Birth control pills cause brain damage

The dawn chorus of roosters and other assorted birds woke me up at 5:50am, long before my planned alarm setting.   A cool shower eliminated any risk of me drifting back to sleep. Coffee was being served by the time I found my way to the dining area and joined the other guests, awaiting breakfast. By 8:30 we were heading roughly west away from San Carlos in an open boat with a canopy to protect from sun and rain. The planned itinerary was a tour of he Solentiname archipelago. 32 islands in total and located at the southern end of Lake Cocibolca, it is a treasure that most tourists never see.   Our first stop, Zapote Island is home to several thousand birds and we were observing them during mating season. Vultures, ospreys, spoonbills, ibis, egrets, cormorants, blue herons and umpteen other species who’s names I don’t know, circled and landed, occasionally diving to the water surface to pick up a little sushi for lunch. Many were clearly paired with one parent carefully guardi...

5PM- La Esquina del Lago (The corner of the lake)    A gentle rain has just freshened the air and the smell of pork chops frying is making me feel hungry. It is not for me however, but rather for a group of Canadians who just arrived at the lodge.   The place is a collection of 5 hotels rooms, a common lounge, an outside dining area and kitchen and a boat dock, all on piles at the edge of a mangrove swamp. Situated at the edge of a nature reserve it fronts onto the Rio Frio and looks across at the junction of Rio San Juan and Lago Cocibolca. The rooms are all screened with windows that can be folded back, like shutters. There is also no TV or internet, no air conditioning and no ceiling fans. A mosquito net dangles from the ceiling but staff tells me I wont need it.   I arrived here by launch shortly before 11am and spent the better part of the day just relaxing and admiring the scenery.   After a decent lunch of chicken, spaghetti and salad with fresh papaya ...

While I made a few light-hearted comments about my dumpy $15 a night dive In San Carlos, a quick walk around town opened my eyes. Almost every single dwelling that I was able to look into was in far worse shape than my own humble abode. Cracked walls, leaky roofs, no water, no fridge, a few pieces of broken furniture.   Add to that- rice and beans- 3 meals a day, supplemented by corn- usually tortillas, with maybe a bit of meat or dish 2 or 3 times a week.   San Carlos would, in most peoples terminology, be described as a shithole.- a one horse town where even the horse said “Screw it, I am Out of Here!” A collection of small, broken down tiendas, selling the same stuff as everyone else in town. Not even a Pali to provide some selection. What life must be like for someone who lives his or her entire life in this place? I am counting down from 24hrs and hoping I am out of here before I get to 21 i.e. noon!   Like Antigua, Guatemala, Granada is to the rest of   ...

Its almost 5pm- time for tea and crumpets down in the hotel’s parlour.    NOT!!!!!!!!!!!   With only about 20 available rooms in the whole town- not including the ones that rent by the hour, I was left rather few choices when I got to town so I chose the one place recommended in the guide book. Clearly, regular running water is an issue in much of this town as my bathroom has a 40-gallon rain barrel and pail in the bathroom for flushing the toilet. That is going to make showering a tad difficult since it takes up most of the shower stall. I think the place has the same 100-year-old floorboards that were here when the hotel was probably a horse barn. I can’t tell if the walls are dirty or if it just the adobe that is wet under the paint- a tasteful shade of Mennonite barn green.    The sheets on the bed look clean, but I am not taking any chances, so out will come my silk sleeping bag liner for the first time this year- at least the fan works!   Backtracki...

In case anybody has been wondering- no internet means no blog- been off the grid and off the map for a week= stay tuned for future updates

After an early wakeup call, thanks to the racket created by the vet volunteers, I spent the better part of the morning doing laundry. Since they had inhaled most of the continental breakfast before I got up. I set out on a quest for a real breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast.   Sunday afternoon I found myself nursing a queasy stomach after risking a breakfast at Kathy’s Waffle House.   Mostly frequented by ex-pats, this place serves up piping hot mugs of coffee geared more to the USA than the local market- i.e. it has very little taste. Half an hour after breakfast, I remembered why I only ate here once on my last trip!!   A trip to the market got me a $10 replacement for the backpack that was stolen; and lunch, once I could face it, was leftover salad and a half a panini (so I guess that would be a pani!!) from last nights takeout.   Once I started feeling better I spent the afternoon walking through the downtown core catching some of the Kodak Moments that had ...

