Yep. This trip was a pretty epic adventure. :)
PANAMA
Last April I remember lying on the hammock in Belize listening to my friends Amy and Cali talk about plans to travel Central America when they were done with their Peace Corp service. I thought to myself how awesome of a trip that would be but never actually thought I would be doing it with them! Oh where life takes you!
I flew from DIA to Atlanta at 6:15 AM on Wed the 9th of Nov. Early flight! Had a 5 hour layover in Atlanta and ended up arriving in Panama City at 9:30 at night. Took a taxi and met my friends at the Panama by Louis Hostel.
Our first adventure in Panama was to see the Canal. What a great invention! My friends waited for me to see it and our German friend and a couple from Sweden came along with us! My stay in Panama City was quick because we took an express bus that night from Panama City to a city named David. From David we went to Boquete and had a nice 3 night stay where we took a lovely coffee tour, bathed in the hot springs, ate some local food of carne, arroz y frijoles and went white river rafting! So much fun and I can brag that I didn’t fall out! Also can’t forget to include the night Amy and I wanted to celebrate 11/11/11 at 11:00PM at a disco and came back to our hostel to only then realize we never received a key. Luckily the hostel owned some lawn chairs and had some sheets hanging that kept us somewhat warm. We even found an outside toilet….what luck!
Randoms about Panama:
*Currency- Same bills are used as US but they use their own coinage.
*People HONK all the time! It is a way of saying hello!
*Main greeting from locals is BUENA and they always end with CIAO CIAO.
*In Panama you can swim the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean in the same day.
*The canal generates 1/3 of Panama's entire economy
COSTA RICA
Getting to Costa Rica was an all day bus ride- 8 hour event but some of these buses are impressive. They are old US school busses that have been decked out colorfully and many I have seen are equipped with a flat screen TV’s!
We made it in San Jose around 4:30 PM. San Jose is known as the drug capital and un-safest places in all of Central America. Good thing for us, it was only a one night stop in order to get to our next destination!
The next morning we got a good fill of the free pancakes the hostels like to feed you and were on our way to La Fortuna. La Fortuna was a cute little town where we spent a few days wondering the rainforest called Rio Celeste. There was a beautiful part where the water went from clear to extremely blue. We also saw many cataratas (waterfalls), animals(frogs and turtles) and swam in the hot springs! This awesome French couple we met in our hostel taught us how to play gin and dominos so it was all around a good stay.
I have enjoyed seeing many churches and taking part in the celebrations. Many churches are Catholic in Central America and what is so cool about being Catholic is taking part in the universal church…no matter where I go the mass is in the same order and the celebration is the same. I was able to witness an awesome praise and worship celebrations where people were dancing throughout the church as well as holy adoration! The only difference is that at the end of mass the priest greets you with a kiss on the check instead of a handshake!
After La Fortuna we horseback rode to our next destination. The ad said we would get a bi-lingle Cowboy so we were all for this experience! My horse’s name was Dynomate and he was a good white horse while he would trot but he also liked competing with the other horses and would race so fast making me feel ill. Amy’s horse was well mannered and liked to trot while stopping numerous times to eat! We made it to Santa Elena around the afternoon and just spent time exploring the town.
The next morning we had a tour of many bridges, saw many holler monkeys (one adorable baby), a viper snake and then went zip-lining down 9 cables. It was the best adrenaline rush! A train takes you to the top and then you latch on to a hook on a cable and ride it down! We had fun going upside down and screaming! Later that day Amy and I herd of a community talent show so we decided to walk to the school it was held at which took about an hour and then had fun watching all the acts. The school kids served pizza and desserts and anyone could participate. After the show we luckily met one of the acts which was a young Canadian couple who have a band called Atom and the Volumes .They offered to give us a ride back into town which was fortune because it was pitch dark and we didn’t have a flash.
The rest of our time in Costa Rica was spent hiking and going to see the host of our hostel play a show with his band. Lots of people have bands and there are many venues that they play at.
Randoms about Costa Rica-
*Money- $500 Colones are equal to 1 US dollar so 2, 500 =$5
*Oranges are green.
*Costa Rica means “Rich Coast” in Spanish.
*People who live in Costa Rica are called “Ticos”.
*Christopher Columbus discovered and named Costa Rica in 1502.
*Costa Rica prides itself on being the “Land of Peace” as they have had over 100 years of political
stability.
*The national dish of Costa Rica is “Gallo Pinto”, pre-cooked rice and beans fried together.
NICARAGUA
Hello sun. Hello heat. Instantly feel in love with this country.
After numerous buses and 8hours we made it to San Juan Del Sur around 4 in the afternoon. Just in time to take a walk on the beach and enjoy the beautiful sunset. We also added a couple people to our traveling posse…Alan- a Canadian we met in Costa Rica decided to come with us and teach us how to surf. Then at the border crossing we met Lars….a gentleman from Switzerland that wanted to tag along as well. The more the merrier, I’d say!
