Yesterday we successfully climbed Nicaragua´s highest volcano, San Cristobal and sweat a few pounds in the process! The first day we camped out on a coffee finca in proximity to the bottom of the volcano run by a friendly old man who does frequent measurements on the volcano. We used his fire for s´mores and pasta making as it started dumping on us about as soon as we arrived. He chatted with us all joking about how we have good small bodies for climbing the volcano and he continued pointing to his friend remarking how he would be praying to god the whole time. The rest of the night the rain failed to cease and there was booming lightning over head which even took down a substantial tree more or less next to us.
At 3:30 we rolled out and trekked through grass and these eerie trees coming up out of the start of the black sand. When it erupted in the past the trees died but were still left standing and with all the sulfur they are left preserved like drift wood. Soon all you could see was a mountain of black sand and rock covered by ominous clouds and it looked like we were walking up into hell. We continued though and climbed in the black sand which made it quite easy to start land slides for hours before reaching the summit. We were unfortunately covered in clouds at the top, so we missed out on most views. But, it did feel like you were on top of the world or dangling off an air plane as all the clouds whizzed by. Also, gusts of wind bring up a funny assortment of bugs which then become intoxicated from the sulfur and die leaving tons of exotic insects scattered everywhere. After a session of munching trail mix and examining the bugs we headed down which took a pathetically short amount of time in comparison to the climb up. With all the loose sand and rock we just ran straight down. At the bottom after the frolicking down we dumped out our shoes, lunched, and then headed for the bus.
On one of the chicken buses home it became packed and we had a few poor people around us who felt the need to cover their noses since we smelled so bad. But, we had just climbed the highest volcano so I had a hard time feeling guilty about the stench.There was also a man behind me who constantly sneezed and spit on me making the dirty factor even worse. Eventually back in Leon we took care of our hygiene problem and let ourselves get big ice creams for dessert as a prize of accomplishment.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
The creepy trees 
The easy part- running on downThursday, October 22, 2009
Fincas and Fabricas
All the factories I have made my way to in the US have consisted of ridiculously elaorate metal machines stuffed in a warehouse doing all the steps and creating more tedious steps to make the product. We headed to a nearby chocolate factory today and I was expecting to see something similar. I have seen many of the chocolate bars by this company in stores, therefore assuming it must be a real booming factory. Oh boy was I wrong. Upon arrival we rung a little gong to get let in and then were shown to the factory which is a castle. Stone walls, a little turret and so on. Not only does the production take place in a castle but much of the steps are done by hand. This includes crushing and crumbling the coco beans from their shells with a stone morter. The lady who works in the factory and guided us kept emphassizing that it was easy work and she could do 300 lbs in a day no sweat. I was not convinced though. We also made ourselves sick (in a goodish way) from exessive chocolate tasting and got to take home fudgy brownies.
Yesterday was the coffee platation, Selva Negra where most of the land is protected rainforest. It was a fantasy land, and our entrance fee let us wander to any part of the land we wished. We walked through many questionable foot paths leading us through coffee bushes, banana trees with full banana bundles, past cotteges with clothes drying on lines strung about, in a tomato patch, through flower gardens and to a lake full of geese. We also discovered a little farm with calves, horses, pigs, and piglets, which we could just walk straight up to. We ate our lunch under a small garden which had dangling flower pots everywhere and then headed back home.
Also, we have counted out the days and have decided that two days from now (the 24th) marks our half way point already!
Yesterday was the coffee platation, Selva Negra where most of the land is protected rainforest. It was a fantasy land, and our entrance fee let us wander to any part of the land we wished. We walked through many questionable foot paths leading us through coffee bushes, banana trees with full banana bundles, past cotteges with clothes drying on lines strung about, in a tomato patch, through flower gardens and to a lake full of geese. We also discovered a little farm with calves, horses, pigs, and piglets, which we could just walk straight up to. We ate our lunch under a small garden which had dangling flower pots everywhere and then headed back home.
