Sunday, March 30, 2014
Assimilating? Not exactly
I just had my first full week just me and the boys. Lots of ups and downs. The boys started the school week strong but it quickly descended into disaster. They aren't adjusting so well. I feel confident that this week will be better. Not perfect, but better.
I have the sweetest neighbors ever. I love them. A family of 7. Parents, grandparents, two adult sons and 8yo daughter. They are so friendly and kind. They also love the gossip! Today I took the daughter to a hotel swimming pool with us. I think this put the mom and dad way our of their comfort zone but they let me take her. As a thank you they brought me a lunch plate of avocado salad. So yummy.
Anyway, I love these guys. They make me feel safe and welcome. I've been hanging with the expat crowd a bit too. I have some expat neighbors and I'm connected to expats from the boys' school. In fact last night I went to a fundraiser for the school. What an interesting and diverse crowd. I've heard a lot of comments from the expats here that make me feel uncomfortable. Many seem preoccupied with crime and theft. Others with the nica work ethic and others with getting ripped off by people they employ. I've given my maid two $20 tips. I've been advised that if I'm generous I'll be taken advantage of. So far, not a problem. I've also been advised to be cautious about sharing with neighbors. The whole expat message makes me feel icky. There's more to it than I've written here, but suffice to say people are having difficulty assimilating.
Myself included.
I was last here in 1998 and it feels like a very different place. I know a lot of it is me and how I've changed but it is also the influx of tourism that has changed the city for both tourists and locals alike.
Next post- granada likes and dislikes
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Ometepe and Playa el coco
Because the boys (mostly Zach) were having a rough week at school (their teacher was on vacation) and because Steve only had a few days left in Nicaragua we decided to pull the boys out of school and do a trip to Ometepe and Playa el coco. This turned out to be a brilliant idea.
I'd called around to a few places to price a trip to San Juan del Sur and playa el coco. It was pricey ranging from $200 to coco to $90 to sjs. We found a tour company that arranged to drive us to the ferry to ometepe, pick us up from the ferry and take us to coco and then pick us up from coco and take is back to Granada for 140. Seemed like a good price to us. So we took off on a wednesday morning at 7am for our long weekend adventure.
An aside. What pushed us over the edge on our decision to go to ometepe was seeing the boys' teacher at the grocery store. Her parents were in town and she was going to take them to the island. We were on the fence about going and she sold us on it. I hadn't wanted to take the boys out of school but once I found out that she was on vacation and that she thought ometepe was awesome we decided to take the boys out of school and have some fun. Poor thing we ended up seeing her on the ferry and then it turned out we were staying at the same hotel in ometepe. I hope we didn't ruin her vacation!
Imagine a villain's lair in a volcanic island. That's what Ometepe looks like
On our first trip there with Steve we had a blast. We stayed at villas paraiso. It really is paradise. Beautiful landscaping, amazing views, decent food and fine accommodations. The cabaƱas are nothing fancy but they have ac and hot water. The beach is great. The water is shallow for a good 50 yards so the boys could easily play in the water. They even have a play structure on the beach. Pool too. The boys had lots of fun in the hammock on our cabana's patio. We spent our first day at the hotel's pool and beach. The next day we went to ojo de agua. Eye of the water. Guess what song popped into my head after that visit. It's a volcanic fed spring/pool that is in inland a bit so it's not windy like the beach. Great spot.
The second visit we went with Wendy. The boys didn't even make it to the beach this time. We did have some fun in the pool and a nice trip to ojo.
There is so much more to do there-petroglyphs, volcanic hikes, biosphere reserves, etc. We didn't do those adventures for two reasons, Zach and Theo.
The trip to playa el coco was a bit rough. The road is dirt and we were in a very old mini bus with no ac. But we made it and it was totally worth every bump.
Playa el coco is mellow. The beach is picture perfect. Like a postcard. Our accommodations were fine, we had a kitchen and an and hot water. We're thinking of going back. Theo wants to go back for the pancakes. We just hung out on the beach and at the pool. It was perfect! Steve mentioned this on fb, the hermit crabs! I've never seen anything like it. At night you hear this rustling and think huh, is the wind rustling the leaves, no, there are thousands of hermit crabs climbing on top of each other. Creepy and cute at the same time.
The service at both places was fine. A little slow and not super friendly, but definitely not bad. If you decide to go to either of these places don't expect American style waiters. The people are nice but don't bend over backwards for you which in a way is nice. I will say they all loved the boys and were nice about giving us spoons and bowls for our cornflakes that we bought at the pulperia.
I'd called around to a few places to price a trip to San Juan del Sur and playa el coco. It was pricey ranging from $200 to coco to $90 to sjs. We found a tour company that arranged to drive us to the ferry to ometepe, pick us up from the ferry and take us to coco and then pick us up from coco and take is back to Granada for 140. Seemed like a good price to us. So we took off on a wednesday morning at 7am for our long weekend adventure.
