barren winter landscape.
Showing posts with label Photo Blog. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Photo Blog. Show all posts
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Monday, February 11, 2013
Pisac Market
Women from nearby villages gather to buy, barter, and trade their fruits, vegetables and handicrafts to locals and tourists alike at the Pisac Market located in Peru's Sacred Valley. The variety of colors, textures, and focus on buying, selling and creating make the Pisac Market a photographers dream. And the hats, I loved all of the hats! I could have stayed from morning until night documenting all of the beauty and bustle happening around me.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Ometepe
The Isla de Ometepe is a figure eight shaped island formed by two volcanoes on the western side of Lake Nicaragua. Getting to the island requires an hour long 'ferry ride', a term I use loosely.
The larger side of the island is home to La Concepcion Volcano which is considered the most picturesque volcano in all of Latin America. La Concepcion forms a perfect cone shape and rises dramatically to a height of over 1600 meters, or 5,200 feet.
For some reason you are allowed to hike this active volcano and when I found that three other guys from our hostel were climbing it the next day I couldn't resist. Since a number of hikers have been lost on the volcano (in both senses of the word) it is now mandatory to hire a professional guide. We soon discovered our guide was not in that category. Our first hour of the day was spent looking around the port town for him since he overslept which was understandable when we later discovered he had been out drinking until 2am the night before. The hike itself was a nice combination of danger, pain, and beauty - probably in that order.
After a couple days we headed to the smaller and more rustic side of the island. Rustic as in it took the bus one hour to travel 6km over a road that looked more like a dried up riverbed. We spent seven relaxing days at two different establishments. The first had an infinity pool overlooking Lake Nicaragua and La Concepcion Volcano.
The second was on a working farm owned by a young couple from Colorado. They were very environmentally conscious and built their four cabins out of dirt, straw, sand, rocks and horse manure, in a technique called cob. The food was incredible and the dishes were from farm to table. Fresh, fresh, fresh! We filled our days hiking, kayaking, swimming, reading, and eating. I even got to experience a supposed Nicaraguan tradition since I celebrated my birthday on the farm; a fresh egg cracked on the back of my head while I was eating dinner. At least my hair was silky smooth the next day!
The larger side of the island is home to La Concepcion Volcano which is considered the most picturesque volcano in all of Latin America. La Concepcion forms a perfect cone shape and rises dramatically to a height of over 1600 meters, or 5,200 feet.
For some reason you are allowed to hike this active volcano and when I found that three other guys from our hostel were climbing it the next day I couldn't resist. Since a number of hikers have been lost on the volcano (in both senses of the word) it is now mandatory to hire a professional guide. We soon discovered our guide was not in that category. Our first hour of the day was spent looking around the port town for him since he overslept which was understandable when we later discovered he had been out drinking until 2am the night before. The hike itself was a nice combination of danger, pain, and beauty - probably in that order.
After a couple days we headed to the smaller and more rustic side of the island. Rustic as in it took the bus one hour to travel 6km over a road that looked more like a dried up riverbed. We spent seven relaxing days at two different establishments. The first had an infinity pool overlooking Lake Nicaragua and La Concepcion Volcano.
The second was on a working farm owned by a young couple from Colorado. They were very environmentally conscious and built their four cabins out of dirt, straw, sand, rocks and horse manure, in a technique called cob. The food was incredible and the dishes were from farm to table. Fresh, fresh, fresh! We filled our days hiking, kayaking, swimming, reading, and eating. I even got to experience a supposed Nicaraguan tradition since I celebrated my birthday on the farm; a fresh egg cracked on the back of my head while I was eating dinner. At least my hair was silky smooth the next day!
Monday, December 3, 2012
Our Last Night in Nicaragua
It is our last night here in Nicaragua and I feel like we've come full circle sitting in our ten dollar per night room on a lumpy mattress in the front of someone's home. Sounds not so nice but it is the perfect way to end our trip here and I wouldn't want it any other way. Still working on a homestay recap and final reflections on this six week Nicaraguan journey. What a beautiful place and a wonderful culture. Here are some photos taken during the duration of our trip. Espero que te disfrute...
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Sunday, November 25, 2012
A Beautiful Nicaraguan Sunset
After our homestay we jumped onto a chicken bus and headed towards the sea. On our second day here near the town of Popoyo Zach and I witnessed one of the most beautiful sunsets we've ever seen. The clouds were situated just right to make bright oranges and pinks shine through onto the ocean. We watched the colors change as the sun sunk lower and lower into the horizon. As we walked back to our accommodations, Zach looked at me and said he thought we were at the prettiest place he'd ever been. I think I'll always remember the look on his face and the feeling I got after those words. Nicaragua is a beautiful country.
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