As I inquired about a room at Hostal Esfinge in Granada (Nicaragua), the female proprietor (who bore more than a passing resemblance to a Nicaraguan version of Margaret Thatcher), pointed out her wall-mounted list of hostel rules. As she repeatedly warned me of the perils of bringing women back to the hostel, and I repeatedly assured her I was married, my fear grew.
"If you bring a woman back, I’ll give you your money back and see you to the door. I don’t need your money." she told me in Spanish. "I understand, I really am married, I won’t be bringing any women back", I told her for the fifth time.
She finished her hostel induction pep-talk with the wonderful line "God manages this hostel". I walked around the corner and saw a cardboard cut-out God watching over Hostal Esfinge.
On my second day there I plucked up the courage to ask her for an adapter so that I could plug my laptop in and run it at the same time as the room fan. The room was a stifling 45 degrees, and had nothing in it except hallucinogenic wallpaper (see photos) and a single plug socket.
Her reply was simply "Oooohhhh…that is not permitted. It is not permitted to plug in computers, phones, cameras or anything except the fan. The electricity is expensive."
Muchas gracias Margaret.
