Bikeriding on Ometepe Island

To keep myself active when I came back to sleep in Hostel Central in Moyogalpa (or Indio Viejo), I rented a bike one day to explore the island. You can rent one from the "old indian" himself for $6 a day, or from others for $5. You always have to check the brakes, or else you may get a nasty surprise. The day wI decided to do so I met Scot from UK who was also after a bike for the day. I decided to bike to Balgue on the other side of the island, and stop a few places on the way. The first stop was at Punta Jesus Maria, the locals call the Whales back because there is a small strip of land going out into the lake, however the lake is now so full of water that it was not possible to see the strip of land called the Whales back. The picture above is a picture of the road down there. It is 1 /2 km. from the main road. The picture below is as far as I got.

The picture below is from Laguna Chaco Verde, and it is also a bit away from the main road. it is possible also to sleep in a hotel near this lagoon, called Chaco Verde. By the entrance to Chaco Verde, the main road (from Moyogalpa on the Conception part of the island, to Altagracia on the Maderas side, the only paved road on the island) start to go up hill, so you might want to either take the bus to the junction that connects the two parts of the island, or you can stop and take a refreshing bath here before continuing, under an unmerciful sun, to take a bath. It is really quiet and beautiful, no people around when I was there, and you can see /hear howler monkeys and see both Conception and Maderas from there. The water is clear and refreshing. m o this was my 2nd stop on the way to Balgue, some 20 or more km. from Moyogalpa (for the record, I do not know how far it is, but when I came back i  was told that I had been bkiking more than 40 km. (not including my stops)). The 2 pictures below are from the lagoon Chaco Verde.

From Chaco Verde I had a really hard time getting up several km. up hill with my bike. I had to get up and walk some. The sun makes it really hard since there are no trees to give any shade. It is not a steep hill, but it
is hard (on the way back it is fun though!). After climbing all those km. the road went slightly down hill toward the junction where I would take off towards Balgue. Right after the junction there is a very steep down hill, and at the bottom is the entrance for Ojo de Agua, a source of water that is, thought by the natives, to be healing water. I went past it because the hill was steep and I had good speed on my bike. I was really grateful that it is hardly any traffic on the island, because the roads are small and narrow. I went on to Balgue, the road was a bit easier, until you get to the unpaved road part. The Maderas side of the island is less developed than the Conception side, so the roads are awful and bumpy, and the only reason why buses take forever to travel a few km. I stopped to drink a juice in Balgue and started back, determined to stop at Ojo de Agua on the way back. I was tired when I came there because I had to bike up hill a lot, so it was just beautiful to lie down in the rather cold water. Ojo de Agua (eye of water) is caused by rainwater that was stuck underground in the soft volcanic sediments being pressed up again to the surface. During the rainy season the water seeps down in the hollows in the rocky ground and in the end there is too much water, so it presses up again where it can find a way out, and it makes the pool on the pictures (below), and a river running in to the lake from it. Because it has been trapped before inside volcanic ground full of minerals, the water is crystal clear and sparkling clean, and full of minerals. That is why it is healing water, and it is said that a bath in the water makes you 5 years younger. So while I was there, I jumped in 3 times, and I made jokes to a man and a woman I met that I am 15 years younger, since I jumped in 3 times. I ate some food by the pool, and swam in it in between. It is not very deep, and compared to Lake Nicaragua, the water is very cold, but in the heat you will appreciate it. After almost 2 hours, I considered going back because it gets dark so early, and even if there is little traffic, I did not want to bike in the dark. To get back was first very, very hard. I was tired from all the up hill climbing that I had done, and I am not a champion on bike. When the up hills started by Chaco Verde, Scot left me (he was on a day trip to the island, and was going to go back to the mainland on the 17:00 boat), and I met him on the way back when I was nearing Balgue, we said goodbye and he went back before me. I had my battle with all the up hill until I came to the point where it all went down for several km., and it was tons of fun. Just sitting on the bike, not having to nothing was a blessing, my princess ass was hurting from an uncomfortable seat, so I was in heaven for a while. After all the down hill, I joined locals, that travel by bike all the time here, but have all the time in the world biking lazily away. I, also, biked lazily away. After something that seems like forever with my sore ass, I finally got back home. The 2 pictures below are from Ojo de Agua.

