minstrel life, part dos

April 2, 2006


hello again, this time from san pedro guatemala, on the shores of the stunning lake atitlan (at right, think tahoe south). although it,s extremely tough to type an email when you are sitting right next to a pristine crater lake nestled deep in the western highlands of guatemala, i was able to make it through. please dont feel badly for me (ha).

so, to recap the last few weeks, i,ll try to be as brief as possible, but my apologies up front if this drags on way too long...

after spending a full two weeks in granada nicaragua studying spanish, i left with a big group of people to visit the island of ometepe in the middle of lago cocibolca (incidentally the largest freshwater lake in central america and home to the only freshwater sharks in the world). there were at least 20 of us and as i think i mentioned to some already, we would have made the UN proud: irish, israelis, canadians (including frenchies), english, norwegians, germans, italians, 1 other american and a completely mad scotsman.

the last night in granada was fun as we all ended up at a bar arm-wrestling each other a la over the top -- "when i turn this hat backwards it,s like flipping a switch" -- yeah baby! goat of the night went to this guy seamus, who got beat by every man woman, child and dog in the place. we watched the sun come up over the lake and then collapsed for a few hours before gearing up for the next leg.

the next day all made the long trek and boat ride over to the island on a little tiny tug jammed (and i mean to the rim) full of people. the waves on the lake are quite large due to incessant winds, and we pitched and rolled the entire way. i,m not usually someone who gets nervous or sick on boats but this was the sketchiest ride i,ve ever been on. needless to say many of us were green by the time we got to the other side. (at right, el capitan)


ometepe is an island composed of two extinct volcanos (sorta like maui, but much smaller) that can be hiked, along with some nice beaches on the shore of the lake. it,s a very quiet and isolated place, which is part of the attraction. but it also made it difficult for all of us to find accomodation in the same place as most of the guesthouses are very small. to top it off the roads are quite bad and so it takes hours to get anywhere. (below, at left, a view of the northern peak of ometepe; at right, looking for accomodation)


after searching around in the heat the entire afternoon, getting rejected from 3 or 4 places, we stumbled onto a small family-run hacienda that just happened to have 20 mattresses we could lay out on their patio. we were all so relieved to have finally found a place to stay that we all dropped our bags and ran into the lake, swimming and watching the sunset from the waves. after dinner a couple of the irish guys found a place that sold local moonshine and well, you can imagine where that went. it was a hell of a sight to see everyone on the patio in neat little rows of mattresses passed out in various positions and contortions.

(right, a view out to the lake just after sunset)


the next day our group got smart and split up so we could all get decent accomodation. i went with a small crew over to a place called balgue near the smaller of the volcanos, named maderas. (as an aside, nicaragua has a TON of tarantulas. the first time i saw one was in the bathroom of a bar in granada. since then i,ve seen them in the showers, in the rooms and just about everywhere else. they are as big as they look on tv)


at balgue we hiked the volcano, which was very cool. it,s not a very long hike, maybe 3000 feet of vertical, but it,s steep and it rains all the time at the top, so by the half way point we were basically climbing up a narrow muddy stream, which made for very slow going. on the ascent we kept hearing these loud moans and grunts and couldn,t figure out where the noise was coming from. a few kilometers later we discovered the source -- a family of howler monkeys. very cool, and i had no idea they could be so loud. it,d be interesting to put them up against me marno and stacey in a crowded bar.

anyway, at the top of madera there is a lagoon in the base of the old crater. when we arrived we could barely see the water as clouds and mist swirled around, but then suddenly the winds blew back the fog like a curtain to reveal a stunning mountain lake framed by lush crater walls and the blue sky above...very beautiful and it made the hike worthwhile.



(the view from the guesthouse at majagual)

after ometepe we headed to a beach in southern nicaragua called bahia majagual. when we arrived it was everything i hoped it,d be....three beautiful huge beaches strung along rocky shores...amazing water and surf...and nobody there! the area is quite isolated and there are only two guesthouses on the entire stretch. combined with the locals who show up to surf and you might have 100 people on the whole scene. the main surf beach is comprised of a left right break with 6-8 foot waves coming in, the big sets at 10 feet. the other two beaches are mainly for swimming, one with the big waves crashing close to shore and the other with more manageable surf. the crew was at bahia majagual for 4 days and it was absolutely perfect. each day i,d get up around 10, eat breakfast and head down to the beach. body surf in the waves for a few hours, alternating with walks down to watch the surfers, some of whom are world class, pulling 360s and absolutely shredding. return to the beach near the hostel around 4, play volleyball until the sun is almost down, then go for a last swim to watch the sun melt into the water while floating on top of the waves. close out the night by having a delicious dinner of fresh fish and drinking cuba libres around a fire on the beach. of course someone had a guitar. wash rinse repeat.

