Big dogs

If you ever feel like traveling on a budget there are a few things to be aware of; some of these are fairly obvious (such as only eat at a cheap restaurant if other locals are there) while others can be a little more surprising.  One of these surprises is the numerous animals you'll find living in the hostels you stay in.  It is not uncommon for there to be at least two dogs in a given hostel and often a cat as well.  If you are allergic or scared of dogs this can obviously be a problem; especially when some of the dogs are absolutely enormous.

Hector and his ever present drool.

 At our hostel in San Juan del Sur we met a wonderful dog named Hector who, at just a year old, still has some growing to do to catch up with his giant head.  Heacts like an enormous baby and we had a great time playing in the back courtyard with him (even though Lene could never get him to fetch).   However, Hector was dwarfed by the next dog we met, Lugs.

I wanted to compare my head with Lugs'.

After San Juan del Sur we went to an incredibly beautiful beach called Playa del Coco.  Lugs, brought from Canada by his owners, is one of the largest dogs I've ever come across.  He used to top out at just over 150lbs but I guess the Nicaraguan diet has given him some trouble so he's fallen to a slimmer 130lbs.  Also a big sweetheart, Lugs wasn't quite as interested in playing as Hector was but he did like to cuddle up on the couch even though his skull is the size of most lap dogs. 

 

Lugs cuddling on the couch with Lene

I love staying in hostels with dogs and cats as it usually gives them a more comfortable, homey feeling.  If you are traveling by hostel though, be prepared to run into gentle giants like these, as they aren't the first I've seen while traveling, just the first I've taken pictures of.

Yoga, Cocibolca and still more volcanoes

"Alright, now we're moving into the Bow pose, lie on your stomachs and grasp your ankles; now push your ankles into your hands and raise your thighs and chest off the ground."

I'd been hearing many such instructions during my time in Granda.  Lene and I had signed up for a weekly pass at the pure yoga studio.  Yoga is something I'd wanted to try for a long time but had somehow never gotten around to it.  Fifteen dollars gave us full access to as many classes as we wished for the week; a deal that was hard to turn down.  The instructors were great and overall the class was beginner friendly.  Despite not being able to perform most of the poses correctly there was nothing so difficult that I could not attempt it at least.

One of many old churches in Granada

It was a nice change to settle down and have a routine for a while.  In the mornings we would explore the city, walking along streets lined by beautiful colonial homes.   I spent the afternoons in Spanish lessons in an attempt improve my speaking abilities and in the evenings we would spend an hour and a half at our Yoga class.

The courtyard where I had my Spanish lessons

Though very touristy, Granada is filled with charm and many of the buildings open to beautiful courtyards brimming with lush greenery.  However, by the end of our weeklong stay we decided to move on towards the mythic island of Omotepe.

View of Granada from a bell tower

Omotepe, sitting in the middle of the vast Lake Nicaragua (Cocibolca to the locals) is an arresting sight.  Two stunning volcanoes connected by a thin isthmus form the island which is home to some 30,000 people.  It is difficult to get a feeling for the sheer size of the lake until you are on it.  A strong wind made for a choppy ferry crossing from the town of Revas and if I hadn't known better I would have sworn we were on the open ocean.  Opposing shores are invisible to each other on the lake and it is possible to watch the sun rise or set over the water depending upon which side you find yourself.  At one point the lake was considered a candidate for an Atlantic-Pacific connection, an honor which fell to Panama instead.  Lake Nicaragua connects to the Caribbean via river and so a canal needed only extend from the Western edge of the lake to the Pacific Ocean.

The volcano nearest Granada

Upon the landing of our ferry, we quickly took a bus to Playa Santa Domingo where the nicest beaches and best accomodations were supposed to be.  Unfortunately, the same wind that made for such a choppy voyage also left us with less than desirable weather on the island.  Worse, the lake level is quite high during winter and spring and most of the beaches were covered in water.  I had planned on climbing one of the volcanoes on the island but cloudbanks rolled in which covered the peaks.  I decided against a sweaty all day hike that would leave me with nothing to see but the inside of a cloud.  We did go to the Ojo de Agua (Eye of Water) a natural spring fed pool that is frequented by tourists and locals alike.  It has been built up to serve more as a swimming pool but the sandy bottom and tiny fishes darting about reveal the water's source.