I managed to stay on Isla de Ometepe for 2 weeks. It was difficult to leave, and more than one person said; the island does that to you! And now it is experiencing its 3rd. invasion. The 1st. invasion was the aztec invasion, the 2nd. the conquistadors from Spain, and the 3rd is the Europeans and the USA. On this small island, the foreign population is growing. I met many, f.ex. one young couple from UK running the Cornerhouse Cafe. They make the most delicious Eggs Benedict you can find in the whole wide world! And the cold latte and carrot cake is also to die for. I made the place my regular place the week I spend in Moyogalpa, sitting there whole days sometimes to catch up on my blog, eating breakfast (Egg Benedict) together with one of the refreshing smoothies with starfruit or passion fruit together with mango and papaya, mango and banana, or banana and papaya, or some other fruits. Then have a iced latte and a carrot cake or an organic vegetarian sandwich. I met other Europeans and people from US in the cafe who either lived there or had just bought a property there. The reason to leave their countries where very interesting, so I had some very meaningful conversations with some of them. In general they do not have a "mainstream" philosophy of life. The locals on the island are so beautiful that I could almost cry looking at them. But I guess it is easy to be beautiful when you live a stress free, simple life and have clean air and surrounded by green nature and animals. Me and Rei-Han (from Taipei) had a conversation about that, and she said that the people are so beautiful because they are so pure in their hearts. She also said something interesting about happiness that gave me an idea, because I want to do a blog about happiness, so I have been thinking for a while about how to dig deeper into the theme. What I have noticed is that people in general seem happy in Central-America, not for lack of suffering, but maybe because of it, they take every moment as a chance of happiness. A friend said that they can not waste the time on unhappiness because they never know what will happen to them, and they live in countries with violence. What is happiness to them, is not the same as happiness is for us in the safe privileged world, but it works in the same way.I have long ago figured out that the way to true happiness is to grateful. And I am truly grateful for meeting all the people I have met, and to have come here to learn.

On horseback to the slope of Maderas

 After one day of relaxing, swimming and reading books at the Rancho Merida, we went to Haris (a German man with horses for rent) place to ask about horseback riding. We agreed on coming back at 9 the next morning for a 3hour tour on the slopes of the Volcano Maderas, on the way to Haris place we saw a howler monkey, birds and a snake with suspicious colours slithered over the path. The colours are those of dangerous snakes, but there are imposters, so I am not sure if it is a dangerous snake or an imposter.

The day after we turned up before 9 in the morning and got horses, I had told them that I really, really want to run, to gallop with a horse is like flying the moment they lift all their legs, and I want to feel it again. I think I need to take riding lessons when I get some money! My horse is the grey one and called Marihuanito, our guides horse is Pinto and Rei-Hans horse is Pimento. I got Marihuanito because he likes to run a lot, however it was difficult to run since we were going up into the woods, balancing on rocky ground and slippery paths. So we went slowly up on the slope of Maderas to a point where we could get an overview (the picture below). From there w could see the isthmus with the lake on both sides and the Volcano Conception shrouded in clouds. Granda is on the right side of the volcano on the main land, but it was difficult to see all the way to Granada because of the hazy sky. We could see Costa Rica in the south (not in the picture).

On the way back down we took another way and ended up in el Comminidad Merida where the school is, and most people live. Down there on the road we let the horses run for a while, and went down to a beach named Cabalito where the horses enjoyed cooling down in the water. Sitting on the horse the guide warned ut that they like to lie down with saddle, rider and everything, so we had to be prepared to get wet. The guide was carrying my camera so I was not to worried, but Rei-Han had her camera so I can understand that she got worried. The horses waded deeper inn and started to splash water with their front legs, right before they were about to lie down, the guide took charge and got them all up. We got out of it just slightly wet, but I was a little disappointed that I did not experience the lying down.