San Juan was a pretty popular place for tourist with lots of hostels and many travelers. My time there was spent doing yoga, going sailing, learning to surf and enjoying the musical parades the locals put on. We spent Thanksgiving there so Amy and I made a chicken feast with mashed potatoes and gravy, corn and rolls for our friends. We also took a little hike to see the huge statue of Jesus that overlooks the town. After a week there I was ready to move on and so was Amy. Cali caught the surfing bug with Alan so they stayed for a few more days and Lars headed in another direction.
Our next stop was an island called Ometepe. We heard about it from some guys in San Juan and thought we check it out. It was quite lovely and peaceful, not a whole lot of people which was relaxing. Amy and I were going to go on a full day hike up a volcano but both woke up not feeling so hot so we canceled. By mid day I was back to myself but Amy still needed some rest so a lady invited me to go kayaking with her. I thought it would be a wonderful idea as I have never done it before. It started out great and I really enjoyed it that is until our boat got too close to the island of monkeys. Yes we were attached, yes I twisted a monkeys arm and no it wasn’t very fun. It’s a better story to tell in person so if you want to hear it just ask. I though, will never forget the lady saying, “Save yourself, let me die.” And “This hospital is worse than the monkeys.” She was very dramatic. Although truthfully we are both very blessed to make it out alive and our cuts were not as bad as they could have been. God was really watching over us and I am very thankful. Fortunately, the scares on my face cleared up within a week, and the ones on my arms and hands are healing nicely. If I was looking for adventure, I sure found it here!
Moving on…..we took a ferry from Ometepe to Rivas and found a couple girls who wanted to share a taxi with us to Granada. The taxi drivers were fighting over who was going to take us so we made them flip a coin…it was so funny. Our taxi driver was hilarious….he kept talking about how he thought American girls were so pretty and cool but the girls we were with were Canadian and so one of them asked, “What about Canadian girls.” He just looked at her, shrug his shoulders and continued to talk about how much he liked Americans. Amy and I were laughing the whole ride!
Granda, Nicaragua was a really fun week. Amy and I splurged to stay at a nicer hostel for $9 a night because it included a pool. Funny enough we never even used the pool but they also included free yummy scones and coffee for breakfast so it ended up working out! We spent the week taking Spanish lessons at a really cool school called Casa Nica. Our class included 3 guys from Montana, a lady from Switzerland as well as Amy and I. Classes were fun and would start as whole group were we would play Spanish musical chairs or a silly group game and then we would go with our teacher one on one. Amy and I also got a tour of Granda from our instructors and they taught us how to make empanada from plantains and gallo pinto (white rice mixed with black beans)! We invited the boys to share the meal with us and then we started to have “family” dinners with them. One night Brad even made this killer chicken pot pie using pancake mix as the batter. YUM!The Spanish class also included a free week pass to the gym and salsa classes which we took to full advantage!
We were in Granada in time for the 8 day celebration of Mary’s conception. Such a fun place to be for this because they go all out! Every night was a BIG party where they would have a procession of Mary along with fireworks. The streets in Granada though are very dirty…covered with in markets, clothes shops, shoe stores, pharmacies and casinos. But the church was beautiful and the town was colorful!
After our week in Granada we headed to Leon! When we made it to Leon were we took a bicycle taxi to our hostel. Most fun ride of my life! Poor guy though got so tired! In Leon we went volcano boarding! You could either ride a slide down or stand up like snowboarding. Amy and I chose to stand. Although it is much different then snowboarding. You have to stand facing the volcano, knees down and one hand touching the black rocks. I did it all wrong but still had a blast and want to do it again!
Randoms about Nicaragua:
*22 Cords = 1 US Dollar
*People do not know where the library is but as them about a cock fight and they will personally show you.
*If you see light us devil horns….you know there is a big celebration going on.
*If you are blonde you stick out like a sore thumb and get lots of whistles and the occasionally serenade with the song, “Pretty Women.”
*In Granada every 5th smell, you get a whiff of something nasty….sewage, horse manure…etc.
*It is the 2nd poorest country in Central America only to be outdone by Hati.
HONDURAS
After our week in Nicaragua it was time to move on. We didn’t see much of Honduras besides our night stay. It was funny because everywhere we went had children working and in charge. We were curious as to where their parents were. There however were real department stores which was impresive! But we moved quickly though because we heard El Salvador was the place to be!
Currency- 18 Limpera’s = $1 USD
EL SALVADOR
We were super nervous about getting the right busses to make it to our next destination El Tunco. We took 6 different busses and traveled 10 hours before we arrived. We were so lucky and blessed to sit by the right people who were friendly enough to not only tell us where we needed to go but also walk us there. One lady and her child got off at a stop with us, took us up this bridge and showed us where the bus would pick us up. Without her doing that we would have been so lost. The people (guys I should say)that I sat by on the busses would tell me that they felt so lucky to be sitting next to me and that they also wanted to go to America. It was flattering and funny at the same time.
