3-9 & 3-10

Agua Azul is a special place on Lake Yojoa.  We arrived mid-afternoon hot and very tired.  The ride up from progresso started out as a good secondary “going to market” road with many small villages (all with internet) serving the valley agricultural community.  We slowly climbed from sea level up a broad river valley to the base of the mountains where we met the major highway going to the capital city, Tegucigalpa.  We had lunch at this intersection, a gas station luncheonette then jumped on the highway only to find out it was under major construction.  The usuable part was gravel/paved and narrow...no shoulder a a drop off of inches to feet, depending on construction.  Loads of traffic and mostly 18 wheelers, one after another.  We decided to ride in the packed dirt of the construction.  This went on for kilometers up, up, up and deteriorated as we progressed.  Finally this part of the construction ended and we got a small shoulder so we could relax a little ....48 miles!

              We were looking for Agua Azul – on our map it was marked on the wrong road.  Maps have been a problem!  When we finally found the hotel Agua Azul was up a long poorly maintained driveway and did not look inviting or promising as we rode in.  From the outside, it resembled a 1950’s fishing camp....a central reception/restaurant surrounded by run down cabins.  Well, we ended up spending two wonderful days relaxing at the pool, bird watching from the huge covered deck where we ate breakfast and lunch at tree top level!

1. Road to Lake - under construction 2. Judee on Porch - Agua Azul 3. 50's cottage

3-11

A long day at the office:  55m/99km to Comayagua, Honduras through mountainous country in warm to hot clear weather.  We passed around Lake Yojoa (17km long) a black bass fishing hot spot.  You can buy them off the road – stringers of fish hang at the road side.

             
Further up, up, up we came across a sugar cane processing operation.  Cane stalks are crushed, juice is boiled (fired by crushed stalks), down into a thick slurry of gold and poured into molds to dry into sugar blocks.  All along this part of the road the locals were selling bottles of Pollen & Honey; home gathered and hand bottled in all kinds and sizes of containers.

             
Another fascinating item are the lime mines, kilns, with stacks of bags sold from private houses on the roadside.  The areas were white with lime, children playing in it, mothers sweeping it and fathers firing the kilns to cool it.  What does it do to your body to live in a totally lime encrusted environment?

1.roadside fish 2.Cane pressing 3. Cane Cooking

1. Cane Molding 2. Kids in Lime 3. Lime Kiln

Late in the afternoon as we were approaching the end of the ride and our last long climb we were just topping the crest in heavy traffic and needed to drop off the road on to the shoulder …as we did so, our whole back pannier rack fully loaded decided to come loose and rotate backwards to the ground.  We were able to stop, get off and survey what had occurred.  It seems that the two airplane nuts holding the rack on the seat stays came undone.  We were very tired at this point but with the watchful eyes of two road urchins, possibly 8 & 10 years old, we worked together with shaking hands and a too small crescent wrench.  We rebuilt the rack, reloaded the panniers and large stuff sack on top and continued on our journey.  No harm, no foul, but a lesson learned – get a proper tool to replace the small crescent wrench and added to that list a pair of wire cutters.  We do bicker a bit in situations like this, but soon settle down into a smooth working team.

3-12

Up at 6.15, breakfast at the hotel with a tour group traveling from Panama City to Mexico City … a mixed group of young and old travelers, some doing the whole two months, some just two weeks. We hit the road a little after 8 am. We took the road down to the end of the large valley before we started our first long climb of 24 Km back up into and over into the mountains.

Today we ran out of water before lunch and were very tired and thirsty when we hit a town and restaurant. The last few km´s, no water and no energy … so the buffet really hit the spot …huge plate of food and drinks…I downed around a liter and a half in the afternoon and we had to stop for more…no bottles, only plastic bags of water. Judee bought four and we filled up. I think we climbed about 50 or 55 km out of the 91 km total and 6.5 hours in the saddle with our average of about 8.3 mph. This was a very long, hard day into the capital city of Honduras…Tegucigalpa… not an easy place to find our way around and we were lost. A young man on his bike told us to follow him and he took us all the way into the city center where we could finally use our Rough Guide city maps to find a hotel.

1. Climb from Valley 2. Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Oh, I forgot to mention the nice man who stopped to offer us a ride the last 15 km. We were pooped, worn out but both wanted to finish on our own so thanked the man. Angels do appear to help and this one almost got our vote!

3-13

Tegucigalpa: layover day.
We are pooped and Judee´s knee is hurting. Went walking to look for breakfast and ended up at the priciest hotel in town for their buffet $7. p-p and we pigged out…wonderful outdoor setting where we could oggle the surrounding mountains where the city creeps up the sides. Soon we were shopping for bike tools … cable cutter and box end small wrench for the rear rack and fenders. We were sent around town to find the tools, but finally found not exactly what we were looking for, but something that would work.

Judee had an idea of developing a colorful map of Central America with our route on it, so we stopped at a copy shop. It is laminated and strapped to the outside of our bag where we can share our route with the curious.