I really, really enjoyed this trip through beautiful fields and forest, with strong healthy horses (I recommend Haris horses if you go to Isla de Ometepe). When we were at Rancho Merida, there was a group of volunteers at Hacienda Merida, next door. They had just finished their studies, so they were new veterinarians

who want more experience and also want to help the community with their services. The program started by Hacienda Merida has been going successfully for 5 years, almost all of the students and new beginners from Oregon. So every day there was a zoo of animals lined up to get a veterinarian check up, dogs, cats, horses, donkeys, pigs, mules, cows and goats. All the animals that had been checked had this cute scarf around their neck, so there were all these dogs running around with a scarf. There were quite many fresh vets there, some with their spouses, and it was really interesting talking to them about the project and the work. They do it for free, so the people just have to show up with their animals and wait. Every morning before the gate opened there would be a line of people and their animals. Haris people took 5 horses and 11 dogs. One of the dogs is an Inka dog (picture above).As you can see it is naked! And it is a very rare rase, it feels strange to pet it, and it is not very beautiful, but it is friendly and cute. They also have 2 huge dogs, one boxer or something called Martha, and another weird looking giant called Agatha, then there were 4 tiny, skinny ones that I was afraid to step on, and some of uncertain origin. There were 4 cats, one called Emma with only 3 legs, 2 in the front and 1 in the back. One of her legs was grabbed by an armadillo when she was a kitten, and it had to be amputated. She did not seem to suffer from it at all, and did not care about if any of the dogs were around. She willingly came to my lap. After riding I spend a lot of time in the lake. A young man from Costa Rica was in Rancho Merida, and we stayed in the lake until long after dark, talking about life. He is a dentist and has a lot of interesting knowledge that I recognize in myself (that is interesting to me (since I have an "alternative" view of the world). I find that a lot of people understand where I come from and how I think over here, so maybe I was miss placed somehow in this world? There are people with a different consciousness  (that HAS awareness) out there, and I am so blessed to meet them so that they can teach me more about my own knowledge).

Look at the volcano! It never looks the same, ever, so you can never grow tired of looking at it!

Hiking on Ometepe Island

 I LOVE Isla de Ometepe! After one night in Moyogalpa, where I met a lovley girl from Taipei, Taiwan, (we were room mates and decided to go to the Maderas part of the island together), I took the afternoon bus to Merida (in fact there are only 1 or 2 buses a day because of the bad roads).

I jumped into the wonderful lake as soon as we had beds for the night. This picture above is from Merida on the way to the one and only waterfall on the island. Me, and my friend Rei-Han, went hiking to this waterfall the day after we arrived at Rancho Merida, a family run place we slept at for $ 4 a night. It is possible to also go horseback riding, a good idea, since it is a though hike, and quite hot. It is a long walk from Merida to the entrance itself, and then you start climbing 3-4 km. We walked at an easy pace, and when arriving we could get into our swim suits and jump into the really cold, refreshing water. It is not really deep, waist deep, but stand underneath the waterfall and let it cool you.

It is not a big swim hole, but it is beautiful and lush, and you can hear the monkeys and see birds. We idled away 2 hours here, reading, soaking and enjoying the view. On the way back we saw a howler monkey. It is called San Ramon waterfall.
















Going back down is easier, but then we had the long way back along the dirt road from San Ramon the nearest community to the waterfall. On the way back I was tempted to jump into the lake to cool off before proceeding to el Communidad Merida and Rancho Merida. I was going to jump in on this side of the pavilion by the lake, but the wind had picked up so much that the waves were violent. I tried to get in there, but the force of the water was strong that I thought I would hurt myself on the concrete, so I went to the other side without the concrete and got in. The waves were strong, so I had to spend more energy swimming, but it was good and refreshing before continuing back home.

 

The lake was in a furry that night, boiling with big waves that kept me exercised in the water,when I jumped in again back in Merida. It was almost a little bit scary, but there were other people on the dock, and one man in the water, so I figured that I would be OK. The water in Lake Nicaragua is very

warm, despite the size of it. A little after I got out of the water a big thunderstorm blew up, lightening up the Volcano Conception (the pyramid on the picture). Every night on this side of the island lightning would make a spectacular show behind, above and around the volcano.

