Goodbye Nicaragua

After Selva Negra and Matagalpa we decided to spend the last day and a half in Managua, back to where my journey began. I called up my friends, Terry and Klaus, the folks who so kindly took me in, back when I first arrived in June. I thought it would be a good place to relax and wind down (with maids and air conditioner!) before re-entering the U.S. Klaus was not there, he lives in Florida most of the time. But, Terry welcomed us with open arms. She is in the middle of renovating an old house in the heart of Managua, so it was a different home than when I stayed with them in June. We pretty much just hung out at the house watching T.V. and helping unpack things. At night we sat on the back porch talking. This is when things get interesting. In the course of our conversations, it came out that Klaus had served as the Minister of Agriculture under the Samoza regime. Now, if you don't know anything about Nicaraguan history, this means nothing to you. But, if you do...you're amazed, right?!?! Klaus was actually hiding out in the bunkard with Samoza in Paraguay right before Samoza was assasinated. I couldn't believe it. Terry told me about them having all of their land and possessions taken away by the Sandinistas while they fled to the U.S. At one point they had a house in Managua, a beach house, and a house on a huge farm plantation. Also, they owned 2 airplanes and 7 cars, all of which was seized by the Sandinistas. I guess this explains why she has a guard that walked the grounds all night. I was starting to feel a little uncomfortable knowing what I did about the Samoza regime and the fact that these people I was staying with were good friends with him. She brought out some pictures of them all together from the "good ol days." I tried to talk to her a little about the politics and in her mind she thought times were best for the poor people during Samoza's power. She talked about all the social programs she set up and coordinated. But, she still didn't get it. The indigenous people were still very inferior to her. I should have known my last days would not be uneventful. How very fitting.

When the time came, I was ready to come home. The liquid ban on all airplanes took effect the day before we flew out, so I was really bummed I couldn't bring my 6 liters of Flor de Canya on the plane with us. As we took off, I looked down upon Nicaragua with very bittersweet feelings. I'm afraid I was saying goodbye for the last time. But, somehow, I think I will return. This trip has had such a profound effect on me, I can't even explain. I wish everyone could take two months out of their lives and experience another culture like I did. The travel bug has definately bit...I hope I've been able to spread it's infection to all of you. I'm already thinking about where I want to go next. I would like to go to Thailand, Nepal and Peru. I think those are my top 3. Oh, but there is so much more. I want to close with one last thanks to everyone who has followed my travels. It means nothing if I can't share these experiences with those I care about and love the most. But, for now, it's back to school, back to responsibilty, and readjusting to life in the U.S. again. Take care and Adios!

Selva Negra Pics

At the entrance to Selva Negra
Inside the resort
Inside the rain forest

Matagalpa Pics

Streets of Matagalpa

Matagalpa and Coffee Country

Here we are...our final week in Nicaragua. We decided to venture into the most mountainous(and coolest!) region of Nicaragua. After a 4-hour trip from Leon through winding roads, up and down mountains, we finally landed in the city of Matagalpa. It was not at all what I expected. The people are different than Nicaraguans in other parts of the country. Their skin is much lighter and they are not quite as friendly. Although it's off the beaten tourist path, and thought of as kind of "the sticks," Matagalpa had several yummy restaurants and cute boutiques with very modern and stylish clothes. Internet connection is sketchy, though. And, no backpacker hostels. Since this was my last week, I decided we could splurge a little...I paid $7/night for a little hotel room. And, we had to eat out the whole time. We enjoyed walking the streets and getting to know the town. We even went to a hair salon that Moon suggests to have our hair and nails done (well, Sydney's nails...you know I don't have any to be "done"). They were this group of very flamingly-gay stylists. Only the best! I could have passed on this adventure...but Sydney really wanted us to go there. How is she my daughter!?!? Needless to say this was her favorite city in Nicaragua. Funny...I think it was my least favorite.

While out to eat one night, we met a nice family visiting from California. The mother is a native of Matagalpa, but like most Nicaraguans who now live in the U.S., she left during the war-torn 1980s. I told her some of the places I was looking at to visit and she singled out the Selva Negra coffee plantation as the best choice on my list. She said she wanted to take her kids up there and offered us a ride. Great! Of course I accepted her offer.

After 2 days in Matagalpa, we loaded up in my new friend's truck, kids in back, of course, and headed to Hotel de Montana Selva Negra, about a 30-minute ride out of town. This was the ultimate splurge for me...$30 for one night in one of the cottages. But, it was totally worth it. Selva Negra is a cloud forest retreat and working coffee farm.The cloud forest in Monteverde, Costa Rica cannot even compare to the experience we had here. We took a two hour hike and encountered only one small group of people while on the trail. We saw a few animals, that I've yet to figure out the names of. It was beautiful. I took a few pictures, but they do not do it justice.

The resort itself is made up of several chalets and has this beautiful sanctuary, which is a popular spot for weddings and reunions. Along with hiking, you can also rent horses, or visit the small artisian hut where you can buy local pottery and crafts.

We also went on a tour of the coffee farm. I was so impressed. I have to get on my soap box now...this place was incredible. The farm aims to have zero waste. All the coffee is shade grown and organic. They do not use pesticides or herbicides. Instead they grind up plants that are undisirable to insects and make it into a slurry to spray on the leaves. They raise flowers, and other products to supplement their coffee income. They raise all their own food for the resort's restaurant, as well as for the workers' meals. They have a huge compost heap where they collect any lawn clippings and braches from the resort and farm. They reuse this organic matter all throughout the year.

