I put this entry off until I cooled down but I am not sure it helped. On the 27th we planned an easy 100 mile drive from Leon to Granada. Along the way we were stopped three times for police shakedowns; the offense – DWN (Driving While Norte-americano). Once they have your license and title they begin to rattle off charges and fines, all in Spanish. It doesn’t matter that you can’t understand a word. Then they stall and stall until you offer to settle up: maybe $10, maybe more.
I have no problem when poor people ask for money. We don’t give it to them but we understand. They see us as rich and they are so poor. When it’s government officials who are holding you up, virtually at gunpoint, we have no patience. So we paid the bribe, skipped Granada and Lake Nicaragua and left the country for Costa Rica.
