On a 4 day bike ride in Nicaragua
I explored an island volcano and biked to the Pacific.
I had an 8 day holiday in
Nicaragua and Costa Rica biking through the two countries. The holiday was organised
by Exodus. There were 9 of us biking (age range 50-72). We had an excellent
guide Guilermo Sanchez who was very keen for us to have a memorable central
American experience. The route was well thought out and we ate at small cafes
for lunch. I had an extra day in Granada before the biking started.
Granada is a beautiful old
colonial town with houses arranged around central courtyards. There is a
central plaza and a huge cathedral, with large modern, unattractive frescoes.
The old convent was more atmospheric. The convent museum had an extensive collection
about the many local Catholic traditions, and also pieces of the pre columbian
rock carvings and the local primitivist art. We explored the city and walked
down to lake Nicaragua. We lunched in a cafe and explored shops, including leather
shops with high quality work. We had fresh fish supper in the Garden cafe with
a lovely tree filled courtyard.
We drove up to a tourist viewpoint, Mirador Catarina with fine
views over the lake. The many shops sold colourful tourist tat, including pottery
hens and hammocks. At night the Masaya volcano mouth has red larva glowing and
smoke rising, it felt v alive with bats swooping around.
We spent a night on the isla Ometepe with its two beautiful
volcanoes rising above the lake and covered in cloud. The ferry from San Jorg to
the island was crowded with people and tourists and I watched Nicaraguan
daytime TV. We had a hot strenuous post midday ride across the island up 5 steep
slopes with a lovely fruit stop at the top of the hill, big chunks of pineapple
and water melon to nibble. We descended
to Ojo de Agua resort to a fabulous outdoor swimming pool surrounded by trees
and with large rocks on the bottom. I got a lift to the top of the hill and then
biked down to our hotel, a lakeside resort with palm trees around the huts. I
enjoyed the sunset with Geoffrey and Geena followed by an excellent supper of
grilled fish and jalapeño sauce.
I started the day with yoga on a stone platform overlooking the
lake, the most beautiful setting for stretching and thinking. We biked across
the island to the ferry port and I enjoyed seeing the countryside. I enjoyed the ferry trip back to San Jorge. From
the top deck and appreciated the islands double volcanoes much better, though
there was again mist on both of them. A brief rain squall drove me inside for
the last 10 mins of the crossing. We had a lovely afternoon ride across rolling
countryside. Many homes had pigs and chickens and someone resting on the verandah. We saw a bike being carried on a horse. We
climbed up and had a fruit stop at the top, We had a beautiful descent to San
Juan del sur. We biked across a river and onto the beach just in time for
sunset. It was a wonderful way to end the day and we had a beer there. We had
supper in a beach hotel I savoured octopus with garlic sauce. I walked round
the town quickly, I was tired after our exertions.
People are quite poor and still doing some harvesting by hand. The animals are quite thin, there are crops
of sugar canes. Nicaragua is visibly poor and the gdp (5.755) is much lower than Costa Rica gdp (48.2). Ortega has just won his third consecutive
term of office. Democracy is not as developed here as it is in Costa Rica where
they have enjoyed uninterrupted democracy since 1948.
Nicaragua was wonderful to explore by bike. The volcanoes were unforgettable. It was interesting to then be in Costa Rica
which has a much stronger democracy and social systems with free health care
for all citizens.
Feb 2018
No comments:
Post a Comment