Costa Rica...Past and Present

September 24, 2010

If it wasn´t for cell phones and computers I would have no idea of what day, date or time it is. Maybe that sounds like a luxury, but it seems strange to me by now, to direct our lifes by a calendar. I am observing many things that do not make sense to me anymore. Here in Costa Rica...Tourism is b i g business. Adventure is promised on every sign, thrills are offered throughout the country.You can zipline over the Jungle canopy, rappell yourself into the Canyons or go canyoning, whitewater rafting and whatever else. The young and affluent from all over the world are hurling themselves with gusto into one activity after the other. Even the older folks are out there on the Zip Lines etc. They just take it a little slower.
This rush for experiencing something new or something exciting, artificially created just for the tourists, appears out of rhythm to me.
Does Mother Earth not have enough to offer anymore, that it has to be enhenced, in order to be appreciated. And what really is being appreciated..?

I had been to Costa Rica 21 years ago on a 3 month stay. Many things have changed of course. There are roads now everywhere, Condominium developments, big hotels, cities where there used to be none. The country is still very beautiful and incredibly rich on wildlife and fauna, where the areas have been preserved as Reserves or National Parks...and there are many.
For me Costa Rica has been a mixed bag. Shortly after crossing over the border, I had picked up a young couple hitchhiking with two young dogs. We traveled together to Tamarindo Beach, Jaco and Manuel Antonio. Dogs are mostly not permitted in Hostels. So they were glad all our dogs could sleep in the bus. We did run into some drug dealers, that took great interest in Bluebird. We almost stayed at a place, we later found out, was known for robbing their guests and a few other less fun encounters.
Thank God, we had our wits together and got out of an area when needed or found something else, because it just did not feel right at the moment.
Fernando and Ulli eventually continued on south to Panama with their two puppies.
I had been halfway down to Panama, along the coast, where things were quieter and you could still see Scarlet Macaws flying around, hear the Howler Monkeys and observe wildlife, without paying an entrance fee to a National Park.
On my way back up toward San Jose, I got sidetracked, to come to Volcano Arenal.
We arrived here late on the 21st and it was clear a Ruby seed needed to be planted.
This planting was very different from all the others. I was shown to open up a cermony and hold it for two days. The first day took me to the sacred hot waters of Pele for cleansing and initiation )Equinox). The second day was spent with drumming, meditation and a hike to the foothills of Arenal for the planting of the Ruby seed.
Thank you to all my friends in the US, Mexico and Guatemala for participating in anchoring the incomming frequencies through the many portals along the Rim of Fire.

I feel exhausted today, but will leave for San Jose later on. Bluebird needs to be serviced. I need to check on paperwork for Sky to fly and reservations to Ecuador for both of us. And God willing, find a ship to take Bluebird south as well.

Content in Nicaragua

September 11, 2010

It has just been fabulous in Nicaragua.
Granada, the crown jewel of Nicaragua on the northern end of Lake Nicaragua is a beautiful, old colonial city. Although a bit more touristy, it still was nice to be there and enjoy the comforts of a pleasant city.
The journey to Ometepe island in Lake Nicaragua turned out to be magical. The island, actually it looks more like two islands, each having a Volcano on it and joined together by a peninsula, is dotted with small villages around each Volcano. Concepcion, 1640 meters, is still active and a perfectly shaped cone with very steep ascends. Maderas is lower by 400 meters and more moderate. Getting to either takes some effort. Since this is still the rainy season, the roads were disastrous around Maderas and the great waterfall at San Ramon could not be reached, unless I wanted to ride a horse or an ox. As soon as we had stepped on the island I could feel this energy of peace and beauty there. I was content to explore the villages and hillsides around Concepcion, which has a semi paved road. Later on I did venture on the dirt track to one of the villages of Maderas, but the driving was dicey.
We hiked a lot, howled with the monkeys, watched birds and swam in the lake. Many of the villages are indigenous (Nahautl), farming the land and raising cattle. As a matter of fact, Nicaragua is full of cows. You never drive far anywhere without meeting a herd of cows on the road. Life on the island has a slow pace and the people always seem to smile or laugh. It was such a pleasure being there, just hanging out with the villagers. Ojo de Agua, a fresh water spring on the Isthmus, between Maderas and Concepcion, shaded by large old trees, was the perfect place to find relief from the intense heat of the day.
By now we have arrived in San Juan del Sur, near the Costa Rica border, on the Pacific. It is a cool little town, with plenty of international Surfer Dudes. The waves here are impressive, maybe not quite as rough as in El Salvador, but supposedly a highlight on a Surfer´s itinerary. Getting to the beaches is another matter. It requires a boat ride or up to over an hour on a shuttle over incredible rough terrain. And that is only possible if it hasn´t rained much, otherwise the rivers can not be crossed.
The reward are unspoiled beaches. Right now the Survivor Nicaragua serious is being filmed at Yankee Beach, about 12 to 15 km´south from San Juan. I came by there one day, while on the way to El Coco, to the La Flor Reserve, to look for Olive Ridley Turtles. It looked like the Survivors were living in the ¨Jungle¨in a compound and the helicopter is flying back and forth every day numerous times.
I am enchanted with Nicaragua. The country is very diverse and so beautiful. From what I heard, the eastern part would also be worthwhile to explore, but that should be done in the dry season.
It is funny to hear how the citizen of each central American country rate each other.
According to Guatemalans, El Salvadorans and Nicaraguans....Mexico is the most dangerous place for them to travel to. Guatemala is next for Nicaraguans and El Salvadorans. Guatemalans think it is dangerous for them in Honduras and El Salvador also. Looking back, I realize, that I had projected a lot of fear about El Salvador.
Traveling through there, was like a right of passage. Since then, I have reached a new level of feeling content. No matter where or what country I was in, the people have been amazing with their generosity, love and hospitality. It is so beautiful to connect with all people from the heart, leaving behind any pre-conceptions of differences and embracing all there is.