It gets dark really early here, around 6 O`clock, so by the time we got back we could see the beginning of the sunset on the lake, like a staircase of gold on the water. As soon as I was back home I jumped into the lake again, and stayed in the water until after pitch dark.

Cocibolca - the sweet wather

After my stay in Posto Rojo I went directly to Isla de Ometepe. I jumped on a bus at a road conjunction where busses came from Managua heading south to Rivas. It was an good old Bluebird (the chickenbus), and it cost less than $2 to get to Rivas. From there I had to get a taxi to the ferry dock, and crossed over to Moyogalpa in 1 hour. It is a beautiful crossing with the view toward the island where 2 volcanos are looming. The twin volcanos are enough to capture anyones imagination, rising up from the massive (8 264 km2, a little smaler than Titicaca in Peru /Bolivia and the 9th largest in America) lake in Nicaragua. The original name of Lake Nicaragua is Cocibolca - sweet wather. Among the admireres of the island is Mark Twain, who described it lyrically in his book Travels with Mr. Brown. The fertile volcanic soil, wide beaches, the wildlife population, archaelogical sites and dramatic profile have landet the island on a shortlist for new Seven Natural Wonders of the World. It is certainly one of the most amazing things I have ever seen; two volcanos rising up from a huge lake, it is not only spectacular from the ferry, it is equally spectacular on the island itself. I departed from San Jorge with this little car ferry. I am not an expert of logistics, but it I do not have to be a genius to see that the way they first put the big truck in the middle and then there where 3 small vans more to get inside. The ferry left the dock heavier on one side, but they can get away with it here, the one hour ferry ride was on a calm lake, but the lake is only 26 meters at its deepest, so I if the winds are really strong the waves can be quite high. In fact I have heard that people do get seasick on the 4 hour ferry ride from Granada, and I thought about the ferry ride on Pirihueico many years ago when I traveled in South-America with huge waves crashing OVER the ferry. I remember sitting on the sundeck on top of the ferry, feeling seasick and getting splashed by wather, so I had to go downstairs where the waves did not feel that high. In Patagonia the winds are so strong, all the time, that it wips up the lake in a fury 24 hours. The lake is in the 7 lake district in Patagonia. To go to Ometepe you can either take a ferry; Ferry 1, Ferry 2 or Che Guevara for 60 cordoba or take one of the "pangas" (40 cordobas) on the picture below (I think they are very slow and overfilled). They arrive on the island either in Moyogalpa or in San Jose del Sur. I had no idea where I would arrive, because I forgot to check it before I left, but I was quite sure that I would land in Moyogalpa, and I did. In Moyogalpa I found the Hostal Central or Indio Viejo as it is also called, owned by an old man who claims he is born in a tribe of this island. I do not believe him; he is fluent in French and English, but not in Spanish, and his children and staff all speak French, bad Spanish and NO English. They listen to French music and only speak French among them. The lake drains to the Caribbean Sea by the river San Juan, makeing Granada an important Atlantic port. It was suggested that a canal would be made at the narrow isthmus at Rivas, but in stead the Panama Canal was buildt. In fact the lake presses the land into such a narrow belt that it barely separates the lake from the Pacific Ocean and geological evidence suggest that there was no separation between the lake and the ocean in distant past. The isthmus of Rivas is replete with history. Although known as the land of Nicarao, the area was first inhabited by the Kiribisis tribe, whom the more powerful Chorotegas pushed aside. The Nicaraos came afterward, and by the time the Spanish “discovered” the region, it had been residents here for at least seven generations.

Main land.

































It’s hard to compete with La Isla de Ometepe for attention. The magnificent twin-peaked Ometepe rises like a crown from the center of Lake Cocibolca. An intensely volcanic island steeped in tradition and mystery, Ometepe was the ancestral home of the Nahuatl people and today is an alluring destination for travelers, with its sandy beaches, swimming holes, hiking trails, and of course, two breathtaking volcanoes: one hot, one cold (the former remains quite active).

