Day 6 (Thursday 01/04/07)

Thursday we set off for one of the most important cities in Nicaragua - Leon.  We took a bus to Managua and in Managua took a taxi to another bus station.  After nearly boarding the wrong bus several times a shuttle van pulled up and we confirmed that this one would take us to our destination.  We were packed in like Sardines, and when the gentleman sitting next to us made the sign of the cross as we departed, we braced for another wild ride.

We pulled into Leon as the sun was setting and the van came to a stop in a dark, run down campesino village.  We began to walk around looking for a hotel or hostel.  We must have been walking for two hours and Tim was scarred we'd be mugged.  Some streets were empty, while others were littered with people cooking over fires in the street.  There were no tourists and we felt very out of place.  We tried asking a couple women about hostels but the language barrior was too great.  Eventually we caught a taxi and asked the driver to help us find a place to sleep.  "How much money?" he asked.  "What?" we said.  "Little?  Much?"  "Ah.  Somewhere cheap... little money."

We ended up at a very lively hostel.  The lounge was full of music and young people.  Here at last we were among other travelers.  We locked up our heavy backpacks, found a restaraunt and gave our legs a bread over dinner.