Chapter 3: Corn Islands, Nicaragua

11.07.2013

• Spent the morning writing and researching at the hostel
• Caught a cab to the airport and realized I never got cordoba, the Nicaraguan currency. Had to make a quick exchange in the airport to pay my driver. 
• Snagged another chicken salad (it really is a staple in my life back home too) and made my way to the terminal for La Costena airlines to check-in for my flight. They made me stand on the scale with my bags. I am now trying to guess the size of my plane. 
• Missed the first flight. Wasn't boarded on the next 2 flights. Met a nice couple from Denmark (her) and Scotland (him). Rain came down pretty hard but they let me put the rain fly on my bag. Talked with a woman from Nigeria who lives in Maryland and is traveling on a mission trip with a group - her fight delayed too. Water pouring in from the ceiling. Made friends with a 1 year old. 
• Boarded the plane. Bumpy ride through the rainstorm but some great views of the countryside. Large clouds and a rainbow as we crossed over the ocean. Sun setting behind us. 
• Landed on the airstrip that runs down the center of Big Corn Island. Water so blue and clear. Grabbed a cab to the G&G Hotel. Negotiated a rate of $15 per night for a private room. 
• Walked around the corner to the water and then through a short section of town. People standing  outside of shops and restaurants, mingling in the streets. Walked further north, stopping in shops to look for snacks, and avoiding the urge to pet any of the dozens of local dogs. 
• Went downstairs to the restaurant for a bite to eat. Evidently, 2 fish tacos is too many with gigantic portions despite the $3 price tag. Need to adjust my relationship to cost of living and currency. 
• Relaxed in the hotel room. Tired from yet another long day of travel. Glad to be somewhere I think I will be staying for a while. Round trip ticket is open-ended. No immediate plans to leave.

12.07.2013

• Woke up late and hot. Very hot. Downstairs for breakfast. Ate huevos rancheros with rice and beans. 
• Took a walk south past the airstrip toward Arenas Beach. The most beautiful beach I have seen in a very long time. Walked past the docks the the end of the beach. Stopped into a couple of bars and restaurants including the Arenas Beach Hotel with its white beach cabanas and ship-shaped bar - such a contrast from the scrap metal and plank homes just up the beach.
• Cooled down at the hotel and caught up on writing. Talked with mom on Skype. Nice way to wile away the heat of the day.
• Back to the beach with nothing more than a towel and sunscreen. Such bright sun and open, blue skies. Slip into the warm water and float with ease in the salt water. Lying on the beach, trying to balance out the tan lines I collected in the past few weeks. The feeling of being "away" sinks in - I am on a beach, on an island in the Caribbean Sea, off the coast of Nicaragua. Strange to feel so dislocated from my life but so calm and present with myself. Aware that this sense of vacating occurs in a place that other call home. 
• Ate a plate of fries at Martha's Bed & Breakfast's bar on the beach and watched the sun shrink within the clouds. Not a sunset as much as a sun-fade. 
• Long walk home as the skies darkened. Popped into stores to look for snacks. 
• Made it home and stopped into the G&G restaurant for a plate of chicken fajitas. Two men at the bar called me over. One of them, the local dentist, insists on buying me a shot of guaro. He had been at the baseball game earlier - I had been wondering what the bright lights in the distance were but was too tired to venture north to find out. Talked for a while about life on the island and places to see. Server offered me a bit of her drink, a creamy concoction made with breadfruit and spiced like chai tea. 
• Home to rest. Email from Kevin that one of our friends died last night. Girlfriend came home after seeing a movie and found him. Pretty upsetting. I only met him recently and he and Kevin were not close but he was very important to Kevin's dear friend. The loss is sudden and shocking and bring such a sense of uncertainty to the world. Sending love to his partner and family. 

