Our final breakfast by the lagoon was as good as always and we didn't have to rush, we were taking the 11am bus so had plenty time to savour it. The hotel wasn't able to offer a lift in their car because it went off the road yesterday morning and was now being assessed if it was going to be a write off or not. We walked 20 minutes, with our packs on our backs, through the houses and along the road to the school, the last stop for the bus before returning to Masaya. Just before the bus was due to arrive, Serge the hotel manager stopped in the car he was getting a ride in. He told us to throw our bags in the boot of the car and we could get a ride to Granada too. The fully loaded car struggled up the road to get out of the crater. The driver, and owner, of the car probably put a lot of faith in the rosary beads hanging from the rear view mirror. There were plently 'pretty essential' bits missing from the car suggesting that the more important bits, like brakes, might be in need of some attention - best we were travelling uphill and not down.

We made it to Granada and were dropped off in the outskirts which fortunately was not too far from centre. Within 20 minutes we had walked to the centre and were checking out a few hostels. Following some good advice we were given, we looked at the rooms and compared to a few others before committing. There are some pretty dirty & grubby places charging the same amount of money as the nice, clean ones. The furthest one away from where we were dropped off, although closest to the bars and restaurants, was Hospedaje Ruiz. It had a big room, with private bathroom, fan and cable TV, in the courtyard at the rear of a restaurant. Being in the rear of a restaurant doesn't sound so great but it was like a little oasis once you were off the main street that was packed with outdoor seating.

We booked and evening tour to Volcán Masaya but it was cancelled within just before we were due to be picked up. Supposedly the National Park guides had went home so therefore there was no entry. There had been an earthquake 2 weeks ago and maybe it is still a bit dangerous to get too close. It is suggested that in a more litigious country there would be no way you could drive to lip of a volcanic cone as volatile as the Santiago crater. We got our money back without any fuss which suggests that cancelations like this might be quite frequent. Maybe another day.

We went to another tour agency, based in Hotel Con Corazon, to book a tour of Volcán Mombacho for tomorrow so hopefully better luck with that. Con Corazon Tours, like the Hotel, give 100% of their profit to local educational programs and they cost the same as the others so seemed to be a worthwhile cause.

We walked back to where we were dropped off in the morning to do a bit of supermarket shopping. David is getting quite used to all the free samples that Central American supermarkets seem to offer, anything and everything from yoghurt to rum. We finished of the day with dinner at El Tercer Ojo (Third Eye). It had a huge and varied Asian inspired menu and we decided on some sushi and sashimi. It was OK but definitely not as good as Kyo-ya - that is one place we miss in Auckland and are really looking forward to next January...