15/1/10 - day 37.

got up at 8ish, showered in freezing cold water (it was painful), got chicken in pastry from a street vendor for breakfast and departed for the bus station for my next destination - esteli. this would be my final stop in nicaragua and the bus there took 2 hours. on this bus, not only were there people selling food and drinks, but there was a woman selling pills! i think they were some sort of vitamin supplement, and people were actually buying them! yesterday, there was a woman selling toothbrushes as well, though i dont know how successful she was.

had a woman sat next to me with her kid. he was probabaly about 2 and spent a good 30 mins gripping my wrist which was resting on my leg. his mother didnt notice and being a bit scared of kids that age, i didnt want to acknowledge it. got to esteli about 12pm. although its at a higher altitude again, during the days it still doesnt feel remotely cool when the sun´s out, meaning my 15 min walk to the centre of town was a sweaty one.

stayed at hospedaje chipito. this place was basic to say the least. like matagalpa, its a small town, not touristy so dorms are not available. it was 2 quid for a basic cell with a bed, a plastic chair in the corner and a small ´table` which i think must have been the result of some school kids debut project from their wood work class. it was rickety is my point.

went into town to find some lunch (steak, rice and salad) and then went to have a look around the "galeria de heroes y martires" which is kind of like a museum, but its all in 1 room, dedicated to the people that overthrew the dictatorship in the revolution of 1980. it´s run by the mothers of the sons that died during the conflict. was very interesting and had actual items of clothing on display that some of the men were wearing when they were killed. also they had heaps of photos and personal stories about people´s own experiences.

went back to the hosepdaje about 4pm. one thing i noticed is that you get stared at a lot more in these lesser visited towns, and i didnt really like the attention. when i went out in search of dinner, i noticed hambur loca (crazy burger) so went and had a fat burger and chips.

went to bed about 9pm, to be ready for a 5am start.