Granada, Nicaragua - UPDATED with photos
Anna´s entry
What a refreshing city after Leon and Ocotal... I feel a lot better being here. Architecture, colors, people, attitude seem more pleasant here. We are staying in the historical center of the city, at a very colorful hostel, where all walls, furniture, doors have been painted by guests - amature artists - who stayed here. You´ll see lots of genres here - from realism to cubism, animation, murals, avantgarde, etc.
We also visited a picturesque Laguna de Apoyo. This is a lake formed in the extinct volcano. Absolutely gorgeous! We kayaked there, swam, had a great time. However, a couple of days later, Rob showed signs of the severe allergy on his arms and legs - it looked like a bad chemical burn with blisters even though he did not have any exposure of the kind. We visited a local doctor, and he insisted that this is an allergic reaction that took a strong form, and that he has seen other ´´gringos´´ with a similar condition. We were also told it could have been something in the water of the volcanic lake that may have caused this issue. It looks a lot worse then it feels, however, the doctor insisted Rob would have two injections per day, plus pain medicine, antiallergy, etc. We both feel that this is WAY TO MUCH medicine, but doctor insists this is necessary. Also, the doctor speaks very little English, so we have to rely on Spanish to communicate, and hope he knows what he is doing. All part of the experience... Rob is feeling a lot better now, but per doctors instruction we are not allowed to climb any volcanoes for a while. Too bad, we were planning to climb Volcano Masaya this week, but obviously this is not going to happen.
After Granada, we are planning to head out to Isla de Ometepe, and then to Juan del Sur - close to the border with Costa Rica. After that, down to Costa Rica. We are trying to arrange a home stay there - have been missing a more authentic home environment, and hoping we´d be able to do it some time in next couple of weeks.
Granada, Nicaragua links-
http://bahiamorgan.com/images/hires/Calles_de_Granada.jpg
http://www.nicatour.net/foto/Granada.jpg
http://www.danwall.net/Images/pics/travel/Oct2003/Images/Granada%20Nicaragua%20Park.jpg
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/newsletter/images2003/2003-02-01_Ratay-Granada.jpgLake Apoyo, crater lake of the extinct volcano -
http://shelley.dingeeadvertising.com/N_five.jpghttp://www.norome.com/images/aLakeApoyo2.jpghttp://www.norome.com/images/lake.jpg
Leon and Ocotal, Nicaragua
Anna´s entry
Did not like Leon at all... It is possible because I was sick at the time we arrived there, and noise and pollution were the last straw... Prior to arrival to Leon, we stopped at the Nicaraguan border town of Ocotal - boy, what a change after Honduras... Anyway, I bought a few local baked "things" from a local stall, and I suspect that la salada had some unpurified water in it -and I got really sick. A few days after that were not fun at all, I had to make numerous trips to el bano, had continuous nausea, weakness all over the body, carrying even a small day pack was a challenge, as well as walking without a break for more then a few minutes. Anyway, that all did not contribute much to my impression about the city of Leon. I even began questioning what the hack I am doing here in Nicaragua - poor Rob had to deal with all of it, and was very patient and caring - so lucky traveling with him!
I knew what to expect from the 2nd poorest in Western hemisphere country, however, Leon just did not feel right for me, and I think it is definitely over-rated in the books. It has a very interesting history, however, the city itself is in a very sad state, locals don´t seem to care though. I completely understand that poverty makes it harder to take care of the heritage, but come on - why do you need to throw another piece of plastic garbage outside the bus window... Also, some manifestations of cultural attitude caused by a poor economic state began getting to me as well. Some people sat down in park with us and started a nice conversation, as as soon as we hoped it was a sincere attempt just to chat with us and learn more, we were hit for $$ donation. Why does it have to be this way. I completely understand that poverty and hopelessness could be the main factors, but at the same type I myself grew up in a poor country and my family among others had to struggle every bit to survive, however, hitting anyone for money never even occurred to us. When we communicated with strangers, it was from the bottom of our hearts, and we appreciated every opportunity to learn something new, never to take advantage of anyone. I seem to have a little different perspective of this compared to other travelers - since I lived in both worlds - Russia and the US - and understand two such different mentalities... I do hope however, that more positive cultural realization is going to be discovered further on the way... Anyway, this is all I am going to say about the city of Leon...
