Some food for thought on travel experiences

Have you ever noticed that when visiting a country, how you get there, what part of the country you come into has alot to do with your first impression? Example, getting to a country either by ship or by plane has alot to do with how you think the country is like. If you go by ship, you go to a coastal port. If you fly in, you can be miles from a port and up in the mountains deep inland. So if you fly into San Jose Costa Rica, (Alajuela), you are in the valley surrounded by mountains, whereas if you pulled into LIMON on a ship, you are in the Caribean coast. Two different ecological zones, different temperatures and different people. Might as well be in a different country. If I tell people I was in Honduras, I make it clear that I was in the Caribean side and I arrived by ship. Alot of people that go to Honduras fly into Tegucigalpa which is up in altitude, different terrain and different all together from the coast. Also whether you drive to a different place will probably give you a different impression of the terrain surrounding you and country than if you flew into a place. My experience in MASAYA Nicaragua was from my return trip from GRANADA on the Lake Nicaragua which I took a bus to get to since it was on the way to Managua. From Masaya, we then went to Managua. Talking to a lady from COSTA RICA, she said she drove to Masaya from San Jose. Her experience of Masaya must have been all together very different from the angle that I took. My connection was Managua to Houston by air, then short bus rides. Her connection was San Jose to Masaya via a highway through long hours on a bus or car. I also noticed that if you utilize the local and Spanish channels to see volcanos or sites of interest, they may vary from American connections you find on the internet or tours that cater to Americans. Why? Different cultures, what people like to do when they visit. Latins like to mingle and visit each other alot. Americans tend to like to party on vacation and when its time for lights out, ITS LIGHTS OUT! Another words, what I am saying is that HOW YOU GET TO A COUNTRY, WHAT PART OF THE COUNTRY YOU GET TO, WHAT YOU DO THERE, WHAT CHANNELS YOU UTILIZE, TIMING OF CONSTRUCTIONS, POLITICAL ATMOSPHERE all plays a part in your version or experience of that country.