Arright! Please allow me to break the silence down here, the last couple days have been sort of disconnected, if not hectic, if not both. Anyway, after two earlier intentions (aka semi-attempts) to go to the Corn Islands, I finally managed to get there! You know what they say - third time lucky ;)

The entire story on the subject is quite extensive, so bearing in mind the majority of visitors prefer a short story (and lots of pics ;)) you´ll find the “director´s cut” below. The full monte can be found by clicking on “read more” at the bottom of this article. Sounds fair, doesn´t it? :)

So here we go… As the islands are pretty isolated (70km off Nicaragua´s east coast), there´s basically two options to get there: by air (aka recommended and preferred) and by bus and boat (aka adventurous and dodgy). This makes for an easy choice: let´s take the latter!

That morning I got away from Lago de Apoyo by throwing both myself and my backpack over the fence. A quick busride took me to Masaya, famous for its “artesanias” - this is where I decided to buy a hammock, bearing in mind the large number of uncomfortable journeys I still had ahead of me (trust me, there´s more to come after this one!). Been there, done that and another busride took me to Managua. Three hours (and three attempts of theft, all unsuccessful) later I was on the bus to El Rama … what is it with Central American capitals!? One I got there all hotels appeared to be full so I spent the night sleeping in the bus - the hammock instantly came to good use :)

After being kicked out of the bus by its personnel (sorry, I have a hard time waking up!) I took the fast boat to Bluefields, and I mean F-A-S-T - the scenery was lovely though I didn`t get to see much as our boat hung almost vertical with speed :) Down in Bluefields I met up with some people (hello Rita and Mario) and together we learnt we missed the ferry to the Corn Islands by about an hour - bummer! Speaking to locals appeared to help though and we learnt a fishing boat would be leaving for the islands from El Bluff, a key just 1km off the coast. Friendly locals and even friendlier fishermen (yah man) allowed us to hitchhike and we got to Big Corn that same day.  We spent Saturday night on Big Corn (Reggae Palaca was nice!) and I left for Little Corn the next morning. I fell in love with the place as soon as I set foot on the dock - once again the pics should speak for themselves! Spent the next days enjoying perfect weather and, more importantly, went scuba-diing! You read that right: I CAN DIVE AGAIN! It was well worth it too; swimming among sharks and stingraysis quite an experience!

Unfortunately all good things come to an end eventually, and I now find myself in Cancun after spending 4 days on boats and buses, ready for the next journey. YAH MAN!

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Sunrise on Rio Escondido ... on the way to Bluefields

More Rio Escondido sightseeing

Our ride to Big Corn!

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No worries, I`m still alive! The last couple days have been full of pleasant surprises; it was hard to decide where to go next after Copan, but I eventually ended up in a town called Gracias, former capital of Spanish Central America. Although a bit dusty, the town was pretty interesting and gave a nice look into daily Honduran life as well as the local Lenca culture. Also made plans to climb Honduras` highest peak but due to a lack of participants the trip could not go on, so this got back to my to-do list for the time being ;)

After Gracias I decided to go to Lago de Yojoa, though I slept in and left a bit too late. As a result I got stuck in a town called San Juan - and when no buses are available to get you out of there, only one option remains: hitchhiking! I found some Lenca people who were willing to take me to the next town, which apparently was modernized enough to have bus traffic after 2pm :) Never knew a 14-seat minivan could hold up to 35 people - but somehow it fits provided you`re prepared to take care of people`s children ;)

Anyway, Lago de Yojoa is stunningly beautiful and so are the surroundings. Met a US Peace Corps volunteer who showed me around the area and took me to places where I would otherwise never have gotten to. Also visited the Pulhapanzak waterfalls (by mountainbike!) which is quite a sight! On my way down, I slipped on one of the platforms, fell and slid down, nearly sliding under the fence (thank heaven for the steel cable!) and falling 10m down into the waterfall itself - hence the bodycount. I`m starting to become well-known for shocking my fellow travelers ;) Together with a local guy we climbed rocks, swam through pools and slid through some vegetation until we managed to get behind the waterfall, at the point where the cascade hits the pool below. My ears are still recovering…

Right now I`m about to make another bike-ride through the area, after which I`ll probably head back down to Leon, Nicaragua. I`ll definately keep you posted on any new developments!

Till next time!!

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Old church (and I mean O-L-D) - Gracias

More old stuff - Gracias

Hot springs (not so old) - Gracias

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