13.07.2013

• Simply cannot start a day at a reasonable hour. How can I be in such a beautiful place and be dreaming about a giant going away party where I cry a lot? Maybe I miss home a little bit today?
• Breakfast in bed: granola bars, nuts, and the dwindling supply of candied ginger from Trader Joes. How sad the day will be with the bag is empty. 
• Studied the Island map and a bit of the history and demographics - British outpost, reclaimed by Nicaragua, leased to the United States, lease terminated, Coast Guard presence to help with drug trafficking; 6200+ people on Big Corn Island, 3+ sqr km; 75% of tourism is on Little Corn Island, 1.1 sqr mi. \
• Began a long walk toward South Point, cutting across the airstrip. Came to the baseball stadium and bought a ticket for tonight's game. Wandered into the Cultural Center - learned more history: Brits brought slaves from Africa to work sugar cane and cotton plantation to replace the indigenous population killed by diseases the Brits brought to the island; Queen Victoria granted emancipation in 1841 and is still celebrated on the islands today.
• Caught in a rainstorm. Tried to wait it out under cover, gave up, got soaked in warm, tropical shower. Worth every drop and every step. Passed variety of churches - one, a well established Episcopal Church, another just a gather space in a garage. Crab Crossing signs; No Passing car signs. Beaches with a view of Little Corn Island. 
• Stopped for lunch at Dos Millas restaurant. Learned that Boca on a menu pretty much means bite-sized and that boca de pollo at Dos Millas is basically fried chicken wings with a side of smashed and fried plantains. Heaven is a fried food. Watched children play in the water and enjoyed the break from the sun and a chance to dry out. 
• Caught a cab "home." Had to make a stop for another passenger and then a personal errand for the driver and then pick up the other passenger again and then make it home. Who can complain for a $0.60 cab ride?!
• Cold shower. Best idea of the day, so far. Enough time to check email before heading out to the baseball game. Had to grab a cab because the gate to cut across the airstrip was locked. Maybe because a plane was flying through as we drove past it. Other fun news: you can fit 6 people in a subcompact Kia! 
• Arrived at Karen Tucker Stadium and found a seat. Stood for the national anthem. Bought popcorn for dinner. Drank the guaro and pineapple juice I brought with me. A little bit tipsy at this point. 
• Best baseball game in personal memory. Bottom of the 9th, tied game 1-1, full count, bases loaded... line drive past shortstop and home team scores and WINS!! Series between the Caribe (national team from the Caribbean coast cities and islands) vs. Granada in the playoffs now at 2-0 with a double header tomorrow! New friend next to me at the game, Austin, filled in some local details: 6 members of the Caribe team are from the Corn Islands; a couple local guys went semi-pro in the past couple of years; women's softball team also active on the island; Austin play billiards, not baseball.
• Walked home along the streets, across the airstrip, and into the Brig Bay area with the throngs of satisfied sports fans. 

14.07.2013

• Taxi to the beach at Sally Peaches - walked to the end and waded in the waves - dead shark on the beach
• Lunch at Dos Milles, chicken fajitas 
• Taxi down to Long Beach - talking with everyone about the game - rode with a family - we won all 4 games in the series! 
• Walked all of Long Beach, past the Island Style Beach Bar and Restaurant, aka the disco on the island - super busy - went to Sea Star Spa at the end of the beach - walked back - got some color
• Taxi to Arenas beach to swim where the waves lapped against the shore instead of crashing - met Bobby and Yuriy, 2 students from Goshen College in Indiana doing a study/work abroad course for school - Yuriy in business at a local hotel and Bobby in a clinic as a pre-med student. 
• Stung by a jellyfish or two - caught them and held them in our hands - boy from Bluefields out visiting his grandmother (the local judge) who helped us search for sea stars
• Retired to the beach to have a drink with the boys - will see them in the morning for the ferry ride to Little Corn Island
• Taxi home (4 taxi rides all day cost around $5 for the two of us) - got cleaned up and went out for dinner at Fishers Cave. Garlic chicken with fried plantains - delicious!
• Bought some snacks on the walk home and spent the evening writing and listening to bad TV in the background. One of my Kevin songs played in a movie and I was a bit emotional for it - luckily I got to chat with him for a bit later in the evening. Feeling like a bad partner - an absent partner at the very least. He is so supportive. 

