Hurricane Otto

A few weeks ago Nicaragua was struck by a Hurricane. Having just relocated inland we were not in danger, however many of our friends and family were still on the coast and were getting ready for the storm. I've never been in any kind of natural disaster in my life, so I really didn't know what to expect. As the storm was coming closer information was a bit sketchy. We kept hearing about it on Instagram but as far as local news was concerned nothing was going on.

As it got closer however the media started paying attention. The storm was downgraded to a tropical storm, but then back up to a category three hurricane shortly before making landfall. Our friends on Corn Island were the most concerned, boarding up the windows on the kingdom hall and taking down trees to avoid them falling on houses. Thankfully however the storm took a turn to the south and missed the Islands for the most part. As the storm hit Bluefields we were watching live coverage on TV, when the speaker said "wait... everything is shaking!" a few seconds later we felt it too. As if a hurricane wasn't enough an earthquake hit at the same moment! The table and standing fan in our kitchen started rocking back and forth. Another first for me, I didn't realize it was an earthquake until it had long passed. The shaking barely lasted a second so it was over before we knew what was going on. No damage thankfully, although it turned out to be a 7.2 off the coast of El Salvador.

But it gets better. I was talking to my parents online and telling them about everything as it happened, and my dad thinking it was comical that we had two disasters at once said "You should throw in a Tsunami just for good measure". Literally seconds later the news announced that a tsunami wave would hit the pacific coast of Nicaragua in 30 minutes.

By the end of it all, the damage was very little. The Tsunami did hit the pacific coast, but I guess it didn't have time to gather strength so all that happened is some beaches were a little washed out. The immediate area along the coast was evacuated however. As for us up here in Jinotepe, it had very little effect. We didn't even get rain actually, but it made for an exciting week.

Corn Island Travel Blog

One of the things that Jean and I tried to do in order to make a living back on Corn Island was help plan people's vacations. We had a service of booking hotels for people and recommending good and safe places to stay and where to eat. Many awesome hotels and restaurants don't have websites and are not listed on tourist maps so one can miss out a lot without some insider information. As well, some of the "best" hotels and restaurants online have long since gone out of business or are run down and don't offer many of the services they claim.

Well, since we obviously can't do this anymore even though it was doing alright and we made some great friends in the process... I've decided just to share our information publicly. Below are some of the custom maps we made for our clients. You may notice the Little Corn map is a bit lacking but that's because we didn't have any clients who went to little corn yet. You may also notice a recommendation to steer clear of a few places. I have nothing against these places, and perhaps you may like them yourself, its just that having been there in person and seeing what they have to offer, and more importantly what their competition has to offer I did not feel their prices were justifiable.

Big Corn

Little Corn

Here's some good hotels on Big Corn:

Treehouse - Private cabins on long bay, absolutely amazing. Hot water, kitchen, wifi (thats hard to get on Corn Island by the way) and great service. Around $50 per night

Picnic Center - Best beach on the Island, possibly best beach in Nicaragua. Rooms around $40 per night. AC, hot water, stylish.

Hotel Morgan - prices ranging from $20 to $40. Very nice location, breezy. Good looking rooms with AC. Restaurant has good food for good prices with big portion sizes.

Alal Suite - Upstairs rooms have an amazing view of the ocean and all day breeze. AC not necessary. $25 per night

Some places to avoid:

Arenas beach - Looks pretty fancy. They have gazebos on the beach which are nice. We wanted to go there one day and they wanted to charge us $20 per person (5 of us) to sit in the gazebo. We asked the people next to us what they paid (they were Nicaraguan) and they said $10 for their entire group, which was 5 or 6 people. We asked to speak to someone inside and they simply said "The price changed, sorry". On top of that everything is 2x the price of Picnic center which is literally right next to the place. That being said its really a nice looking place if you're OK with being lied to about the prices and taken advantage of for being a gringo.

Paraiso - Used to be a very nice place, unfortunately it hasn't been maintained and has become quite run down. Some friends stayed there recently and left after the first night because of the poor conditions of the room. A lot of the services they offered online weren't there (like hot water).

Little Corn hotels:

Mostly, just wanted to add one we recently discovered while staying for a wedding on Little Corn. the aptly named "Grace's cool spot" which located right where "elsa's" is on the map above. $10 a night for a simple room, $20 for a private cabin. Probably one of the coolest places I've ever stayed in. All the cabins are actually on the sand, on the breezy side of the island, with the waves splashing just a few steps from your cabin's door. One of not so many hotels on little corn owned and run by local islanders.