Tree houses

I stayed in Granada for 5 days to get money, to do some writing and to my big joy and surprise I was able to buy contact lenses (in guidebooks (and tourists said so as well) they claim that it is impossible to get that in Nicaragua, but I orded them in the evening, and I could pick them up the morning after, and they did not cost more than in Norway (I throught they might be a little cheaper, but no)). I had a problem with one eye for one day, I suppose because I had been using lenses a few days longer than I should, afraid that I would never be able to find them here in Central-America. When I left Granada I left with a guy named Freddy, in a jeep, with 4 other tourists. We were heading to their treehouse in the forest of Posto Rojo.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotos-g580113-d1957230-w2-Treehouse_Poste_Rojo-Granada.html
Music that I heard in Posto Rojo.


http://nowthatsnifty.blogspot.com/2009/07/amazing-and-awesome-tree-houses.html
http://www.treehouses.com/
Who would not want to live in a tree house after seeing theese to WebSites?
There is something about a tree house that appeals to a lot of people's childhood fantasies of independence and freedom. I never had a tree house when I grew up, and when I came to Freddys tree house in Posto Rojo, just 20 min., out in the forest, from Granada (we saw a howler monkey right after we got there, feeding in the trees right next to the main house), I became quite facinated by the idea of LIVING in one. Freddy have 2 books on tree houses lying in the main structure for people to have a look if they like, and I was intrigued by how many designes there are. The books contain a detailed recepie of how to construct a tree house either in one or in 2 trees, and also what kind of trees that are most fit for tree houses. Of cource it is essential to pick the right tree, unless you want to live in danger of falling down.There are also surprisingly many tree houses in the world, and many of them serve as luxury hotels. Even though there are plenty of examples of people living most of their lives in tree houses, unfortunatley, todays obsession about safety, and laws and rules, have made it difficult for people to make tree houses their permanent home. A lot of the tree houses I saw and read about in the book where fully equipped with bathrooms and showers and a pumping system to get the wather up, and they all have a facinating architecture that inspire my sense of adventure and imagination. Many people have buildt their own tree house cabin or summerhouse, but there are many tree house architects. In some countries there are people living in tree houses either as a luxury, to save the environment or as a tradition. People that live in trees as a lifestyle are tree dwellers, you can find tree dwellers in Indonesia at the Brazza River Basin, and the Korowai tribe in Papua New Guinea that lives 50 m. (more or less) up with only a ladder and /or a notched pole to access the house. and I visisted in Brasil people with their homes on stilts and near trees with wooden bridges between the different stuctures. When the Europeans first came to this continent they found that many islanders were tree dwellers with a simple platform structures in the tops of the trees.

Freddys tree house hostel. It is simply called Tree House Hostel. Upstairs there is a kitchen, all the wather is still carried up by handforce.

Not surprizingly, to me anyway, studies and research in USA and Japan have showed that living in trees and near trees makes people happier. People preforme better on tests and form happier relationships when they live in an area with a lot of trees. According to Illinois University leafy streets also encourage a lower crime rate and a more "civilised" atmosphere, even in poor areas, researchers found this to be true. They believe that living close to parks and other green spaces is "essential to our physical, psychological and social well-being. Nature calms people and it also helps them psychologically rejuvenate. They are better able to handle challenges. Level of health could be predicted by the amount of green space within a mile of radius. In Chicago they found that trees can cut the level of crime by 7 %, and that children with ADHD were calmer and more focused after walking among trees, compared to children that are exercised indoors. In addition researchers in Japan also found that old people live longer if they have access to green area near their homes.


At the end of this blog there are some videos of amazing homes. Already people live in floating homes and floating cities. Who knows what the future have in store when it comes to ways of living. We only hope that a new way of living will be genteler to the nature and ourselves. That we will in the end live in harmony with our planet Earth, not fighting her. And that new ways of living will bring more happiness and love into a community.There is also even possibility of living inside live material.
House boat community; http://dornob.com/picture-this-seattle-houseboat-floating-home-photos/

links;
http://www.costaricatreehouse.net/
I love this green home, a "hobbit house";  http://dornob.com/straw-sticks-secrets-a-hand-built-earthen-hobbit-home/

