Ridin’ Nica style

Ridin’ Nica style definition: No mode of transportation has a capacity limit.

Examples: Bikes- Most people in the states think that because a bike has one seat, it was made for one person.  Nicaraguans know this is not true.  Bikes can hold up to 3 people at a time here.  While one person is pedaling, another can be on the bar in front of them, on the handle bars, or standing behind them.  I can’t imagine the balance it must take to do this, but Nicaraguans sure know how to ride

Motorcycles- Motorcycles were made for up to 4, maybe 5 people, as all Nicaraguans know.  In the States, motorcycles are for single people, sometimes couples.  Here, a motorcycle is a family vehicle.  It is common to see mom, dad, plus a few kids on a motorcycle.

Busses- Here is where I have experience “ridin’ Nica style.”  To get to Rancho Ebenezer, I take 2 microbuses, which are basically compact 15 passenger vans.  Well, in the States they would be at least…here they can hold up to 30 people I’m pretty sure.  To help you get a better image of what it is like to ride one, I will tell you about my journey to the Rancho this week.

I started about 9 AM Tuesday morning waiting outside my house for a camioneta to come by.  I waited for about 10 minutes before one came by and then rode it to the bus terminal.  Almost as soon as I got there, it started down pouring (it hasn’t stopped raining since we got back from Corn Island).  So, with my backpack and duffel bag, I hurried across the parking lot to find a microbus to Managua.  A guy was yelling Managua at one of the busses, so I gave him my duffel bag to squeeze behind the back seat and hopped in.  The ride from Leon to Managua is usually fairly comfortable because we start out full in Leon and don’t stop very much during the hour and a half drive.  A few people will get off in a couple of small towns along the way, and occasionally more people get on, but for the most part, the 15 passenger van has 15 people. 

Once in Managua, I get off at La UCA, a bus terminal by the Central American University.  Here, I ask around to get a microbus to San Marcos.  I got on one for Jinotepe this week, which stops in San Marcos on the way.  The bus started off fairly empty when we left the terminal, maybe 10 people.  After a few stops on the way out of Managua, we were full.  This 15 passenger bus was modified a little with a bench facing backwards behind the driver seat, so it could probably hold 19 or 20 people sitting down.  Before leaving Managua, our driver rear ended a taxi at a round a bout.  This took a few minutes for them to talk and decide nothing was damaged, and then we were on our way.  With this bus, we take quite a few stops along the way, dropping a few off here and there, and picking up more.  Just when you think the bus is full, all the seats are taken, the guy taking the money keeps yelling out the window “Jinotepe, La Concha, San Marcos.”  And I’m thinking, why is he advertising where we’re going, there’s no more room!  Well then 3 or 4 people get on, some squishing takes place, a few people end up standing, and the air gets a little more sparse.  Just when I get comfortable and think this isn’t too bad, 2 more people get on.  Where are they possibly going to fit? Oh, we’ll just not shut the door all the way, that will allow for these 2 more people.  Then, thankfully a few people get off and I can breathe again.  But not for long, as soon as 2 people get off, 4 get on it seems.  At one point I counted 27 people in this “15 passenger van.”  You really have to be comfortable with many bodies touching yours and not being able to breathe real well.  I happened to be on around lunch time, which means many students are going home for dinner, so they wouldn’t be on the bus for long, but it meant large groups getting on and off at the same time.  A little over half way to San Marcos, we were climbing a large hill/small mountain and I started to smell something.  A little while later, the driver stops and gets out.  Not long after, they were telling us to get out and wait for another bus to come.  Turns out the bus was overheating or just couldn’t make it up the hill.  Luckily, another bus headed right for San Marcos showed up about 30 seconds later, so 5 of us going to San Marcos squeezed on and headed to San Marcos. 

A microbus

From San Marcos, Dr. Ervin, the vet who works with Rancho Ebenezer, picked me up and brought me to his house in Niquinohomo.  From there I would have to take a moto-taxi to the ranch.  The problem is that the road to the ranch is dirt, and it’s been raining for a week and a half straight.  This means not many moto-taxis are willing to go out there and risk getting stuck.  Dr. Ervin had his guard try and find one for me, and he eventually did, but it was going to cost twice as much as normal.  Shortly after, I started the wonderfully bumpy ride to the ranch.  About 1:10 PM, I finally arrived at the ranch, glad to be done traveling…for now.

I hope that by now you all are feeling clausterphobic and tired, because that is how I felt.  I spent Tuesday afternoon doing much of what I did last time, cleaning pens and feeding goats and rabbits.  This time I did get to meet Carlos, who speaks English and is in charge of the area where I have been working.  It is good to finally have someone to report to and who can explain things to me when I don’t understand.  He usually speaks Spanish to me, so that the other workers know what he is telling me, but he took the time to explain more about the ranch to me in English, which was really nice.         
I was also excited to find out that a group from Michigan was staying at the Ranch this week.  They are a group of doctors who has been putting on clinics in the surrounding area.  It was nice to have other people around after work was done.  I got to eat supper with them and played cards at night with them too.  I got to hear many doctor stories from the day as well as medical jokes and talk that I didn’t always understand haha.
It has been fairly rainy here lately, with very little sun, but Wednesday beat the record for how much rain I’ve seen.  It started raining pretty hard Tuesday night before I went to bed and there was no break in the rain until I was done working Wednesday.  That meant I was nice and muddy all day at work on Wednesday.  It also meant fixing the roof over the goats most of the afternoon.  I supervised haha.  Today I got the chance to milk a goat, watch a hernia surgery on a pig, and help deworm goats.  It was all very interesting and more fun than just cleaning!

After lunch today, I started my trek back to Leon.  Thankfully, it was much less eventful than the ride down.  Although my moto-taxi did get stuck shortly after leaving the ranch, but thankfully we got out and later picked up another passenger who gave me 5 mandarins.  They sure taste good!  As always, it is good to be back in Leon and I am excited to see the rest of the group tomorrow at class.  Sorry for this book, I don’t even have pictures to go along with my stories because I didn’t bring my camera this week.  Maybe next week I will have more pictures and less stories.