As for the ones listed as overpriced, its just that. Too darn expensive. Yemaya for example is supposed to be a "resort" for $300-500 per night. I've been to resorts in Mexico. Yemaya is not a resort. It is a hotel. They also offer a private boat to pick you up from Big Corn, but if I were you I'd stick with the panga. Yemaya's boat is tiny.

Speaking of boats, if you're thinking of going to Corn Island, here is a video tour we made of the largest of the passenger boats that takes you from Bluefields to Big Corn. In this video we are on our way to Rama from Corn Island.

Atlantic and Pacific

Its often said that there are two sides of Nicaragua. The yearbook even called the Atlantic coast "The Other Nicaragua" highlighting the vast cultural differences between the two sides of the country. Having lived in both sides now we have experienced this first hand and can really confirm that it is true. The east side of Nicaragua, divided into two departments: Region Autonomio Costa Caribe Norte, or "R.A.C.C.N." and Region Autonomio Costa Caribe Sur, or "R.A.C.C.S." These when translated basically mean "North carribbean coast autonomous region" and likewise as the south. Many maps still show the old name of these departments: RAAN and RAAS, however this was recently changed likely due to RAAS being uncomfortably close to a curse word in the local Creole language.

Many people in the Atlantic regions still speak Spanish, however many do not speak it as their first language. Some speak either Creole which is a dialect of English, or Miskito which is an indigenous language of its own. Economically the Atlantic coast is far behind the Pacific. Many in the Pacific believe that people from the Atlantic coast are wealthy because the cost of living is higher, but the opposite is true, wages are generally lower while cost of living is higher. Having just moved to Jinotepe, Carazo we have found that prices of everyday household items like soap, as well as food are generally twice as expensive on the Atlantic coast, becoming more expensive the further east you go. Corn Island and Pearl Lagoon being the most expensive. This seems to be in part due to the lack of transportation. The highway stops at Rama, and any travel beyond there must be done by boat, or if you're brave by dirt (mud) roads. Another reason for the prices likely is the lack of competition, there are very few shops and no supermarkets besides the ones in Rama and Bluefields, so if someone is selling anything from the pacific they can charge any price they want even for basic necessities.

On the Pacific side of Nicaragua, first of all there's a lot more people. According to some sources 5% of the population lives in the two Atlantic Regions, and 95% in the Pacific. The Pacific is divided into many departments, all of which I have yet to memorize. We live in Carazo, other well known departments are Rivas, Granada, Masaya... names you have likely heard of. There is more business over here and many cities as well. Cost of living over here is generally 50% of what it is on the Atlantic side, although tourist areas may cost many times more. We pay a little bit more for rent over here, but that comes with conveniences that are hard to get in the Atlantic, such as wifi and hot water. We can even drink from the tap in Jinotepe, something we wouldn't even dream of doing in Pearl Lagoon.

Grocery store in Jinotepe

Tourism has a much bigger impact on the Pacific side as well. On Corn Island (RACCS) tourism is only beginning, and any tourists found in Pearl Lagoon are either hard-core adventurers or hopelessly lost. San Juan Del Sur on the other hand, in the Rivas department of the pacific has a lot more in common with tourist hotspots like Cancun or Hawaii. many things are priced according to "If you have to ask, you can't afford it". Rental apartments or houses in SJDS are rare, as most opt to rent on a per-night basis and are unlikely to agree to long term. Other communities away from the beach are quite different however and rent can be very cheap. Although the Pacific coast may be more popular with tourists, the Atlantic has natural beauty that is beyond compare, just lacking in accessibility.

Sunset in San Juan Del Sur

Crystal clear water of Corn Island

Architecture on the Pacific side resembles the rest of Latin America. Cities are made up of blocks laid out on a grid, and the buildings in each block are built with their exterior wall immediately on the sidewalk, and their interior walls connected to each other, making the entire block resemble one large building.

San Marcos

In the Atlantic however, houses are well spaced out and disconnected from each other. In fact, in smaller communities the houses may not even be built near a street, but rather be behind another house or simply standing on its own.

Haulover

These are just a few of my observations, but it really feels like two countries in one, and if you spend any time in Nicaragua its definitely worth going to the other side to get the full experience.

Making the move

So having decided to make the move, our first step was to find a place to rent in Jinotepe. This was easier than expected, thanks to some very helpful friends that we met at a circuit assembly who are now our neighbors.

