Visitors! (Part Two)

[Note:  Bex!  and I both wrote this post, so if the perspective or style seems to change, that is the reason.  In the places where the English is more gooder, it's probably Bex! writing.]

Ah, Sunday!  Lazy Sunday.  The day after the fiesta with the mariachi band, we did what everyone does after a late night of partying.  We got up really early to go on a really long, hot hike.  Sigh, no lazy Sunday.   

It was Mother's Day (in the US) and to celebrate we tried to kill Anne with this hike.  Not literally, but it turned out to be quite a long day and extremely warm.  We spent our day on a hike to the petroglyphs in El Guineo, which is just past San Ramon, south of Merida about 5-6 kilometers.  But first - breakfast!  We walked as far as Pescadito's and had a wonderful meal - gallopinto y huevos y pan (the wonderful Nica beans/rice mixture served with eggs and bread) and torta de papas (potato and egg torte) plus fresh juices and coffee for me.  Then we hit the road with Maykel, our friend, adult intermediate English student and (today) our guide.  Just outside San Ramon, Alvaro and his family came cruising up in the snazzy new Hacienda Merida Toyota Landcruiser pickup and gave us a lift as far as the biological station office.  It saved a little time and we were very grateful!

Posing in front of the flowers!

We stopped into a pulperia to buy some more water - very hot, remember.  Maykel misunderstood what we wanted and ordered beer for us!  Haha!  This was funny on a couple points:  It was about 10 in the morning; and neither Mike nor Anne drink.  Unfortunately, before we figured out what was happening, the guy in the store had opened two liter-sized bottles of Toña, which he was nice enough to stash for us until we made the return trip.   

Along the way we discovered a field of onions.  Apparently it is possible to come here and buy directly from the dirt.

We saw howler monkeys but they stubbornly refused to make any noises for Mike's microphone - "Shhhhh, the gringo wants to record us!  Everyone - quiet!" 

Elegant egret on a fancy dock in San Ramon

Good thing we went with a guide because there is no sign to tell you whose front yard to walk into and ask to see the petroglyphs.  Seriously, Maykel stopped us in front of a house and we walked down to the front and paid a guy 120 cordobas (about $5).  Then he pointed to the field behind his house and - bam - petroglyphs!  

There are two groups of petroglyphs.  One set is a very short walk through a field.  There is a jumble of rocks at one edge of the field and many of them are covered in petroglyphs.  There are no interpretive signs or trails, but as you move around and the light angle changes, the designs jump out.  We saw crabs, crosses, spirals, and even one that looked like the Yellow Submarine.

X marks the spot!  "Under this rock, you shall find… another rock."

The Beatles version...

Use your imagination… or take LSD, like the Beatles!!  Then you'll see it for sure!

The popular spiral motif.  Archaeologists say it represents Ometepe.  I'm thinking fancy mustaches.

Taking a break to talk history.

The second set of 'glyphs (that's what us cool kids call them) is down on the rocks at the lake shore and are only visible when the water level is low, say for example at the end of the dry season in May when the rains are late.  These petroglyphs were particularly cool to get to see because they are not always accessible.  Plus, it was just plain cooler down by the lake where the wind was blowing.

Ooh, get a picture of that one right there!

The pre-Columbian inhabitants had TV and The Simpsons?!?  This is Sideshow Bob, right?

How did that shot turn out?

Quien es este guapo con barba?

Demonstrating how the ancient carver might have sat to do his work.

I know there are petroglyphs around here somewhere!

We had previously visited the petroglyphs at Finca Magdalena out of Blague.  You can read about those petroglyphs and see our pictures here.  These at El Guineo were better - less worn and more visible, more iconic and interesting figures.  Plus, they were cheaper, a whole five bucks for the whole group of us.  

We didn't get on the road as early as we hoped and we were frequently distracted by plant and wildlife along the way so it turned out to be a very long hot day, but great rock art made up for it.  We also stopped for a soda break in San Ramon (Maykel and Dave drank the pre-ordered beer) and treated ourselves to ice cream smoothies at Hacienda Merida on the way back.  Cold ice cream always helps.

On Monday, Anne came to first grade with us again.  And this was a very special day for OBS - the first day ever that we got to teach the first graders in their very own classroom.  It was awesome.  Maybe they were just particularly attentive and well-behaved because it was the first day of the week, but I didn't have to say "get out of the hammock" at all.  Bex! took her parents to the afternoon class and the high school class as guests for the students to practice with.  They were good sports, despite having to repeatedly answer the question "How old are you?".