A wonderful sunset and the travel to Granada

First I want to present the most popular song in Nicaragua for the timebeeing. This raeggeton rythm is good to get in a good mood and in a dancemood..
Granda is considered one of the most beautiful cities in this part of the world, with its churches and colonial buildings. Yes, it is quite beautiful, but I guess I appreciate so much the more remote areas, and the rustic quality of Nicaragua rather than the cities. I have discovered that here there is more nature to indulge in. And after seeing a sunset in Jiquilillo that could be written hundreds of poems about, I find city's too full of buildings. Before I left Jiquilillo together with William and Fabienne we went kayaking which was great fun. We were out 3 hours in the afternoon, and when we came back after kayaking most of the time in a thunderstorm, the skies had cleared up and we could enjoy an awesome sunset. In the West the sky was an explosion of pink, orange, yellow and red, the colours mixing with the ocean that was throwing itself forcefully towards the beach. The colours from the sky mirrored themselves in the ocean and blended with the ragging grey foam from the ocean. In the East the sky was grey and blue, grey leftover from the thunderstorm. The beach was the colour of liquid gold, as was the wather that crashed in. It was the most beautiful sunset that I have seen by the ocean. Only a thunderstorm can create such fierce colouring of the sky and ocean. Anyway, after getting back to Leon, I slept there one night and took the bus to Granada. To get to Granada I had to pass through Managua, so I took the buss marked UCA, from there you can get connections to Granda without having to take a taxi across the city to another bus stop. UCA connects Managua to many cities and towns. I was surprised when we came into Managua. Since I have heard bad things about the city I expected to see grey, ugly fabrics and a dreary place. But coming into the capital city I saw only trees. It was like the nature has taken over the city and the only somewhat dreary thing I saw was the mud hole where the buses stop. On the way south I saw some more of the city, but not quite the center of it. I could not figure out where the center of the city might be since I saw only trees, and all the properties I saw looked like they had big gardens. Usually the trip with minivans are more comfortable than with the chickenbus. But the minivan from Managua continued to pick up people until the door could not be closed. many had to stand in an umcomfortable position.

The minibuses are the fastest way to get to Granada from Managua. You pay 20 cordobas to go, that is less than $ 1.  Granda is historically the most important city of Nicaragua, it was founded in 1524 by Francisco Hernández de Córdoba and one of the first European cities in mainland Americas. Unlike other cities who claim the same, the city of Granada was not only the settlement of the conquest, but also a city registered in official records of the Crown of Aragon and the Kingdom of Castile in Spain. Granada is also known as La Gran Sultana, by its Moorish and Andalusian appearance, unlike its sister city of León and historical rival, which has Castilian trends, both of the Baroque time. It was named by Hernández de Córdoba after the ancient Spanish city of Granada. This was done in honor of the defeat of the last Moorish stronghold, which had been Spanish Granada, by the Catholic King and Queen of Spain. Granada, Nicaragua was historically the sister capital in Central America to Antigua, Guatemala. During the colonial period, Granada maintained a flourishing level of commerce with ports on the Atlantic Ocean, through Lake Nicaragua (original name Cocibolca) and the San Juan River. The city has been witness and victim to many of the battles with and invasions from English, French and Dutch pirates trying to take control of Nicaragua. It was also where William Walker, the American filibuster, took up residence and attempted to take control of Central America as a ruling monarch. One of Walker's generals, Charles Frederick Henningsen, set the city ablaze before escaping, destroying much of the ancient city and leaving printed the words "Here was Granada". For many years Granada disputed with León its hegemony as the major city of Nicaragua. The city of Granada was favored by the Conservatives, while Léon was favored by the Liberals. For many years there was conflict that at times became quite violent between the cities' families and political factions. In the mid-19th century a compromise site was agreed on and the capital was finally established at Managua between both cities .
 For the most part Granada avoided damage during the years of conflict in Nicaragua in the 1980s.

Maybe it has something to do with the of the year, but it seems to me that Nica towns and cities are not the most noicy kind. Gates where locked, and in the street I had to watch out for horses and bikes, not so many cars. I found my favourite cafe in the center, Cafe Euro with really good coffe, vegetarian food and great WiiFii to do some writing and research online. Hostels I can recomend are the Liberdad (it has organic pizza night every night, and the pizza is super delicious) and the Bearded Monkey across the street. Don`t let the bedbugs bite :)

Pic from the central park in Granada.
 