But first, we had to get there. We sold many of the things we had in the apartment so as to be saved the trouble of moving them across the country. Thankfully a couple was moving to Corn Island shortly after we planned to leave, and wanted an apartment in our building. This made things very easy, we just arranged with the landlord that we would give them the key and they would buy our appliances and many of our household items. That got us down to a few suitcases full of items, mostly clothes and some dishes. We didn't have quite enough suitcases, so we bought some cheap 20 cordoba plastic bags known as "Quintaleras" and put them inside sacks commonly used for rice or sugar to make durable water-tight bags to carry our clothes in.

On the day of the move we loaded everything into one taxi, and rode with it down to the main wharf. We had planned to take the Captain D which is the largest of the cargo ships that head to the mainland, but for whatever reason it was a no-show. So we went the next morning on the Island Express, our second favorite... but after getting all our bags on board we found out that it was only going as far as Bluefields, and we wanted to get as far as possible so as to save trouble. So we unloaded all the suitcases from the boat and carried them over to the next boat, the Isleño, our least favorite and also the smelliest of the cargo ships. In any case we left around 11:00 AM on Sunday, and bypassing Bluefields we made it to Rama by midnight. This was now the most difficult stage of the move, we decided to stay in a hotel (we found a rather nice one in Rama for 350 cordobas). We had to carry all of our bags from the wharf, two blocks down to the hotel, and because it was late there were no taxis around. Jean waited with the bags by the ship while I carried them one or two at a time, taking about 4 trips in all. Thankfully Rama is a fairly safe place to be wandering around at night.

The next day we were on the 9:00 AM express bus to Managua, which was a pretty typical chicken-bus ride. 5 hours later we're in Managua. We were debating how to get to Jinotepe from Managua. It is 1 hour bus ride from La UCA bus terminal, however said terminal only has microbus type buses, which are basically big white vans. These can hardly take suitcases as big as ours, let alone so many. If they even agreed to take us they would likely charge for each bag as if it were a passenger, so we were dreading the cost. Also the taxi would charge a fair amount to take us there as well. We ended up finding a fairly reasonable taxi rate to get us to La UCA. He would charge us 230 cordobas, which basically equates to 50 cordobas per person/suitcase. We felt this was reasonable so we agreed. Along the way we were calculating that the bus at La UCA would likely charge the same amount or more to get us up to Jinotepe, when the cab driver asked us where we were going. He offered to take us directly to Jinotepe himself so we could skip the bus stage altogether. We asked how much and I braced myself for some heavy gringo-tax... but to our surprise, he offered to do it for 700 cordobas. Thats a one hour trip up into the mountains, in a comfortable air conditioned car with all our bags safely in the back. We gladly accepted his offer, and we were saved some huge headaches and got to avoid spending any extra time in Managua.

The drive up into the mountains was spectacular. We're both really going to miss the beautiful blue ocean and beaches of Corn Island, but this part of the country also has its own natural beauty. Everything up here is a deeper green color than we generally see on the coast for some reason, and as we went higher we could see further and further. As we started to feel the change in altitude we could see clouds at eye level on either side of the road. Finally, we went straight into them. As we passed El Crucero we were surrounded with grey mist and we could feel the air getting cooler. As we came out of the clouds we were entering Diriamba just as the sun was setting. After Diriamba came Jinotepe where the taxi driver took us to the house of the brothers meeting us.

Jinotepe is a city of about 50,000 people according to some Internet sources. It has an architectural style similar to that of some other Nicaraguan cities like Granada or Leon, however very little influence of tourism. The climate is also very different, being at about 560 meters, or 1,800 feet in elevation. The temperature ranges from about 18-30 degrees Celsius throughout the year and is very pleasant. That being said, coming from the coast it feels very cold. This side of the country is far more "developed" also. Jinotepe has nice grocery stores and fruit and vegetables are easy to find. One can even find computer and electronic stores. Cost of living here is also cheaper. I'm not completely sure why things are so much more expensive on the coast even though its less developed. Even things the coast exports are cheaper here, for example lobster is cheaper in Jinotepe than on Corn Island for reasons beyond my understanding.

We do pay more here for rent than we did on Corn Island, but that is mostly because we had a particularly good deal before. We're paying a lot more now, but a long with that we have unlimited Internet (wi-fi) included in the rent along with cable TV, appliances, and furniture. And having a stable Internet connection of course means being able to make a lot more money.

