How to get robbed in Nicaragua

Current location: Border between Costa Rica and Nicaragua

I have been expecting to get robbed, but not like this. The bus ride to Nicaragua was supposed to take a little less than six hours. But that time does not include the border. The stop at the border took us all and all three hours, time which was spent getting on and off the bus multiple time. Our passports were taken away from us, for logistical purposes I suppose. For once in my life, I came semi-prepared for this chaos. I had brought lunch. Okay, it wasn’t really lunch but it was a bag of chips, and I thoroughly enjoyed eating them. As I sat in the blazing sun, savoring my chips, I could feel the burning stare of an old lady. She was carefully watching every single chip as they entered my mouth. She had sat down next to me to rest a little, and it was obvious that she was hungry. By her side she had a blue plastic bin filled with homemade shell figures. She was selling them, but I doubt she was doing well. I turned to her, smiled and said, “Would you like a little?” She smiled back an almost toothless, adorable smile and said, “Yes, thanks”. I offered her the bag, which she gladly took, and then she stood up, smiled at me, and put the bag in her blue plastic bin and walked off. I stared at her as she walked away, with a giant smile on my face – did a 70-yearold just rob me? I believe so. I want to be her when I grow up.

#nicaragua #traveling #robbed