Also, we have counted out the days and have decided that two days from now (the 24th) marks our half way point already!
Pictures 7
Our bathroom... Notice how the lack of a shower curtain creates a muddy pond on the floor
Chocolate tasting with great enjoyment
The chocolate factory castle!
A bundle of bananas
A foot path through the coffee and jungle plants
Piglets! These ones have brown eyes, but some of the big pigs had these magical bright blue eyes
Some banana tree flower coming out of the ground
Houses of people that work on the coffee plantation
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Nicaragua
We got into Nicaragua a few days ago after spending a night in Tegucigalpa where for multiple hours in the evening it sounded like war outside. Luckily this was all coming from the chaos of the El Salvador vs Honduras soccer game being projected in many of the streets (although in the 60´s these two countries did more or less started a war over a soccer game). There were fireworks constantly going off resembling gunfire, police cars putting their sirens on for goals scored, and regular screams and yells. But, all was well. The city was calm once again in the morning and with chocolate milk and baleadas (tortillas with beans and cheese- Zoe´s favorite that we can´t find in Nica) we headed over the border.
We have spent the last few days hopping between cozy little mountain towns and have been blessed with semi-cool weather for a change. So far we have hit Somoto, Esteli and now Mataglapa. All of them are nestled in valleys and are surrounded by coffee fincas and modest houses and farms with animals roaming.
Somoto greeted us with their renowned rosquillas (cookieish biscuits) and our first taste of obnoxious Nicaraguan men. We escaped the men one day to the nearby canyon though, with a chatty and always smiling older man who was our guide. On our way down the the canyon we started a small collection of crystals and rocks torn up from a river bed. At the entrance of the canyon we hopped along river rocks until we had to swim and tow our stuff in a baby sized inflatable boat. The canyon walls were stunning as plants and vines dangled down everywhere. After gazing, splashing our way down, munching on lunch, and discovering a spider the size of my hand we headed home.
In Esteli we wandered to a waterfall with a women we met in our hotel and swam in the first water in all of central america that I might be able to call cold. While there we watched a few guys rappel down the fall and drop into the pool, which I was quite jealous off. On the way home we caught a pick up and a teenage girl chatted to us most of the way back which was a first.
Today was more or less our first day in Matagalpa. A striking thing hit us immediately yesterday though. We were walking into a park and we spotted a row of four waste bins painted four distinctly different colors provoking the thought ¨why have four separate cans and why different colors?¨ Turns out, they not only have garbage cans here, but they have compost and recycling too! I would go on to call this revolutionary for central america but the cans are not really used and the waste is clearly not sorted. This morning we got up and did some real exploring of the area with a self guided walk pamphlet. There were many directions that talked about fences and rock fields leaving us hoping that we would end up at home tonight, and we did. We walked through the surrounding hills passing many cows, chickens, and roosters. I made many attempts to make friends with them all, as Zoe could contest. We checked out a little pottery workshop in the hill and got some great views of Mataglapa. As for the next few days, we have plans to check out some coffee fincas and a chocolate factory.
We have spent the last few days hopping between cozy little mountain towns and have been blessed with semi-cool weather for a change. So far we have hit Somoto, Esteli and now Mataglapa. All of them are nestled in valleys and are surrounded by coffee fincas and modest houses and farms with animals roaming.
Somoto greeted us with their renowned rosquillas (cookieish biscuits) and our first taste of obnoxious Nicaraguan men. We escaped the men one day to the nearby canyon though, with a chatty and always smiling older man who was our guide. On our way down the the canyon we started a small collection of crystals and rocks torn up from a river bed. At the entrance of the canyon we hopped along river rocks until we had to swim and tow our stuff in a baby sized inflatable boat. The canyon walls were stunning as plants and vines dangled down everywhere. After gazing, splashing our way down, munching on lunch, and discovering a spider the size of my hand we headed home.