Moving on

After a full year on Corn Island, Jean and I have come to the difficult decision that we will be moving away from Corn Island for the time being. It was a decision we made fairly suddenly and It really wasn't something we wanted to consider, but for various practical reasons we are unable to stay on the Island any longer. Corn Island is a wonderful place and we will really miss the congregation here, there is a lot of need for brothers that can stay here long term, and we really thought we could stay longer.

Some of the reasons for our move were discussed in my last post, namely the amount of time it takes to travel to and from the Island, this has meant at times we spend more time off the island riding buses and boats than we do on the Island itself. Cost of living is also much higher here than on the mainland, but still manageable. One of the main reasons for our move is that its hard to find work here. Our situation is rather unique and different than I would have expected. When we came to Corn Island I was teaching English online over skype, but after about a month of being on the Island i lost the job due to poor internet connectivity. At times the internet was fast enough but it would often cut out without warning or any reason. Also having to pay for data made it unprofitable to do video calls to teach.

Claro que no.

Since then I've tried many other things, I've applied for many of jobs online and even tried starting a business. We've sold food on the street and homemade jewelry. Selling food seemed to do the best out of everything, but this is unfavorable because my wife has to do the selling while I make the food at home, because as a foreigner my hands are tied when it comes to making a living inside the country. I'm not allowed to work, except online for a business outside the country (such as teaching English). And then, even if I could get a job in the country, I'd be looking at a wage of $5-10 US per day, and the process of getting residency takes years.

At one point we decided to give in, and go to Canada to work for a few months and save up. But those plans came to a sudden halt when Jean's visa application was denied. We had applied for a 3 month tourist visa, expecting that should be easy since she's married to a Canadian... but no. They claimed that because of her "family ties" that is, being married to a Canadian citizen, it was too high of a risk that she would attempt to stay in the country illegally, therefore her tourist visa would not be approved. Believe it or not, its easier to get into Canada if you have nothing to do with any Canadians. After some consultation it may still be possible for her to get a 1 month visa at some point in the future to go to Canada, but 1 month is not enough time for me to work enough to even pay for the flights.

Now, I don't want to sound like I'm complaining, I just want to share our experience in the hopes that maybe it could help someone in a similar situation. Some may use our situation as an example for why its a "bad idea" to marry someone from another country, and may use our problems as "ammunition". But as Jehovah's Witnesses we are not confined by national boundaries. As citizens of god's kingdom we are above such things. We have these problems because we live in Satan's world, and if someone isn't ready to face these kind of obstacles for the sake of the person they love, then they aren't ready to commit to marriage either.

Of course at any moment I COULD go to Canada on my own, work for a few months sending money and come back. I could buy a plane ticket, go to the airport and be in Canada within 24 hours, and be working in any minimum wage restaurant within a couple days which would easily pay all of our expenses for a good while. We do not consider this to be an option. Matthew 19:6 says "What God has yoked together, let no man put apart". We've had many articles in recent years about the problems that arise when a husband leaves his family to work abroad in hopes of making more money. We feel that this counsel now applies to our situation, and so we refuse to live apart. Where I go, Jean goes. Where Jean goes, I go.

And so finally, after considering all these things and what options we have we have decided to leave Corn Island. Jehovah has provided a way out for us, that doesn't force us to live apart or sacrifice our spirituality. We are moving to another part of Nicaragua where reliable Internet is easily obtained, and costs of living are much less. We will be moving to Jinotepe, Carazo and serving in the English Congregation in San Marcos. This way we will also be closer to Managua and to the border so that we won't lose time and money traveling, and the process of my applying for Nicaraguan residency will be much easier.

Island Life

Recently I've been hearing from friends that are curious about life here on Corn Island, so its probably about time I posted an update and some general information about every day things here. If you're already down here this probably will all be old news to you but for those looking for a glimpse of Island life from afar I hope you will find this information interesting and perhaps even useful.

First off some things we really like about living on Corn Island. Of course the first thing has to be the ministry, the work we do here is very productive like anywhere else in Nicaragua and we see a lot of fruitage. Secondly the obvious advantage to living on a Caribbean island is the spectacular beaches and ocean views. Even in bad weather this is among the most beautiful places in the world.

