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Chasing Summer p.017
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Nov 16th - Marcala to Leon (Nicaragua)
Interactive map: http://www.gpsxchange.com/phpBB2/download2.php?id=1467
Not feeling too good this morning (digestive 'issue')... I wander in town and even by daylight I still see no reason to especially recommend it.
The market merchandises are disposed on tarps, right on the muddy floor...
And most streets outside of the main one and the plaza are still dirt
The internet place opens only at 9 AM and so it's already pretty late when I get on the road to Tegucigalpa. The good think is that today it's all paved and so I can make good time.
I eventually join the 'main road', the one coming from the North. It's just as twisty and there is a lot of traffic and trucks and so that way might not have been fun either. In circumstances like that the awesome power of the 950 makes passing of huge trucks much safer.
Today I want at least to cross the border and so I take the Tegucigalpa bypass. From what I read I'm not missing much. By then, it's now really hot. The road becomes pretty bad with many potholes too. Potholes impact you in 3 ways:
- Of course, there is the danger of damaging your rim. A 21" wheel with good pressure helps there
- The oncoming traffic often comes to your lane to avoid the potholes on their side. But at least you see them and supposedly they see you.
- The worst is actually the cars that you want to pass that will suddenly and abruptly swerve while you're passing them
I choose the furthest South (El Triunfo) for no other reason that it seems the shortest way to Leon and Managua, my next targets in Guatemala. I'm always a bit stressed about those border crossings even though they have been much easier than what I had previously heard.
The novelty in this one is to have to deal on the Honduras side with a dozen 'helpers', 'bikes gards' and 'money changers'. They're surrounding you at the second you stop your bike and are quite pressing. A smart teenager decides that he will be my helper whatever but that the 'propina' (tip) will be none if I don't want.
I repeat to all that I don't need anyone but they don't give up! They start touching the bike here or there, just to make you feel nervous about letting the bike alone.
I calmly take my papers, lock everything and leave ignoring them. They don't! The whole groups follows me to the immigration windows where 'my helper' very usefully translates the requests from Passaporte to Passport
. Finally, as another 'helper' insists I announce that the young one is indeed my helper, just to get rid of the others. It helps a bit but they are still following me everywhere...
Without them it would be actually quite easy:
- On the Guatemala side, immigration for both countries are on the same building. Then, just 50 meters apart you have the Guatemalans customs.
- Then you take your bike for 1 km and after the bridge you'll see the sign for the Nicaragua Customs. For the people entering the country (like me) it's the furthest building.
With my 'helper' it was actually more complicated since he took me to the other side of the street where I realized that he wanted me to make the 'necessary' photocopies. Not only I had them already but they were never required! Usually I change the little money I have from the previous country just at the border. I know that the rate will not be good but it's more convenient and you might need local money right away to enter the new country.
This time my 'helpers' let me know that the Nicaragua customs will not accept $US and since the import permit can be expensive I change $40 US additional. I have no idea on the rate since I forgot once again to check but I just know that my 'helper' will get his cut on the margin because he's asking me if I have more money or Travelers Checks...
In fact, when I arrived at the Nicaragua customs I realize that the permit was free! When you get your papers, keep them close by because they control them 50 m further.
Bottom line: If you can get rid of them, don't use helpers - they're just a waste of time and money.
Crossing on that side of the border is a real shock! The road must be the worst I've ever seen, with more potholes than pavement. When I think that I was complaining about the Honduras side! You have 18 wheelers navigating slowly their way through the holes and the dirt, it's almost unreal!
The problem is that the sunset will come soon now and at this pace it will take me hours just to get to the next village. Then suddenly the road becomes magically quite good! Hope is back and while riding at a good pace to 'leverage daylight' I pounder my options. I really would like to be in Leon tonight since I haven't been in a real city since San Cristobal in Mexico. But that means riding in the complete darkness for an hour
. By then I arrive in the dark in Chinandega where there are hotels. The road has been good (no potholes), lot of traffic (so no safety/robbery issues) so I decide to push it to Leon. I certainly don't recommend it but it was quite an experience.
You have to deal with many cars in headlights (or no lights) making your vision reduced, while having to watch the sides of the road where there are an incredible number of people walking, cycling or worst 'taxi cycling' (those can have 2 people side by side and so are pretty large).