The social program is also pretty progressive. They provide housing and fair wages for all their employees. They also have a school on site for children aged 5-14. If the child decides to go to high school (which entails going to town) the farm pays for the transportation and any expenses associated with it. This is the case with any student who wants to go to college, also. Finally, they have a full-time nurse employed as well as a part-time doctor, which is unheard of.

There is so much more that I won't write now. But, I encourage any of you coffee drinkers to try to buy shade-grown coffee to support your habit. The traditional slash and burn coffee farm practices are very unsustainable, and is a huge cause of rain forest depletion around the world. Although in the short run these types of farms yield about 2/3 more coffee per season than shade-grown plantations, there are only a few years of productivity in the land, thus causing the producers to move on to virgin rain forests to start the process all over again. Shade grown plantations work within the forest, adding nutrients back to the soil, thus ensuring sustainability over the long run. And, the social benefits many of these farms implement are an added bonus. If you are interested in finding our more about Selva Negra, or shade-grown coffee in general visit: http://www.selvanegra.com/. They have lots of beautiful pictures of the farm on this site.

More pics from Leon

Syd taking a rest at the top of Cerro Negro





Cooling off at the beach near Leon

Anti-bush sign..."enemy of humankind"

Volcano Boarding Pics

Climbing back up after my trial run
The REAL thing...













Sydney and the Aussie cruising downhill

Volcan Cerro Negro

Volcan Cerro Negro from afar
Arduous journey up













View from the top...definitely worth it.

Leon & VOLCANO Boarding

Ahhh Granada...Sydney and I stayed one more night at the Oasis Hostel (and one more night of Telepizza). The next morning, after a nice American breakfast at Kathy's Waffle House, we headed off to Leon, finally. It was about a 3.5 hour trip. Once we got there, I was instantly sad I had only planned to spend 2 days. We checked into Big Foot Hostel, which ended up being one of the best hostels I stayed in on the whole trip. Big Foot is run by this really cool Aussie who specializes in leading volcano hikes and taking people volcano boarding. Sydney and I spent the afternoon walking around Leon and taking in the sights. Like Granada, Leon is a colonial city. Even though the architecture is similar to Granada, it has a very different feel. And, they actually had a grocery store, right around the corner from the hostel! I'm talking about a real grocery store (they even had air conditioner!), like what we have in the states. So, Sydney and I picked up some groceries and came back to the hostel to cook dinner. Another hostel across the street was having a Bob Marley Fest, so we had some groovy music to listen to while we cooked. We topped the evening off by going to the local cinema to watch Pirates of the Caribean 2, which I thought was in English with Spanish subtitles. Wrong. In Spanish. With no subtitles. I went out to ask the clerks what was going on and wanted to try to get my money back, but between my bad Spanish and their no English, it was decided that Syd and I would try a different movie that WAS in English...Inside Man, with Denzel Washington. Sydney was very bitter and sat there refusing to enjoy the default movie. After five minutes, though, she got sucked in and and ended up really enjoying it.

The next morning, we awoke early to go volcano boarding. Big Foot provided a complimentary steller cup of coffee to start the morning off. Then me, Sydney, and 4 other girls hopped in the back of the Aussie's pickup truck and were off to Volcan Cerro Negro. This was about a 45- minute drive down bumpy, rural roads where (in the Aussie's voice) "we have to drive fast so that no locals try to jump in to catch a ride with six good-looking Gringos." It was a beautiful drive. Finally, we saw the large, black volcano looming in the foreground. I couldn't believe that we were going to climb to the top of that thing...carrying boards, nonetheless. Cerro Negro is a 675-meter active volcano. It is the most frequently active volcano in the Maribio Volcano chain. It's last eruption was in 1999. Which is why it is black...no vegetation. We parked the truck, tucked the boards under our arms, and started hiking. It was like trying to hike uphill in sand. The small, loose volcano rocks gave way under our feet every step of the way. I was immediately worried that Sydney would not be able to make it. But, once again, she was a trooper. Our leader offered to carry her board for her, but she refused. It took us about 45 minutes to get to the top. Once we got to the rim, the wind was whipping us pretty hard. You had to carry the board just right, so the wind would not catch it and blow you down the side of the volcano. Sydney surrendered her board at this point and grabbed my hand. We could look down into the crater, which was still smoldering from recent activity. It had this weird burning sulfer smell while the steam surrounded us. It was pretty cool...uh, or, hot. You could put your hands down on the rocks, and at some points it was so hot it could burn you.

After taking in the view, it was time to ride our boards down to the bottom. We did a little practice run a short distance down the slope, at which point, I thought I was never going to make it back up again. Sydney did start freaking out a little bit by now, saying she didn't want to go down. So, our guide assured her he would ride with her. I went down first. It was pretty fun, but some of the other girls had faster boards than me, so I was a little envious. Sydney came after, and did fine. Our legs and shoes were covered in this black-soot-like substance, and we were tired, hungry and hot. Time to go back to the hostel. The Aussie bought us a round of drinks on the house (Sydney had a yummy milkshake), and we reveled in our new accomplishment. How many people can say they went volcano-boarding down an active volcano? Awesome. One more notch in the belt. We finished the day off by going to the beach, which was beautiful. Tomorrow will be the beginning of the end: our last week and our final destination: the central highlands of Nicaragua, also known as coffee country.