An aside. What pushed us over the edge on our decision to go to ometepe was seeing the boys' teacher at the grocery store. Her parents were in town and she was going to take them to the island. We were on the fence about going and she sold us on it. I hadn't wanted to take the boys out of school but once I found out that she was on vacation and that she thought ometepe was awesome we decided to take the boys out of school and have some fun. Poor thing we ended up seeing her on the ferry and then it turned out we were staying at the same hotel in ometepe. I hope we didn't ruin her vacation!
Imagine a villain's lair in a volcanic island. That's what Ometepe looks like
On our first trip there with Steve we had a blast. We stayed at villas paraiso. It really is paradise. Beautiful landscaping, amazing views, decent food and fine accommodations. The cabaƱas are nothing fancy but they have ac and hot water. The beach is great. The water is shallow for a good 50 yards so the boys could easily play in the water. They even have a play structure on the beach. Pool too. The boys had lots of fun in the hammock on our cabana's patio. We spent our first day at the hotel's pool and beach. The next day we went to ojo de agua. Eye of the water. Guess what song popped into my head after that visit. It's a volcanic fed spring/pool that is in inland a bit so it's not windy like the beach. Great spot.
The second visit we went with Wendy. The boys didn't even make it to the beach this time. We did have some fun in the pool and a nice trip to ojo.
There is so much more to do there-petroglyphs, volcanic hikes, biosphere reserves, etc. We didn't do those adventures for two reasons, Zach and Theo.
The trip to playa el coco was a bit rough. The road is dirt and we were in a very old mini bus with no ac. But we made it and it was totally worth every bump.
Playa el coco is mellow. The beach is picture perfect. Like a postcard. Our accommodations were fine, we had a kitchen and an and hot water. We're thinking of going back. Theo wants to go back for the pancakes. We just hung out on the beach and at the pool. It was perfect! Steve mentioned this on fb, the hermit crabs! I've never seen anything like it. At night you hear this rustling and think huh, is the wind rustling the leaves, no, there are thousands of hermit crabs climbing on top of each other. Creepy and cute at the same time.
The service at both places was fine. A little slow and not super friendly, but definitely not bad. If you decide to go to either of these places don't expect American style waiters. The people are nice but don't bend over backwards for you which in a way is nice. I will say they all loved the boys and were nice about giving us spoons and bowls for our cornflakes that we bought at the pulperia.
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Almost solo
Steve left Monday š¢
We all miss him loads. The consolation? Wendy showed up the very same day. Yay Wendy!
We've had some fun days and one or two not so fun days since I last posted. I'll start with the not so fun days. Last Monday the school called us to pick up z cause they said he was sick. He did have a really bad heat rash that started 4 days before and got worse every day thereafter. They said he had a fever too. He didn't but he was red in the face and cranky! We took him to the farmacia which also has a Dr. He have us an rx. It cleared up right away!! I also had to pick him up early from school on Tuesday because he was being very disruptive. I think he's a bit overwhelmed with all this and daddy leaving put him over the edge. I feel confident he'll ease into this new situation. Hopefully not the last week we're hereš
Highlights of the fun stuff. Bullet points might be a recurring theme in this blog.
We just booked another trip to Ometepe with Wendy for this Saturday. I'm excited to go back.
I'm having some technical difficulties posting photos. I wish I could show some pix of our adventures. If you're interested, check out Steve's or my fb page.
Some other random thoughts...
I saw goats on my street today. I'd gotten used to the stray dogs, cats, horses, and the cows (not in the street but on the beach, in the lakes and rivers). The goats were a surprise.
I got a bike. I haven't used it too much since Wendy's here sans bike. I'm excited to have some zippy transport.
I'm gonna start Spanish school on Monday. They have a kids club for the kiddos free of charge. I'll keep you all posted on our progress there.
I hope this post isn't too disjointed. I've been meaning to write for over a week now but it's hard to find the time. I wanted to give you all an update.
More to come soon.....
We all miss him loads. The consolation? Wendy showed up the very same day. Yay Wendy!
We've had some fun days and one or two not so fun days since I last posted. I'll start with the not so fun days. Last Monday the school called us to pick up z cause they said he was sick. He did have a really bad heat rash that started 4 days before and got worse every day thereafter. They said he had a fever too. He didn't but he was red in the face and cranky! We took him to the farmacia which also has a Dr. He have us an rx. It cleared up right away!! I also had to pick him up early from school on Tuesday because he was being very disruptive. I think he's a bit overwhelmed with all this and daddy leaving put him over the edge. I feel confident he'll ease into this new situation. Hopefully not the last week we're hereš
Highlights of the fun stuff. Bullet points might be a recurring theme in this blog.
