nicaragua, he could not own the car himself, so he put the car title under his girlfriend’s name.

It took 2 people and the dealership to purchase our SUV.
It took 2 people and the dealership to purchase our SUV.

We purchased a generator at PriceSmart (equivalent of Costco) two days after we landed. We had done our research and knew that power outages were a major problem. Kharron works as a software developer and it is very important that his access to internet is uninterrupted. Once we were moved into our first home we struggled with connecting our generator to the already wired system. When a home is properly wired, once there is a power outage, you only need to switch a lever to change the power source and turn on the generator. We needed the correct cable in order to plug into this system. One weekend day the family drove around Rivas, stopping at every hardware store (ferretería) to find the correct cable with 110 plug on one end and 220/240 plug on the other.  It finally became clear that we would need to buy the 220/240 at one store and the 110 and cable at another.  We then hired an electrician back in San Juan del Sur to wire the parts together. In this case, it would have been much easier to hire a “guy” to do all this running around for us, returning with a completed product.
Plug1  Plug2

Soon after we moved and once Kharron got an office outside the home, he decided to buy a motorcycle. This way he could get to work easily without me having to get both kids in the car to take him & pick him up from his office. We do not have residency (yet) so we cannot own a motorcycle. Luckily Juanita was happy to not only walk us through all the stores in Rivas that sell motorcycles, but also put the moto Kharron selected in her name as the owner. There are several engine checks that are needed immediately after purchasing a motorcycle, for this we used Juanita’s husband, Vicente who rode the moto the 45km back to Rivas, waited while the checks were completed and returned with paperwork and receipts.  All for $8.

New moto
New moto

Most recently we needed 2 new tires for our SUV.  Already having made some connections, we have a “guy” we now go to for all things related to car.  So we paid Happy (yes, that’s what he’s called) because he knows someone who goes to Managua and can buy decent tires at a good price.  Of course Happy nor his “driver” installs tires, so we had to go to a vulcanizadora (tire repair shop) to have the purchased tires placed on our vehicle. The most popular one in San Juan del Sur seems to be Vulcanizacion “Las Pampas”.

SUV getting tires put on
SUV getting tires put on

Once you understand and embrace this process, its really beneficial.  You don’t need to do anything but pay a few bucks to a knowledgeable and trusted local once they have delivered your commodity. In return, you’re helping someone make a honest living.

All frosted with orange colored frosting
By Jenna Reid 18 Views

Making Cupcakes in San Juan del Sur

Azalea’s school was having a bake sale and since I’m not working, I thought it would be fun to make cupcakes to sell.  I’ve never been a baker and I’ve pretty much only made things that required a box and a couple other ingredients, so what I needed to find was a box of cupcake mix, a jar of icing, and a cupcake tin.  I had no idea that this task would take me over 3 hours to complete and that’s not including actual baking time.

I told our maid Juanita, in my terrible Spanish, of my desire to make cupcakes and she informed me that I would need to go to the closest city Rivas in order to obtain the necessary items. Rivas is about 30 minutes away, but I had the time while Azalea was in school, so I set out on my shopping adventure with Juanita as my co pilot.

We thought we would find a muffin/cupcake tin at Maxi Palí which is a bigger version of the grocery store we have in town, but there was nothing that would work. They also did not sell box mix or ready-made icing. Juanita directed me to park close to the center of town and we went on a wild goose chase through many tiny filled stores before we finally found a tin sitting on top of a shelf as high as the ceiling. It wasn’t just the tin, but it was a whole carrying case with stand! Luckily this same store also sold powdered sugar to make the icing, which I discovered I would need when Googling recipes while Juanita negotiated.  We went back to Maxi Palí again to buy flour and baking powder.  With my items in tow, we drove back to San Juan del Sur just in time to pick up Azalea at noon.  I felt very proud of my accomplishment as I promised the other mom’s that I would be making cupcakes for the bake sale.

Our furnished rental did not come with measuring cups or spoons, so on my first experience baking from scratch, I had to eyeball the measurements. Juanita said something about putting orange juice in the mix, which gave me an idea.  I brought a box food coloring with me from the US, so I mixed in orange juice and orange food coloring into the batter before baking.  They actually turned out quite nice! Not bad for a first time baking.

