Monkeys & Hitchhiking Adventures!

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On this morning we packed up and headed out to find the bus area so we could catch a chicken bus to Rivas. A bus was leaving as we approached and they stopped loaded our bags on top of the bus along with a lot of other cargo. The bus was so crowded, we could barely get on and it was so uncomfortable, people touching you in all directions, so hot and it's hard to keep from slamming into people as the bus jerks. Sadly they just kept picking people up, how we fit any more is beyond me but that is how these things go.



Eventually the bus shed people and I got a seat for part of the ride. Dan started talking to a girl from Wisconsin named Leana, she was headed to Ometepe (an island on Lake Nicaragua) same as us. We arrived in Rivas and shared a cab to the port. I was slightly concerned since my last boat ride was not very kind to me but thankfully it was not bad at all. The lake is big enough that the boat does rock but totally tolerable.



We arrived in the city of Moyogalpa a few hours later. (the boat travels very slowly) Dan and I really hadn't planned much so we followed Leana to the place she wanted to stay out but they were booked up. We decided we should all share a room together, it would be cheaper than dorm beds anyway. We looked at several rooms in a hotel and even though we saw some debris on one of the beds in one of the rooms we didn't choose; we decided to stay. As soon as we put our stuff down in the room we heard mice running in the ceiling and poop dropped down. This is what we had seen on the other bed apparently. Horrified we booked it out and told the manager never mind. We found a simple little place to stay. It was clean and that's all that really mattered. We had dinner at a little Italian place, it was nothing special.



Dan wasn't feeling well still so he headed back and Leana and I walked around a bit in search of bug spray with a decent deet content which was impossible. Moyogalpa actually means place of the mosquito's but we happily found this was not the case so it wasn't a big deal that we couldn't find the bug spray that I wanted.



The next morning we took a chicken bus to Ojo de Agua which are some mineral springs. We were one of the first ones on the bus so we got seats! It was a lovely drive which allowed us to see some of the island including driving over the air strip which I thought was cool. There were also road signs all over with a picture of a volcano erupting that said evacuation route. This is because there are two volcanoes on the island. I found the signs amusing. After the bus dropped us off it was a short walk to the springs. We had been told they were not hot but warm which was untrue. It was quite cold but there was mud that felt really good and we enjoyed our time there. The old man who let us in also told us it would make us feel 10 years younger!



We met a lovely couple from Brazil who did what Dan & I did a few years ago and it was nice to hear how happy they were now settled back down after two years of traveling and of course they still travel on their vacation time.



There were a couple of American's there as well who had hired a guide to take them to various places on the island. They told us about a short hike they did earlier in the day. During the hike they saw a lot of monkeys. We got the name of the place and then asked how to get there. Turns out it was only a few kilometers away so we decided to go find it.



We took a short cut which provided some interesting scenery. We came to a farmers gate and we really weren't sure if we were meant to go thru or not. Thankfully a man was heading our way on the other side of the gate and we asked him if it was ok to pass and he said yes of course. I think the gate was just to keep the farm animals in because it appeared to have a trail well traveled. Along the way we saw a bunch of baby chickens, I think that's what they were. They were mostly pink, like bright pink and we were totally bewildered. It didn't look like they were painted and it looked like it would have been impossible to die them that way.



At the entrance of the park we saw several brightly colored birds. There was an enormous tree and I was happy we came from the moment we started. It wasn't long before we heard monkeys howling. I hadn't expected it to happen so quickly. We had not reached the part of the trail that the American's saw them at so it was a pleasant surprise. They were so loud! When they stopped I tried to call them (the American's guide had called the monkeys) and they seemed to respond. Leana said I sounded pretty close and Dan said it was coincidence that they responded. Either way I was really enjoying myself. We saw so many I can't even tell you how many, it was wonderful! If I had a bench and food I could watch monkeys for many hours, I find them highly entertaining.



I also saw two bright green parrots which was a rare treat. It can be quite hard to see birds sometimes. We tried a leg of trail and saw more monkeys, turned around and did the rest of the loop. We came to a big tree that had a sign in front of it that said bats lived there. We did actually see some bats, so creepy! By the end of it we were quite impressed with ourselves for finding this place, walking there and seeing the monkeys and it was all free!



We headed back, it would be a longer walk to where we could catch a bus because the last bus had already come to Ojo de Agua so we decided to hitchhike. A big Bronco looking thing passed by and slowed down then pulled over a ways ahead. I figured it stopped for us so we started running. We get there and its full of hippies (French I think) they tell us to hop on the bumper so the 3 of us stand on the rear bumper and hold onto the bar on the roof. We are laughing at how ridiculous this is and at the same time Leana is voicing concern. I was scared too and as she points out if we fall off we are definitely going to die painfully. She was in the middle and holding on to the rear bar, I had one hand on that bar and one hand on the side bar. Her concerns about the bar not feeling very stable were valid. I told her to put one hand on the side bar because it felt more secure which she did.



After a while we come upon 3 more people hitchhiking and they pull over! The 3 of us are like WHAT!?! A guy gets out of the vehicle and sits on the hood. They let the girl inside. Dan climes on the roof and sits and the other two guys who were from Argentina hop on the rear bumper with Leana and I. I was just laughing so hard at how crazy this was and fun at the same time. Still scared, pretty sure we are a long ways from a hospital at this point. With the guy on the hood the driver was driving more slowly though so that was a comfort. As we passed locals they just stared. What a site, ha ha! Not that they don't cram a million people in vehicles, I just don't see them on hoods or roofs! We arrived at the "bus stop" and the 6 of us hopped off, we said thank you and then I thanked God that we made it!

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