I seem to have developed a pattern over the last week or so which requires me to plan an activity every second day and to do as little as possible on the alternating days.   Another lazy day has come and almost gone.   After my usual light breakfast of fresh fruit, coffee and somewhat dry raisin bread I set off in search of a barber to trim my scruffy looking beard. Half an hour and $2.50 later, I was in the central square watching as a large flock of tourists were herded into the Cathedral. Behind them a straggle of ceramics vendors and artistes followed in the hopes of making a sale. Outside of the Hotel Dario a small group that had been separated from the rest of the herd were negotiating the purchase of an oil on canvas that might have been kindly called “primitive” No doubt it is destined to hang in the dark corner of someone’s rec. room accompanied by an oft. told story about “ how we bargained the guy down to almost nothing”   By 7pm tonight a few stragglers were...

This morning I woke to the single ping of my palm pilot’s alarm, signalling 7am   With my pain level much improved over yesterday, I ate a quick breakfast then headed out to catch the bus to Jinotepe.   Arriving there shortly after 9:30 I didn’t have to wait too long for my next connection. An “interlocale” [local mini-bus] had me into Diriamba in time to hear the church bells peeling out the call for a 10am service. In front of the church a couple of dozen vendors were starting to cook up food for lunch while others were selling various sweets and some large and very crispy pieces of pork crackling.   Today, Jan 20 th marks the Festival of San Sebastian. According to local tradition, the icons of San Sebastian, San Marcos and San Santiago travelled together from Spain and as such there is a special bond between them. They are brought together from their respective villages- Diriamba, San Marcos and Jinotepe during a processional on January 19 th . A night of dancing f...

After breakfast this morning I set off my bike for a swim at Laguna Apoyo. A rather rough road –mud sand and rocks took a good 40 minutes to negotiate. The bike map suggested 20 but neglected to add (if your name is Lance Armstrong. The fact that it was mostly uphill didn’t help either. Parking my bike with a couple of security people I hiked down what is described as a cow-path for about 20 minutes before arriving at the lake. I enjoyed a 15-minute swim which was interrupted by the arrival of a very horny visitor who was in need of a drink. Not wishing to get in the way of a thirsty steer, I grabbed my things and made a fast retreat up the hill, only to find 20 or 30 more on their way down. Parking myself behind a tree, I waited until they and the men driving them had gone past before I continued up the hill.    Still wet from my swim, I left my swimming shorts on and stuffed my towel and other gear into my backpack before returning to pick up my bike. With the route being ...

Crossing streets in Managua is an art form and is not without risk. Somewhat less risky than swimming with cinder blocks in your pockets, it does, nevertheless, require a considerable amount of nerve and skill. Before trying it for yourself, I would suggest trying something slightly tamer, such as the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona.   While it does have a reputation of being dangerous, I have been less concerned for my safety there than on some of the backstreets of Granada.    Today, I had my first taste of “real” Chinese food since I arrived in the country. A hot and sour soup followed by a tofu and vegetable dish made me realize just how great the food is in Toronto. While the restaurant itself was recommended and the food “decent” I think I will wait till I get home for my next Comida China.   My main purpose for today’s trip was to see the museum at the Palatio National. [It was closed on my last visit]   One of the staff gave me a guided tour, in passa...

9pm Monday 17 th   Tonight a cloudy sky shielded the moon and the normally impressive nightscape was barely visible. In the central park the vendors were packing up their food supplies, loading them into the backs of carts while horses and mules patiently waited for the command to head home.   To the left of the Cathedral a ceramic baby Jesus continued to smile at the world, surrounded by his ceramic parents and a collection of wise men, shepherds and a small wooden fence. Adjacent stood a large “Christmas Tree” (mostly wires and framing) adorned with dozens of red “Claro” logos. [ Moviestar and Claro are the major competitors in the local cellphone market ]   On Calle La Calzada (the avenue often referred to as Gringo Gulch!) tourists wandered looking for food and/or drink while various musicians (using that term loosely) competed for attention and tips with a variety of street performers, fire jugglers, break dancers, acrobats and panhandlers.   While I had dinne...

