Back at Los Cedros and being a tourist again

Coffee shrubs grow in the shade under larger trees.

Zip-liners hanging upside down.

Ziplining -- Children at station where Joel aired a tire on van

Survivors of the zip-line experience

Construction team #2 shops at the pottery outlet.

Excellent restaurant:

Entertainer at restaurant -- Craftsman with palm fronds

Castle-type walls surround a more upscale marketplace.

Stalls full of various wares in the marketplace

Hammocks for sale.

Horse-carts mingle with motor vehicles on Nicaraguan streets.

Some stores have armed guards.

View through my Camino Real Hotel window.

Hotel swimming pool

Casino next door to the hotel

Coconut palms and other lush tropical vegetation at hotel

Parrot in huge cage/display near entrance to hotel

Our plane the morning we left Nicaragua

 I had said yesterday that I planned to stay at the orphanage and not go on "play day" with Construction team #2, but plans got changed. The truck I had planned to ride to the hotel in got re-scheduled to morning instead of late afternoon, and I didn't want to hang around the hotel alone most of the day, so I played tourist. I had a good time, got some good photos at the zip-line, bought another ceramic piece at the pottery shop, had a very good lunch at a better restaurant than last Saturday's, and enjoyed shopping at a marketplace I'd never been to. I've had NO time to work with photos, though, and, since we have to be up before 5:00 A.M. tomorrow, I need to get to bed. I won't be able to add anything to the blog tomorrow, either, because we'll be flying home. But next week--at home--I'll finish posting photos covering the last two days and sum up the whole adventure. Best wishes from Nicaragua, and God bless you.

On Tuesday, Feb. 1st, back at home in Illinois, I finished going through and selecting some photos to share with you from my very last day in Nicaragua.  I didn't participate in the zip-line experience, but without a guide to inhibit me, I found a better location to photograph from, and I got some good photos of the guys and gal of Construction mission #2. I would identify them for you, but since I was only with them two nights and one day, I didn't learn all their names. This photo was taken after they finished the last zip-line, so it includes only the members of the team who did it; several didn't--including me.

We visited the same pottery place the other two teams visited last Saturday, and I found another ceramic piece I liked, so I bought it. I was fortunate that all three pieces I bought made the trip back home OK in my carry-on.
Our next stop was lunch. We ate at a very good restaurant. I don't remember its name in Spanish, but it means "My little old ranch" in English. The food and service were good, and the entertainment was a man wandering around playing a portable xylophone-type instrument. I gave him a tip for allowing me to take his photograph.

Joel took us to a different marketplace than the one the other teams visited. This one was more upscale, much cleaner and neater. A young boy outside the place entertained us with his prowess at making things out of palm-fronds--something like origami, only with palm fronds instead of paper. He made a grasshopper and several hearts for people for $1 apiece.
I walked across the street to a grocery store to look for some salsa and chilero (they didn't have it), and noticed that they had an armed security guard outside the place. As I passed by him I raised my hands like I was surrendering, and he smiled. Since he seemed friendly, I asked if I could take a photo of him. He allowed it, and I gave him $1.
Joel took us to the hotel about 4:00, and we checked in and relaxed until suppertime. I took a few photos on the grounds of the hotel. Compared to much of the rest of Managua, it was pretty opulent.
Supper in the hotel restaurant was good, and we tried to get a good night's sleep, but having to get up at 4:15 to get to the airport before 5:00 made it a short night. The last photo I took in Nicaragua was one of the plane just before we boarded. The clouds and mountains in the distance were pretty.
The flight home was without any major incidents--on time in Houston, and on-time in Chicago. Mark Hinrichs (of the 1st construction team) picked us up at O'Hare in the Wesley UMC church bus, and we rode to Bloomington. My wife picked me up there, and we drove home to Bartonville. Mission accomplished. Good to be home.