Different things

While I have been here in Nicaragua I have noticed several things that are different than in the USA. Some of the differences include:

• Plain yogurt is called leche agria and described as fermented milk and you drink it or put it over your beans and rice\
• Beans and rice don't get old: but you do not eat them mixed together for lunch
• Seat belts are only required for the front seat and most vehicles don’t have them in the back seat
• Helmets are only required for the motorcycle drivers and not the passenger
• There is no Good Samaritan Law
• A car wash done by hand including vacuum costs $1.45
• You do not have to sign anything to get a copy of patient records
• Everyone gives kids candy: at the pharmacy, at school, at stoplights
• Car windows stay very clean because at every stop/intersection someone on the street cleans your windows….and you have to give them something or they pester you
• Horses, buses, cars, motorcycles, dogs all share the highways
• Red and black fence posts and flags are everywhere in support of the governing political party

·         The city buses are all school buses

·         The bus drivers are very proud of the paint job and neon lights on their bus

·         There are always people just wandering the streets

·         Gas stations are often the nicest stores

·         The more salt and butter the better on all foods

·         The cheese is not pasteurized

·         The Mangoes are the best

·         All toothpaste has fluoride in it

·         Where shoes hang from the electric wire is where drugs are sold

·         Women wear high heels everywhere

·         Laundry is done daily

·         They don’t sell flavored coffee creamer

·         There are no street signs

·         There is no such thing as an address

·         The beaches are wild and beautiful

·         If someone shows up to your house unannounced…invite them in and offer them a chair and a drink

·         Smile at everyone you see