Ever since we left the Caribbean in Mexico we have been really craving a long stop beside the ocean. For one reason or another we just couldn't make it work. So our newest plan was to find a great beach in Nicaragua and stay for awhile. We wanted to use our maximum time in the CA-4 (border agreement of a 90 day stay between the countries of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua) before we headed to pricey Costa Rica.
So while in Granada, we started looking for a rental somewhere in southern Nicaragua. Since its low season and we've always had good luck securing a last minute good deal on a property, we thought this wasn't going to be a problem at all. But as always, there is a big difference between what we think is going to happen and what actually happens.
We've always had good luck using real estate agents to find places to stay for short term rentals. So we looked one up and started a correspondence. She had a few places that fit all our criteria and were great prices. We picked one and said we would take it. So we packed up to leave early the next morning and luckily before we left, we checked our email. She had emailed saying that the property wouldn't be ready for another day. No big deal, we payed for another night at our hotel, not really concerned. Then later that day she emailed again saying that now the property wasn't available and that all our other choices from before have been rented out now but that she had some new options for us. Still, not a big deal, we picked another one, more expensive but a really nice place (a house up in the hills with a pool for about $40 a day and it had everything). We called her, said we would take it, asked if this was guaranteed (she said yes) and made plans to meet the next day.
When we arrived she told us of another rental in the same price range and she really talked it up. We said we would take a look but it turned out not to be anything that special for the price asked. We said we just wanted to go with our original choice. Our spydy senses started tingling when she walked away from us and got on her cell phone. Meanwhile we were hot and dying in the truck, Anna was overheating and we were suffering through some sort of stomach bug, becoming increasingly more unhappy about the situation. She came back after about fifteen minutes and said that the owner is doubling his price. Now we were pissed. This real estate agent kept stringing us along because she hadn't done her homework. She then wanted us to get on the phone and deal with the owner ourselves. We said forget it.
She then asked us to come back to her office with her so she could find us something else. We really didn't trust her but we wanted to get Anna into air conditioning, so we went. As soon as we got into the office a large dog lunged at Anna in her travel bag. We were able to get the dog down and nothing ended up happening to Anna but why would she bring us into a room, with a cat, where she knows there is a resident dog - why not at least warn us?
We took Anna outside to settle down, Justin went back in to see what was going on. Upon entering the office, Justin realized from hearing her side of the phone conversation that she was now cold calling peoples residences enquiring when their homes would be available and if they would leave so that we could move in. Enough was enough, this was crazy - we finally started listening to the voice in the back of our heads that said its time to go. We were just not meant to stay here.
San Juan del Sur is really close to the border with Costa Rica so there was really no where else for us to go in this county unless we started driving north again. So we scrapped our plans. We found a hotel and started to figure out a rental in Costa Rica. In the end we secured an even better rate for a place beside the ocean, exactly what we wanted. We did end up staying in town for a few days and actually ended up liking it. The town was quiet, laid back and it had a great used book store. We had a few really good seafood meals and watched a game of the countries favourite sport- baseball.
The point of this long drawn out post, that is about nothing more than things not going the way we planned for them to, is that we still haven't learnt one of the lessons that we have come to these countries to learn. Sometimes things are just out of your control and when they don't work - they don't work, theres no use in getting upset about it.
We still need to work on mastering, tranquilo, a word we hear a lot down here. Something our spanish neighbours to the south have down pat.
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| Annas got tranquilo down, she doesn't care that her foots in her food while she sleeps! |
