On Sunday we got a ride up north to León with Angie and ate chicken shawarma for lunch. We waited an hour at a hardware store for paint to be mixed and I contemplated buying a machete. My father and I were dropped at Museo de Arte Fundación Ortiz-Guardián which was unfortunately closed for renovations. From there we walked around the city center while the girls did girl things. We checked out the large and impressive central cathedral as well as a few of the other beautiful churches. That night we watched the Portland Timbers advance to the MLS championship game and gave my Dad one last taste of typical Nicaraguan food at one of León's popular outdoor street grills.
Inside Iglesia de la Merced
We woke up early on Monday with the goal of climbing to the top of the central cathedral for spectacular views of the city and the surrounding volcanoes. The bonus would have been seeing the Telica Volcano which recently erupted and is now covered in light gray ash. We were unlucky again, as the cathedral staircase was not open at 8am like we had hoped and with my Father needing to catch a 9am airport shuttle, we strolled back to the hotel. The van arrived ontime and we said our goodbyes which were easy since we will see each other again in 10 days.
Despite the closures in León, I think the past 2 weeks couldn't have gone better. It was a good mix of backpacking and resort life. We showed my Dad some of the culture with chicken bus rides and local food, then did the relaxing golf and poolside happy hour. Definitley glad he came down.
For the rest of Monday we got back to our backpacker roots. After some bargain shopping in the markets and thrift stores, we ate lunch at a bus terminal kitchen and caught a bus to the junction town of Los Cedros. There, we waited an hour on the side of the road for another bus to take us down to km 49 and the beginning of the 11km dirt road to Gran Pacifica. When this 2nd bus dropped us off, we stood on the side of the road and stuck out our thumbs. All of our previous hitchhiking attempts have been successful and we were hoping for our last attempt to work just as well. After 20 minutes of no vehicles, a lady driving a work truck rolled by us, waving us off and apparently saying that she was stopping shortly. Then she stopped and backed up to us. We said "Gran Pacifica" and she said that she was stopping at her house for about 15 minutes before continuing on to our destination, if we didn't mind waiting. Of course we didn't mind, and soon found out that she was the mother-in-law of Big Bob (owner of Burrito Bandidos) and she knows Angela well. She must have recognized Julia and that is why she stopped. After helping her unload some food at her house, we hopped in the bed of the truck and soon arrived back at our temporary home where we were greeted by Kaiden running toward us.
Another successful hitchhiking
The next few days are a little easier to describe as we began the big project of painting the outside of the house.
Tuesday: Pressure washing and cleaning.
Wednesday: Prepped and painted. Saw smoke rising in the distance from the eruption of Momotombo Volcano. It had been 110 years since it's last eruption and we watched the local news showing it spew lava into the night.
Thursday: Prepped and painted some more.
Friday: Prepped and finished painting the main walls of the house for half the day, then attempted to snorkel before spending the final few hours of sunlight by the resort pool.
Saturday: We painted the windowsills and bases of the pillars for one last day of brush strokes and balancing on ladders. Just as we finished, some friends of Angie and Osman's came over for a BBQ and kids playing in the pool. We feasted and drank, enjoying the perfect night weather and a colorful sunset. Since it is less than 3 weeks until Christmas (although it doesn't feel like it down here) I was asked to don a Santa suit and give the kids some holiday cheer. It was my first time playing the jolly fat man, but 2 of the 3 kids were convinced I was the real thing.
Now it is Sunday again and I have to say today was a good day. The girls again headed out for a day on the town doing girl things in Managua. I took the opportunity to play as much golf as I could, which happens to currently be 27 holes in this heat. I played well, enjoyed myself and got back home in time to cleanup and make some ramen for lunch. Then joyfully watched the Portland Timbers win the MLS Championship while typing these words onto my iPad.
This will be my last post from overseas. We do plan on keeping this site updated as we arrive back home and pursue temporary job opportunities around the US in 2016. We will also post some recaps and top-10 lists from our year in Central America. But first, we have to finish this trip and get back home. Check back in a few days for Julia's post on the dramatic conclusion.
No comments:
Post a Comment