Tattoo #15 – Nicaragua: Divine Timing in the Land of Volcanoes and Ink
If Tattoo #11 was my favorite…Tattoo #15 might be my second.
Because everything about it felt written, like the final act of Season 1, where everything clicks into place.
After finishing a seven-week work trip across Mexico and Colombia, I returned to Omaha feeling invincible. Cindy, Jay, and I reunited at our favorite restaurant, reliving stories over laughter. I was glowing. The dream job, the international training, and the lifestyle… were all real.
And it wasn’t slowing down.
Birthday Work Trip to Boston – Then Nicaragua???
Next stop? Boston.
My company had just opened a brand-new HQ in the Seaport District. I was asked to lead the first-ever new hire class there. The kicker? A 3-week class that starts on my birthday.
But I said yes. Because networking at global HQ? Worth it. And the Boston Celtics were looking like the next champions. In a crazy turn of events, the Celtics actually won in 2024 on the same day as my birthday! Life was something incredible. Cindy, of course, joined me on the trip to Boston for my birthday. She took me to the Gordan Ramsey restaurant and had my first Beef Wellington. I also went on stage for a Blue Man Group show, and I was the real show. I got a sticker for my performance and was so happy to put it on my work laptop. Is my laptop kinda getting tattooed?
And then…3 days before that Boston class ended, I got the message from my manager,
“Would you like to be in Nicaragua…one week from today?”
I didn’t even hesitate.
Hell yeah. Let’s go.
I flew back to Omaha for a quick reset…and I touched down in Nicaragua three days later.
5-Star Status in a Country I Never Planned to Visit
My assignment: train a new IT class of engineers.
But my arrival? Red carpet.
I was met with hospitality that rivaled royalty from the moment I landed. Two company partners—Carlos (training manager) and Victor (operations manager)—met me at the airport. A private driver, a luxury hotel, and a personal point of contact for anything I needed. Even the office building greeted me with:
“Welcome Dushi Valenzio, Trainer!”
On every screen of a 7-story building.
This was not on the bingo card.
But there it was: my name lit up in the capital of a country I never even planned to visit.
And that wasn’t even the wildest part.
A Country That Means More Than Ink
Nicaragua isn’t just a beautiful place. It’s Cindy’s home country.
Cindy is half Nicaraguan, half Honduran. And life—divine, chaotic, poetic life—had brought me to her homeland, for work, while I was falling more in love with her and my life than ever before.
I stopped feeling like I was drifting through life. This was too intentional. Too perfect.
Two Trips, One Country, A Thousand Memories
After just one week of my first five-week assignment, my manager messaged again:
“You’re crushing it. Want to come back two weeks after this trip ends?”
So I said:
“Don’t ask. Just tell me when to book.”
My second five-week trip was confirmed.
9 of the next 11 weeks of my life would be spent in Nicaragua.
And I loved every second.
Private drivers on the weekends. A wild volcano-boarding run where I clocked 68 km/h down an active volcano. Party buses. A rum distillery where I drank from a 38-year-old barrel and shed tears of joy.
“This is my life now.”
The Tattoo That Waited – And the Country That Changed Me
I held off on getting a tattoo during the first trip. I wanted to take it all in. Meet people. Learn the culture. I knew I’d be back and wanted the second trip to hold the ink.
Cindy was with me on both trips. Her mother joined us for the second trip. We dined VIP-style on rooftop patios, shared laughs with locals, and explored the raw beauty of a country that hadn’t been overdeveloped like so many others.
Nicaragua became my favorite Central American country. It was pure. It was nature. It was life unfiltered.
From a Mistake Tattoo… to Divine Redemption
Let’s rewind.
Back in Florida, early in our relationship, Cindy and I got drunk and decided to tattoo something meaningful about each other.
I chose to tattoo Nicaragua’s independence year.
Only… I got it wrong.
I tattooed “1812” instead of “1821.” It became an inside joke—and a reminder that I don’t always double-check.
Fast-forward to Trip #2 to Nicaragua.
I was looking at my flights and realized something crazy.
I was arriving in Nicaragua on September 14th.
Their Independence Day is September 15th.
And just like that, I knew what Tattoo #15 had to be.
Independence Day, Downtown Managua – The Realest Moment of All
We flew in together.
Cindy, tattoo gun in hand.
On September 15th, we went to a park next to the national capital building in downtown Managua.
On a bench with the whole city in celebration surrounding us, Cindy tattooed “1821” on my right arm.
My favorite Nicaraguan. In her country. On their independence day.
This was divine timing.
It felt like my brand, this journey, and my entire life had been building up to this moment. Tattoo #15 wasn’t just about ink.
It was about alignment.
Final Thoughts – The Meaning Behind Tattoo #15
So now I have:
“1812” on my left arm (a drunken mistake)
“1821” on my right arm (a divine correction)
But I’ll never remove 1812. Because now, together, they mean something more:
Pay attention to the details.
Live with intention.
And trust that mistakes can become milestones.
Tattoo #15 marks a moment where my work, love, past, and purpose collided.
This is the tattoo that gave birth to Mr. JetSetInk.
The tattoo that turned this hobby into a mission.
The one I’ll never forget.
Because it wasn’t inked in a studio.
It was written into the story of my life.
