Only Fools and Horses

OK, first of all apologies as my blog entries are currently a little behind schedule! Whilst you have been reading about my escapades in Costa Rica, I have actually crossed the border into Nicaragua and been here almost two weeks...


No excuse for lack of blogging, I've just been a little busy sight seeing and generally travelling : D


Crossing the border into Nicaragua was relatively straightforward with the exception of the vast truck stop (think hundreds of American style lorries parked randomly everywhere) that I had to trudge my way through (in the mud and with no sign posts) from the Costa Rican border over to the Nicaraguan border. Bizarre. 


Once in Nicaragua I caught a collectivo (clapped out taxi sharing with local Nicas) to the nearest main town of Rivas. The journey was entertaining, not least because as per usual we were going at about 100 miles hour, but also because one of the locals I was sharing the taxi with was transporting a grass strimmer - it precariously hanging out of the taxi boot way too close to my backpack for my liking. 


Once in Rivas I hopped on a tug boat (I want to call it a ferry but it really wasn't) and sailed across Lake Nicaragua to the Island of Ometepe. 

My ride across Lake Nicaragua

What is this Island I hear you say? Well its famous for being formed by two volcanoes - one of which, Concepción, is still live - and is the largest volcanic island inside a fresh water lake in the world. 


Having visited Pucón in Chile and climbed the volcano there I didn't feel the urge to climb another live one. Instead I was happy to admire the view from the island. Signs reminding us that we were staying on an active volcano were also visible every where we went - some amusingly amended to spell slightly ruder words...

Concepción

Sign that hasn't been tampered with...

...Sign that has had Ruta (route) amended to Puta (bitch) - you have to laugh

My first sighting of Concepción was from the Ojo de Agua (the eye of the water in Spanish) which is a natural spring swimming hole where you can swim and chillax. I had intended on catching the local bus there but after waiting what seemed like an eternity, I gladly accepted the offer of a ride with a collectivo. I must add here that I never do this on my own and I was in fact with other travellers. OK safety speech over. 


As far as natural springs go the Ojo de Agua was huge and surprisingly cool - when I think of natural springs I normally think hot water! However given the hot weather, the coolness of the water was in fact a blessing. 

Welcome!

The natural spring pool...

...and again but from a different angle

After spending a few hours lazing in the water and almost shrivelling up like a prune I decided to grab a bite to eat before going home. I was, once again, planning on getting the local bus but as we were leaving we managed to hitch another ride with a local pick up truck. It turned out we weren't the only ones as there were already two other locals sat at the back. I must say, whizzing along the road with the wind whipping my hair, face and pretty much every part of my body, was rather exhilarating. It even prompted a few shouts of "Whoop" ...mostly from the American I was travelling with - I would say I responded with a very British "Hooray" but that would make me sound like a character from an Enid Blyton novel. So I just shrieked in glee through a mouthful of my hair instead. : D

Windswept

The next day I hired a bike and cycled to Punta Jesus Maria which is a narrow spit of land that juts out into Lake Nicaragua. It is so called as when you watch someone walk along it they appear to be walking on water as Mr JC once did. I dutifully put it to the test and I can honestly say that the name rings true. I did look Biblical (almost) that afternoon. 

Walking (almost) on water

The pic I was taking when I was picture in the previous photo!

On the way back to the hostel (in between getting a branch stuck in the spokes of my wheel) I spotted a monkey that was being kept as a pet by some locals. I cant say I was that impressed (keeping wild animals caged or chained up isn't something I condone) but he seemed surprisingly upbeat so I managed to capture his antics on film. 

Marcel II playing with the dog and chicken

My final day on the Island of Omatepe was spent horse riding. Whilst this wasn't the first time I have ridden a horse (I've been riding three times during this trip) to the guide I still managed to give off the air that I was a rookie. I was therefore given the most lethargic horse. I didn't mind initially as to be honest wild stallions don't exactly fill me with comfort, but this horse was so horizontal energy wise that we weren't even moving. The guide promptly spotted this and made me switch to a more energetic but well behaved horse. 

Me and my trusty steed

The horse ride (sans helmets to keep with the Latin American tradition of not caring whether you fall off and get a fractured skull) took us half way up Concepción volcano. The ride there was a mixture of muddy paths mixed in with a few volcanic rocks strewn all over the place and then finally a sprinkling (literally) of Howler Monkeys peeing on me. I thought initially it had started to rain but then once I heard chattering and spotted the cheeky monkeys laughing it became clear that we were the target of their humour. Nice. 

Squint and you´ll see cheeky monkeys

Volcanic rocks!

After riding for almost an hour we reached a point where it became almost impossible to go any further on horseback due to the gradient of the hill and the amount of trees. I therefore dismounted, tied my horse to the trees and continued the rest of the journey on foot. I must have walked for a further forty minutes before our guide we finally reached the lookout point which was the reason for our hike. The view was impressive but initially I didn't think it was worth all the riding and trekking we had done - my judgement was slightly skewed as I had foolishly not eaten any lunch prior to leaving which had left me hangry (hungry and angry)...

View from the volcano

Concepción volcano - looks just like a hill!

My descent was slightly delayed due to one of the Americans in the group losing their sunglasses and our guide having to spent fifteen minutes looking for them. This meant that by the time we reached the horses the sun had started to go down. 


I don't think I can relay how surreal and exhilarating it was to be galloping (during my limited horse riding experience I have never galloped) down a dirt track in the pitch black relying on your horse to guide the way and not trip up on any of the loose volcanic rocks! Fire flies were the only things I could see which I think made the experience even more surreal. 


My body however did not share the same glee as when we got back to the hostel I had to be assisted off the horse. The next day turned out to be even worse I literally couldn't even move - holding onto the saddle for dear life whilst galloping had left me broken. Id also got a rein burn on my index finger which just looked gross. 


I mustn't grumble though as I really enjoyed it and successfully gallopped without falling off! I even managed to do that thing where as a rider you rise up and down every other beat of the horse. I think its called posting but Im not sure so all you equestrians out there will have to confirm?! Either way I was a happy filly : D