It's already the end of November. When you sit in a chair, and the locals know what to bring you without ordering, means you've been in one place for a long time. Most long term travelers longwill tell you that plans always change on the road. I wasn't planning on staying in Masaya for this long. Somehow it turned out this way. It's a quiet place, and it's been good. I am just going to post a few random photos from the past week. I will be in Masaya a few more days ans planning on taking a few photos of the city this time. After that, I think Granada and a trip to San Carlos on the other side of Lago Nicaragua.

Photo:  Masaya, Nicaragua → A corner store selling household supplies.

Photo:  Masaya, Nicaragua → It makes for a pretty post card.

Photo:  Masaya, Nicaragua → I have been posting lots of photos of food, I know, but I have been looking forward to eating cheap seafood so much, that I just can't help it. Here, ceviche mixto: camarones, pescado and concha negra. At the same mariscos place in Parque Central. 200 Cordobas ($8.30).

Photo:  Masaya, Nicaragua → This is the mariscos place. Not a very good photos of it, you can't really see the display of fruits up front for the juices. But you can see my of my favorite mixes on the table - naranja y mango juce, 50 Cordobas ($2).

Photo:  Masaya, Nicaragua → The funky thing about this place are all those improvised from driftwood tall stools and tables. Easy to spot, so if you come to Parque Central in Masaya, you will know now where the seafood is.

Photo:  Masaya, Nicaragua → Another of what I could call my places. This is exactly what you would see through my eyes, almost every day. Coffee at this one particular corner place at Parque Central, on the same side as the mariscos place, but by the intersection. A coffee cost 5 Cordobas (24 Cordobas=$1). I usually have two coffees here recently spending a few hours every day updating the blog.

Photo:  Masaya, Nicaragua → This is Helen, my Nica amiga in Masaya, with whom I have been hanging around when she doesn't work.

Photo:  Masaya, Nicaragua → Inside one of the churches in Masaya. I don't know if the decoration is a usual thing or was it put up for a special event. Whichever it is, it looks pretty. I am not Christian, and not religious in any way for that matter, but I like visiting churches, sitting there for a while and just relaxing in their atmosphere. It's like leaving the crazy world outside at bay for a while. The old paintinmg and old - sometimes horrendous - sculptures, give me a sense of tripping into some distant past, kind of a mythical and fairy tale place.

Photo:  Masaya, Nicaragua → The above is a place of Jesus, and here is the place of Stan. I am staying at Hotel Regis. This is my room, very simple but clean. The sheets and towel are changed daily, small bar of soap included. I am paying 100 Cordobas a day, which is about $4.50. No weekly discounts, but the price is right. There are cheaper places around the world, but overall this is cheap. The cheapest so far was Cambodia, where I paid for a semi-private dorm (the space devided by partitions with only two beds in each) for $1 a night. Staying longer come with discount - $24 per month. One town in Bolivia offered me a $40 a month for my own private room. Even this yeae, a few months back, I was renting a private room in Mexico, San Cristobal, for $100 a month, and then one for a $150 monthly fee in Cancun. Some of the accommodations are better, some worse. They usually come with shared bathroom, which is completely fine, and sometimes there is also commun al fridge and kitchen. If someone is looking for a short vacation, they usually spend lots of money on fancy places, often all inclusive. They can cost a 1000 or more dollars a week. But travel, or living in exotic places, doesn't have to be so expensive. Long term traveling can be cheap. Actually, from my perspective, traveling around the world is really the best choice if you are short on money. That is if you are from one of the 'first world' countries, like USA, Canada, Europe or some other country with money earning potential. In Nicaragua, the minimum wage is about $125 a month. This is what the lady who cleans my hotel full time every day gets. It's difficult to live on the exact sdame amount of money for a tourist, or a traveler as I hate calling myself a tourist, but it is possible to live on a very small budget. Especially, staying at one place long term. If you buy food at local markets and cook at your place, it is possible to eat well on a 150 dolalrs a month. So, if someone wants justy to survive, with a bit od discipline, it is possible to have a normal life on $300 a month, in Mexico, Nicaragua, or most of the other countries in the region, as well as in South East Asia. Throw in an extra 200 dollars, and you have enough for some serious beer drinking, if you do, some going out with people, and visiting a few sightseeing places. In my opinion, it is possible to live traveling the world on 500 - 600 dollars a month. Having a 1000 dollars a month, location independent income be it from savings, earnings or retirenment, will give you what I would call 'live like a king' experience for the rest of your life. That's all I need ;)

More - Continued here.