Legends of Lake Nicaragua

On Lake Nicaragua, you will find small islands of huts adjacent to a small island with a mansion. It is quite interesting to venture into the polluted waters by boat. You will also find the remains of old buildings that were once high enough from the water’s edge when built, but were later flooded in storms. Fences still line the property that was once a habitat in some areas. On other islands, you will see monkeys jumping from tree to tree.

There have been many drownings in Lake Nicaragua and some believe that the lake is filled with spirits that pull swimmers to the bottom. Others talk about bull sharks that feast on swimmers. Of course, the bull sharks are real in the lake and not a fictitious legend.

Over the years, bull sharks from the ocean have made their way into the freshwater by swimming 120 miles up the Rio San Juan river from the Caribbean Sea. The sharks were first noticed in the mid 1500 chronicles of Spanish historian Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés.

In the past few years, Nicaragua has tightened security at their borders. The reason being, many are trying to make their way through the country in hopes of reaching the United States by way of Mexico. In doing so, there have been multiple attempts of persons making their way into the country by way of water travel from the ocean and into Lake Nicaragua. However, many of those immigrants from places like Africa and Haiti later drowned when their vessels capsized in the middle of Lake Nicaragua. In other words, they survived the warm Caribbean Sea, but died in the fresh water of Nicaragua. Some of the recent drownings that occurred in July of 2016 included eight men from Africa.

Nicaragua and Oppression

Nicaragua sits between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. It is a land filled with smiling faces mixed with oppression. This photo was shot in a busy market in Nicaragua. 

Volcanoes

In the middle of nowhere of Costa Rica.

Costa Rica is home to a large number of volcanoes, six of which are active including the one you see in the background of this shot.

As we attempted to get closer to the Volcano, we were quickly stopped by an armed park ranger. He did not understand my question about photography and I failed to understand his reply. So, this is as close as I could get to this particular volcano.

The last time there was a major volcanic eruption in Costa Rica was in 1910. The volcano that erupted still has geysers that explode as high as 820 feet into the air.

Food for sale everywhere in Masaya

Homemade fried pies for sale! Food is for sale everywhere in Masaya, Nicaragua and in the outlying areas of the town. In this case, bakers sell what appear to be homemade fried pies. Many of the vendors work long hours seven days a week to support their family. 

Street Photography in Nicaragua

This young man is playing with a handmade Nicaragua Bolero. The small cone like stick he is holding has a string attached to it with a wooden ball on the end. The goal is to get the ball on the open end of the cone to stay as you throw it upwards. It is somewhat addictive, kinda’ like the video games some kids play in America, but not as intense. 

Photo with a Fuji X100s on the streets located between the departments of Masaya and Granada in Nicaragua.

Horses on the Edge

Horses in Nicaragua on the edge of what was once an active volcano. 

In the background, Laguna de Apoyo in Nicaragua… This was once an active volcano thousands of years ago, but it blew its top, literally. It is now a Laguna or what Americans would call a crater lake.

In 1991, this beautiful landscape was categorized as a nature reserve, which means it is protected land.

Prayer in an Alley

Prayer in a back alley of Nicaragua. 

“Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one” ― Bruce Lee

Art of Living

I shot this in Nicaragua. 

Social reformer and doctor Havelock Ellis once stated,  "All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on." (1859-1939)

Just a little rest

He was simply resting while watching passing traffic outside of a store in Costa Rica. Resting is important for the soul.  

"I have never taken any exercise, except sleeping and resting, and I never intend to take any." -Mark Twain

Mother and Daughter

Mother and daughter on a shopping excursion at the neighborhood market in Costa Rica.

"My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her." - George Washington

The Whistle Blower

She was working hard to make a sale. Everyone she saw with blonde hair or a fair complexion was a target to buy a hand carved whistle. She had an entire basket of whistles that she would blow from time to time to attract attention of prospects.

“I made these,” she said in a thick accent on the streets of Masaya, Nicaragua. Each of the whistles was delicately painted, no two looked alike.

“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” - Thomas A. Edison

Life on a Farm in a Third World Country

On a Costa Rican farm.

“Good farmers, who take seriously their duties as stewards of Creation and of their land's inheritors, contribute to the welfare of society in more ways than society usually acknowledges, or even knows. These farmers produce valuable goods, of course; but they also conserve soil, they conserve water, they conserve wildlife, they conserve open space, they conserve scenery.” ― Wendell Berry

Laguna de Apoyo in Nicaragua

Laguna de Apoyo in Nicaragua… This was once an active volcano thousands of years ago, but it blew its top, literally. It is now a Laguna or what Americans would call a crater lake.

In 1991, this beautiful landscape was categorized as a nature reserve, which means it is protected land.