In Esteli we wandered to a waterfall with a women we met in our hotel and swam in the first water in all of central america that I might be able to call cold. While there we watched a few guys rappel down the fall and drop into the pool, which I was quite jealous off. On the way home we caught a pick up and a teenage girl chatted to us most of the way back which was a first.
Today was more or less our first day in Matagalpa. A striking thing hit us immediately yesterday though. We were walking into a park and we spotted a row of four waste bins painted four distinctly different colors provoking the thought ¨why have four separate cans and why different colors?¨ Turns out, they not only have garbage cans here, but they have compost and recycling too! I would go on to call this revolutionary for central america but the cans are not really used and the waste is clearly not sorted. This morning we got up and did some real exploring of the area with a self guided walk pamphlet. There were many directions that talked about fences and rock fields leaving us hoping that we would end up at home tonight, and we did. We walked through the surrounding hills passing many cows, chickens, and roosters. I made many attempts to make friends with them all, as Zoe could contest. We checked out a little pottery workshop in the hill and got some great views of Mataglapa. As for the next few days, we have plans to check out some coffee fincas and a chocolate factory.
Pictures 6
Final view of the hike over Matagalpa.
One out of a hundred chickens (a low estimate) along our hike.
Tomato plants growing in a boulder field along our hike by Matagalpa.
Our friend, the gigantic spider.
The opening of the canyon in Somoto.
The dive boat at the dock in Utila.
The coast of Livingston... The picture that killed my camera...it hit the sand after it rolled off a palm tree stump sadly :(
One of the seven pools with waterfalls connecting them.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Honduras
At this point, we have made it out of Guatemala and into Honduras. In fact, at our first stop in Honduras where we were crashing for the night we hitched a ride in the back of the Honduran National Police pick up to our hotel. We did book it from the main land to the Bay Islands within a day though to play it safe. Out here, on Utila Island you would not have the faintest idea that a coup was in action in the country. No curfews are followed, no police or guards are to be seen, and there is no talk anywhere about it. It has helped us out to get a bargain for diving though. The deal we managed to score was the NAUI Advanced Diver course (6 dives and a rescue portion), 2 fun dives, a refresher course, 3 breakfasts and 3 nights in a double room for 220!
Here are some of the brief highlights on the diving out here... We had a giggling bubble blowing fit as we floated in a swam of ctenophores (comb jellies and sea gooseberries). Three eagle sting rays cruised by us effortlessly. In a night dive we collected blood worms by our lights and then feed them to the corrals and watched all the polyps swell up with the big tasty meal we provided. Also on the night dive, schools of little fish would collide into us and for a few seconds it felt like they could possibly eat us alive. Swimming thorough cabins in a ship wreck. Diving to 130 feet for the first time. The list continues of course, but those are the ones that top my list.
Here are some of the brief highlights on the diving out here... We had a giggling bubble blowing fit as we floated in a swam of ctenophores (comb jellies and sea gooseberries). Three eagle sting rays cruised by us effortlessly. In a night dive we collected blood worms by our lights and then feed them to the corrals and watched all the polyps swell up with the big tasty meal we provided. Also on the night dive, schools of little fish would collide into us and for a few seconds it felt like they could possibly eat us alive. Swimming thorough cabins in a ship wreck. Diving to 130 feet for the first time. The list continues of course, but those are the ones that top my list.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Pictures 5
A Ceiba Tree
The anteater like creatures
One of the many bats, but this one we happened to catch on the camera
The river that rushes in a tunnel under the pools
The Mirador
Semuc Champey
Tikal
We hopped on a minibus at 5 in the morning and rolled into Tikal before the sweltering heat hit. We trekked through the park by ourselves seeing very few other people the whole day. In the first few minutes of walking we were greeted by a swam of anteater like animals who seemed to be having a morning feast. A little bit after we saw an anteater mooching some bread (which I wouldn't have mind eating) off a old tourist. I informed him politely there were many signs about how to not feed the animals and he did a good job pretending he missed them all. We wandered around many of the temples below the jungle canopy with swinging howler monkeys who occasionally tried to poop on us for hours. We also got the tippy top of temple five to ourselves for an hour where we could see many other temples peeking out of the green and many miles of the park. On our way out we grabbed some crackers and we had yet another anteater come by and check us out. I thought it was being a little friendly, and soon it was launching itself across my lap and going for my cracker. It missed as I was very protective of my tasty cracker, but I wish the foolish old guy had been there to see it. We headed out just before the extreme heat set in and did some soaking in the lake next to our hotel. Heat lightning went on behind the clouds lighting them up a pretty orange for us and the moon that night had a cool ice ring glow around it.