Leon
By Jenna Reid 39 Views

Day Trip to Leon

Leon is only about 30 minutes from Miramar (where Surf Tours Nicaragua is located). My friend and manager, “Goyo” and his team take guests upon request to Leon to sign up for Volcano Boarding (yes, this is an actual thing), go shopping, experience some night life, or whatever they need – so we followed their van to the city.

I was much more impressed with Leon than Granada.  I had read that it is a university town, but was still surprised by the center of town with its beauty and easy bustle. This is a city I will enjoy visiting again.

Yoga in the morning, chill spot in the afternoon.
By Jenna Reid 76 Views

Surf Tours Nicaragua – aka Paraíso

I had to hit up my friend “Goyo” who runs Surf Tours Nicaragua  for a favor because in the end we couldn’t get our place in San Juan del Sur until the 9th of March and already had plane tickets for Feb 28th.  We were having a hard time finding a temporary option for the dogs that also had good internet so Kharron could work. Luckily he seemed to have no problem with us invading his space and welcomed us to his Eden.

It was like a scene from the movie The Beach coming from Managua to this garden of paradise.  We found the place easily with his step-by-step instructions and were soon sitting up top at “The Rancho” watching the sets of waves roll in and enjoying some homemade sangria.  I can’t say enough about the beauty of this surf camp and the hospitality my friend and his local & American staff offer.

Goyo took us and the other guests to “The Lobster Lady” which was a great look into the way the locals live and the best food I’ve had yet in Nica.

Bittersweet to leave this sanctuary and drive the 3 hours south to our new home in San Juan del Sur.

 

 

Cathedral of Granada
By Jenna Reid 47 Views

Day Trip to Granada

With a lull in a day while the arrival of our dogs gets postponed, we decide to take a day trip to Granada. Granada takes about 45 minutes to get to from Managua.  I wasn’t as impressed with “the first European city in mainland America” as I thought I would be. The colorful pictures of the church and architecture weren’t as striking in person. We did enjoy our few hours there and our 30 minute horse & buggy ride (for $15).

Managua
By Jenna Reid 343 Views

Get Me Out of Managua!

For the first 3 days we stayed in Managua, listening to the advice of a friend who was already living in Nica.  We landed on a Saturday and our dogs weren’t scheduled to come in until Monday night.  Our friend Joe reserved us a spot at Don Quijote Hotel for only $60 a night and was going to show us around the city for the next couple days.  The hotel was in a convenient location, was very clean and included breakfast and delicious coffee in the morning.

Managua is like an infectious disease that slowly creeps up on you.  The first day you notice its busy and a little dirty, but you’re okay with it.  The next day the scenery seems a little apocalyptic and you can’t believe how crazy the drivers are.  By the third day you just want to get all your errands done quickly and get out before the inevitable accident in a rotunda, or traffic ticket.

Managua is a necessary evil when living in Nicaragua. There are things harder to find outside of Managua and everything is cheaper there.  The best supermarket, La Colonia is located in Managua (also in Granada and Leon), the best veterinarians, hospitals, and stores.  Mechanics seem to take trips to Managua many times a week for parts.

On our last day we ran around going to get a copy of our car key made since the one the car came with was about to snap. We also went to Western Union to wire money, went to SENSA – the big hardware store owned by Ace, Kid’s Plaza looking for a twin size plastic sheet (Azalea was having some bed wetting issues), ate lunch, and managed to buy our way out of two traffic tickets which are called “multas” – translated to “fines”.

Finally we were off to paradise – Surf Tours Nicaragua, in Miramar where my friend manages.

This customs desk sponsored by Flor de Caña
By Jenna Reid 34 Views

Customs – Aduana

I thought getting through customs with 7 bags and 2 kids was going to be a nightmare, especially after traveling a red-eye.  It was actually very easy! There are men to help you with your luggage and you only need to pay them a couple of dollars to make them happy.

There is a VIP option which for $30 per person (and some undisclosed amount for kids) you can skip customs all together.  They take you out a side door and you wait in a lounge while they stand in line and do everything for you.  Not sure how this is legal.  I thought we had made a reservation for this, but there was no one holding our name on a sign when we exited the plane and it wasn’t much of a hassle anyway.

All in all, not a bad experience.