If the tour around Guatemala was whistle-stop, then the next 9 days were express. We were more or less in perpetual motion after leaving Livingston visiting four countries in nine days (Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica) having previously managed four in nine and a half months. We left Livingston for an epic overland journey involving 5 different modes of transport (boat, minibus, random Honduran chap's car, taxi and, mercifully, luxurious air conditioned bus) and made it to the Honduran capital Tegulcigalpa that evening understandably exhausted. But the next morning it was the road again and another bus, first into Nicaragua and the capital Managua and then on to our next port of call the colonial city of Granada.
It was a blessing to call somewhere home for a few days, but we were less than in love with Granada. It had something of the feel of Antigua, and was not without its charm, but was inundated with tour groups and American high school students pushing up prices and creating a resort type vibe. The town served us well enough though, enabling us to do the usual towny stuff - laundry, internet, etc - and for me to put the finishing touches to the video we had made for Andrew's 30th birthday (see here). We also sampled the local delicacy, vigoron, a combination of steamed yucca, pork scratchings and pickled cabbage served on a banana leaf - odd but surprisingly palatable.
Next it was another of the things that I'd been eagerly looking forward to in Central America. Whilst hiking the Appalachian Trail, I met a chap called Greenlite who had do
ne some traveling in Nicaragua and he was the first person to tell me about Ometepe, a place that immediately sparked my imagination. Ever since I have been looking forward to getting there and seeing it for myself. Ometepe is an island in the enormous Lake Nicaragua formed from two volcanoes that, due to eruptions over the years, have emerged from the lake and joined together to form one island. The larger of the two, Conception, is regularly seen with smoke billowing from its crater. We got our first glimpse of the island on the ferry from the mainland (see photo) and it was like something from a fairy tale, two huge peaks rising from the centre of the lake.Our plan for our three nights there were to simply relax by the lake and breathe in the atmosphere. Having spent a day getting our bearings (and making good use of the many hammocks), we then ventured further afield for a short hike through a nature reserve where we saw spider monkeys swinging and sleeping in the trees. From then on however it was just relaxing all the way. There was definitely something about Ometepe - it had just enough tourist services to make life comfortable (somewhere to sleep, somewhere to eat) but still maintained its rural spirit (cows, pigs and horses wandering around on the beach). Put this alongside the cool breezy climate and the incredible setting and you have just about the perfect place to relax.
From here we had another epic journey first to the Nicaragua - Costa Rica border (which is a big, dusty, traffic filled and very confusing place) and then onwards into the heart of Costa Rica. The 12+ hour journey concluded in the touristy (and slightly grubby) beach resort of Puntarenas where we are currently considering whether to head to the beach or to the rain forest. Decisions, decisions.
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