- horse and buggy tour of the city!!! Twice! Once with Steve and the boys and once with Wendy and the boys. It's a great way to get your bearings.
- Chocolate museum
- Visit to the hotel spa Granada swim club. They have aggressive ducks there. Beware!
- A tour of Masaya including an active volcano sight, a handicraft market, and an amazing vista point of Laguna apoyo.
- Pinata party-we had some neighborhood kids over for a piƱata bashing. Very fun. I did learn that soccer ball chocolates is a bad choice for piƱata filling when you have a tile floor and a pool.
- Ometepe!!
- Playa el coco!
We just booked another trip to Ometepe with Wendy for this Saturday. I'm excited to go back.
I'm having some technical difficulties posting photos. I wish I could show some pix of our adventures. If you're interested, check out Steve's or my fb page.
Some other random thoughts...
I saw goats on my street today. I'd gotten used to the stray dogs, cats, horses, and the cows (not in the street but on the beach, in the lakes and rivers). The goats were a surprise.
I got a bike. I haven't used it too much since Wendy's here sans bike. I'm excited to have some zippy transport.
I'm gonna start Spanish school on Monday. They have a kids club for the kiddos free of charge. I'll keep you all posted on our progress there.
I hope this post isn't too disjointed. I've been meaning to write for over a week now but it's hard to find the time. I wanted to give you all an update.
More to come soon.....
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
Why Nicaragua?
Here's a post I started while at home but never published. Many people have asked "why Nicaragua?"
Here's some bullet points.
Here's some bullet points.
- Cheap flights! You can fly roundtrip from Seattle for under $500
- Safe. The war is over and has been for decades. Nicaragua is politically stable and is the safest country in central America. Yes, safer than Costa Rica. That's not to say there isn't any crime, but don't we all know someone in the US whose been mugged?
- Good climate. If you don't mind sun and warmth it's great. We are here the hottest time of year. It's been in the low 90s
- I've been here before so I wasn't coming in blind
- Cost of living. It's cheaper than Mexico or CR
Getting settled
"That went by fast" says Zach 18 hours into our 19 hour travel day. It's always the last hour that gets you. They boys did phenomenally well, but the last hour was a bit whiny. I was super proud and impressed with them.
Today is our second full day here and the boys' first full day of school. After their two hour school day yesterday z asked "is that our school? It's hot." Zachy was exhausted but Theo wanted to visit the cemetery. We pass it on our way to school. It wasn't the best time of day to walk around an unshaded graveyard but we had fun. After wards we had a little snack and a cold drink outside the cemetery gates. Maybe Theo's going to follow in his great grandfather's footsteps. We then took a taxi to the grocery store. Theo was in one of those carts with a kids car attached to the front. About 10 minutes into our shopping he passed out. So dang cute! It made my shopping trip much easier but getting him in the cab not so much.
After calling three different phone numbers, texting one chica, numerous emails and a visit to an office ( not in that order) I finally secured transportation to school for the boys. Yay! It costs $60 a month which is cheaper and easier than taking them in a cab. Tomorrow will be their first day on the school bus. I'll let you know how it goes.
While the boys were in school Steve and I walked around and oriented ourselves to the city. On our walk I found the Spanish school I attended on my last trip here. They offer a kids club for the little ones free of charge while you study. How great is that?
Now that we are settled in, have our kitchen stocked, and kind of know our way around the city we'll do our first excursion sans boys tomorrow. They get picked up at 810 and get dropped off at 130. Stay tuned for some riveting news about our first week in Granada.
Today is our second full day here and the boys' first full day of school. After their two hour school day yesterday z asked "is that our school? It's hot." Zachy was exhausted but Theo wanted to visit the cemetery. We pass it on our way to school. It wasn't the best time of day to walk around an unshaded graveyard but we had fun. After wards we had a little snack and a cold drink outside the cemetery gates. Maybe Theo's going to follow in his great grandfather's footsteps. We then took a taxi to the grocery store. Theo was in one of those carts with a kids car attached to the front. About 10 minutes into our shopping he passed out. So dang cute! It made my shopping trip much easier but getting him in the cab not so much.
After calling three different phone numbers, texting one chica, numerous emails and a visit to an office ( not in that order) I finally secured transportation to school for the boys. Yay! It costs $60 a month which is cheaper and easier than taking them in a cab. Tomorrow will be their first day on the school bus. I'll let you know how it goes.
While the boys were in school Steve and I walked around and oriented ourselves to the city. On our walk I found the Spanish school I attended on my last trip here. They offer a kids club for the little ones free of charge while you study. How great is that?
Now that we are settled in, have our kitchen stocked, and kind of know our way around the city we'll do our first excursion sans boys tomorrow. They get picked up at 810 and get dropped off at 130. Stay tuned for some riveting news about our first week in Granada.
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