I don't even mention dogs and such... Tough on your nerves for sure.
Arrived in Leon safely I finally relax, find a great hostal and even better the best restaurant of the trip so far. A couple of French people have opened it in April and it already got raved reviews. Of course it's way above my budget but still much cheaper than it would be in San Francisco. The fishermen deliver to them daily and so fish and seafood are ultra fresh, while the meat comes from Argentina 'because local butchers don't know how to cut it'. French are pretty intransigent with food even if it reduces their margin.
I had not eaten the whole day and it was a regal as well as very interesting to hear their perspective about this country, its politic etc...
Nov 17th - Leon
There are good and bad days on a trip and today was a really bad one. Actually the night was even worst! I'm almost never get sick from food but this must be a case of Montezuma´s revenge that I must have caught in Honduras.
Anyway, around 2 AM, I was definitely appreciative that there is a 24/7 open pharmacy in Leon. This town is cool and so I had planned to stay around here, check the beach (20 km south), visit an island with mangrove and crocodiles at the mouth of the river...
Instead I had to stay here all day with very painful stomach cramps. Oh well, at least they have free WIFI in the hostal.
What's frustrating is that Salcar and a couple of friends came to visit (they will stay here tonight) and that I couldn't even go have a beer with them.
Nov 18th - Leon to Las Penitas
Early wake-up this morning and… yes! I do feel much better. I get up right away for a walk in the city now that I have finally the energy to go take some pictures.
Lions are indeed everywhere in Leon
Interesting perspective from another church
In the covered market...
Coming back from my walk I don’t feel so good anymore... but I’ll leave today anyway. We spend a good time discussing with Salcar. This guy is incredible! Not only he’s a great traveler (check his site) but he’s also an awesome human being. He had a room waiting for me at his house for whenever I could show up, even if I had never met him before.
He leaves with his 2 visiting friends while I decide to check a cool place that was recommended to me at 'the beach', 20 km west of Leon. Then, I will get to Managua at Salcar's house.
The road to get to the coast is full of potholes but every problem is a potential opportunity: in some places people fill the potholes with dirt and place a 'barrier' on the road to encourage you to give them a bit of money for their work...
Arriving at the coast you can either go right to Poneloya or left to Las Penitas. I take to the right first...
I see only locals (or 'Nicas' as they called themselves) in the whole place.
Several 'restaurants' are right on the beach. And this looks very appealing!
10 minutes later
Now, let's hope that this first real meal for a long time is going to get along with my sickness.
It feels good to be in front of the ocean that I haven't seen since that first night in Mexico.
After my meal I go towards Las Penitas which happens to be quite undeveloped, just a fishermen village with a couple of small hotels. I like it! At the end of the village I arrive at 'La Barca de Oro', the place that was recommended to me. While I park the bike, I see Sandrine, the owner and we start to talk. It happens that a small boat is leaving in 5 minutes with a guide to visit the Juan Venado Island Nature Preserve and its mangrove.
I was not really planning to stay much here but this seems like a great (and cheap!) visit so i don't want to miss the opportunity so I say yes and hurry to get ready!
3 members of a family from Montreal and a couple of French are the other passengers, with of course Tonio, our guide and his son driving the boat.
Other boats are quite rustic but carry a good load anyway
The 'river' (it's actually salted water) separates from the coast a 20 km long island.
The further we go the narrower the 'river' becomes
And of course the mangrove is everywhere.
There are 275 species in the preserve and our guide was really good at spotting some of them. Some of the crocodiles there are 3 meters long but the ones we saw were pretty small...
Still, it must be quite impressive to see that from a kayak from example (Barca de Oro has a few, free for their customers).
OK, this one is much harder to spot! For a while we were sure that our guide was making a joke on us because we couldn't see anything, or what we were seeing looked just like a branch, with no movement at all.
But he showed us a picture on his birds book and indeed it looks exactly like this one, a night bird that uses this strange position as a camouflage.
At the end of the tour we stopped the boat and crossed the narrow island for a quick swim.
Going back to the hotel on the boat I realize that it's late already... The people in the boat are very nice and it seems that it would make more sense to stay there for the night.
View from the hotel, at low tide
It's a great evening indeed with excellent company and seafood fresh from the day. I just loved those 'Conchas Negras' that you see here raw, natural and just opened. Absolutely delicious!
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