My time here is nearly finished... Tomorrow morning at 8.00am I begin 22 hours of flying to my beautiful country NZ! There were many sad goodbyes in Somotillo but we all exchanged emails etc and hope to keep in contact.
It has been an amazing 6 weeks and has gone so quickly, I have picked up some Spanish and many friends along the way but now my mind is set on getting home, where power, water and toilet paper are all readily available (for which I have a new appreciation!)
I arrive around 10.20am in the domestic terminal of Christchurch airport on Thursday morning!
Thank you for following me on my Nica journey and I cant wait to see you all soon.
Ruby xx
Monday, February 16, 2009
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Chuapa and Esteli
Just a quick update about a wee excursion I had this weekend!
On Friday one of the guys who works for INGES invited me to his home town to meet his family in Chuapa which is approximately an hour from Somotillo and its always good to take up any opportunities to see more of the country! So we set off in the big 4WD on Friday night and the road was absolutely terrible! We went an average speed of about 20km per hour and when we arrived in Chuapa the wind had blown over the power poles so there was no power. He introduced me to his wife, his daughter (who is also studying Economics at uni) and his son who he wants me to marry so that I will stay in Nicaragua!
We went out and had tacos for dinner and came back and looked at photos etc with a little torch. That night it was so windy I thought the roof would lift off but luckily it never did! The next day we went to another town called Esteli which is the business centre of Nicaragua and they showed me the Central Park and the Cathedral then we looked around a few shops before heading back to Chuapa.
Before we left Somotillo he said we would have to come back on the motorbike because someone else needed the car, he assured me it was only an hours drive and he drove his motorcycle to and from Chuapa every weekend. So after a couple of days in Chuapa we set off on the motorbike, Nicaraguan style... That means no helmet, no road rules, no speed limit! It was good fun, however I did fear for my like on a couple of occassions! It turns out the 1 hour ride was actually 2 and a half hours after which I was very keen to get home and never ride another motorbike again!
All in all it was a nice weekend, his son was very nice although I cant say it was enough for me to stay and marry him! This time next week I will be on the plane to LA on my way home, how crazy!
On Friday one of the guys who works for INGES invited me to his home town to meet his family in Chuapa which is approximately an hour from Somotillo and its always good to take up any opportunities to see more of the country! So we set off in the big 4WD on Friday night and the road was absolutely terrible! We went an average speed of about 20km per hour and when we arrived in Chuapa the wind had blown over the power poles so there was no power. He introduced me to his wife, his daughter (who is also studying Economics at uni) and his son who he wants me to marry so that I will stay in Nicaragua!
We went out and had tacos for dinner and came back and looked at photos etc with a little torch. That night it was so windy I thought the roof would lift off but luckily it never did! The next day we went to another town called Esteli which is the business centre of Nicaragua and they showed me the Central Park and the Cathedral then we looked around a few shops before heading back to Chuapa.
Before we left Somotillo he said we would have to come back on the motorbike because someone else needed the car, he assured me it was only an hours drive and he drove his motorcycle to and from Chuapa every weekend. So after a couple of days in Chuapa we set off on the motorbike, Nicaraguan style... That means no helmet, no road rules, no speed limit! It was good fun, however I did fear for my like on a couple of occassions! It turns out the 1 hour ride was actually 2 and a half hours after which I was very keen to get home and never ride another motorbike again!
All in all it was a nice weekend, his son was very nice although I cant say it was enough for me to stay and marry him! This time next week I will be on the plane to LA on my way home, how crazy!
Friday, February 6, 2009
My vacation in Leon etc
After 3 weeks in Somotillo, I was off for a much needed vacation in Leon, one of Nicaragua most beautiful cities! However before that I spent the weekend at my friend Candidas house in a town called Jinotepe. We managed to get a lift down there instead of the 6 hour bus ride (on 4 different buses!) but the car was jam packed and for the whole 4 hours I was couldnt move a whole lot and the greater part of my legs were dead... Her family were very welcoming, she has one sister and 3 brothers, one of which can speak perfect English, Spanish, German and French (Woah!) but sadly he is the only one that doesnt live there anymore. One of her other brothers began English lessons while I was there and was very greatful that I could help him with his homework. They took me out to the market and to get hamburgers at night and when I said I liked one of the girls t-shirts she gave it to her mum who took it in at the sides and gave it to me as a gift! They were very generous and it was a really nice weekend.