The Ojo de Agua on Omotepe

After an afternoon at the pool we were hit by unexpected rain (especially since it's the dry season) on our walk back to the hostel which soaked both us and the backpack we were carrying straight through.    Since the weather didn't seem to have any intention of improving we decided to head for the coast and to the main beach resort in Nicaragua, San Juan del Sur.  Since we left on a Sunday there was only one bus going to the ferry and I guess a lot of people had the same idea we did since it was packed.  I've never seen a bus this full yet nevertheless when it pulled up they said they could fit five more.  People were already hanging out of the doors but we managed to squeeze in anyway for the hour long ride to the port.  It was like being squeezed into a sardine can and thrown in an oven.  One girl actually fainted on the bus due to the heat.  She had also made a poor fashion choice by wearing leggings under her dress which I'm sure did nothing to cool her down.  After sitting down for a while and drinking some water she seemed ok and we arrived at the ferry shortly after.

The volcano Concepcion on Omotepe

I still have plenty of time down here to take another shot at climbing one of the two volcanoes on Omotepe but right now we are having a great time at the beach.  We are also going to be here for a huge music festival this weekend called the Pitaya Festival.  We met one of the organizers in Granada and they have been showing us around San Juan del Sur this week.  I'll save the music festival and San Juan del Sur for another post though as this one is already getting a big long.  I'll also get some pictures up when I can find somewhere with a faster connection.

How do you say that?

Jiquilillo, a small fishing town in Northwest Nicaragua, was our next destination after Leòn.  Lene and I had heard about Jiquilillo from various people in Leòn and decided to check it out.  To get there we took a bus to Chinadega, a dirty little city that we were anxious to get out of.  Unfortunately, we had to wait in the trash strewn street that served as a bus station for over two hours before a Jiquilillo bound bus showed up.  Probably the hardest part about going there was getting my tounge around the name.  Pronounced hic-ih-lee-yo, I had a tough time remembering it and kept having to pull out a piece of paper with the town's name on it when asking for directions.

Our dinner table

  Though not far from Chinadega, the bus ride took two hours due to the poor road conditions and the frequent stops as the crowded bus picked up and dropped off people along the way.  There are no bus stops and so anyone who raises a hand on the side of the road will get picked up.  These stops probably doubled the length of our trip and we were thankful when the bus started emptying as we drew closer to our destination.

Soon we were the last people on the bus and were then informed that we had reached the end of the line.  We had yet to see anything resembling a town, let alone hostels, so we started to get a little worried.  There was a French couple on the bus with us and after talking with the conductor we were told that the last hostel was actually a few kilometers back.  Having no other options we picked up all our stuff and started walking.  We tried to hitch a ride from a few trucks and were eventually picked up by truck full of Managuans.  They had come to enjoy a weekend at the beach and had a great time joking around with us.  Eventually they made me pull out my guitar and though it was out of tune and I had trouble holding the frets on the bumpy road I stumbled my way through a rendition of Animals in Alaska.  Fortunately I didn't have to take any requests as we arrived at the hostel soon after.

Getting lost in a book

The hostel, Rancho Tranquilo, is a pretty amazing place and is run by an old hippy named Tina.  She is definitely different, but in a fun and welcoming sort of way.  Living up to its name, Rancho Tranquilo is a very peaceful place set on the shores of the Pacific.  Hammocks and swinging chairs hang under a thatched roof by the bar and you can hear the crashing surf as you read a book or enjoy a cold beer.  I spent plenty of time reading and fiddling around on my guitar as the aches from our volcano trek and bumpy bus rides faded.

