The good and the bad

first off i apologize for the hiatus
honestly i've been caught up in fervor that is Nica
but alas I am alive and kicking

in the past few weeks I've visited many cities and islands in Nicaragua every weekend. Ometepe a beautiful island, created by a volcano, the beautiful city of Granada (again and again), Laguna de Apoyo, and other places. There are tons of volcanos here. Gretchen and I went to Mombacho, a volcano near the city of Granada. It was an interesting experience to say the least.

Here's how it went

We took a bus to Granada (an hour and a half ride). From Granada the only way to the volcano is by cab. When we finally found a cab with a decent price (here there are no meters you just bargain) we took a half hour ride to a rest stop near the volcano. When we arrived we were informed that the next bus going to the viewing point for the volcano would leave in an hour which meant we had time to kill in the middle of nowhere. We walked around aimlessly and eventually found a little coffee place. Time flew by and before we knew it we were in danger of missing the bus. We hustled back to the rest stop, barely making it.

Then there was the bus ride. 45 minutes on an unpaved road. At first it feels like you're on a rollercoaster which isn't so bad, but then it starts to feel like well..... you're driving on an unpaved road.

Then there was the rain. Two scattered down pours. Soaked from head to foot. Here, there is a rainy season that starts in May, so usally the rain takes its time and shows up halfway through the year. But every once in awhile nature surprises you.

Here was the other surprise. The frigid cold. Of course cold is relative, but the higher up you go the cooler and cleaner the air. I admit I should have expected that, but it's hard to think about bringing a jacket and wearing long pants when you're in 90 degree weather everyday.

And finally the view of the volcano. Or rather the lack there of. The rain and cool air left a stark white fog that obscured the view. You could not see a single thing. It was a strange sensation actually, knowing that this massive part of nature was there, but completely invisible.

We waited another hour for the bus back the warmth of Granada.
Road another 45 minutes and made our slow journey back to the city of Managua.

So it was a trying experience. It's terribly cliche but you need the good and the bad . How else could I appreciate the absolutely perfect days I have here. One thing though. Nextime i'll check the weather report.