7am), had a bit of breakfast and started to get ready for horseback riding. Unfortunately I had to get out my muddy shoes from the Maderas hike, though I was not keen on using them yet, or ever again for that matter. Again I debated with getting rid of them alltogether and just splurging for a pair of new shoes, but that would have to wait. We were ready to go by 9 am, and like clockwork, our guide showed up and introduced himself. Jose was relieved that we spoke at least a bit of spanish, since he didn´t know much english, but regardless was a really nice guy, and smiling all the time. We got into his pickup truck, and started driving through town. We had a chance to see the rest of San Juan del Sur,
both the really nice, upscale, gated communities as well as the run-down, almost shanty-like neighbourhoods. I had made the assumption that the farm was somewhere on the outskirts of the city, but we kept on driving south for almost half an hour on a dusty, bumpy road. On the way there, Jose stopped the truck at the side of the road, and pointed to a strange looking monkey that was tied up in a tree. He explained to us that it was the mascot of a nearby finca, so that tourists can locate the side road leading to it - I was half expecting the monkey to point out the road, but instead we were treated to a not-so-pleasant backside view. We finally arrived at Jose´s farm, a really nice looking place, and he invited us to see if we
wanted to have anything for breakfast. We already had had some food, and my stomach wasn´t really feeling 100%, so we made the wise decision to move on to the horses, promising that we would stop on the way back for lunch instead. The three horses were waiting for us, tied up against the fence. Carmen and I got the two white ones (luckily I got the more obedient one) and Jose got on a smaller, brown horse. I was at first a bit nervous, since it had been years since I had been on a horse, but quickly I learned to relax and enjoy the ride. We started down the road through the village, waiving hello to everyone who we passed, and Jose pointed out the local school where the kids were playing
in the yard on their break. Just as we were about to leave the village, a donkey caught our attention and nearly destroyed our hearingg with its high pitched yee-haas. We continued through a valley, with fields of sugar cane on either side of us, and then turned off the road through another farm and onto a rugged path. Occasionaly Jose would stop to point out the congo monkeys who by now were pretty quiet and sleeping in the trees. We crossed a small creek, and as we continued on the path we saw what Jose led us to believe was a dead cow. Realizing that he had been kidding, we moved on until we got to a fork in the road.
wanted to have anything for breakfast. We already had had some food, and my stomach wasn´t really feeling 100%, so we made the wise decision to move on to the horses, promising that we would stop on the way back for lunch instead. The three horses were waiting for us, tied up against the fence. Carmen and I got the two white ones (luckily I got the more obedient one) and Jose got on a smaller, brown horse. I was at first a bit nervous, since it had been years since I had been on a horse, but quickly I learned to relax and enjoy the ride. We started down the road through the village, waiving hello to everyone who we passed, and Jose pointed out the local school where the kids were playing
in the yard on their break. Just as we were about to leave the village, a donkey caught our attention and nearly destroyed our hearingg with its high pitched yee-haas. We continued through a valley, with fields of sugar cane on either side of us, and then turned off the road through another farm and onto a rugged path. Occasionaly Jose would stop to point out the congo monkeys who by now were pretty quiet and sleeping in the trees. We crossed a small creek, and as we continued on the path we saw what Jose led us to believe was a dead cow. Realizing that he had been kidding, we moved on until we got to a fork in the road. Following Jose´s suggestion, we took the path that led uphill, and once we got to the top we were rewarded with a beautiful view of two secluded beaches, one on either side of us. We
stopped for a few minutes to take some pictures, and then we descended to our right, on a narrow and steep path. Not knowing how to handle the horse too well, I often had to part branches aside with my hand, and somehow a red ant feel on my leg and took a big chunk of skin as a souvenir. By the time I felt the pinch, it was already too late as the damage was done. Once on the beach, and with very little warning, Jose encouraged his horse to start running to the other side - it did not take long for our horses to follow, too. I found myself holding on to the saddle for dear life, so tight in fact that I ended up scraping the skin off of one of my fingers due to the friction of the rope. At the end of the beach, the horse automatically slowed down and then stopped all together. Taking a moment to gather myself and have a drink of water, we took a break and chatted with Jose for a while, and then we asked him to take a few pictures of us on the horses.
