Isla de Ometepe

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Isla de Ometepe

 Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Isla de Ometepe By present moment wonderful moment
March 6th 2007 Ah, Ometepe. The double volcano island with the infinity-shaped road does have a certain magic to it. Sure, the tepid freshwater lake is a bit murky, and who knows why those fish are occasionally found floating on its surface; but the practically car-free, commerce-free island was super tranquilo. No wonder why a more than a few escapees from the Northern Hemispere have perched themselves in the hills in recent years, and the tourists just keep on coming by the boat-load. We loved watching the boys and girls riding too-big bikes over the rocky roads in their school uniforms, and playing ball in the streets each afternoon. We loved the the simple but lovely lakesides and awe-inspiring volcanic vistas that met your every glance. We loved the quiet, knowing that across the lakes and over those mountains meeting the ocean, it was another world, Nicaragua's own "Pacific Riviera" (more on that in the next blog). We stayed three weeks, and we don't doubt that we will return.

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Photos

approaching Volcan Concepcion
view from the lancha

Hang on, Yacu
it's going to be a bumpy ride

laguna charco verde
hmmm...that foam around the edge made us wonder about the cleanliness of the freshwater lagoon...we abstained from taking a dip.

biking the island
these wheels carried trin around the concepcion ring road, a 6 hour mountain biking extraveganza over level pavement, dirt, and downhill hang on with all your life force lava rock gravel!

"paving" the road
fortunately for me and my bicycle, this sandwept stretch along Playa Santo Domingo was in the process of being loaded with dirt.

view from the mirador at finca zopilote
Trin took a bike ride over to Finca Ecologica Zopilote one day to inquire about volunteering, only to find that again, this "farm" was basically a hippie-ish hillside hospedaje with banana trees and not a center of permaculture, as advertised. Nice lookout tower, though.

plantain farms
and volcanic rocks abound

island traffic
how much we love this place with so few cars!!!

playing at Playa Venecia
Our friend Katrin comes to visit from Baltimore. Here Yacu teaches her how to count.

peaceful pause
orit enjoys a moment of rest while yacu sleeps

want a coconut?
first you climb the tree (or get someone to do it for you...)