Hiking a volcano in Nicaragua

The Cosigüina Volcano was once upon a time the tallest volcano in whole Central-America, from the size of it`s base, perhaps more than 3 000 m. It all changed one beautiful day, in January 1835, when the most violent eruption in the Americas, since colonization, blew most of this hot-blodded volcano away in one single blast. The eruption paved the oceans with pumice, left 3 countries in the dark for 3 days, and scattered ash from Mexico to Colombia. Today a beautiful lake fills the remains of the mighty volcano, and you can reach it on a 3 h. blistering, or more like scolding, hot trekk from el Communidad Potosi. To arrange the tour you can either go through Pure Planet travel agency, take the very bumpy 3-4 hour chickenbus ride from Chinandega to Potosi or do like I did; I went to Jiquilillo where I met William and Fabienne and I talked to them about it. They also wanted to see the lake in the crater of the volcano, so we had Nate contacting Tina to ask if she had some guests that also wanted to go. They had one guest that wanted to go, so we hired a guide, Eddie, (you have to have a guide, people have died up there) and a ride and left Nates ranch 5 am in the morning. Many roads in Nicaragua are not paved, so after 30 min. driving there was only a dirtroad, and because of the rain, it had all those small lakes. I was afraid that it would be to muddy or to deep for our van to pass through all theese "roadlakes", I would not want to get out of the car to step into  "puddle" with kneedeep wather. It seemed to me that we needed a car-boat of the kind the military use, or Austin Powers (if he has a car that can turns into a boat). But the locals here know what they are getting into, so they would not buy a fancy car that can not handle the obstacles of this country, so our little Toyota van, old and ratteled as she is, got us over to dry land again and again, and after crossing many "lakes" we climed a bit higher, and there were no more giant puddles! When we came up to el Communidad Potosi, also a natural reserve, a big delta and wetland area, teeming with birdlife.

The climb up the volcano was very hard for me, it was hot and a lot of wild wilderness to get through, I came up 2-3 min later than the others. Actually I almost wanted to give up when I was almost up because from below it does not look like anything special, but when I came up and looked over the edge of the crater I saw the most beautiful lake, with the clouds mirroring themselves in it. I was really happy that I had struggeled my ass all the way up, it was not the hardest climb I have done since it is not a very steep trail, but it was hard because of all the wilderness and the heat. I was glad I did not give up on the way up. My legs were sore and scratched from thorns, spines and malicious insects that bite and sting. The climb down was actually not easier, it was harder because of the power of concentration I had to put into it to not fall down and break a leg or an arm.

From the top of  the volcano, you can see Honduras and El Salvador on a clear day.

After the climb up we went to swim in this hot spring in the Potosi Community, the wather was not hot though, it was lovley refreshing. Underneath; a house from Potosi.

                 The local toilets. The pic under are from el Communidad Cosigüina, we stoped there for food, a                  local woman had made us each a traditional plate of chicken, rice, refried beans and eggs.

This is how it looked outside the car when we drove to and from Potosi.

William, Fabienne and I also went kayaking in Padre Ramos, it was a lot of fun. We went into the mangroove forest with a guide called David, who is a local of Jiquilillo. If you go without a guide you might get lost among the roots of the trees. During the kayaking it started to rain and a heavy thunderstorm was upon us, so we did a lot of kayaking in the pouring rain.

A week in Communidad Jiquilillo

This little boy on the horse asked me to take a picture of him, he is from the Communidad Jiquilillo, Northeast Nicaragua where people live from fishing and looking for clams in the mangrooves. The dogs are Nates dogs. According to Nate Curly, the big one, adopted him, and then later the smaller one Mojambles. They did me the honour of walking with me on a 3 hours adventure in the community and the long beachstrech between La Reserva Natural Padre Ramon and Nates Ranch.

