Costa Rica, Day 6

Exhausted!

We just got in from Nicaragua! We were so excited to add another stamp to our passport- especially to have it stamped in the next available, appropriate box (we both have a minor case of OCD and find it absolutely necessary to have the stamps in chronological order hahah)!

We actually had to wake up by 4am to start the day. We took a 2-hour drive to the border and encountered theeeee most sketchy experiences of all (i.e. random amigo comes up to you, takes your passport, fills out your customs form, and follows you until you tip him)... We eventually were "passed" on from one guide to the next as we walked through the Costa Rican/Nicaraguan borders. Here, we met a flustered Octavio who eventually collected himself... The day was full of color, culture, history, & hearty Nicaraguan cuisine. I sincerely appreciated having a tour guide around to explain the significance of the country´s struggles & milestones... Octavio was so full of information and we were ready to take it all in. I loved his little accent & tiny lisp, too!! I remember trying my best to hold in my giggles as I heard him explain how "caca (cocoa) beans" were traded as goods.

We visited the cities of Rivas, Masaya, & Granada. These different cities had such beautiful & interesting landmarks! The highlight of today was cruising around Lago de Nicaragua (supposedly, when the Spaniards came to take over the land, the lake was mistaken for the ocean because it was so large!). We took a powerboat around the 300+ islands off of Granada. Out of the numerous islands, the most memorable was the one that housed a bunch of spider monkeys. A different boat full of tourists got a bit too close and one of the monkeys jumped in!!! One girl was screaming at the top of her lungs while the lil aggressive monkey was hissing and climbing all around the boat (and tourists!)... he was just looking for food, but it was chaos! Octavio, very calmly, tells us that monkeys don´t like little children HAHAHAHAHHA! I was only able to laugh because we were far from it AND because nobody was hurt... I stood tall & broad-shouldered until we were far enough away hehe