Nicaragua

As soon as we crossed the border we knew we were going to like Nicaragua. The taxi driver and his old, jovial companion were cracking jokes and giggling hysterically all the way to the ferry terminal. We were off to the magical lake island of Ometepe, the kind of place that should only exist in fairy tales. Millions of years ago, two volcanoes emerged from Lago Nicaragua and joined at the waist by lava flows. The larger of the two is still active and eerily continues to rumble on a daily basis. At the heart of the verdant jungle that now covers the slopes are the natural pools known as the 'Ojos Del Agua'. We spent the best part of a day wallowing in the crystal clear mineral waters while green parrots squawked overhead and Capuchin monkeys played in the trees. The surrounding lake waters were also a treat as we practised our jumping fish impressions in a hope to engage the curiosity of the approaching Pelicans. But we daren't venture too far from shore as Lago Nicaragua is unique in the world as being the only place where you will find fresh water Bull Sharks! Unfortunately, they are rarely seen today as they were slaughtered at the rate of 20,000 a year for ten years solely for their fins. On a more cheery note, it was here that I celebrated my 30th Birthday in fine fashion. Coincidentally, the locals were having a wild Rodeo festival on very same day so we joined in with tequila and silly dancing!

Deprived of the Caribbean in Costa Rica and Panamá, we were determined to make amends in Nicaragua. Neither of us had ever heard of the Corn Islands before, but we had heard rumours that an unspoilt tiny paradise of 700 people fringed with white sand beaches awaited on Little Corn Island. We were not disappointed. The english speaking descendants of Garifuna and pirates welcomed us to the island, where there are no cars, no roads and only occasional electricity. The rambling sandy paths were covered in free, ready to eat mangos! Rather than laze around, we decided to undertake our Advanced Open Water PADI course. The water was clear and warm and the reefs were filled with nurse sharks, turtles, colourful corals and schools of Blue Tangs. The night dive was exhilarating as we plunged into the dark depths and switched on our torches. Our instructor accidentally woke up a sleeping green 'ninja' turtle, who bolted straight at him (almost taking him out) and causing him to need a change of underwear!




Accommodations on the island fell into two categories- colourful beach shacks and hobbit houses straight from The Shire. For $15 a night we got the full Bilbo Baggins experience! We fell in love with the quirky 'Ensuenos', a rustic eco hideaway that happened to have resident French and Italian chefs hiding from the outside world. They masterfully introduced us to the 'Rundown', a delicious local speciality consisting of smoked fish, shark and spiny lobster slowly cooked on an open fire on the beach in a rich coconut sauce. It was memorable cracking open a lobster claws while watching the sun go down, but in Leon´s edible excitement he ate the shark skin too!!!




The city of León was a fascinating Latin American version of Belfast. At the heart of the Sandinista uprising, the city is decorated with murals glorifying the revolutionary struggle against the former (U.S. backed) Somoza regime. The mural depicted above shows the feeling against Uncle Sam amongst some of the local community! León also has the largest Cathedral in Central America, but this was nowhere near as exciting as the discovery of the 'Panaderia El Leoncito'. The delicious chocloate donuts did full justice to a most excellent name! To escape the heat we stayed in an appropriately named colonial hostel called 'Lazybones', complete with pool, hammocks and ice cold beer.

Wow! Nicaragua turned out to be one of our favourite countries! Warm friendly people, oozing culture, gorgeous scenery and totally off the radar. We had finally found the 'REAL' Central America! And as you can see from the picture below it was a fantastic place to spend my 30th Birthday too...



Next stop, Honduras and the Bay Islands...

Panama and Costa Rica

Touchdown Central America! We were greeted by friendly immigration officers in Panamá City after flying over the Darién Gap and were instantly impressed with how clean and modern everything looked. Panamá has been described as the 'Dubai of the Americas' and we could soon see why when we weaved though massive sky scrapers and countless cranes on our way to the hotel. By the end of the first day we were suffering from culture shock. Malls, casinos and North American fast food chains were everywhere. We contemplated our central american travel plans over a McDonalds and a Cinabon and then hit the casinos at night to try our luck. Fortune smiled kindly upon us and we came out winners, doubling our money!

No trip to Panamá is complete without a visit to the Panamá canal, so we got burnt waiting three hours in the hot sun for a large Japanese car carrier to pass through. The fee the ship paid for passing through the canal was USD 180,000, but that's 10 times cheaper than it costs in fuel to go all the way down and around Patagonia!




We had planned to go to Bocas del Toro, a relaxing hippie retreat on the Caribbean coast of Panamá. Unfortunately, the Banana plantation workers were going bananas over their pay and conditions, wielding machetes, blocking roads and throwing anything they could get their hands on at the police. We were compelled to continue north to Costa Rica and stick to the Pacific coast. Dominical was our first port of call and here we found a great little surfer town with a hilarious bar called 'Thrusters'! We watched the world cup final here and a free shot was offered for every goal. Obviously we were disappointed with the single goal Spanish victory!

Embracing the main purpose for Domincal's existence, we grabbed a surfboard and paddled out to the breaks. A surge of adrenaline and joy overwhelmed me when I caught my first wave, from that point on I was hooked. Unfortunately, Lydia's enjoyment was cut short by a bad fall which caused her foot to resemble an eggplant and kept her bedbound for the next couple of days.




16 years ago Lydia visited Costa Rica with her Mum and Sister. Keen to see how things had changed we stayed in the exact same hotel they had stayed in all those years ago, 'El Plinio' on the road to Manuel Antonio (Costa Rica's most popular nature park). The hotel was as lovely as she remembered it but the surrounding villages had changed dramatically. It can be summed up by saying that there is now a gentleman´s club five minutes from the park gates amidst a slew of condos, fancy homes and restaraunts.

The Park itself was rich in wildlife despite the plague of tourists, strippers and the sound of unstoppable construction. During our visit we saw Capuchin, Howler and Squirrel monkeys, sloths, iguanas, coatis, agoutis and extremely entertaining hermit crabs. After working up an appetite we dined at perhaps one of the most unusual restaurants of our trip. 'El Avion' was created from the carcass of and old American military transport plane, which was used by the U.S. in Costa Rica to aid in the Contra affair with Nicaragua. However, when the Iran-Contra affair broke the plane was left unused and remained in Costa Rica's capital, San Jose, until finally being purchased for USD 2,000 by an enterprising restauranteur. It makes a very atmospheric backdrop for a sunset dinner!





Our final stop in Costa Rica was in the commercial town of Jaco. It left a bit of a sour taste in the mouth as the town represented everything that is wrong with Western influence. Prostitutes preyed on the fat wallets of desperate old and young North Americans on vacation, while drug dealers fuelled the fire with their menu of narcotics. We did enjoy a very tasty Mahi Mahi burrito, however, which filled our bellies for the onwards march to Nicaragua....

In summary, Panamá and Costa Rica made us realise that we were getting closer to North America all the time. We hoped that the droves of retirees and expats had not afflicted the entire Isthmus and that we would more authentic countries further north.

The search for the 'REAL' Central America continues...