Leon was WAY to hot for me so I decided to go to the north coast of Nicaragua to visit a small community named Jiquilillo (pron.; heekeeleeyo) by the beach. In fact it is an endless beach, with this pretty fishing community, along the stretch of dust road, that remaines underdeveloped. It is beautiful, and accessible from Leon by minivan /minibus, that leaves only when it is full to Chinandega, the cost is 20 cordoba ($ 0.75), take a taxi to the marked (10 cordoba), and then the chickenbus, 18 cordoba, on to Rancho Esperanza (or tell the helper to stop at "el Rancho de Nato") for a place to sleep while you are visiting the community. Another option is Rancho Tranquillo owned by Tina the "gringa". I have heard she is the happiest person in the world, as she has found her paradise here in Jiquilillo. Nate is another foreigner, from Maine, USA, who came to this place when he was just 18 to do volunteer work, in 1998. Because of lack of fundings the project was stoped before it was supposed to, but Nate continued working, improving health care for the community by spending his own money. When his money run out he went back to the US, and was able to come back in 2002. He has now lived in Jiquilillo almost 8 years, and on his Rancho he teaches children English for free, has an after school club, and takes in volunteers to work with him in the community. A lot of the money that he earns from the visitors to his ranch he spends to improve the health and education of the children. The same is true for Tina, and they are the 2 happiest people on this planet. People that I have met on this travel are certainly not people you run into every day, and it almost makes me ashamed to think about HOW MUCH we can do as individuals in this world if we snap out of our own selfpitty in the rich and comfortable corner of the world. And by doing so, we will improve our own lifes a lot. There is certainly no need for an organisation or other people to take an initiativ, there are enough people like KumiNicaragua is the poorest country in Central-America, and one of the poorest in the world but I find the people here very lovley and friendly. The women here are STRONG, I am not the only one who has noticed, and in Nates place I met Fabienne from France and William from Australia. We had a lot of good talks about culture, history, religion, and other fun subjects. William said that the women of Nicaragua are very, very strong, and at the same time very humble (what I noticed from Miraflor). In Australia the women are so proud, he told me, and he said that he has no idea why they are so proud. What do they have to be proud of, he asked. I have always felt that there is something missing, that I have never been told or thought when I see the female powers and qualities at work in theese women. I remember seeing the same in Asia in the women there; that glowing from within, they have this secret, and they know something. Something mysterious and powerful that I really, really want to know too. The thing that I know excists inside me, but never learned how to tap into. You can see it in their eyes, and often also in their face, and you feel it when you are with them. The soul of the people here is very, very strong and beautiful, and this is what makes people from the west fall in love, and not wanting to leave again. So many people have Nicaragua as their favourite country, and I met a different kind of travelers here than in Guatemala. For one, this country is flooding with German girls. I have a feeling that for every German man I meet like 6 German women. It seems to be an attractive country for Europeans. So they stay, and their joy is to interact with the people, and Nicaragua is so cheap you will not even believe it.

Several km. of dust road goes through the community with houses on both sides. At the end of the road you reach the mouth of the Reserva Natural Estero Padre Ramos that is the main attraction here, it takes about an hour to walk slowly. Busses are scarce, just 4 during the day (2 in the morning and 2 in the afternoon), so you might be able to take the bus one way, but not the other if you do not plan good. There are local resturants at the end of the road, and the mouth of the delta is a safer and nice place to swim. The Pacific Ocean itself is crashing in on the endless beach, and the currents and swells might be too forceful to swim comfortably in many places. You can also pay a visit to the crocodille project behind the school, talk to the locals, gride a horse and go kayaking with David, the best guide in the mangrooves. The fishdishes you get at the resturants are super delicious, and the fish is brought in by the local fishermen, that harvest from the sea without harming the environment. Unfortunatley the treat comes from the more developed and industrialized countries El Salvador and Honduras whom have already fished their coasts empty of fish and want to start fishing in Nica territory.

A walk on the beach during high tide made me have to wade some of the way. The waves were crashing forcefully in on the beach. There had been a typhon somewhere that made the swell very high while I was there. Several houses had to be evacuated because of the swell, it is weird that in a few days a lot of this was under wather during the nights, palm trees fell down and people left their houses 03:00 pm.

To spare the environment, Nate has installed theese dry eco-toilets. The instruction is; after makeing your DEPOSIT fill a bowl with the sawdust to cover it. Always put the lid down. Under is the common eating hall.