Last night a $5 ticket got me pretty close to “front seat” viewing of an absolutely amazing show. Perrozompopo, a Nicaraguan band was in town for one night, putting on a show on the street in front of El Convento. After 3 ballads performed acoustically by the 3 principal guitarists, including lead singer Ramos Mejia, they brought on the rest of their band and started to “kick ass” With a voice somewhat like Peter Gabriel and a political attitude and stage presence like Zack de La Rocha (Rage Against the Machine) he led the band through a series of tunes that had most of the crowd pumped for the entire show. While I captured much of the performance on video my camera let me down by failing to record the audio! What a ….!!!   Anyway, if you have a chance- google the name.   In spite of not getting to bed till 1:45, the newly arrived and noisy Veterinary “Army” had me up and awake by 7:15   A quick breakfast of fruit and coffee gave me the fuel for a 2 and ½ hr bike ride a...

When I first came to this country I was a little nervous of public transport.    Now, as long as the major body parts are held on with nylon cord as opposed to twine, I feel OK.    This morning I set off bright and early for what I expected might be an all day trek. Jinotepe, slightly west of the Pueblos Blancos was a good 45 minute ride from Granada.   The route took a southerly course for a while before veering off towards the northwest.   The terrain, as mix of forest and scrub brush was still relatively green, although every river we passed over was simply a dried up dust bed.   Jinotepe, a town of about 30,000 was in the throws of a Saturday market with almost every street jammed with vendors selling a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. Like almost all towns in this country it centres around a major church fronted by a park. A bandstand in the centre was surrounded by tall old trees shading a number of crisscrossing pathways. Most of the be...

At breakfast this morning I was joined by a couple from the USA. He was just visiting. She was on a break from a 10-month NGO posting in Managua and she filled me in on life in the city. In a nutshell-TRUST NO-ONE!!! Tourists beaten up and robbed by taxi drivers, tourists attacked in broad daylight etc. (Sounds just like Winnipeg!!)   After that I picked up my rental bike and went for a ride along the lakefront. After covering about 8km and realizing I was totally alone I started to get a tad nervous. When 4 guys with slingshots came out onto the road from a side trail, I decided to put it into high gear and get back to town.   After a quick shower at the hotel I set off again, confining my travels to the town limits.   Feeling a little hungry and deciding to become a little adventurous I ate at a street vendor who had a small stall just outside of the cemetery!! The place had enough clientele that I decided to take a chance on some grilled chicken with a side of rice, ...

9pm Thursday Jan 13 th   Today Susanna flew home, leaving me to get up to all kinds of trouble on my own!! After seeing her off at the airport, I grabbed a city bus for a trip across Managua to the Mercado Roberto Huembes. The trip cost twelve and a half cents and took me across the northern part of the city, through some neighbourhoods that are apparently dangerous and some less so. All in all an interesting ride, especially as I was the only “gringo” on the bus. Halfway to the market a hawker got on the bus and proceeded with a close to 10 minute “infomercial” extolling the values and benefits of a vitamin product he was trying to sell. All in Spanish but very understandable, this pill did everything but top up your gas tank!! Somehow the Spanish word for Bullshit has escaped me but it would have come in handy.   Getting off at the market, I hoofed around for a while looking for food that would nourish rather than kill me. Settling on a small stall with quite a lot of busi...

10pm,            A pair of very dusty shoes and a pile of dirty clothing laying on the floor of the hotel room are testimony to the amount of effort required for tonight’s Masaya Volcano excursion.   After a relatively lazy day in Granada we set out at 4pm for the trip to the Masaya National Park. Our group consisted of 4 Canadian and 3 German tourists plus our Tierra Tours guide, Ramon and his driver. On arriving at the parking area, which overlooks the main crater we commenced to hoof it up the 400 and odd stairs which lead to a replica of the first wooden cross. It was placed there in the early 1500’s by a Catholic priest who considered the volcano to be the Mouth of Hell. Also considered sacred by the native population, it was the site of some ritual sacrifices in the pre-Hispanic eras. Our guide, Ramon mentioned that Somoza’s troops would actually execute political prisoners by ejecting them out of helicopters positioned over...

