Meanwhile, we walked back into Jinotepe and had lunch and a siesta. Then we wanted to get back into the action and go to the “Tope” in Dolores. But the mini van drivers explained that the roads were all blocked off : we could not get there. We were about to give up when a cab driver asked where we wanted to go. Lois told him “To the Tope”. He said he would take us there for 40 Cordobas ($2.20, a jacked up price for the festival). So we were off. Every road he tried was cordoned off by police. So he (Francisco) told us he was going to go by the cemetery and the dump, using a “road” that would bring us out in Dolores, the town where the three saints meet for the second “Tope”. The road turned out to be a very rutted dirt path that should have required a four wheel drive. But Franciso obviously had been down it before, and drove like a very careful crazy person. We saw a pick up truck when we were about to emerge from the rabbit hole path, but no one else. He maneuvered around several streets in Dolores and arrived at the main highway just as the 3 saints appeared! What a triumph! On top of that, he got another fare immediately. We assume she wanted to go back the way we came, which was the only alternative possible. This ride, and the outcome, was a highlight!

 

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