Fincas and Lagos
Our first days in Nicaragua are spent at fincas (ranches) and lagos (lakes). We go to a mountain town called Jinotega and sign up for our first organized tour of the trip. We take a shuttle bus to Finca Kilimanjaro, a working ranch with coffee and cattle. We learn about coffee production. The coffee plants are now flowering and will be ready for harvest in December. The ranch has 30 full-time employees, which increases to over 100 during harvest time. The employees work from 6am to 3pm, get three meals per day and are paid $6 per day.
We go horseback riding on spunky horses, except for Quinn’s. Our guide gets a stick for Quinn and he whacks the horse continuously and bounces along. He looks so little on the big horse. Connor refrains from riding and we return to see him with a baby goat, just three days old, in his arms. We come during a good time: a litter of pigs are just 10 days old, lots of baby goats, sheet, cows and even kittens.
The finca is powered by an old-fashioned water mill, which also powers the neighboring community. They built a 1+ mile canal through the rough terrain to the river to get the water. A fascinating day.
We drive to our next destination, Laguna de Apayo, through a blinding rain storm. The rainy season has definitely arrived! Paul can barely see the road, which does not offer any turn-offs. At the end of our treacherous drive, we are awarded with a view of a gorgeous lake (Laguna de Apayo). We are staying at a lovely hotel/hostel on the lake. The food is delicious and we essentially never need to leave. The lake is a crater lake and warmed by hot pockets. During the mornings, the lake is like glass and we can see the reflections of the mountains and clouds. We kayak and swim all day and even at night. Quinn teaches himself how to dive backward, and quickly becomes the local diving instructor. Paul and I treat ourselves to massages from Julio, who is blind due to a car accident. Besides an annoying fly bothering me, the massage is relaxing and wonderful.
The owner, Anne, is a single Canadian woman and has made quite a successful business. We meet people here from all over the world and hear about their travel adventures. Quinn is Mr. Sociable and introduces himself to everyone, telling his life story. From a distance, I hear, “…then my mom got laid-off and we are driving to Chile…” Nice.
We come for one night, but end up staying for three because we are enjoying ourselves so much. This will be a tough place to leave – it is truly magical.
Tags: Nicaragua
hwy1alltheway
Can just hear Quinn telling the story…lol. It could be worse though, he could be saying “then mom got busted for running a meth lab, she escaped from jail in the dark of night and we are driving to Chile…”
so, how was the coffee?
Great coffee, especially at the finca! However, every once in awhile, we are served Folgers crystals. Surprising! Connor is now drinking black coffee with sugar – such a man!
It sounds like you’re having an amazing experience. We’ll fly you in for Great America if you fly us all down to be with you!
Love,
Sam and the Class of 2010