Nicaragua - Pearl Lagoon and Orinoco

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I took a Panga (speed boat) to Peal Lagoon, a town on the lagoon of the same name further North up the coast. Again, it has a mix of mainly Afro-Caribbean and Mestizo inhabitants. It has a much more laid back feel than Bluefields, the people are very friendly and relaxed, and greet us with "alright" in a strong Caribbean accent. English is the main language. I met Francis, a Swiss lady, and her Nicaraguan husband, Eric, while waiting for the boat and we stayed at the same place - the Green Lodge. I had met them originally in El Castillo where they shared some of their abundant local knowledge about places to stay and things to do.

The economy centres around fishing and shrimping in the bountiful lagoon, but as always with declining fish stocks. In the afternoons the main street hums with the aroma of drying shrimp: the mornings catch is laid out on plastic sheets in the sun to dry and then ground by beating it against the concrete in bags. The catch is bought at ridiculously low prices by brokers from Bluefields and other towns or sold to other people in the town. The irony is that there are many oysters in the lagoon, as the name would suggest, but there is no market for them so they're not worth harvesting.

There's not really much to do in the town. It's more a place just to chill and absorb a bit of the interesting culture. We walked to the nearest beach, about 30mins from the town, and I had some great local food. I spent that night there and then early the next morning I went with Francis and Eric to Orinoco, a Garifuna settlement on the opposite side of the lake. This was even more interesting than Pearl Lagoon and rarely frequented by travellers. It is such a beautiful and friendly settlement with a strong African derived culture. They play drums and dance the Punta and generally have a relaxed life. I spent the day wondering around, chatting with the locals, and learning a little about their life.

The next day I returned to Peal Lagoon. As I had very little to do I decided to go out fishing with a local fisherman. It was lovely to paddle and sail around the bay in a little canoe and find out how they fish. However, I caught a fairly large stingray which had to be killed as my captain couldn't get the hook out and they can be dangerous. He promised to cook it up for dinner (although they are not normally eaten) but I still felt guilty about catching it and vowed I wouldn't fish again.

I spent the night there and took a bus at 5am to make my way back to "Nicaragua" as a woman on the bus put it.

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Photos

Residents of Orinoco
They were fascinated by the digital camera

Comments

[Lesley Stableford]

photos
Some great photos Lukey. xx