stopped for a few minutes to take some pictures, and then we descended to our right, on a narrow and steep path. Not knowing how to handle the horse too well, I often had to part branches aside with my hand, and somehow a red ant feel on my leg and took a big chunk of skin as a souvenir. By the time I felt the pinch, it was already too late as the damage was done. Once on the beach, and with very little warning, Jose encouraged his horse to start running to the other side - it did not take long for our horses to follow, too. I found myself holding on to the saddle for dear life, so tight in fact that I ended up scraping the skin off of one of my fingers due to the friction of the rope. At the end of the beach, the horse automatically slowed down and then stopped all together. Taking a moment to gather myself and have a drink of water, we took a break and chatted with Jose for a while, and then we asked him to take a few pictures of us on the horses. We turned the horses around, and the fast-paced scene repeated itself as we returned to the beginning of the secluded beach. We got back on the path, up and then down the hill, where we ran into some real life caballeros, who managed to revive the cow we saw before and bring it
back onto its feet. From here on we took the other path, onto the second secluded beach, where again our horses broke into a gallop. I must have held the reigns too tighly on one side, since as we were speeding along the beach, my horse kept on veering to the right, until it got into the ocean, spashing water all around. It kept on going until my feet were in the water too, then it came to a complete stop, so sudden in fact that I almost pictured myself doing a tumble over its head and ending up going for a swim. Luckily that didn´t happen and I was able to steer it back onto the beach, as Carmen and Jose were both laughing at my lack of guidance skills.
back onto its feet. From here on we took the other path, onto the second secluded beach, where again our horses broke into a gallop. I must have held the reigns too tighly on one side, since as we were speeding along the beach, my horse kept on veering to the right, until it got into the ocean, spashing water all around. It kept on going until my feet were in the water too, then it came to a complete stop, so sudden in fact that I almost pictured myself doing a tumble over its head and ending up going for a swim. Luckily that didn´t happen and I was able to steer it back onto the beach, as Carmen and Jose were both laughing at my lack of guidance skills.So back on the beach, we ´parked´our horses and took a walk to the end, where we climbed the rocks to get a better view of the area. A few bats flew over our heads as we stopped to take a few pictures, both of us with Jose and of the beautiful surroundings. There were hundreds of crabs crawling around, and Jose tried to catch a few of them, though without much success. Once we returned to the horses, we took a different trail back to the main road, passing by a fresh water laguna and following the river upstream. By this point it was getting close to noon, and the heat and sunshine increased as well. We passed the same donkey that we saw in the morning, who still greeted us with its loud calls. We were relieved to be able to get off the horses and into the shade of the soda on Jose´s farm. We had a
few drinks and ate lunch, while talking to Jose and immersing ourselves in an improptu spanish - english lesson. He even took a picture of us at the restaurant that he wants to use for future promotion, and Carmen and I laughed that if we saw ourselves on any brochures we would get our army of lawyers after him.
few drinks and ate lunch, while talking to Jose and immersing ourselves in an improptu spanish - english lesson. He even took a picture of us at the restaurant that he wants to use for future promotion, and Carmen and I laughed that if we saw ourselves on any brochures we would get our army of lawyers after him.We said goodbye to his family and left the farm, feeling drained and exhausted and walking in a very funny way. On the ride back into San Juan del Sur, Carmen promptly fell asleep for the half hour ride, while I watched he surroundings and chased the clouds of dust with my eyes. We returned to Casa Oro, said goodbye to Jose, and sat down to figure out our next move. We were supposed to go to Rivas to buy our tickets for the Tica bus, but neither of us were particularly
keen on making the 2-3 hr return trip for a mere 15 minutes spent at the Tica office. So we decided to leave that for the next morning, and took the rest of the afternoon to relax and stretch our sore muscles. I spent a few hours reading, and while I was in the backyard of Casa Oro, I ran into Nicole again, who I had met in Granada about a week prior; she followed the same travel itinerary as me, just a few days behind, but we managed to catch up with one another. Didn´t leave the hostel until it got to be after 5 pm, when Carmen and I went down to the beach to watch the sunset again. After a brief stop at the internet cafe, we asked around and found the name of a local pizzeria where we had dinner. We were both so tired after a full day that we returned to Casa Oro to get some rest, knowing that the next day we would have to get up early to get our Tica bus tickets before catching the beach shuttle.
keen on making the 2-3 hr return trip for a mere 15 minutes spent at the Tica office. So we decided to leave that for the next morning, and took the rest of the afternoon to relax and stretch our sore muscles. I spent a few hours reading, and while I was in the backyard of Casa Oro, I ran into Nicole again, who I had met in Granada about a week prior; she followed the same travel itinerary as me, just a few days behind, but we managed to catch up with one another. Didn´t leave the hostel until it got to be after 5 pm, when Carmen and I went down to the beach to watch the sunset again. After a brief stop at the internet cafe, we asked around and found the name of a local pizzeria where we had dinner. We were both so tired after a full day that we returned to Casa Oro to get some rest, knowing that the next day we would have to get up early to get our Tica bus tickets before catching the beach shuttle.
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