Nicaragua Trip

Nicaragua (March 15-22)

Day 1: Lots of travel, got up at 2am, border crossing at 8am, arrived at the ferry at noon, took an insane roller coaster ride of a ferry across Lake Nicaragua to Ometepe Island, napped, kayaked to a couple of islands with white-faced and spider monkeys, watched the sunset. Kayaking was definitely the highlight of my day, I went by myself and I could actually hear myself think! I really enjoy how close our semester is, but it is always a welcome opportunity to get some peace and quiet. I paddled up and down the shore for about an hour, with the Monkey Islands being the farthest point away. They had several models of kayaks for rent but I snagged a sea kayak. Despite the tropical oasis I was paddling in, it brought me back to the crisp, ominous waters of Prince William Sound. I would love the opportunity to go sea kayaking on a long trip again.

Day 2: Visited Hacienda Magdalena, an organic coffee coop. WOW, it is ridiculous how hot this country is. Reminiscent of the sweaty-at-7am days in the Yucatan last summer. Just have to remind myself that I would definitely prefer very hot and dry than wet and still pretty hot but with mosquitoes. Over all this day was great. At the coffee farm, we had a discussion on biomass and carbon sequestration—coffee plantations are apparently particularly good carbon sinks. After that we hiked around and visited petroglyphs carved by peoples related to the ancient Mayans. In the afternoon we visited a watering hole called “Ojo de Agua” or Eye of Water. Fun and relaxing.

Day 3: We had about 5 hours of class today, focusing mostly on Tropical Ecology topics. YAY! We discussed Lake Ecology, Sustainable Development in the San Juan River, and Ecology of Emerging Diseases. I very much enjoyed our mini-epidemiology lecture. I would really love to take an epidemiology class this fall, because I have been thinking now for a while that it would be a good option for grad school. However a class focused solely on the subject would more solidifying. In the afternoon we had a very steep hike in the heat of the day to a beautiful 80m waterfall. This was one of my favorite hikes. I love a good challenge when climbing a  mountain (or in this case, Maderas Volcano).

Day 4: Travel day! Off to Granada. Back on the ferry-much calmer this time. Got to explore the city in the afternoon with friends. A lot of the buildings are renovated structures from the time of the Spaniards, so the architecture from that era is preserved all over Granada, including the church, peoples homes, and the governmental buildings. I enjoyed trying to distinguish between Spanish and non-Spanish influences.

Day 5: Today we went to the capital city, Managua, to visit the President’s House (Ortega doesn’t actually live there), the old burned Cathedral, and the National Palace. What a stark contrast to Europe! The upkeep of these buildings is minimal and there are no lavish decorations, elaborate architectural designs, or robust collections of artifacts. When visiting this area, it is more obvious that Nicaragua is indeed the 2^nd poorest country in all the Americas. Ridden by internal political dispute and major natural disasters in the late 1900s, it is evident that this country’s progress was halted dramatically and never resumed.

Day 6: Today was AWESOME. We went to Mombacho Volcano for a hike. We drove to the bottom of the volcano and took an old army unit mega-truck that could fit all 34 (plus teachers) of us in the back. We were told that the truck had been donated in the Cold War to Nicaragua by either Russia or East Germany because Nicaragua has had a long standing affiliation to communist and socialist ideals. We reached the biological station near the top of the volcano and set off in small groups to summit the different craters. It was nice being in a small group, conveniently with most of my friends, and my favorite teacher! I particularly liked this hike because the steep altitudinal gradient of the slopes along with the wind, created very short transitions between the several ecosystems on this mountain top: elfin forest, dry tropical forest, and cloud forest. On our hike we got to see fumaroles, which are holes in the ground that spew hot steam. Additionally, at the top of our hike we could see Ometepe Island with its two volcanoes, Granada, and Masaya Volcano (for tomorrows hike). What an amazing view. This hike was excellent.

Day 7: Today we visited the craft market in Masaya and everyone went a little tourist crazy. People bought hammocks and backpacks and scarves and shoes and paintings and jewelry and all sorts of souvenir items. It was actually pretty amusing to watch everyone so stressed out over all of the options and apparent need to spend like madmen. I got myself a cute woven belt and a few wooden plates for when I make dinner with Anj or Mark at school. In the afternoon we went to Masaya Volcano. Let me just say that if this volcano were in Costa Rica or America, the park would probably be permanently closed. We got to hike up to the top and look into the ACTIVE VOLCANO. Which was super awesome, when I could breathe. The sulfuric gases were so strong, literally everyone in the group immediately developed a cough. It was an amazing view to look into the crater. I couldn’t see a boiling pot of lava, but it definitely looked like what I imagined a volcano to look like (pics up soon on Facebook). Then, we hiked to the other, inactive crater. This hike was a little path circling the rim of the crater (sounds more dangerous that is actually is, don’t worry). We only did a portion of this hike due to time constraints, but this was an amazing way to finish the trip. We could look back and see Mombacho Volcano, which we hiked yesterday, and we could see into this regrown crater. We all felt like we were in Lord of the Rings or something. It was truly awesome. I don’t think my photographs will do it justice, but I will put them up anyways.

Day 8: Back home, finally. Just in time, I was starting to miss being at the center. Nicaragua was fun, but I like the culture of Costa Rica better. Fewer beggars, more friendly people, better kept facilities and infrastructure. I’m sure I will feel the exact same way about CR when its’ time to go home home. But for now I’m having a ball.