Observation and question…the downtown streets here are full of all kids of sidewalk vendors…they set up before 8am and close at around 7 pm. Same spot everyday. Tonight while have dinner, we watched a vendor family of three or four generations, clean up and cart off their wares to be stored for the night. One wonders if side walk spots are handed own from generation to generation¿ Does the spot have to be purchased from the city, are there permits¿ In some areas we have seen the local police coming around to collect fees and a receipt is given …in one place stall size was measure on the ground and marked in 3 ft. sizes. Yes, stalls are 3ft wide in a long row on both sides of the sidewalk in the park.

3-14

Overcast, misty rain as we leave the hustling city, narrow clogged streets with buses pumping out diesel smoke…we twist and turn, up, down single lane one way streets that lead across the very polluted river that halves the city and on through the huge quagmire of the city market…trash and garbage litter our way…we inch bumper to bumper, choking on the exhaust of the buses we are following …we finally break free, pass the busses and 300m up the block onto a dead stop traffic jam…turn left on another street…jammed …ride down the center lane to the corner and take the lane…turn right, free for a run through the drizzle wiping my glasses darting through cross streets, we pass the airport and are free at last to start our long climb out of this caldron of humanity.

The ride up to and out of the burbs was wet, but the clouds started to break up and blue sky and sun soon started to do its work on us, in less than an hour we were dripping. The mountains are now brown, not green and getting drier as we climb…dried brush…no more pines. Our new terrain is arid with just a few blooming bushes and trees … a different beauty.

1. Salt processing - sun baked 2. Houses along the road 3. Same

When we eventually topped the mountains it became hot and hotter as we descended …fast down hills at 42 mph felt like going into the mouth of an oven…good fun, but hot… 95 degrees in the shade. Sixty miles and into the motel with a pool and A-C. We hop into our suits and streak to poolside only to find the pool is empty and being repaired. This is the second time this has happened. Well we got 20% off our room rate and a free round of beers. All was not lost.

3-16

Today we left Honduras and entered Nicaragua. After 35 m of delightful rolling country, we arrived at the border. I (Judee) got off the bike and was instantly surrounded by helpers, aids, money changers, and observers all wanted to help me or themselves to something I had (money). Forms were flung at me, along with pens and 20 pairs of eyes watched as I filled them out, along with checking out the passports and money that Art had hidden in his. The helpful group walked-pushed me to the Honduras immigration window, and as I took out the $500 limpera bill to pay the fee, it was taken from my hands over my shoulder, passed to money changers by my self-appointed helper, who then handed the appropriate amount of limpera in thru the window. Even the clerk seemed as angry and flustered by all the assistance as I was.

Then, my entourage marched me to the Nicaraguan window where I paid the $9 p-p entry fee in the required US dollars. By this time, I am so upset, the inside of my eyes are red!! I can´t get rid of the 20 flies that seem to be on me! Now, they want to change my money into Nicaraguan Cordobas. And by now, they know where and how much money I have. They pointed out Art´s stash money as needing changing because they felt I didn´t have enough! I want to scream-cry…choose one.

no estampa

We finally completed the transaction and headed across the border and the second person to stop us to check our passport found that Art´s had not been stamped. So we were sent back into the rat´s hole. As we came into the dreaded area, Art yelled NO as someone approached us and I went directly to the front of the long line to the window of the clerk who had failed to stamp Art´s passport and demanded he estampelo. After a few words and gestures, he realized his error and completed his job by stamping the passport.

Across the border, again – the no man´s land …of no pavement, very rough gravel roads, threading around like spaghetti and past dirt shacks selling food, into an area where busses would take passengers the 77km to the closest town with any services or accommodation… Chinandega.

Of course, first thing on the bus, we have a problem, with money…trying to buy Art a Pepsi. We never figure out what the issue was, but we know we paid more than enough for the beverage…all under the close scrutiny of about 8 kids. As I complained about no personal space, Art retorted… Wait until India! At that moment….I dreaded the thought of going on!

Upon arrival into Chinandega, after a few kilometers and a false start, we found a marvelous little hotel, Hotel San Jose, for $25 p-n including breakfast, hot water, a-c, internet, pretty patio and sitting areas, and wonderful people who even speak English. After a great dinner and a ride around in a pedi-cab, things are definitely ok here in Nicaragua. Can´t wait for tomorrow.

3-17

We stayed an extra day in this delightful hotel, cleaned up the bike, gear and ourselves. At breakfast we met several young women…German, American and Nicaraguan, who were working here with a variety of different human rights and exchange programs. Like Guatemala, there are hundreds of programs to assist the local people.

Las Penitas - Hammock therapy. 3/18

3-22

Today is Art´s 63rd birthday. We spent several days in Las Piñas near Penoloya, a beach favored by the Nicaraguans. We lounged in hammocks, walked on fairly isolated beaches. It was a pleasant few days, but we are both getting sick, again. This time it is a head cold, flu type thing we are pretty certain we got from the darling, very sick, little girl who pawed us and everything we owned on the bus from the border.

1.  Leon - Sandanistas murals 2. same

We rode back into Leon a couple of days ago and are trying to recover enough to get back on the road. It is very hot here and with a fever, it feels dreadful. The next leg of our journey is well over 100 km – up Volcanic foothills and into the wind on very potholed roads. We are not certain we are up for that, so we are going to look into busing toward Managua so that we can get to an area that may be a little cooler.

Art thinks he will celebrate his birthday when he feels a bit better!

.