Isla de Ometepe

As we mentioned, one of the places we were determined to see on our Nicaraguan adventure was the island of Ometepe (OH-ma-tep-Ay).  It is in the middle of lake Nicaragua and receives high praise in guidebooks, by passing tourists, and most importantly – all the Nicas rave about it.

Getting around this country can be easy and hard.  I guess it depends on your perspective.  Of course, in the US, we would pack the car, grab our keys, and set off.  Almost NO ONE does that here. 

A wealthy Nica (or tourist) will typically take a ‘private’ taxi (you have to pay extra if you don’t want him to stop and fill the remaining seats with other travelers).  And the taxis are normally 1990’s Honda’s or Toyotas (don’t even think about a seat belt).  The cost to travel this way to the terminal (san Jorge – about an hour away) is about $30-40.  The other option is to ride the bus for about $0.70 per person.  What the hell – we took the bus.

Just off the market in Granada is the main bus ‘terminal’.   Think fifteen-foot chain link fences to protect the five-acre mud packed lot – strewn with decades of garbage and roving packs of dogs.  Then add twenty men yelling out destinations as they stand next to their shiny silver buses.  Well, maybe not shiny – or silver…  Ok, actually the buses are all very old with markings from whatever US school or Church they died at. 

Here in Central America, with a fresh coat of red paint, some flowers or butterflies, muslin curtains, and a good set of bad tires – you have yourself a business! 

We got to the terminal early (7:15 AM).  The bus was scheduled to depart at 7:30 – and we got a good seat right behind the driver (the second to last one).  I squeezed our backpack (we consolidated and left the other with Winston at the Hotel Posada del Sol).  Marci heaved the camel backs and her purse on top, and we winnowed our way across the bench.  I did have to move the driver’s onions and dry cheese a bit as well.

The view from behind our seat on the 'chicken' bus

The bus was not nearly as packed as the one we took down from mount Mombacho.  Silly me.  I didn’t realize that in Nica time, 7:30 is really 8:00, and about forty people boarded the bus as we sat sweltering in the morning sun.  You cannot begin to imagine how many people pack in there.  Seriously.  And some bring animals, goods to sell in the market, or…. 

The ferry to Ometepe

The ride was about two hours (the bus will stop in the middle of the road to pick up a new passenger) and we were dropped of at the kissing cousin (with much more mud) bus terminal in Rivas.  After a private taxi to San Jorge (we paid too much!  $10 – ughhhh), we bought our tickets for the ferry to Ometepe ($2.50 each).

The ferry over was pleasant (breezes blowing into the open windows from off the lake) and we had a GREAT time watching a karate movie that had been filmed in Asia, dubbed in English, and was now sub-titled in Spanish.  Too funny!  We met another US couple on the boat and agreed to share a taxi on Ometepe to cut down the cost.

Once on the island most people opt to take the bus.  However, we’d been warned that it could take THREE hours on a good day because the roads are so bad (and after driving on them in Danielo’s four-wheel-drive Land Rover – I think the three hour estimate is optimistic).

Finally, six hours later, we arrived at the Hacienda Meridia.  Stunning.

Marci found this place on a brochure in an American style restaurant in Granada.   It is right on the water, offers kayaks, horses, tours, and healthy buffet style meals.  The cost for a room with a private balcony and bathroom was $28.  Three days in paradise turned into seven (www.hmerida.com)

Hacienda Merida - our home for home for seven days

Ometepe is truly not to be missed.