Nicaragua....Telica Sunrise

September 2, 2010

When I look at my last entry it appears almost unreal to me, because I am not there anymore. Now we are in Nicaragua and have already seen and experienced so much, that the time in Guatemala seems something of a distant past, although not forgotten.

I guess, if I was to go back to the USA anytime soon, I could neatly organize my experiences and pictures and at a later time process all that happened. Since I am not, it feels very intense in the moment, but is just as fast a distant memory.

Our path through El Salvador was relatively short. It rained on the coast for 2 days straight, so we headed to eastern El Salvador...Alegre, a village up in the mountains. I liked the area of eastern El Salvador a lot, but could never quite get used to all the gun toting guards, guarding I don´t know what. The people of El Salvador however are just awesome. They were so welcoming, so warm and so interested in talking to extranjeros. Almost like visitng some distant family members that you meet the first time, but already feel part of.
We had sort of a very chaotic border crossing into Honduras and the most expensive one as well, even though to pass through that part, it only takes 3 hours driving.
To top it off, just 5 km before the Nicaraguan border, I got napped by the transit police for some Multa. Apparently Honduras requires every driver to have a fire extinguisher and 2 safety triangulars. At last they let me go with ten of my dollars in their pocket. Oh well....!
The entry into Nicaragua was relaxed, but I still had to pay another Multa to the police there as well, so they would allow my Bluebird to enter. It is all nogiciable... I really can not complain about anything. We have had smooth sailing through all of Central America this far.
The roads in Nicaragua are pretty good except for the potholes every so often. Some could swallow up your whole car. There is hardly any traffic outside of cities, because the fuel costs $ 4.50 a gallon. The dirt roads are another matter. They quickly turn into mudd pits, if it rained recently, or are simply washed away and look more like a creek bed than a passable road.
We first stayed up in the mountains near Esteli and later Matagalpa to visit the cloud forests and the Miraflora area. All of which are coffee growing regions as well as sugar cane. I loved it up there. The northeastern region suffered much during the war and the people endured great hardship. Nearly every family lost sons and loved ones during that period and the pain is still now very evident. And so is the distrust toward government, because the guys in local and regional government are still the same people. Nicaraguans are very nice also, but have a little bit of an edge and appear more serious. The move toward progress in education, environmental protection and sustainablitity is evident by the many grass root projects, but is very much dependent on the influx of outside volunteers and money.
We have been in Leon for the past 6 days and hiked Cerro Negro and Telica, both active Volcanoes, along a chain of Volcanoes stretching across the Pacific Rim of Nicaragua. Amazing experiences. You walk right up to the rim of Telica crater and look down about 200 meters to the steaming bottom. It was scary. There are cracks along the rim and who knows when that will break off. At night we could see the lava glowing. The most spectacular views are at sunrise, especially when you can see the whole chain of Volcanoes stretching in either direction. Sky did so well on the hike. It took 6 hours to get up. Walking here, is like exercising in a steam bath with a backpack on. But it was worth the effort. The way back down was only about 4 hours, through beautiful terrain and a small village, that has boiling mudd pooles.
Some farmers came and asked what we were doing with our packs on. They don´t seem to understand what the attraction to the Volcano is or why we don´t ride a horse there. For much of the population, horses are the main mode of transportation. The question made sense to me. Maybe we westerners just like to suffer this way, because we really don´t suffer much in our every day lives, compared to the style of life in most of Central America.