Tuesday morning ( Jan 11 th )   Midnight has come and gone and dawn is fast approaching. A quick shower has helped alleviate some of the night’s humidity and I have taken the unusual step of turning the aircon on for the night (Usually it’s only needed during the day) Dinner tonight at the Alhambra hotel was a quite delicious ‘Traditional Nicaraguan Comida Tipica” Consisting of skewers of beef, pork and chicken, pan fried plantain, deep fried plantain, fried “salty cheese”, seasoned ground beef, tortillas, salad and stewed brown beans, it was more than sufficient to feed the both of us. The remainder, wrapped in foil for me to take home, made it about 500 feet before it was eagerly accepted by one of the local “street dwellers”   Walking back to the hotel along the Calzada (the main pedestrian street) we met up with a couple from Toledo, Ohio whose path we had crossed on the way to Leon last week. Swapping travel adventures we chatted for a while before we continued on, leav...

Saturday night It is close to 8:30 as I sit less than 30 feet from Lago Apoyo, enjoying the breeze and listening to the waves breaking against the rocks, Above me is a sky like no other that I have seen in many years, Off in the distance, the city glow of Masaya can just be seen over the lip of the caldera. Along the lakeshore the odd light can be seen, the only indication that there are people living on the slopes of this wonderful rarity of nature.   The real light show, however is taking place above my head. Stars beyond count sparkle in the canopy above me. With little city wash to reduce their effect, these far off suns are a reminder of childhood days when I would look out of my bedroom window, trying to count these specks of light, For most city dwellers in north America the brightest and often only light in the sky is the moon. Besides that there is nothing but the artificial darkness created by the upward glow of man-made illumination.   What more can one ask of life ...

Saturday Jan 8 th 4:30PM   24 hours later, we find ourselves sitting in the same spot as yesterday, watching the same waves ripple across the lake and waiting for the sun to roll over the hill behind us.   Aside from the odd vocal performance of geckos hiding in the rafters of the cabana, last night passed relatively peacefully. A dinner of somewhat overcooked chicken breast with rice and vegetables proved to be more than enough to feed both myself and the family dogs.   This morning a hike to the Catarina Mirador, some 500 meters above, burned off an untold number of calories. The trail, which seemed, in part, to follow sections of a very rocky river bed was somewhat demanding. Local residents, obviously more attuned to the trip, ascended and descended with far more energy and speed than I could muster. On arriving at the summit, I spotted a sign in Spanish described the descent as “ Extreme”   Unsure of where to go once at the top we walked till we came to a fork ...

Friday January 7 th .   It is almost 3pm and a pleasant breeze is keeping things comfortable as we relax in front of our cabana. Lago Apoyo is just a few feet away and we are surrounded on all sides by the caldera of a very extinct volcano.   The trip here from Granada took a little over half an hour with the last 2 km or so taking up much of the time. The road was, more or less, a collection of potholes linked by the odd flat stretch. The occasional rooster attempted to briefly block our way and the only people sharing the road were villagers on horseback hauling firewood and children playing in the dirt.   San Simian is listed in the guidebooks as a resort. Robinson Crusoe might be impressed but “rustic” is a term that would better describe the place. Having said that, it is a very relaxing way to spend an afternoon. How we will survive the night might be a different story. The bedroom, with the exception of a waist high support wall is mostly thatch, including the roof...

Thursday Jan 6 th , Thanks to the sanctuary provided by mosquito nets, I awoke at around 6:15am with most of my blood supply intact. Since the promised cooling ocean breezes took a hiatus just before midnight, we relied on the services of a rusted relic of an electric fan to supply some air movement.   Following a light breakfast we caught the 8:30 bus back to town, Halfway to Leon, I realized that I still had the room key in my pocket! After trying for most of the trip to figure out a way to return it, the problem was solved for me. As soon as we got off the bus we were approached by one of the market vendors who had received a call from the hotel staff. She would simply send it back when she sent them the day’s supplies of fruit and vegetables.   A taxi ride across town, followed by a bus ride to UCA, Managua (University of Central America) and then a transfer to the Granada bus found us back on the streets of Granada in time for lunch- The entire trip, in just under 4 hou...

  Noon Wednesday 5 th   An early checkout from the hotel followed by a lengthy hike across town brought us to the district known as Subtiava. Essentially a barrio (suburb)) of Leon, it is one of the few that remains culturally and ethnically diverse, with a heritage based on the indigenous i.e. pre-Spanish) population. Having explored the area on a previous visit (2009) our only purpose in visiting the area was to reach the bus station.    A 40-minute (50 cent!) bus ride took us to and then south along the pacific coast to Las Peñitas Beach and a small hotel/hostel called Barca de Oro    Located right on the Pacific Ocean this rather rustic paradise consists of a dorm room plus 7 or 8? private rooms. With rather basic services including a restaurant and bar, its primary attraction is a cooling breeze off the pacific and a break from the hustle and bustle of the city. The room we were given offers a fan, windows on both sides to allow cross ventilation, pl...