Semuc Champey and Lanquin Caves
We shelled out some dinero for a full day tour which began with transportation to Semuc in the back of a pick up bumbling along a dirt road through the rainforest. There was a typical Guatemalan hike (practically vertical, stairs that are more like ladders) to a mirador where you could see all the turquoise pools sectioned off by mineral deposits. We headed back down the limestone cliffs and were soon relieved by swimming in the gorgeous pools and sliding from one to another. After a tasty peanut butter and jelly sandwich we went to the caves. Armed with one white tapper candlestick we plunged into the dark cave where the river rushed out. We wadded through the water under magnificent stalactites in almost complete darkness. At parts we would have to swim up river with one arm waving the candle above water and the other keeping you barley afloat. All hopes were lost for the candle though when we went under and then up a small hazardous ladder in a waterfall. This lead us to a spider web of ropes secured to stalactites where we struggled our way up the rapidly moving river. There was more meandering and scrambling in the cave and then we headed out back into the sunshine for some tubing.
As we were thoroughly impressed with the Semuc caves we headed to the Lanquin caves the following night. There was no trudging through water but a bigger and better view of the rock formations- there were huge bacon like strips protruding, stalactites like beards and curtains, growing stalagmites that glistened etc. Since we went around nighttime we also got to witness thousands of bats escaping the caves for their dinner. Many would zoom right past your face in the mad chaos. Both the caves also struck up an urge for me to climb which sadly might be hard to fulfill.
As we were thoroughly impressed with the Semuc caves we headed to the Lanquin caves the following night. There was no trudging through water but a bigger and better view of the rock formations- there were huge bacon like strips protruding, stalactites like beards and curtains, growing stalagmites that glistened etc. Since we went around nighttime we also got to witness thousands of bats escaping the caves for their dinner. Many would zoom right past your face in the mad chaos. Both the caves also struck up an urge for me to climb which sadly might be hard to fulfill.
Friday, October 2, 2009
The Diagnosis
The past few days we both developed a obnoxiously itchy rash that looks along the lines of tons of acne and no one else seems to have it. We have been puzzled and scratching our skin off practically. We thought that Guatemala was just beating the shit out of us, but actually, we just have terrible hygiene. We were informed that not washing your clothes or not showering frequently can end up causing heat rash. Sadly, we fall into both of those categories and are therefore are changing our ways. Laundry was done today when we spotted the first laundromat!
Also, our purifier has bitten the dust and for this amount of time it would just be ridiculous in my mind to filter everything. So, we have resorted to drinking the tap water although characterized by Wikipedia as ¨low and inconsistent¨ and have yet to have any problems but weird looks from other travelers. I have also avoided any type of sickness so far and have high hopes to keep up this pattern.
For any real news on the last week of adventues you can check out Zoe´s until I feel any energy or money for internet...
www.zbarkeraderem.blogspot.com
Also, our purifier has bitten the dust and for this amount of time it would just be ridiculous in my mind to filter everything. So, we have resorted to drinking the tap water although characterized by Wikipedia as ¨low and inconsistent¨ and have yet to have any problems but weird looks from other travelers. I have also avoided any type of sickness so far and have high hopes to keep up this pattern.
For any real news on the last week of adventues you can check out Zoe´s until I feel any energy or money for internet...
www.zbarkeraderem.blogspot.com
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