Some of the activities we enjoy here are swimming, snorkeling, diving, and fishing. Jean and I particularly love to go snorkeling in front of our apartment. There is a reef not far from the shore, and when we swim past it there is a small cliff where the water gets suddenly deeper and many colorful fish can be seen. After going on a tour I decided to take up free diving, and after just a bit of practice both of us have become much more confident swimmers and able to dive much deeper than before, even collecting cool shells from the bottom.

Getting around on the Island, for us is usually done by bicycle. We find it to be the most practical and cost effective, since the Island has good roads and not too many hills (although there are one or two big ones). Other options are taxis which cost 18 cords per person per trip, or the bus which costs 10 cords.

Now, some of the challenges we face while living in this almost paradise. First and foremost is travel, obviously being on an Island surrounded by ocean results in a degree of isolation. There is one passenger boat that leaves once a week on Wednesday from Bluefields, and returns the next morning. Frankly, I would say this boat is simply too small to be in the open ocean, and riding it feels like sitting on a cork in a blender when the weather is rough. The better choice is to catch a ride on one of the larger cargo ships, although their schedules are irregular. The other option, if you absolutely have to get there quickly is to fly, but even then you need to book your flight some days in advance, and it will cost you. Up to $120 US per person each way. Since this is something few of the local Islanders can afford, doing so also affects the way the locals perceive you in the ministry (and on an Island, everyone knows what your up to, and when you've been to the airport)

Another challenge is internet. How this works is still a mystery to me, but as far as I understand it goes something like this.

You can get 3g data on your cell phone, but that data is limited to a very small amount, and is slow. If you want the "residential" service, that is internet as we know it in other parts of the world where you pay a monthly fee and have wifi in your house, well then it gets complicated. In my case, Claro (the internet people on the island) simply told me "no".

Allegedly, the reason is that there are only a certain number of connections available on the Island, and they aren't interested in installing more. So if your house has it, good for you. If not, tough luck. So most of us get by on data, which is also inconsistent, in fact as I was writing this post I ran out of data and had to save it for posting later. Somehow writing a couple lines of text used around 350 megabytes.

Claro also has a habit of taking your money and not providing the service. This is a country wide problem however. You can put money on your prepaid phone or modem, and then never receive the package you ordered, even after receiving confirmation of your payment. No refunds will ever be given, thats their policy and sadly they have no competitors.

Cost of living here on Corn Island depends very much on the individual. Local people make around $200-500 per month at their work, be that fishing or working in a company, and they live fairly well off of that in comparison with communities on the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua. My wife and I spend about 600-700 Cordobas per week on food, eating mostly Nicaraguan style foods. basically whatever happens to be available when we go shopping. I have the advantage of being married to a Nicaraguan who knows how to cook with local ingredients. I would say though that many locals spend much less than that on food, but at the same time have a lot less variety in their diet.


Rent ranges dramatically based on what you're looking for. Typical homes here do not have closed ceilings, air conditioning, or screens. Often they don't have indoor plumbing either. Islanders who do not own property or a house usually opt to rent or lease a piece of land for $100 or so per year, and build a simple, movable home out of wood and zinc sheets. This way they do not pay rent. Otherwise, there are apartments in several areas of the island that rent from 1,000 to 2,000 cordobas per month. If you want something more modern, american-style homes are plentiful and range from $200-$500 per month, furnished and unfurnished, with and without air conditioning. It is good to do your research as on corn Island, the addage "you get what you pay for" simply does not apply. Some houses are on the market for $650 to $1000 per month, and are in bad locations and have fewer amenities than many cheaper homes. Many homeowners would rather take the chance of getting a big payday and let the house sit empty for years than rent it for a cheaper price.

Hopefully this gives you some insight on what its like to live on Corn Island. We have enjoyed our time here on the Island, and despite the inconveniences I would still say that this is one of my favorite places in the world.

July 2016

In the last few months we have been busy with many things, so I have not been able to post much on this blog, but there is a lot happening. First of all, our little Kriol group which was sponsored by a Spanish congregation has now become a congregation of its own! This is an exciting development as it reflects the growth and good results coming from the field. Many progressive students are regularly attending meetings and a number of the need greaters have made long term commitments to staying on the Island such as buying property and applying for permanent residency in the country.

Long Bay

Lobster season is back, which is good news for all the local businesses. Everything grinds to a halt economically and many are forced to live on savings or credit when the "beda" comes, or the ban on lobster fishing, as everything revolves around that industry. 

