A long journey to Granada
Trip Start
Aug 21, 2008
1
12
59
Trip End
Ongoing
Granada,
Nicaragua
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
About a dozen or so mosquito bites on each appendage later, Mark and I have made it to Granada, Nicaragua - a small colonial town just an hour south of the capital Managua.
Getting here was rather a long journey. We left Utila on the 6:20am ferry, having grabbed some chocolate cake for breakfast - thatīs all they had readily available at the restaurant so early in the morning. On the ferry, we ran into one of Markīs travel acquaintances, Andrew, who was also headed to Nicaragua. So we decided to stick together - safety in numbers.
The ferry dropped us off in La Ceiba, where we then took a cab to the bus terminal, which is basically some rundown buildings just pushed together enclosed by a circular driveway. The bus ticket guy was not a happy camper... especially after Mark and Andrew tried to get the discounted bus ticket, having misinterpreted the price sign. They thought īThird Ageīmeant 3rd class, when in fact, it meant that the price was for Senior Citizens. Ha! Anyway, we watched the last half of the Man Utd v Chelsea game (1-1) and boarded a pretty decent bus to Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras.
The bus trip was long... 8 hours! On of the few rest stops we made, we all had to get off the bus. So we decided to walk into the restaurant to get some food. As I walked in, I realized Mark wasnīt with me. I turned around and saw that he was caught talking to the bus driver by the bus door. I waited for a bit, then got annoyed as to what the hold-up was, especially since he had our money. So I walked over to learn that Mark had been stopped by security, because he wasnīt allowed into the restaurant without a t-shirt and pants. Having been so hot on the bus, Mark was shirtless (I know, not the best look...) with shorts. So he tried to get his clothes from the bus, but apparently, for security reasons, no one is allowed back on until itīs time to re-board. Caught in a conundrum, he urged the driver to let him on, at which point the security guard flashed his gun! Ummm... WTF?!?! Finally, one of the bus attendants took pity, got on the bus and got Mark his clothes. Apparently Honduras is slightly more reserved and doesnīt like the baring of flesh despite another woman walking into the restaurant with her breasts almost falling out of her top!
Anyway, we arrived in Tegucigalpa around 5pm. There is absolutely nothing redeeming about this city... definitely the armpit of Honduras. But since there was no more service to Nicaragua for the day, we made our way to the city center, passing their football/soccer stadium (Honduras was apparently playing Costa Rica as we went by), and reached Hotel Iberia, the most basic of all hostels. We grabbed a quick bite and went off to bed. Itīs amazing how sitting on your butt traveling for 12 hours can make you so tired!
Before the crack of dawn (we woke up only by luck - alarm didnīt go off), Mark and I scrambled to catch the 6am bus to Managua, Nicaragua. We were pleasantly surprised to find the bus air-conditioned... especially for Mark, whoīs been traveling most of his trip on chicken buses, which are basically school buses converted to public transport. AND, hi-fives were to be had when the driver stopped the bus after an hour and passed out breakfast - what a treat! Breakfast consisted of rice, beans, plantains, eggs, cheese and tortillas. I knew rice and tortillas were a staple going into this trip... but man! They eat them religiously around here! It kind of makes your wonder if this diet contributes to their more īrotundī figures.
At the Honduras/Nicaragua border, the bus driver made all of us get out of the bus and started driving off, leaving Mark and I a bit bewildered and confused, but we followed the other passengers until we reached the immigration/customs office. There were small children everywhere asking for money, food, anything... so sad. Soon we got back on the bus and crossed the border to Nicaragua and arrived in Managua at 12:30pm - 6.5 hours later.
Using the Lonely Planet (LP) as our guide, we thought we could make a quick afternoon trip to Laguna Apoyeque, which is a lake formed inside a crater with small alligators. According to the LP, itīs just a 40 min trek up to the crater lake. Anyway, it was from this point on that we realized that the LP is not always correct. It told us we could take a local bus (one of the chicken buses Mark was familiar with) to our destination. But after getting on the bus going the wrong way and correcting ourselves, we learned from one of the locals that we were on the wrong bus altogether, contrary to the LP. So we got off and waited patiently for the right bus, which all the locals helped ensure we get on. Theyīre so nice around here!
Half hour and a short taxi ride later, we made it to Laguna Xiloa, which is right next to Apoyeque. Unfortunately, the park ranger informed us that the LP was wrong and in fact, itīs a 3 hour hike at best. Doh! Disappointed, we did what we do best... we sat down at a small rundown outdoor bar next to Laguna Xiloa and had a beer. Xiloa is still beautfiul, but we were hoping for alligators.
The bar was virtually empty except for a drunk 20-yr old and the bar owner who was missing quite a few teeth. As soon as we had our beers, the drunk kid came over (it was only 3pm) and started making gestures and speaking to us in Spanish. Even Mark, who understands quite a bit having done his Spanish School, couldnīt make out what he was saying - mostly because the drunk was slurring every word. Eventually, both of us worked out that his friends had pushed him into the water and he lost his wallet... and wanted money. Idiot. He tried to sell us a silver bracelet for money, which we rejected. After quite a few annoying attempts to get money from us, each followed by a stern īNo.ī, he finally gave up and left us alone.
Apparently, no one can make change out of big bills... and thatīs all we had, having just gotten Nicaraguan money (cordobas) out of the ATM. So we were a bit concerned how we would pay for the taxi and the bus back to Managua with big bills... and thought we would try and find the hotel, which was apparently located somewhere in the vicinity, to change up our money. Then the coolest of events was suddenly presented to us.
A very European looking business man turned up at the bar and ordered a beer. We thought he would surely know where the hotel was - the bar owner did not. It turned out that he was Danish, living in Nicaragua with his Swedish wife, trying to be an agricultural entrepreneur. AND, he said he would give us a lift back to Managua after he finished his beer. Score! Well, he finished his beer... joined us at our table and paid for two more rounds for all three of us! So nice and generous... we couldnīt believe it. And he was quite interesting and very cool. I immediately wanted to be his friend. After we finished our beers and a bit drunk, another man (who looked to be a local) showed up needed a jumpstart for his car. So the Dane, Mark and I pushed the guyīs car up a small hill to be closer to the Daneīs car to connect the batteries together. And we learned shortly thereafter that the local man was actually a US Citizen, having lived in Manhattan and Phoenix... cool!
Anyway, the Dane dropped us off at a bus stop in Managua and we reveled in our surprising fortune. A few minutes later, a microbus came by with a guy yelling out the door īGranada! Granada!ī. So we quickly ran to the microbus, which didnīt stop, just slowed down... and we had to jump on! Craziness!
So last night, we finally made it to Granada around 7pm, checked into a popular backpackerīs hostel, walked through some sketchy streets, got food and crashed out again.
Mark woke me up at 6:30am this morning... ugh... and now I canīt go back to sleep. So weīre both at the free Internet station waiting for the town to wake up so we can get some breakfast. The town is supposed to be very beautfiul, which we got a small glimpse of during the night... and weīre looking forward to exploring it, along with a couple of day trips outside.
Until the next entry...Hasta Pronto
Comments
Travelling is all about drinking!!
Hope you two are having fun it certainly seems like it. It is funny how whenever people travel drinking becomes an everyday event!! I also found that Mosquitos like Asian women, Michele and I were in Cambodia and I had maybe 2 bites and Michele was covered in them!! Either that or I drank so much that they couldn't get through the mist of alcohol!!