The mouth of the Padre Ramos estuary

The beach in Jiquillio is wonderful.  The water is warm, there are no dangerous currents and there is hardly anyone there.  It was uncommon for us to see more than a dozen people anywhere on the beach and sometimes there would be more cows than people.  

Kayaking in the estuary

On our second day there we signed up for a kayak tour of the nearby Padre Ramos estuary.  Some 20,000 acres is size, this estuary is an important area for many species but most especially sea turtles.  At the right times of year there are several species that nest on beaches around Jiquilillo or spend at least part of their lives in the protected estuary.  It is a beautiful place lined by Mangroves and we took our kayaks into ever narrowing channels marveling at the twisting roots and the beautiful birds.  Blue herons, ibis and egrets are only a few of the birds you'll find there but their size and tendency to feed in the shallows or startle from tree branches makes them easy to spot.  There used to be sharks, crocodiles and caymans in the estuary but unfortunately they have all been hunted.  Our kayak guide, Jennifer, a field biologist,  was extremely knowledgable and we had a great time paddling around.

Kids looking for crabs in the estuary

There is definitely a growing foreign presence in Jiquilillo and for the most part it is being done in a responsible way.  The people we talked to are involved in the community and are doing their best to improve it.  Tina spends a little time each day teaching kids English and Jennifer has seen one of her kayak guides resume his education after dropping out of school.  Because it is a fishing town, many children don't have the opportunity to finish their school as they are needed to help out on the boats.  Many of these boats go out over 30 miles and stay out all night trying to get shark fins for the asian market.  Several boats are lost each year as freak storms or rogue waves take them out; since no one has any sort of safety equipment the stranded fishermen usually drown.  There are several groups trying to change the locals fishing practices and hopefully it works before we lose some incredible species.  It is hard to tell someone they shouldn't eat turtle eggs or take shark fins when they have no other way to feed their family so the sorts of tourism ventures that are starting in Jiquilillo now are great becuase they can offer people other ways to support themselves.  I hope the sort of responsible foreign invovlement I've seen continues so that the nastier aspects of tourism don't spoil such a wonderful place.

Into the mangroves

After a wonderful few days at Rancho Tranquilo we decided to leave before we got stuck there forever.  This time we'd set our sites on Granada, another colonial town.  It was a bit of hassle getting there and we ended up taking four buses.  We've been using the collectivos or microbuses to get around because they are faster.  These collectivos leave as they fill up with people and there is usually not much of a wait.  The only problem is the lack of storage space and we are usually forced to buy an extra seat for our backpacks.  

Granada

Coming into a city on the weekend without a reservation is always a bit of a gamble and we spent quite a while looking for a hostel that still had a private room available.  Luckily we found one that was simple and clean at the Bearded Monkey.  Granada is a beautiful city though by far the most tourist filled we'd yet seen in Nicaragua.  The old colonial homes and churches are brightly colored in blues and yellows, and the central plaza is a great place to hang out if you don't mind being pestered by people trying to sell you things.  We've only been here a couple days so far but will probably spend most of next week exploring the city.  Lene found a yoga studio and has signed up for a few days of classes and I might take a week of spanish lessons.  Maybe we can fit in a salsa lesson or two while we're at it to sharpen our skills for the next weekend.

Granada also serves as a jumping off point to a lot of other activities around the area so we'll probably be checking out some lagoons and volcanoes (since they are everywhere) before heading to San Juan del Sur.  There is still something nagging in the back of my mind that says Jiquilillo might be the best place we'll see on our trip but with a whole country at our fingertips we can't resist the urge to explore it.

Leòn and its volcanoes

 Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the Western hemisphere (after Haiti) and it shows.  Sitting neatly on the Pacific rim of fire Nicaragua gets hit hard by both earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.  A large Earthquake in 1972 practically leveled Managua and it has been recovering ever since.  As if these troubles weren´t enough, Nicaragua has had plenty of problems with the U.S. over the years as well.