Weaving masterpieces of art with leaves

She was maybe 13 years old at the most and she loved art. Quietly, she would find somewhere in the shade to sit and weave grasshoppers, hearts, crowns, and more with dried strands of coconut palm fronds. A frond is the leaf like section of a palm or similar plant.

She was a master at weaving the long leaves into shapes of all sizes. She never asked for a single penny, but instead picked out women passing by to hand them to as a decoration for their hair or shirt. She would hand them her creation with a huge smile. 

Hard Work on a Costa Rican Farm

Hard work in Costa Rica.

"All life demands struggle. Those who have everything given to them become lazy, selfish, and insensitive to the real values of life. The very striving and hard work that we so constantly try to avoid is the major building block in the person we are today."  - Pope Paul VI 

Child playing as parents work for food

She was quietly playing in a small alley as her parents were working hard to make a living for the young family. Her mother and father were selling good in the market while their daughter kept busy. 

"There is no substitute for hard work." - Thomas A. Edison

Kindness

He was one of the kindest men that I met in Nicaragua. He spoke of a love for his country, but only a growl for the government. He spoke highly of his family that he works hard to support in the grueling sun, but poorly about the Nicaraguan military that gives many a hard time.

In his right hand are pens with covers on each one that read “Nicaragua.” He sells these pens day after day at the border and uses the money he earns to feed his wife and children.

As he talked I could not help but to think of him as being highly educated in an uneducated country. He knew English well and could carry on a full conversation in both Spanish and English. He talked to me for about 45-minutes about his country, the border patrol and never asked for a penny. He would pause from time to time to sell one of his handmade pen covers and pens to a passing tourist, but he was still focused on our conversation.

"Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." - Mark Twain

She had a scar that ran down her forehead

She had a scar that ran down her forehead to the left side of her nose. I did not dare ask why, but could not help but to be curious. The lines on her face were deep and her hair white. She quietly walked through a busy market asking passerby’s for money. I had already spent my last three dollars on corn cookies, so I had nothing to spare. She pleaded with me in Spanish to hand her whatever I had. I patted her on the back and had to walk away. 

In 2009 the World Bank reported that Nicaragua was the poorest mainland country in Central America. It is a title that Nicaragua has yet to get away from as it was reported again in 2015 by the BBC. If you travel offshore and include all Latin American Countries, Haiti ranks number one as the poorest, followed by Nicaragua. 

Nicaragua has been through civil wars, overzealous dictatorship and hurricanes that left thousands dead in 1998 and 2007, just to name a few of the uphill battles that residents have faced over the years. 75.8% of Nicaraguans survive on less than $2 per day. Numbers like that leave children venerable to death, disease and malnutrition. 

Five of the country’s 17 departments (similar to states) have chronic malnutrition rates of more than 30%, and the rate exceeds 50% in the regions where most of Nicaragua’s indigenous people live. To make matters worse, many residents don’t understand good nutrition. The government actually encourages families to pull children out of school to help with agriculture. More than 500,000 children in the country do not attend school and 21% of those who do give school a try, drop out before the end of the first grade. Only 40% of children enroll in high school and of that number, on 40% graduate. 

Costa Rican Mountains

The Costa Rica landscape is comparable to no other. Years ago earthquakes, flooding and volcanoes shaped the land to what you will see today when visiting.

Fast flowing rivers, beautiful waterfalls, active volcanoes, massive craters are all over the 19,730 square mile country that is filled with a relatively small population of about 4.8 million residents.

Some of the beaches have white sand while others are black mixed with speckles of white. Monkeys swing from tree to tree while iguana’s lounge around waiting for an unsuspecting bug to cross their path.

"All trails seem to lead to waterfalls, misty crater lakes or jungle-fringed, deserted beaches. Explored by horseback, foot or kayak, Costa Rica is a tropical choose-your-own-adventure land." -Lonely Planet

Iguana soup and bull testicles - Yummy

He was sitting beneath a tree outside a marketplace in Masaya, Nicaragua. The bag in front of him contained a cure all miracle cream of sorts that he was trying to sell all day. He needed a break under a shade tree, but he continued to ask passerby’s if they would like to try a sample.

His hands showed signs of a hard worker while the lines on his face clearly told me that he has spent many days in the hot sun.

Masaya, Nicaragua is an interesting area as it is filled with artist who sell their work in craft shops, make shift art studios and more. Plus, it is home to a wild mixture of culinary cuisines.

Some of the fine foods that locals can dine on prior to giving up meat for Lent as many do, include Iguana and Armadillo.

According to a 2013 article in The Huffington Post, “Catholics tired of fish on Friday can enjoy a Lent-friendly smorgasbord in Nicaragua, where soups made with iguana or armadillo are served with a healthy portion of bull testicles.”

I think I will pass. While in Masaya I picked the chicken shish kabobs served with rice. I think that was a wise choice.