beans, beaches, and blind massage

As soon as I arrived in Miami, I felt like I has already arrived in Latin America. My flight was leaving from a gate that felt like it was housed in the basement area and I was surrounded by people waiting for flights for Panama, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, and El Salvador. It was a great transition to get my ear tuned to hearing espanol again. After some flight delay, I finally headed out for Managua. I did not arrive until almost 10pm so I was grateful to have met 2 guys from Chicago on the plane who I would then share a cab and go to the same hotel as. The taxi driver, tourbooks, and signs at the hotel all warned me about safety in Managua, so I decided to play it smart and get out of there as quickly as possible. After a quick breakfast (here is where the beans begin), I took a minibus...well actually a van type vehicle with about 12 seats to head to the colonial city of Leon. A lot of the countryside and even the city so far has reminded me a lot of Mexico, but not nearly as developed. The city of Leon is super tranquilo, somewhat charming, and easy to get around (if you dodge the drivers). Just a few tidbits...taxi service is super cheap, but never quite private. I have taken taxis about 5 or 6 times so far and every time we have either picked up other passengers, food, or made stops along the way. Today the old woman who was riding with me touched my leg and called me hermosa (beautiful). I was only wearing shorts because I had just come back from the beach and was reminded of why I do not wear shorts in Latin America. It was not exactly uncomfortable because she was a sweet old woman, just a little odd.
About the food, beans, beans, and more beans. Gallo pinto ( a rice and beans mix) seems to be a staple here and served with breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Lucky for me, I like beans and they are cheap and filling.
Today I headed out to the beaches near Leon. I took the public bus (if you ever were curious what happens to old school buses, come see how they are used in Latin America). On the way there, the bus was standing room only and packed with almost 70 people. Luckily, there were several stops along the way to drop people off (the signal would be a whistle from the back and then people would just hop off or on). The beach was just a few rudimentary houses and hotel-restaurants. The waves were rough, so I just admired and took a dip in the pool. I had a relaxing time enjoying the waves and the beach soccer tournament. They had to play in socks (no shoes) because the sand was too hot. My bus ride back was not nearly as crowded and well, I had always heard of (and rode) the chicken buses, but this ride was a new one. The man in the seat beside me was bringing back a plastic bag of freshly caught fish....so I dubbed this the fish bus. With all of the windows open and a fresh breeze, you could not even smell a thing. I guess you are still waiting to hear about the blind massage. Yesterday I was exploring Leon city and found a paper advertisement for seeing hands blind massage. I thought it was just one of those funky English translations until I walked in and was introduced to ]Lissette and stuck out my hand only to have her keep standing there. I then realized, she was truly blind. I am not sure if it is a catch to get people in for massages who do not normally like to get naked in front of someone to get the massage or a way to give the blind some work, but after a day of travel, it was certainly worth the $7.00. Not exactly the best massage I ever had, but definitely a first experience for me.
Overall the landscape of Nicaragua is lush and beautiful and the people are kind and almost indifferent to tourists. I was surprised that no taxi drivers or hotel people have asked where I am from or what I was doing here. In both Argentina and Mexico, which I consider more used to having tourists, this was almost a daily question. There is definitely great poverty everywhere. From what I can see so far, it is not a question of the have and have nots, but I only see have nots. There are not so many people begging for money on the streets, but everyone lives very simply. This is all only based on my observation from 48 hours in Nicaragua.
Tomorrow I am off to Granada and look forward to staying there for several days and doing a few day trips. More stories to come.....