15.07.2013

• Up early with time to relax before walking to the docks to await the fast boat to Little Corn Island. Sat and watched children diving into the water off of moored boats and a few men gathering and cleaning their fresh morning catch. Found Bobby and Yuriy before boarding and sat behind them with a group of fine looking French boys. A bumpy ride lets you know where your stomach is in relation to the rest of your body. 
• Ashore on Littile Corn, I folled the boys who were following their two new Swiss friends (Molly, they are from Basel!) to a cluster of beach front huts under the name of Grace's Place - Cool Spot. For $15 I got a private room which I made my home away from home-away-from-home. A quick costume change, onto the beach, and into the water. Floating and diving in the warm waves. 
• Took off down the beach to explore and asked a man which way was best to head. He responded with a 3 hour personal tour of the island he has lived on for 24 years. Frank, our new pal, took us down the beach and up a hill near a small pineapple plantation. Yuriy found a small pineapple on the ground. Frank doubled back to a man we passed and borrowed a machete and sliced it up right there for us to eat. Walked half way around the island, stopping at various places he has done labor work, usually for foreigners building hotels or private homes. He talked about being mistreated by foreign land owners who have underpaid him, not paid him, ended contracts early. Passed the baseball field named for a ball player who had been killed. Hiked to the top of the central hill on the island and climbed the observation tower for a full 360 degree view of the island. We thanked Frank for his time and invited him to lunch but he was on his way home to his wife of 30 years.
• Went for lunch at Miss Brigett's. Our server, Federico, is from Bluefields, Nicaragua, but lived for 28 years in the United Sates of America working in the construction industry and caring for prize wining thoroughbreds. He loved his work and the opportunity to work and learn a variety of trades. As an undocumented resident he eventually felt that he would have more security back in Nicaragua. Shared a great conversation and a love of Seattle. More conversation with the boys - lots in common with Bobby: tenors, active in our communities and churches, interested in health care and peace work, love to talk about social justice issues. 
• Home to swim as the sun began to fade. Met Callie and Comet, a lovely couple from Portland who are staying on the island for a month. Exchanged laughs and Facebook contacts to connect in Oregon when I'm home. 
• Walked back to town and caught the first "true" sunset of my trip. Ate at Tranquilo on the bay. Realized that Bobby, Yuriy, and I all wore blue stripped shirts. So did our server, Stephanie. We aer starting a band called the Blue Stripes. We will be covering the hits of the White Stripes. Lovely staff, good food, great happy hour. American owned and full of white folk. The Little island receives 75% of the tourist traffic between the two and clearly caters to it's audience. 
• A few drinks later we walked by moonlight back to our cabins. We ordered a bottle of Flor de Cana and I did my social worker thing... ask a lot of questions. I learned a lot about Yuriy who was born in the Ukraine and emigrated when he was six years old. His family worked hard to earn the money to move to the United States and worked hard to give their children their idea of the "American dream." Yuryi talked about the work ethic he learned from them, how close this experience made his family, the Ukrainian community which they became a part of in Indian, the efforts his parents made to support his education, and how much he appreciates his education as a soon-to-be first generation college graduate who worked through school to help support himself and his family. I'll admit to my own prejudices about heterosexual, white boys, how much of that comes from a fear of rejection (or worse), how 
• What better way to follow drinking and soul searching than a late night plunge in the ocean. Tricky thing, that ocean - refreshing during the day, still surprisingly cold at night. Yuriy went to bed and Bobby and I combed the beach talking about liberal faith traditions and the overlap in social justice interests of the Unitarian Universalists and the Mennonites. He's a bright man with a great heart and peaceful, analytic mind. Glad to share a small island and big world with such folk. 

• Side note: today was the memorial service for Chris Tarnstorm, a new friend to me and dearly loved by many. Sending heartfelt condolences and so many hugs to those I could not be with today. It was a pleasure to know him. 