Lene and I arrived in Managua on the 26th of January but after talking to a few people and taking a look at the city we decided to skip it all together and head for the much smaller city of Leòn.  Though small, Leòn has much more culture than the geologically devastated capital of Managua.  Leòn has the largest cathedral in Central America and several more modest churches scattered around the city.  These churches are by far the tallest buildings in the city, most others don't reach past two stories.  Strangely, it feels as if the city is limitless.  Set on flat ground and with winding streets, Leòn creates the illusion that its streets and homes extend forever.  Feeling claustrophobic?  You need only hop up one of the roof top bars to break the spell, and then you are treated to lush greenery and smoking volcanoes rising in the distance.

The bus ride from Managua took us past quite a few of these volcanoes, including the iconic Momotombo sitting on the shores of Lake Managua with its perfect cone.  Once in Leòn, Lene and I quickly signed up for a volcano tour of the surrounding area.  We used a compnay called Quetzatl trekkers, mostly because of their status as a non-profit and their pledge to donate proceeds to helping street kids in Nicaragua.  We signed up for a two day trek, the first day of which found us at the top of Cerro Negro clutching wooden planks and getting ready to slide down the steep sides of the active volcano.  The slopes consisted mostly of small pieces of black volcanic rock and the crater belched out a constant supply of sulfurous smoke.

    As we perched on the edge, decked out in protective suits, we debated who would go first.  Though steep, the boards did not move nearly as fast as we thought since the ground was so abrasive.  I tried to use the board standing up but it was much slower than sitting down and eventually everyone slid down the hill using their boards as sleds.  Once at the bottom we snacked at the nearby ranger station before heading up a larger volcano called El Hoyo for the enormous sinkhole that had formed just below its crater.  The hike was incredibly hot and steep and was only made worse by the sandy footing.  Our packs were also abnormally heavy for such a short hike since each person needed to carry 17lbs of water due to the heat and the lack of any fresh water sources on the mountain.  We were exhausted by the time we reached our campsite.

We camped just below the sinkhole and had a spectacular view of the countryside, including the crater lake we would be hiking to the next day.  From our vantage point we could see nearly a quarter of the entire country.  Once we'd dumped the heavy backs and gotten camp set up I walked up to the top of the volcano to look in the now vegetation filled crater.  I also hiked over to a large sulfur vent which hit me with waves of hot, acrid air as the wind shifted.  The vent itself was more of a cave and with the horrible stinking smoke pouring out of it appeared to be an entrance to the underworld.

We built a fire despite the heavy winds at the top before tucking into our sleeping bags.  I never have had good luck with my rental gear and this time was no exception.  Since it never rains during the dry season we were sleeping in the open, underneath a stunning array of stars.  The only problem was the length of my sleeping bag which only came up to my shoulder.  Though we were not high up, with the constant winds and the slight temperature drop it was enough to keep me waking up every hour or so shivering.  Some good did come of this though as I was able to watch the quarter moon rise over the volcanic landscape.

The next day started early and we wanted to get to the crater lake before the temperature rose too much.  It was a steep hike down and we were stiff from the long climb the day before but we made good time.  Everyone had worked hard at drinking as much water as they could just so they wouldn't have to carry the weight anymore and our packs were much lighter as a result.  At one point during our decent we heard two gunshots, one after the other.  A few minutes later we came across two happy farmers on horseback, one of whom had a rifle slung on his back and was holding a dead iguana by the tail.  I guess that was going to be their dinner for the night.  They graciously let us snap a few photos before moving on.

 We were sweaty and tired by the time we made it to the lake and had a great time cooling off in the blue water.  We relaxed by the lake for nearly two hours before we had to pack up and hike another hour to catch our bus back to Leòn.  We were both happy to be able to shower and change back at the hostel and decided the next place we went would be a little more relaxing.  We'd been hearing rumors of an unspoiled fishing village called Jiquilillo and though it wasn't in our guidebook we decided to see if we could find it the next day.