El Tunco was the most beautiful beach that had enormous waves and black sand. Extremely hard to swim in though so we did take advantage of the pool at the hostel where we meet some really cool Israel’s who invited us to hike a volcano with them. The next day they rented a truck and two hours later we made it to the volcano where we paid $1 for the guide. It took us two hours to get to the bottom of the volcano and 1 hour up. It was extremely hot and slippery. Amy wore her shoes that are similar to crooks and they actually melted because it was that hot! It was a really fun but exhausting day!
The next day we enjoyed the beach and went into the city La Libertad to have some delicious ceveche! That night there were a ton of bonfires on the beach complete with music and fireworks! So perfect! We meet a cool local couple that invited us to join their bonfire and party! Had fun dancing the night away and meeting many El Salvadorians!
Randoms about El Salvador:
*Currency- has used the US dollar since 2001.
* El Salvador has some of the world’s most active volcanoes. The Santa Anna Volcano is El Salvador highest.
* As of 2009 El Salvador’s population was over 7,000,000 with 3% of them daily making the dangerous trek to the United States for their families.
*El Salvador’s main Religion is Catholic which makes up about 85% of the population
BELIZE
After we totally got ripped off by some locals in Guatemala who sold us bus tickets for a certain price but ended up buying cheaper ones for us at a way later time, we ended up trading in our tickets and paying a little more to make it into Belize by the afternoon. We made it into Punta Gorda but were too late for the school bus to Santa Teresa. Luckily Amy knows tons of people there and we ended up crashing at her friend’s house. The next day we had some Jonny Cakes for breakfast and were on our way to Santa Teresa! We were both so excited! When we made it to the village it was raining really hard and was cold which was much different then I experienced last April which was only sun. When it cleared up a bit, we visited some families that had new adorable babies and then separated to stay with different families. I stayed with the Ack family whom I just adore. There are 6+ children and I just love them all very much. They were so in awe of my clear retainer and just thought it was the strangest thing. They also still loved me taking pictures of them. During my stay I slept on a wooden board with Yanera. The Ack family took good care of me.....always made sure I had plenty to eat and when I needed a towel Lisa found the one that had USA on it....making me feel at home.
At school, it was their Christmas celebration so each child brings a bowl and silverware to have BBQ chicken, rice and beans with a soda! The students were so sweet and eager to show me things and tells me things. I remember this little boy Brian saying, “Look at this Miss, look at this!” in which I responded, curious to know, “What is it?” and he said so seriously, “It’s shit Miss.” Alrighty then. lol
In Belize I ate so much. When you visit people they also feed you so I had a great fill of rice, beans, tortillas, caldo, cake, fry jacks, and Amy and I also made Arenkank which is a flour tortilla filled with dry beans and then cooked…delicious!
I also got to experience a Belizean funeral which was very sad. One of the teachers I met last time- Mr. Fern Cohn died right before we arrived because he was drinking and driving and drove off the bridge. It was a really sad time to be there. The children he taught were 5 and 6 so they didn’t really understand. They all wanted to go to his funeral because they wanted to see their teacher and thought that if someone sowed his head back together, he would be alive again. The school bus took the children who wanted to attend and I was impressed because this time, it was much more organized and they had a check list of students. The viewing and church service were in Silver Creek…..a nearby village so we all went to see the body, and pay respect. Mr. Cohn had a wife and two young children.
It was hard to say goodbye to the people in the village. Amy and I were both terribly sad but we had to be on our way because our trip was nearing it’s end. After Santa Teresa, we spent a couple of days at Placencia…a lovely little beach in Belize. It was fun but super cold. Then we made our way to Belize City hoping to catch a bus that would take us to Tulum, Mexico but that turned out to be harder than expected. The bus station only sells the tickets at a certain time and we found out they are most likely always sold out if you are not first in line. Plan B- we had time to visit Amy’s first host family in a village called Valle de Paz. It was nice to see them again if only for lunch. We also got to go to Cayo to see our friend Molly. Our plan was to stay with her and try to catch a bus to Mexico the following morning. But as our luck had it one of her friends was also going to Mexico, taking the night bus and we asked him to call us if the bus had extra seats. It did! We ran and made it on the bus! What luck!
MEXICO
USA
Made it home super late on Dec 21st but just in time to celebrate my brother Nikolos’ 26th birthday with mi madres enchaladas, arroz y frijoles…yum! And in time to head to NE to celebrate Christmas with my fun big fam in the good life!
What’s next you ask? Normal life is totally not as adventurous per say but I have wonderful jobs that I happened to be very fond of. I started teaching dance which has been loads of fun! I also continue subbing at STM as well as working the afterschool program…..the children are a hoot and my monkey attack is already the talk of the school….even the high schoolers at Breakaway think that it was my highlight of the trip. Some parents come up to me and ask if it really happened because they don’t believe their child. Ha. One 1st grader drew what it looked like. I am very impressed on the accuracy.
As far as traveling goes…..going to keep it state side until July where I will head to Peru on a mission trip with my church!
Travel to wherever your heart desires and let me know what you have been up to!
All my love,
L
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