16.07.2013

• Woke up and saw light coming into the room. Decided to go for an early morning walk on the beach. Opened the door and it was pitch black - light was from bulb glowing above my porch. Checked my watch: 3am. Back to bed. 
• Finally got up at 7am. Went for a swim to freshen up. Sun low in the sky and filtering through the sea spray. Laid on a deck chair and dried in the warming air. 
• Met up with Bobby and Yuriy for some morning relaxation, then some breakfast - veggie omelette with thick slices of coconut bread which I ate (in spite of myself) with guava jelly. Met Sammy, an undergrad from Miami, Ohio who is studying early childhood education and volunteering as a teacher in the primary school and teaching English in the afternoons. Discussed some of the socio-economic and systemic challenges involved in education on the rural island. Things that affect the people who make their home here. 
• Checked out of hotel and walked with the boys back to Tranquilo. Drank a club soda and offered to finish the rest of Bobby's veggie tacos.
• They went back to relax before an afternoon snorkel tour. I decided to stay close to the docks where I waited a good two hours for my 1:30 sailing back to Big Corn. I was able to catch a cat nap while sitting among the other passengers-to-be. A quick ride across the narrow space of ocean on a not too rough sea and a quick walk back to my hotel room, or, as I now refer to it, "the place I keep on the Big Island."
• Made a quick turn around and back to Arena's Beach Hotel for a sadly underwhelming lunch. Cab ride up to the north end for snacks at Sally Peachy and a long, slow walk along the beaches and shoreline back home. Found an abandoned building with a broken down van and helicopter (?) - engine rotting in the ocean out back. Caught an amazing sunset and found a great new store that sells peanut butter!!! The search ends. Kids playing basketball. People roaming the streets, playing pool, lingering outside of bars. Front doors open with TVs on. It's nice to be back in a place so active with life - the business of living. It feels good to be back to a place where I feel like the outsider instead of the attraction. 
• I have officially spent more continuous time on the Corn Islands than any one place since I left Washington. It will be hard to leave, I think, but I am also looking forward to getting my travel shoes back on. Not just yet though. 

17.07.2013

• Spent the morning writing and listening to music
• Left to run errands and discovered that Yuriy and Bobby got back this morning from Little Corn Island and ended up in the adjacent hotel room! Bought Peanut Butter! Store selling baseball caps including one for the Seattle Mariners. Home for snack breakfast.
• Rainy and blustery morning. Stayed in for a while longer and took a wee nap. Back out for lunch at Big Fish Cafe and Guesthouse. Started with the fresh conch fritters followed by a steamed yellowtail snapper, caught this morning off Big Corn Island. Two lovely women running the restaurant today - best serviecs I have had on the island and one of the best meals too.
• Up the street to Island Bakery & Sweets which is not on the interwebs but certainly worth a visit. Run by a local woman who started making icing cakes for events and then opened a bakery two years ago. The simple storefront has a homey feel and houses a bakers case filled with chocolate cake, lemon pie, cupcakes, fresh biscuits, and an assortment of other treats made daily. It felt like walking into my grandmother's kitchen (I miss you!) and the owner is sweet enough to make you think for a moment she could be your granny. I buckled under the pressure of my sentimentality and sweet tooth and took away a fresh pineapple turnover and a bottle of homemade root beer. 
• Back home to rest. Very rainy and windy today with terrific lightning storms. Wrote, listened to music, let the TV lull me in the background. Stepped out briefly to get water and order a plate of patacones (smashed and fried green plantains), also called tostones. It's good to be an adult and eat whatever you like for dinner even when it's a bad decision. 

18.07.2013

• Rainy and thunder and lightning and wind and relief from the pressure to do anything. Finished up blog posts, made conversation online, finished a TV series, snacked, and snacked some more. This was the first day that it really started to sink in that I do not have a job and that I have no "productive" activity in my life. Trying to unpack the feelings and underlying assumptions that I hold around that thought and how it impacts my view of the world and other people. My non-blog reflective writing begging to feel like a gestation and I am curious to see what is birthed. 
• Took advantage of a break in the weather to head tot he beach on my last full day on Corn Islands. Laid in the sand and reflected on my time here. It seems to be a slow and quiet day on the island and I feel a personal sense of peace in the stillness of the afternoon. 
• Back home before the rains hit again. Spent time reading more about the history of Nicaragua, the Inter-Oceanic Nicaragua Canal, and local news from around the country. Read an article about the expansion of a US based not-for-profit into Nicaragua, took some exception to the language it used, drafted a comment to post. In the process found some great online material regarding principles of International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs) including a return to the Code of Conduct for NGOs authored by UW faculty members.