Tuesday Jan 4 th ,                            It is 5pm and I have just made a retreat to my room. That seems to be the standard feeding time for most of the mosquitos who reside in the hotel lobby. Nearing the end of day 2 in Leon , the last couple of days has been a refresher course in the similarities and differences between the two cities. Leon, while appearing somewhat less affluent than Granada, is far cleaner. There is much less garbage on the streets and there seems to be less “humanity’ i.e. people “swarming” the streets- especially in the market areas. Primarily a university town, Leon has a lot more cheap eateries and very few of the overpriced restaurants that seem to populate Granada.   It is also home to a number of very interesting 16 to 18 th century churches which add character to their individual neighbourhoods.   We spent much ...

Sunday Jan 2 nd ,   An early bus ride found us in Managua by 10:30am. The exit from the bus involved running a gauntlet of extremely pushy taxi drivers offering transport at prices bordering on robbery.   Settling on a price of   $3 ( a bargain by Canadian standards, but a rip-off compared to other Nicaraguan towns) we were driven to the Plaza de la Revolucion to visit the Palacio National- now a museum. Normally open on Sunday, it was closed- probably because of the New Years weekend. Adjacent to the museum, the ancient cathedral, partially destroyed in the 1972 earthquake was fenced off, having been deemed unsafe. With much of the roof gone and several walls collapsed it was reminiscent of several of the religious buildings in Antigua, Guatemala- also damaged in previous earthquakes. After sauntering through a couple of the parks in the area we had a brief walk along the Malecon. Listed as a pleasant walk along the lakefront, it turned out to be a view blocked by one ...

Whether or not I actually slept last night was difficult to say. However I did drag myself out of bed around 8:30 this morning. It was close to 10:30 before we ventured out into the oppressive heat of the day. The temperature was in the low 30’s with a very unhealthy dose of humidity to weaken any bodies not already damaged by last night’s celebrations.   The town was eerily silent and even the stray dogs seemed hung over.   An occasional drunk decorated the odd doorway, collapsed where the New Years celebrations got the better of them.   Lunch today was at the Bearded Monkey- a popular hostel and backpacker hangout on the opposite side of the city centre. Chicken curry and a chicken stir fry, both over rice and served with two large slices of garlic toast cost a whopping $10 including drinks.   Deciding that walking in the heat was endangering my life, we headed back to the hotel, just in time to avoid a fairly heavy downpour.   The rain continued on and off ...

8:30pm   It is the last day of the year and the clock is crawling slowly towards midnight.In the middle of the street a Santa Claus Piñata waits for his inevitable end.   With the Año   Nuevo still 3 hours away, our neighbours are starting to seriously crank the volume all the way to eleven!! Smoke pours down the street from the various i.e.d’s that make up much of the evenings entertainment.   Across the way from the hotel, a neighbour has a set (4) of speakers stacked up that would not look out of place at a Pearl Jam concert. The evening commenced with a massive downpour, which started around 5pm and continues for a good hour and a half, settling down the dust and dropping the temperature several degrees.   Once the deluge had ended we set off for the town centre. On the Calzada, waiters were mopping up the pools of water, wiping down chairs and setting tables outside for the evening meal   Dinner tonight was at La Gran Francia, one of the more “deluxe” ...

Friday December 31 st    Last night was spent rather sleeplessly, which was to be expected considering the circumstances.   Before heading out on our planned day trip we locked all our valuables inside our suitcases and placed remaining cash and passports in my money belt.   After an already planned Shiatsu massage, which helped relieve some of my stress, we set off for the south side of town to catch a bus to Los Pueblos Blancos- literally “ the White Villages.   The route to the bus station required us to tackle the crowded market area . Height has its advantages in some areas but speed and sheer bravado seems to produce the greatest result when moving against the wave that seems to always flow in the opposite direction.   When we arrived at the bus station, all seats on our intended transport were taken and upwards of 25 people were already standing. Somehow we managed to board the bus and move to the middle. Some 20 minutes into the trip we were able to...