January 1, 2007
Happy New Year!
The lady at the hotel promised me good roads between Leon and Managua, Nicaragua as we left. You would certainly want to believe that it is the case, but it was not. It wasn't long before we were back on the gravel roads. There's no turning back on a deal like that, once you've committed to moving forward (and you've done your research), there's not much point in looking for a better way (it probably doesn't exist). I've never read one sign anywhere that said anything about the pan-american highway. If it exists, I'm not sure where it is. Anyway, we followed along toward Managua and then saw a short cut to the border and opted not to take it. We continued to Managua, then back to the border. The roads were not gravel any longer, but they weren't good either. The Nicarguan departure process at the border didn't take long, but we had to be very patient on the Costa Rican side because the process took time. In fact, it took us about 2 hours to cross there.

We were soon on our way to Brad's in Heredia, but the traffic coming out of the recreation areas back to San Jose at the end of a Holiday weekend was terrible. It took "much" longer than we anticipated and didn't end up getting to Brad's until around 8 or so. The process of finding his house was definitely tough. It's hard to follow directions anywhere including the city. They just don't mark things well at all. I ended up having to hire a taxi driver to lead us up the hill. He did a great job, but he had to work at it a bit.

We're at Brad's house now, and it is wonderful. He's very gracious for offering us shelter for a day or two. Maybe I can get some pictures of his spot in the hillside later. I didn't check the altitude, but we're high enough that it stays cool here. Much different than Honduras.