(view of majagual)

st. pat,s at majagual was just fantastic with the irish, who had everyone decked out in tri-color ribbons. hung out a bit with a short salty-dog retired guy named sandino who was originally from san diego. he had a sandpaper voice and just got completely wasted and yelled insults at everyone but for some reason he became my best friend -- for those who know, he reminded me a lot of south padre maca....i cant say how many gallons of rum were thrown back that day but it was a crazy scene.


in the days at majagual i also caught my first few waves surfing -- yes! -- i sense a week at a surf camp sometime in my future. the kicker: all that with food, board rentals and booze for 4 days and 3 nights and it only cost me $75!

after majagual our big crew split up for the final time, some going south to costa rica and beyond and some north to el slavador honduras and guatemala. i headed up to leon nicaragua with the irish (rose, barry and ian -- just amazingly fun people). spent a couple of days in the sweltering heat recuperating from st. pat,s and then headed on to the beaches of el salvador.

el salvador is a wonderful place -- not as scenic as guatemala or costa rica perhaps, but because they don,t get nearly the flow of tourism that the other places do, everyone is very nice and interested in talking to you.

it,s been great stopping to talk with people here and there, whether on the buses, or at a little tienda or just asking for directions. even though some of the people are very poor they are super generous. one guy i sat next to on the way to el salvador saw us get on the bus and must have noticed how hot and tired we were because as i sat down he offered some of his food to me. i was grateful and was able to repay the favor with the big bottle of water i had. we sat there talking in spanish about our families and friends for a few hours till we got to the border. he told me he was on his way to work on a farm for a month in el salvador (over 200 kilometers from his home) so he could support his wife and two young children. he was excited that he stood to make $6 for a 12 hour day...sometimes you are just left speechless.

the chikin buses really are something to see -- bright multi-colored old blue bird buses like the ones we all rode to school growing up. they are usually packed to the gills, sweltering and they stop what seems to be every 100 yards to pick up or drop off. they are actually quite fun and add to the experience of the trip and provide a great opportunity to chat with locals. the only drawback is that every bus seems to be legally required to play regaeton music -- gas-o-line-aaa! -- at maxmimum volume, and of course each one has a sound system that is worth more than the entire bus and the driver wants you to know it. speaking of regaeton, if you dont know what i,m talking about consider yourself lucky. it feels like my brain leaks out of my head everytime i hear it. and of course there are only 5 regaeton songs that have ever been made....i now know the soundtrack in my own private hell.


on the way through el salvador, i passed through san salvador for one afternoon which is completely built up and almost like home -- mcdonalds, hilton hotel, modern conveniences etc. familiar but weird all at the same time. i also spent a night in san vincente, a small town outside of san sal. i hung out at a little bar stuffing my face with pupusas (delicious little soft tortillas filled with meat cheese and beans) and drinking beers with the owner, a guy named nico, who was in the army during the civil war. we chatted a bit about some of his experiences, which was very sobering.



(mmm.....pupusas)

i spent 2 days at playa sunzal, one of a string of sleepy little beach villages on the coast west of san salvador. the only people there are locals and surfers. the water is very warm in el salvador and again there was some really good surf, though not for beginners. (below, at a surf competition)


each night everyone at my guesthouse (8 of us) ate dinner at a little place across the street run by a grandmotherly woman named lenora and her friendly pitbull mona. she would homecook for us each night and sit round chatting with us in spanish and it gave us a little sense of home.



(me and mona, me and rose)


after el salvador i hitched a ride with an english couple up to antigua guatemala. antigua is a beautiful colonial town (the best i,ve seen yet) nestled in between 3 volcanos. it,s a bit cooler in the highlands of guatemala than in nicaragua which has been freshing. the only knock on antigua is that it,s totally gringoed out - basically it feels like times square or disney-guatemala. still, it is nice to see if even for a day or two. when i got to antigua i had my first truly hot shower in over a month and can,t tell you how much i enjoyed that.
(at right, a view of the city)

the day i arrived i found out that buena vista social club (or at least the three remaining guys and a huge supporting band) was playing in the city that night. also coincidentally ran into a couple of cool people i,ve been bumping into regularly on the road the last few weeks. it took no time at all to decide to see if we could get tickets. we headed over at 7:30 and (surprise surprise) the concert hadn,t even started yet, despite a listed 6:30 opener. let me tell you, after spending a month down here, "central american time" puts me and teter to shame.

anyway, the two opening bands were very cool and provided a great warmup for the crowd. the highlight though was buena vista of course, who came on at about 9:30 and played for a full three hours. the scene was fantastic: a cool night in the hills of guatemala underneath the stars, everyone dancing and singing and just having a blast. probably one of the best surprises of the trip so far and definitely a big checkplus on the to-do list.

more to tell and another email will be forthcoming as i,m about a week behind...and, since the revolution has fallen behind schedule, i have pushed the timetable to over throw my little banana patch back until may 20th. this does however give me more time to hone my lute skills...

hasta luego,
harman

below, maps of nicaragua, honduras and el salvador