Nica Time

Vida Nica - Dry land thoughts from the beerfloat.calm world

Nica Time – by Corliss Buenavida

One thing you discover early on while living in Nicaragua is the expression Nica Time.

What is Nica Time?

Well it is something you refer to often when talking with fellow gringos about an experience involving a Nicaraguan and a task or activity.

Possibly the best example is when you order a taxi, perhaps on your way to a friend's place for a float. The driver says, "I'll be there in 5 minutes." What this actually means is, expect your ride to arrive in the next 10 minutes to an hour.

Another example is a carpenter who says he can fix your table and it will be ready on Tuesday. He just doesn't mention which Tuesday.

Now I'm not saying all Nicaraguans can't tell time or are lazy liars. Not at all. I know many punctual great workers who go out of their way to help when in need and will show up around the clock in an emergency.

Nica Time is more of a lifestyle thing, it just is, what it is.

For example, the cab driver doesn't anticipate the fare he is giving a ride to when you call is actually on his way to his grandmother's to pick her up where she will join him in the taxi to go to an additional destination. When he finds out he thinks, this will just add another 5 minutes to the fare so no worries. He has good intentions but somehow things just go slightly awry. Nica Time is very optomistic, the driver knows in a perfect world he would actually be there in 5 minutes so that is what he tells you.

What actually happens is...

When they get to Granny's casa the driver follows normal procedures which means a good strong honk to let her know they are outside.

Unfortunately, after a short wait and another couple of honks, she is nowhere to be seen. The grandson goes in to look for her but comes out in the middle of an argument with his cousin who said gran couldn't wait forever so she has walked down to the neighbor three houses down. (To be fair, they are late because of a previous incident which delayed the pick up of the grandson. Ah, Nica Time.) Anyway, a few minutes later the cabbie and his ride have tracked her down in the house of the neighbour of the neighbour she was supposed to be at.

When grandson pops out with Grandma the driver sees she is using a mobility walker, an old style which is not collapsible. This becomes a multi-minute conundrum because first they have to gently load grandma in the back seat of the car. She won't sit in the front because of some old school perception about being seen in the front of a taxi with a strange man.

As it turns out the walker is just slightly too large to fit through his car's small back door and the cabbie can't put it in the trunk because he is already carrying a full load of his brother's belongings after his sister-in-law has kicked him out of the house (again). So instead he links together a few bungee cords from his glovebox and lashes the walker on the roof.

Finally on their way, fare payer & granny in the back and mobility device strapped to the roof plus the previously loaded trunk full of household items, they get about 500 meters down the road when the driver sees two young gringo women flagging down his taxi.

For those who don't know, ride sharing is common in Nicaragua. A driver will cram in as many passengers as will fit as long as they are heading in 'mostly' the same direction.

A brief conversation ensues and as it turns out, the gals are going to one of the northern beaches so this will not work out and the vehicle is back on its way.

However it isn't long before the next stop where a woman has flagged them down again. This time the driver knows her and actually has an eye for her, wink wink, if you know what I mean, and he is especially hopeful since she broke up with her lout of a boyfriend. So immediately upon stopping the driver is out to open his conveniently available front door for her. What he doesn't notice is said boyfriend lumbering up the roadside embankment (I guess they haven't actually broken up yet) with a huge dufflebag slung over his back.

What transpires is another ten minute incident about how the boyfriend wants her to hold the bag on her lap in the front seat because there is no room for him to put it on his lap in the back but she doesn't want that dirty bag on her new dress. So this means convincing granny to move to the front seat and that isn't going to happen. Next grandson suggests that boyfriend just holds it on the roof with his arm up out the window which everyone agrees is fine except that is where the walker is tied down. He can't hold it on the other side because because that door is broken and the window winder is unusable.

So the driver has pulled some of his brother's things out of the trunk and located some cord with which he ties the bag to the roof and lo and behold they are on their way again. This time it's a full load so no more stops until he drops off the twinkle of his eye and her lout.

Oops, forgot to ask where she was going?

Where??? You've got to be kidding!

Original fare says no way, we can't go that far, you have to drop us off first and then go there but driver says he has another fare booked "in five minutes" which is right beside where the couple need to be dropped. After some more exchanges granny & grandson win out with a slight price compensation which will be payed for unknowingly by you once you are actually a paying passenger.

The taxi driver’s fully loaded old beater is on the road again heading into town where he drops off granny & grandson then he works his way out to the north burb where he drops off twinkle, lout and their dufflebag and finally has his sights set on picking you up. Along the way he takes a moment to add another short fare but it isn't out of the way, just two extra stops and starts.

At last he has arrived!

So you are finally in the car and text your friends you will be there in 5 minutes. What you don't know is that you are about to get stuck behind a funeral procession which is working its way over the hill on the only road out of town. Now you are on Nica Time!

Corliss

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