Heavy rains have also started, and it looks like this year we will have a proper rainy season. Last year was very dry relatively, which resulted in hotter than normal weather. Now we are getting plenty of rain and things are nice and green. High winds however make travel in this season a bit more tricky, nonetheless we have been doing a lot of it. My passport was within 6 months of its 5-year expiry so we had to go to Managua for me to get a new Canadian passport at the embassy. It was a fairly simple process, just pay the fee by credit card or give them a kidney (kidney possibly cheaper). The tricky part is that the application needed to be made in person, and it took a month to get it, so that means two trips to Managua, each of them taking an entire week, after that we had an assembly, so thats another week of travel. So out of the month of June we spent about 3 weeks on ships and buses between corn island and Managua with some days in between wandering around Bluefields.

Now we are happy to be home on the Island, which seems so peaceful and comfortable in comparison with the bigger cities in Nicaragua. That being said there has been some unrest. Without taking sides, I can say that a lot of it appears to be racially-motivated. During what was allegedly a break in (stories vary, again im not going to take any sides) of a local business, the intruder was shot and killed by the owner. Because the one who died was Miskito, an angry mob appeared the next day to destroy and loot the business for revenge. Some days later riot police were brought in from the mainland to track down the looters and the stolen goods, which incited another protest. As serious as it all sounds, the demonstrations have not posed any threat to the brothers or bystanders in general, and has not led to any further violence.

Issues of race and land ownership continue to be a major issue in the minds of people here on the Island. Many people here live on land they do not own, and have done so for generations, meanwhile there is talk of some of the original land owners returning from abroad or from the mainland to reclaim their property, resulting in obvious conflicts. As I mentioned, we still feel very safe here in comparison to other parts of the country. Most of these conflicts consist of arguments and shouting, with the occasional burning of tires, and rarely lead to violence. Meanwhile we do our best to stay neutral, and use world events such as these to draw attention to the real issues at hand whilst in our ministry.

Camping Little Corn

Over the last few months we have done our best to keep up with the meetings and trips to Little Corn every two weeks. Seeing as the pangas leave at 10 in the morning, and we have to return at the mercy of the cargo ship it often leaves us little time to accomplish our work there. So we decided this time to do something a little similar to Pearl Lagoon congregation.

Interior of Little Corn

We decided that this time we would spend the night, and spend the following day following up on return visits and bible students. This sounds very simple, there are a lot of hotels here and restaurants as well. However many of us simply cannot afford to stay in them, and most of the restaurants are not exactly economical either. So we decided we would camp out, and cook our own meals over an open fire. We didn't know where we would be spending the night when we arrived on the Island. Our plan was to just get there with our supplies and see what happened. We checked out a few locations, realistically we probably would have been fine just hiking some distance into the bush and camping there, but we felt it might be safer and more convenient to camp on someone's property that we knew. So we asked one of the bible students we had on Saturday if we could use his land to set up camp, and he was very agreeable to the idea. He even offered to let us use his kitchen, and offered us coffee in the morning, however we were actually looking forward to cooking on the fire so we carried on with our original plan regardless.

Campsite

Supper time

Both days were very successful, as was the meeting. There were four of us camping, the other couple had to return on the first panga at 1:30 PM though, because he had an assignment at the Spanish meeting on the big island. meanwhile Jean and I stayed until 4:30 to try and do some business to finance our trip. We've started making necklaces, bracelets and other jewelry as a side business to our pizza making, and our hope was to sell a few while we were there to help pay our passage. Unfortunately, we seem to be timing our attempts to sell our products very badly. Our first attempt was that Sunday afternoon on Little Corn, but the street thats usually teeming with tourists was dead quiet and nearly empty, not that we were expecting it to be very busy on a Sunday... Our next attempt was on a day when all the pangas were cancelled due to bad weather... So, we are yet to see how this latest scheme will pan out. If only there was a mail system here, maybe we could sell them on ebay.

Our display

Wild monkey came to check us out

We are all excited to see what future developments will take place with the work on Little Corn, our goal is to keep going every two weeks so long as our circumstances and the weather permits. Hopefully more will come to help conduct the meetings, and follow up on bible studies. The couple that camped with us is going back to their country for some time, and seeing as the meetings are in Spanish there is a real need for brothers who can speak it fluently, on both Islands.

Sunset on the way home

Shark wrestling

Well after another 6 months in Nicaragua its time again for me to make a visa run to Costa Rica. Now that I am Married to a Nicaraguan, according to immigration I may apply for Residency after one year of marriage. In the meantime however, I must still make visa runs. This time I made plans to stay in La Cruz for the 3 days that I need to be out of the country.