Synopsis Guatemala-Honduras
Anna´s entry
DESTINATIONS VISITED - Guatemala - Guatemala City, Antigua --- Honduras - Copan Ruinas, La Ceiba, Roatan Island, Tegucigalpa.
BEST NEW ADVENTURE - scuba diving, Roatan Island, Honduras. Absolutely unforgettable experience!
MOST IMPORTANT NEW EXPEREINCE- studying Spanish in Antigua, Guatemala. Ability to speak the language brought a new opportunity for cultural learning.
NEW CULTURAL DISCOVERY- Mayan ruins in Copan, Honduras.
MOST MEMORABLE EXPERIENCE - visiting nursing home in Guatemala City.
LEAST FAVOURITE DISCOVERY - seeing lots of very young children - as young as 6 years old - having to work or beg for money, or both, instead of attending a school. We learnt that at least 50% of population in Guatemala are unable to read or write, in addition there is no compulsory education for kids, and often families take advantage of child labor.
La Ceiba and Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Anna´s Entry
We spent only two days in La Ceiba after returning back from the Roatan Island. We decided to buy some malaria medication- which was only $1 USD for 5 weeks of medication. In the US similar prescription would be A LOT more, and you will have to pay at least $20 just for a doctor to write you one. From La Ceiba we took a bus directly to Tegucigalpa - the capitol if Hoduras. It was quite an experience. Locals call it ¨Tegus¨, but Rob gave it a new name - Goosi. The city is divided by a river into two parts. The east side is the center Tegus - or Goosi - with more affluent districts. The west side is called Comayguela, and since it is hard to remember and pronounce, Rob called is Chu-manga. The Chu-manga part is a lot poorer and dirtier. Oh boy, what a contrast it was between the Goosi and Chu-manga! The latter was basically one LARGE sprawl of gritty market stalls that went for blocks, and it seemed like for miles. You can find anything from a dead chicken to an expensive leather purse, you name it. Rob seemed fascinated by the whole cultural aspect of the Chu-manga thing, and I was simply over-whelmed. I must say however, that we both found Honduran people to be genuinely helpful - compared to Mexico, Guatemala, or even Nicaragua. Frequently we had Hoduran strangers volunteer to help us wirht directions or questions when they saw us lost or confused. If they would see us struggle with something, they would quickly approach us and help out. Once, one Honduran babushka had to run to catch us to make sure she could explain the directions to us. It was obvious that Honduran helpfulness was very sincere, and we appreciated it a lot. Later on, in our travels we would make a lot of references to¨Honduran friendliness¨ vs the-other type as you would read in my blog dedicated to Leon, Nicaragua.
NOTE - our own photos will be posted at a later time, for now internet links for Tegucigalpa info and photos -
http://www.donquijote.org/destinations/images/Honduras-map.jpghttp://www.greenradish.com/honduras/016_downtown_tegucigalpa.jpghttp://www.guiadelmundo.com/fotos/medium/c/catedrax.jpg
SPECIAL ENTRY
Anna’s Entry
Today is January 11th, and it is the sixth year death anniversary of my mom Galina. This entry is dedicated to her.
Galina passed away six years ago after a battle with breast cancer. It was unexpected for all of us. My mom was a beautiful individual who taught me to believe in myself, and never give up, but above all she promoted kindness, compassion, and forgiveness. For those who are familiar with Dostoevsky, she was an image of the woman he wrote about. She appreciated and looked forward to every day- and was grateful for a beautiful sunrise, good conversation, or just a walk in a park. Under a humble demeanor there was a lot of courage and strength. She loved to laugh and did not judge. She believed that kindness could change the world. Six years later I finally start understanding her aspirations, and for that I’m eternally grateful. Thank you.
Roatan Island, Honduras - UPDATED with photos
Anna´s entry
Today is December 31st 2005, the New Year Eve. We finished up our 2005 year by taking a dive to the coral reef... We have been on the Roatan Island for 2 weeks now.
Roatan Island is about 50 km off the coast of Honduras. The island is surrounded by over 100 km of living coral reef, and it is THE place to scuba dive and snorkel. Our main purpose going there was to get our certification for open water scuba diving. We signed up for training with a local dive shop run by a British couple who have been diving themselves for 30 years - they moved here from Great Britain about 7 years ago, and stayed on the island permanently. Our scuba training has a few set-backs. The first week, the island was hit by a puring rain - reminiscence of the passing-by tropical storm, and the water visibility was nonexistent. Then, during the 2nd week, in the middle of my training, we all got concerned about me diving with my former retianl detachment eye condition, and it took a few days to complete the research and get the doctor permission for submersion at 60 feet. Then, once I was back on track, Rob picked up a horrible flu bug, and some people even were wondering if that could have been malaria... Finally, both Rob and I ere back in training, and finalized all our tests, and training dives. We got certified right before the New Year!
