tagging along to Ometepe

Spur of the moment, although mostly fleeing the machismo of Granada. I found myself on a boat to Isla de Ometempe*, with five guys who did not invite me. My new friend Ty seemed pleased, I had joined their journey; but his four Belgian friends were less than thrilled some random American girl decided to tag along. I made it my mission to win them over by the end of the boat ride, it almost worked as three of the four Belgians were warming up to me by the time the boat docked. Then it came time to find a taxi and my status as the only Spanish speaker of the group made my presence much more appreciated.

We head to the Charco Verde area of the island, to a hostel, Chico Largo, located right on the beach. Location is about the only thing this hostel had going for it as, it was in the middle of nowhere, had almost no food or drink for guests and the dorm room wins the most disgusting dorm of my trip award. But with the sun setting and my "travel buddies" not bothered by the filth I decided to stick it out for the night.

We met another girl staying in our dorm room, Jackie, who was as disgusted as I was by the condition of the room. When she and I made plans to move to the other side of the island the next day, I discovered Ty was just as disgusted by the hostel and wanted to tag along. The tree of us then decided to hunt for the witch of Laguna Charco Verde in the morning. Here is what Lonely Planet Nicaragua says about the lagoon and its "witch":
"Not only is this a lovely spot for swimming but also it's the home of Chico Largo, a tall, thin and ancient witch who often appears swimming or fishing on the lagoon. His primary duty is to protect the tomb and solid-gold throne of Cacique Nicarao, buried nearby, He may also offer you a life of luxury in exchange for your soul, which would then become a cow on Isla de Ometepe. Incidentally, Chico Largo doesn't like people to take pictures of his pond, either. Just so you know."

We never saw the witch and I even took a picture of the lake. (O Lonely Planet, yet another way you've failed me.) But on the hike to the lagoon we did see a snake eating a gecko, some crazy trees and tiny frogs.

We then headed to the Santo Domingo on the north side of the island, to a much nicer hotel, our taxi driver offered to take us on an island tour the next day, I explained to him, that I was recovering from a back injury and couldn't do anything strenuous. He then reassured me the day would be simple and we decided to go the next day.

Our driver lied, first thing that morning I found myself hiking three kilometers to a waterfall. At first the hike was manageable, on mostly solid ground and just slightly up hill, but after two kilometers I found myself, starring at boulders and steep, slippery, narrow "trails". Frustrated I had pushed myself so far and needed to turn back, I pushed through the pain and made it to the waterfall. That's when the adrenalin and crazy Nicaragua pain killers wore off and I found myself at the end of the hike and unable to walk. Fortunately, we encountered a group from Georgia, who had brought a four-wheel-drive truck most of the way up the mountain. With the help of Ty, Jackie and our new Georgian friend, I made it down to the truck and back to our "guide".

When I informed him the hike was not simple with a pinched nerve in my back, he just looked at me confused (my guess is something was lost in translation), then assured me the rest of the day was very easy going. He was right, the petroglyphs he promised us were a single stone under a tin roof thing, that we could drive up to in the van. Then it was on the "hot springs", which were ice cold but refreshing, before dropping us at the boat back to the mainland.

When we arrived at the boat the money hassle began, he was trying to over charge us, converting his price (US dollars) way too high in Nicaraguan cordobas and refusing to provide change. After some creative change making, we overpaid the "guide" and he was gone. Our group of three prepared to part ways, Jackie was heading to Costa Rica, Ty and I were heading on to San Juan del Sur. We laughed about our crazy three days on Ometepe as the boat slowly pulled away from the dock. I was grateful to have met two of the coolest people on my trip.

*Formed by two volcanoes, Isla de Ometepe is the largest of the islands on Lake Nicaragua. The island is a destination for hiking, swimming, kayaking and nature.