Half way up Nicaragua now and feeling the effects of the heat. Today it was 38 degrees on the road and with high humidity – the rains aren’t too far away now. It’s debilitating and we savour every opportunity to climb some hills and reduce the temperature. Best to ride early but given its 30 degrees by 8 am and not light until 6.30 that’s a small window really. Still, avoiding the middle fo the day is the dream scenario – tends to remain a dream on many days as we’re doing stuff that prohibits riding early. Like this moning where we had to get the ferry back from Isla de Omatepe (in the middle of the 8,500 sq km Lake Nicaragua, somewhat larger than the 600 sq km of Lake Taupo!) to the mainland to start riding. The island has two volcanoes and that’s about it, but it was a lot of fun to get out there, ride around the place, swim in their version of Pupu Springs – wonderful respite from that midday sun., and interact with the locals who are mainly subsistence farmers.
The Pupu Springs of Isla de Omatepe
The island has its share of colourful characters as well and as you’d expect they include some expats that have washed up on its shores from Western countries – such as US expat Jerry, owner/driver of Yogi’s Bar in Moyagalpe one of two significant towns on the island. With parents, grandparents & greatgranparents all members of the Ku Klux Klan, Jeryy had a little to distance himself from back home in South Carolina. Quite a philosopher in his own right we spent some hours appreciating his perspective on the world, drinking his beer, taking advantage of the bike storage he provided for a couple of days, and generally undertanding how one doesn’t go mad in such a far flung spot. Haven’t quite understood that yet but certainly respect his prespective and the fact that bring a moderate amount of US dollars to a place like this, one can live a very comfortable lifestyle – especially when the locals employed in the hotels are just $25 per week!
While it’s time to move on it’s appopriate to say we learnt a few things from Jerry of Moyagalpe, somewhere in Nicaragua.
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