Coral reef is beautiful here! A lot better than in Belize - it seems less damaged, and a water clarity is up to 30 meters - 90 feet. The colors of the underwater corral are absolutely incredible - purple, burgundy, green, lilac, etc. We have taken 5 dives this week, and saw eagle ray, sea turtles - so cute! - green moray eel, and of course an abundance of various tropical fish and gorgeous reef landscape. It makes such a difference to be underwater - fish don{t seem to be afraid of you, accepting you as one of their own, they swim with you for a long time and let you observe their sea world. Scuba diving turned out to be such a wonderful rewarding experience, even though in my first day of training I was a little apprehensive - but this is a story for another day.
I feel a little sad leaving the island... The natural beauty of the island is amazing - turquoise blue waters, fine white sand, palm trees, exotic tropical plants, sail boats on the horizon - all of that combined with a laid back pace makes it so peaceful here... But it{s time to move on. We are heading back to mainland on Monday January 2nd. We would like to make it to Nicaragua by early next week. But before we reach the border, we will plan on making a stop in La Ceiba and Tegucigalpa - the capitol of Honduras. We will need to get adjusted back to the city pace - after 2 weeks on the island, we start forgetting what the REAL world is like...
Other links for Roatan -
http://www.vsamp.com/photos/CentralAmerica/CentralAmerica-Images/10.jpghttp://static.flickr.com/4/4593730_4c92b9f094_m.jpghttp://www.audubon.org/market/no/trips/Belize_Guatemala_Honduras/images/Roatan_beach.jpghttp://www.hondurascoco.com/mes%20photos/TOFS%20DOM/hogfish.jpghttp://www.roatanislandvacationrentals.com/images/diver.jpghttp://coralsphere.com/roatan1.jpghttp://ht-mp.com/roatanisland/spectacularfish.jpghttp://www.andersontravel.com/jpgs/roatan_island_honduras.jpg
Copan Ruinas, Honduras - UPDATED with photos
Anna´s entry
I really enjoyed Copan! It is a very cute village located close to the famous Mayan Ruins. Copan has a nice architecture and a very laid back attitude. The nature around Copan is stunning - rolling green valleys, streams, mountains, etc. It totally makes sense why Mayan leaders selected this place for establishing the settlement here centuries ago. The first day we spent in the ton itself - we got a nice deal for a hotel at $8 a night. On the way from Antigua, Guatemala we were practising our Spanish skills with a van driver, which he liked, and we used his referral to get the special discount at the hotel. Also, on the way to Copan we met a nice guy from Great Britain, and we exchanged our travel stories. At night Rob and I went for some delicious tacos at a street stall, and watched a local open air concert in a park. Copan was very pretty at night, the square and houses all lit up with lights... The second day, Rob and I headed out to the ruins. Designated by UNESCO asa world heritage site, the Copan archaeological site is an excellent evidence of the Mayan civilization dating back to AD 426. Until recently, the collapse of the civilization at Copan has been a mystery. Now, archaeologists are starting o understand what happened. The population growth at unprecedented rate, and exhaustion of agricultural resources are two main reasons. Eventually, the royal city of Copan was reclaimed by the jungle. The ruins are stunning and depict in detail the history of the royal family, customs, believes, etc. When we were walking around the altars, acropolis, stairs with hieroglyphs, and squares with sculptured serpent heads, glyphs, and sacrificial vaults, it felt as if we ourselves went back 15 centuries ago!
Other Copan links -
http://www.hondurastouristoptions.com/images/Copan%20Ruinas%201_JPG.jpghttp://www.stanford.edu/~tsaig/Photos/Honduras016.jpghttp://www.travelsongs.com/albums/copanruinas/IMG_0056.jpghttp://www.stanford.edu/~tsaig/Photos/Honduras017.jpghttp://www.lucidelmondo.net/Honduras/0437---Copan-Ruinas.jpghttp://www.honduras-travel.de/images/steelecopan.jpghttp://www.arrecifetours.com/images/guaras%20parque%20de%20copan%20ruinas%20honduras.jpg