On the Sunday I caught a bus up to Leon to meet my friend Lauren and another girl she knows called Jana who is from Germany. It was rather interesting because Lauren speaks English and Spanish, Jana speaks German, Spanish and can understand English but finds it hard to speak and I know English and a tiny bit of Spanish! So the language was constantly changing between English and Spanish, occassionaly even in the same sentance.
We spent 2 nights at a really cool youth hostel in Leon and did a bit of shopping and looking around the city. I bought a few things, a cool pair of jeans that were only about $20!
Then came the part I have been waiting for my whole time here..... The beach! Of course to get there we had to take another jam packed boiling sweaty bus road over a bumpy dirt road but it was well worth it. Our dorm room was literally on the beach and when I woke up in the morning I could see the water and feel the breeze, yay!
We spent a night there and swam during the day, drunk exotic juices and watched the sunset over the water, the perfect few days I would have to say. In the morning Lauren and I took a boat ride up a river to an island that apparantly had emerald pools to swim at...If there were we certainly didnt see them sadly! Although it was still a nice wee boat ride and something a bit different.
After our trip to the beach we spent another night at the hostel in Leon and had like the best meals of our lives... It was such a novelty to get to choose what you want to eat because in Somtillo its pretty much Gullo Pinto, Gullo Pinto, Fried bananas and more Gullo Pinto (Rice and beans). We also bought icecream and cooked up apples and cinamon for dessert and finished off a packet of mini reeses peanut butter cups (my absolute favourite!)
So all in all Leon was the perfect break and really good to catch up with Lauren and get to know Yana.
Now I am back in Somotillo (I actually missed my friends and family from Somotillo while in Leon) and I think I will spend the rest of my time here- I was going to go to the capital for the last four days but there is a big party here for Valentines Day that everyone is talking about already so I think I will stay for that!
So theres a nice long update for you all, less than 2 weeks left here now but I think weeks will be the perfect amount of time. Im starting to feel sad about leaving and wondering whether I will ever see all these people again but I am also really really looking forward to seeing you all as I do miss you like crazy!
Much love Ruby
On the Sunday I caught a bus up to Leon to meet my friend Lauren and another girl she knows called Jana who is from Germany. It was rather interesting because Lauren speaks English and Spanish, Jana speaks German, Spanish and can understand English but finds it hard to speak and I know English and a tiny bit of Spanish! So the language was constantly changing between English and Spanish, occassionaly even in the same sentance.
We spent 2 nights at a really cool youth hostel in Leon and did a bit of shopping and looking around the city. I bought a few things, a cool pair of jeans that were only about $20!
Then came the part I have been waiting for my whole time here..... The beach! Of course to get there we had to take another jam packed boiling sweaty bus road over a bumpy dirt road but it was well worth it. Our dorm room was literally on the beach and when I woke up in the morning I could see the water and feel the breeze, yay!
We spent a night there and swam during the day, drunk exotic juices and watched the sunset over the water, the perfect few days I would have to say. In the morning Lauren and I took a boat ride up a river to an island that apparantly had emerald pools to swim at...If there were we certainly didnt see them sadly! Although it was still a nice wee boat ride and something a bit different.
After our trip to the beach we spent another night at the hostel in Leon and had like the best meals of our lives... It was such a novelty to get to choose what you want to eat because in Somtillo its pretty much Gullo Pinto, Gullo Pinto, Fried bananas and more Gullo Pinto (Rice and beans). We also bought icecream and cooked up apples and cinamon for dessert and finished off a packet of mini reeses peanut butter cups (my absolute favourite!)
So all in all Leon was the perfect break and really good to catch up with Lauren and get to know Yana.
Now I am back in Somotillo (I actually missed my friends and family from Somotillo while in Leon) and I think I will spend the rest of my time here- I was going to go to the capital for the last four days but there is a big party here for Valentines Day that everyone is talking about already so I think I will stay for that!
So theres a nice long update for you all, less than 2 weeks left here now but I think weeks will be the perfect amount of time. Im starting to feel sad about leaving and wondering whether I will ever see all these people again but I am also really really looking forward to seeing you all as I do miss you like crazy!
Much love Ruby
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