Visa Extension

It's already been almost 3 months since we moved here! All we can say, is that time moves real fast, although not sure we've accomplished much... Well, since our 3 months here drew to an end, it means that it was time to get an extension to our visas. You don't need to apply for a visa when you come to Nicaragua (from USA). When you enter with your passport, you can stay here for 3 months (90 days) as a tourist. After those 90 days you have to either go to another country that stamps your passports, or get a visa extension from a "migration" office.

We'd heard stories that having migracion stamp your extension isn't too complicated, and we needed to go shopping in Managua anyway. There are Migracion offices closer to us, like in Granada and Rivas, but they take your passport and you have to come back to get it in 3 days (or more, who knows). So, we called our friend Bladimyr for a ride. He's got a company with some other drivers and they are pretty cheap, helpful, and a lot of them know English. Bladimyr couldn't make it himself, so he sent Camillo, who spoke great English and was ready to take us where we needed to go.

Now, I decided, in my infinite wisdom, of course, to take the route less traveled; go to Multicentro Las Americas Mall for the renewal. That location wasn't much talked about, so I figured it would be faster than other, more popular locations. First we had to take copies of our passports. We had heard stories about copies costing $1 per page, so we decided to go to a photo shop away from the migracion office. It paid off: the copies only cost 2 cordobas a page (8 cents). Next we went to the migracion office. A guard on the door let us in, after we showed and somehow kinda explained what we were there for. He told us which line to go to, and get the forms. The forms cost $5 each (we needed 2).

(Pic from Wikipedia)

Our lawyer had said the forms were easy to fill out. Bollocks! We called our trusty Camillo to come help us out, and he translated the things needed. Altho, the form seemed to be the same for applying a Nicaraguan passport, cedula or whatever, and the extension. So we probably filled out a lot of unnecessary information anyways. Like I don't think they need to know the names of my Mom and Dad, but oh well...

Next, us and Camillo went to queue up again, this time to the other line. It didn't take too long to get to the officer, and with Camillo's excellent help, we were able to get everything done. Here's the kick tho. Now I don't know if they just didn't know things, regulations had changed, or they decided to get some pocket money, but we had to pay 500 cordobas for each month we wanted to extend our stay. Because we wanted 3 extra months, we had to pay up 3,000 cordobas (for 2 people)  in total (ca. $120). That's not what I heard. In addition to this travesty, we also forfeited the 7 days we had left on the passport, also different from what I had heard. Needless to say, I wasn't a happy camper. At least it was quick. We got to the mall at around 10, and were out and done with everything by 11.30.

So, a visa run to Costra Rica would've been cheaper, especially when Chuck ended up buying a specifically built computer for $1,000 and we went to PriceSmart too, to spend even more of our money. You can't do that in Costa Rica border camps! When we got home, we let our neighbor's dog in the house, that was for the last time ever! He peed over some of the stuff we bought from PriceSmart!! Hosing them down might've been easier if the water was on... luckily we had spare water in bottles, and we were able to clean the packages.

In any case, next time we actually have to leave the country, but that will be to Finland in July.

Semana Santa in San Juan del Sur

Semana Santa, or the Holy Week is basically a week of Easter celebrations in Nicaragua. Every Friday, during the 40 days before Easter (lent) there is a procession depicting the 14 stations of the cross Jesus took on the way to the Calvary. Priests, singing parishioners, and a band playing joyous music travel around the city carrying a statue of Jesus, and stop at 14 pre-determined stations around the town. These stops are altars set up by different parishioners in front of their homes, and the procession stops there to give blessings. Here is a picture from Good Friday, where everyone was wearing purple.

This is the religious part of Semana Santa. Mostly, it's about taking a break and partying. San Juan del Sur has a normal population of ca. 20,000, but during the Holy Week, it increases to 80,000. There are beer tents set up on the beach promenade, music is blaring well though the early morning hours, there's a smell of urine everywhere, and people are mostly drunk all weekend long.

The beach is packed and the police, some in bullet-proof vests and a shotgun patrol the streets and the beach. There are also horse - and boat rides available for the less sinister activities.

All the houses and hotels are rented for this holiday, and people can make double the normal monthly rent just during this week. Same as Midsummer's in Finland, there is an "incident count" for the week of Semana Santa in Nicaragua.

20 people drowned, 21 murdered, 10 traffic accidents. The police confiscated 36 pistols, 51 revolvers, 12 rifles, 17 assault rifles and 2,521 edged weapons. We survived!

Our Crib in San Juan del Sur

I must apologize for not getting to updates sooner. I considered our current accommodations temporary, but after over a month, we're still here, even tho our landlady is more than ready to move on. Not that we are bad renters, she just wants to finish the house to all the glory it is planned for, and we are paying too little for the amazement that is the house. 

Back to the train of thought... My computer was packed up, waiting for a move to a better house, but since it hasn't materialized yet, we just hooked up my computer and I'm using it on the countertop. What I was getting at, is now I can finally update the blog, since it was pretty impossible with the tablet. 

We like it here in San Juan del Sur. It's small enough to pretty much walk everywhere. And the great thing is, you can even take your dog with you to most places, even restaurants. Although some restaurants now make you sit on the side, which is not too bad, I guess. 

But more from San Juan del Sur later. Now, a picture cavalcade of our beautiful, exquisite, and luxurious house. 

The view is lovely. 

This is the view from the second floor loft.

These are the stairs to the rooftop terrace (they will eventually include steps), but from there, the view is unfortunately blocked by the tree you see in the front of the first picture.

Downstairs we go, where the bed and the kitchenette are. And the bathroom. The bathroom doesn't have a door. You can see straight into the bathroom from outside, if the door is open, not to mention anyone who's in the house. 

Since we are not exhibitionists by nature, we solved the outdoor bathroom problem by strategically placing our packing boxes in an angle so that they covered the door. 

The neighborhood (barrio)  the house is in, is not the best possible, but it is quite close to the beach. It's about a block from the beach, as a crow flies, but in reality you have to walk a maybe 3 blocks to the beach. Still, not bad. It's about a 5 minute walk to downtown where all the restaurants and little shops are. More about what San Juan del Sur has to offer later. 

We forgot Kaleb's food bowl on the floor once, and in a few minutes it was full of ants. The neighborhood wildlife got their treat for the day. 

Here's one of Kaleb's friends. Our neighbor has 3 dogs, this is the best one of them. The others are crazy and vicious. When the other 2 attack Kaleb, he tries to defend Kaleb instead. That's why we sometimes have the door open for him to step inside to cool down and have some water. 

The locals don't regard their dogs as pets. They're more there to scare away the bad guys (pretty much any guys that pass). They keep you awake most of the night, and we haven't gotten used to it yet. When Kaleb is not barking and howling with his friends, he likes his little cave under a bench.

Until next time! Adios!