Some say you can go back the same day, but there are conflicting opinions on this and I'll talk more about that later. Jean and I left Corn Island in the night on Tuesday, we were able to get a ride on a fishing boat headed for bluefields since the captain was a friend of some of the brothers. We arrived in Bluefields at sunrise, and made our way to the "panga pit". We parted ways temporarily at this point, since Jean obviously does not need to leave the country she will stay with her parents in Pearl Lagoon while I am in CR. After another boat ride and a few chicken buses I made it to Managua. The next morning, I was on the express bus to Peñas blancas.

Crossing the border on foot is actually very simple, at least it would be if not for the sharks. What I mean by sharks, are the people who accost you as soon as you get off the bus. As soon as you get off they swarm you with all kinds of schemes to try and make some money. Some offer to help with your bags for a tip, others offer advice. They are VERY persistent and will not take no for an answer, if you set your bag down they will take it. Worse yet however, are those that impersonate officials to try and get your money. Heres a few scams I've seen:

1: customs forms on the bus
If you're on the ordinario or express bus (not ticabus) someone will come and hand you a customs form, or even fill it out for you, asking for your information, destination etc. This form is legitmiate, but the scam is that they will then ask for 20 cordobas or more for the form. Customs will provide you with the form on the costa rica side of the border -free- and you can fill it out yourself right there. It does not need to be done in advance.

2: boleto de regreso
Sometimes, costa rican immigration will require you to show proof of onward travel. This can be many things, such as an itinerary or bus ticket. Before you reach the border however, and as you get off the bus people will try to sell you an open bus ticket for $30-$35. They wear uniforms, and insist that you must buy the ticket or you cannot pass or enter the border. They may sometimes admit that you can buy the ticket once you get to the border, but they claim it will cost more. That is a lie, it actually costs $10 less at the border. I went through the entire border crossing, and at the final stage at the costa rican customs office, they asked me for proof of onward travel. I was able to buy the same open ticket (its good for 1 year and can be used to cross multiple times) for $25 at a ticabus kiosk -directly- across the street from the office where it was needed. Theres also an ATM that accepts visa there, and dispenses colones and dollars.

3: taxis
Not really a scam, just a bad deal. They will take you to whatever town you're going to, but at about 10x the price of the air-conditioned bus waiting just a few steps ahead. Bus costs $2-3 from the border to managua, or the same to la cruz or liberia on the costa rica side.

4. Various forms and papers you dont even need.
Again, people in uniform will try to sell you all manner of documents. Heres what you really need:
- passport
Oh... thats it.

5. Fake immigration officials
Heres something that happened to me today. I had just exited nicaragua, and paid the exit tax of $2, and $1 for passing through. Both of these were paid at a -desk- with a cashier. The passage fee outside the door, and the exit tax inside the building at which point i recieved an exit stamp in my passport. As you walk through "no man's land" between the two countries, there is a shelter with two police officers waiting next to the road. They call you in and check your passport, nothing else. Just before entering however a man stepped in front of me, wearing a uniform that vaguely resembled that of the immigration department. He had some kind of ID card around his neck but I couldnt read it clearly. He asked for my passport and had a handful of costa rican immigration forms. I declined, but he insisted, and then showed me his id card again and explained that he worked there and that I was required to show him my passport, I reluctantly let him see it and he started filling out the form, after asking my destination and nationality he said the form would cost $10. I asked why, and he just said that that was the fee and I had no choice. I took my passport back, and politely told him to give me a moment while I ask the police officer inside the booth. The officer looked at my passport and told me to carry on. When i asked him about the document, he shook his head and said that I get that on the costa rica side. I turned around to see where the man who wanted $10 for the form was, but he was nowhere to be seen. Upon arriving on the costa rica side, the -real- immigration officer who was sitting at a desk inside the building gave me the same form for free and i filled it out myself.

In the end, it cost me exactly $3 to cross the border. $1 just before entering the building at a kiosk, this is apparently a local tax from the town of peñas blancas, and is legitimate. Second, $2 fee for exiting nicaragua, this is paid inside at the same time they put the exit stamp in your passport. Now, sometimes you will need proof of onward travel. I had an open ticket from 6 months ago so I didnt need to buy another one. I then took the bus to la Cruz, which costs 450 colones ($1) going back there is also an exit fee for costa rica, and then another $10 to enter Nicaragua. Anything asked of you in addition to this is a scam. I've found the best strategy to getting through it all is very simple. Ignore everyone. Thats it, be a jerk if you have to, don't make eye contact with anyone and dont stop moving untill you get to the door of the bulding. Only show your passport to police officers and people behind a desk. You can tell the police officers are real because they have machine guns.