Tuesday, Mom and Dad went to the swamp with Noldan, our friend, adult intermediate English student and a guide.  They kayaked over to the entrance and then walked into the swamp due to the low water.  When the water level is higher you can kayak right in - not so this time of year.  They had a great time!  Mom saw 9 new birds.  No caymans, though.  Noldan is very knowledgable and they fully enjoyed his company and expertise.  Bex! took her parents to the intermediate class as guests in the evening.  Only had one student (sigh), but had a good conversation about similarities and differences between Ometepe and Juneau, Alaska.  Here's a snap shot of what my student and the guests came up with.

Similarities:

• Lots of rain
• Lots of tourists
• Both live on an island
• Both have a waterfall
• People kayak

Differences:

• Alaska is colder/Ometepe is hotter
• Alaska has less light in the winter and more light in the summer; Ometepe has the same all year round
• Most people on Ometepe speak Spanish; most people in Alaska speak English

Wednesday evening Bex! took her parents to Noldan's class as guests.  The students did a great job of practicing their questions before the guests arrived and the parents were again really good sports.  It was nice to finally introduce Mike and Anne to Luis and Rosabella Lorio, our dear friends who are so generous and giving.  Meanwhile, as Dave left his classes at the hacienda that evening, Grandma Ruth gave Dave/us atole de mango.  Dave told us that Grandma Ruth said it was just for him, of course.  Hmmmm.  Luckily, we talked him in to sharing.  It was still warm so we ate it for dinner and had pasta for dessert.

The next day, Mom came to kindergarten with us.  Dad came too.  We all thanked Grandma Ruth for the scrumptious atole de mango.  She gave us more!  Plus, she gave us a new treat - chichi de maize, a popular corn-based drink.  Kids - this is why you should always write thank you notes.

Later, we were just hanging out on the porch in the afternoon when, lo and behold, monkeys in the yard!  The family (Cornelius, Zira and baby Milo) came walking down the trail, passed briefly through the yard, and climbed up into the mango trees.  It was the first time we'd seen them on the ground, too, which was pretty neat.  

And we finally got one of the new paddle boards inflated.  Teaching + house guests = busy, busy, busy.  Bex! took a short inaugural float, but it was too windy to stand up and try it out much.  Shucks.

This will only take a minute to inflate...

Hmm, still pumping.  Anyone want a try?  It's 'white-washing a fence' fun!

Okay if I just round up to 15 lbs?  I'm tired of pumping.

Finally!  Ready to hit the water, except my arms are too tired to hold the paddle.

How exactly does one break a bottle of champagne over the bow of an inflatable vessel?

Friday came and it was time to leave the island to see more of this beautiful country.  It was so nice to have family come visit and we were thankful for all the things they brought for us.  In addition to lugging our new paddle boards down, they brought books for the school kids, supplies, realia for teaching and - salmon jerky!!  We packed up for our short stint off island and made sure the Alaskans had everything they needed to bring back with them, namely tech gear and chargers.  Miguel came and picked us up at the house in his taxi and we were off!

Wonderful family, wonderful visit

Miguel!!

On the way to Moyogalpa, we made a brief stop at Playa Domingo to jump out of the car and look at the big side of the lake.  

After Semana Santa, the beach is for the cows.

Later, we stopped and visited Punta Jesus Maria.  We walked and walked out the long sandy spit, collecting copious amounts of sand and broken shells in our sandals.  This narrow strip of sand extends quite a ways out into the lake and when the winds are just right, waves lap up on shore from both sides!  We admired the views back toward the island and the large flock of terns and other shore birds hanging out at the very end of the spit.  

Spit?  I can't spit that far.

Alaskans in the tropics.

Ouch, ouch, ouch.  This stuff is not Dr. Scholl's approved.

Birds of a feather...

Three Alaskans

A boy and his volcano

In Moyogalpa, we again ate lunch at our favorite place - sandwiches at the Corner House are always a treat.  We boarded the ferry and headed across the lake for the next phase in our adventures with visitors.  Masaya, Laguna de Apoyo, and Granada here we come!

'Adios, Ometepe!' say the visitors.  'Hasta pronto!' say us locals.