Now, as for returning to Nicaragua the same day I'm really not sure. Immigration department in Bluefields told me that it has to be 3 days, but I've heard many people say they came back the same day. They claim its legal, and the shark who wanted $10 for the form also told me it was legal (wouldn't consider him a credible source though). Another shark offered to help me get back the same day if I gave something to "help out" the officials. I also read online of someone who went back the same day, but they were stopped by the police and asked for a bribe. It sounds sketchy to me, so I just plan on staying the 3 days.

Simplifying

We've decided to simplify our life. This is a common phrase among witnesses, usually when someone says this their plan includes something like selling one of their cars, or spending less on luxuries. Then some take it even further, and simply by moving altogether to another country where the costs of living are much lower, as many have done by moving to Nicaragua.

Although we already live in Nicaragua, Jean and I discovered a way to simplify even more. Due to the abysmal quality of the internet service here (Corn Island only has Claro internet, which is only 3g and never unlimited) I have not been able to teach English online anymore and have had to seek other ways to make a living. As I mentioned somewhere in the last post I've been doing some hotel bookings/vacation planning for friends, but lately the majority of our income has come from selling food on the street. This brings to mind many experiences from yearbooks of ones who have done similar, giving up high paying jobs to sell food... only to find that with their new lifestyle it was even easier to make a living as street vendors than it was with their prestigious job before. Our experience so far has been similar, selling food (Pizza, actually) is good business on Corn Island.

We then started to think about how we could make this income stretch further. Being well familiar with the “gringo tax” phenomenon we decided to keep an open mind about rental properties. Many who come to Corn Island pay $200 per month or more rent, even as much as $500. You can find some beautiful furnished houses for these prices, but it leads one to wonder how local islanders who only make about $100-200 per month afford to pay rent themselves?

We remembered hearing about some apartments years ago that were for 1,500 cordobas per month (about $55 US) so we started doing the math. We were paying $200 per month for our rent in a rather nice two bedroom house that was furnished. If we moved to one that cheap, we would need to buy appliances (especially an oven to cook with). But even so, the savings would add up and after just a few months it would be more than we spent on repairs to the house and appliances as well.

We went to a building that we heard might have apartments, and the owner got us in contact with a relative of theirs that owned a similar building across the street. At first glance, the building looked like something from a movie, perhaps it washed up on shore from the ruins of Atlantis? Not quite. Actually after some conversation with “Choky” (the landlord) we learned its history. The building was formerly known as the “Beach View Hotel”, and is one of the few structures on the Island that survived Hurricane Joan. The beach washed away during the storm, but the building still overlooks the ocean. Most of where the beach was is now a rock barrier built to stop the erosion from reaching the road. The building was neglected for some years afterward, as the man hired to maintain it while Choky was working at sea had been pocketing the money for the repairs. Upon returning Choky decided it would be easier to have no employees, and turn the hotel into apartments.

A few days later we learned that someone had just moved out, and that one of the rooms upstairs facing the sea was avaliable, for 1,500 cordobas per month. It needed a little work, mostly just paint and some shelves put in. The biggest drawback to the apartment would have to be the size, after all it was just a hotel room. After thinking about it prayerfully and calculating the cost, as well as planning how to make the space work we decided to make the move. We bought a fridge second hand, it works great but it just needed a sanding and some spray paint, and we also bought a stove/oven new from a shop in bluefields. We made the deal over the phone and had it shipped in by boat which is a very simple process if you are dealing with one of the big appliance stores. That way we never had to go to Bluefields.

Before

After

So far we are very happy with the move. From our balcony we can see Little Corn Island, and even make out the coral reefs under the water. Swimming and snorkeling couldn't be more convenient, with the water so close we even have time for a quick swim before starting the day or going to bed, or both. Of course the real advantage is that we have simplified signifiantly. Now that we don't have a foreign income to count on we make our living here on the same Island, which means we need to take time from our schedule to work. With paying so little for rent, on what we're able to make from selling Pizza we only work two afternoons a week to cover all our necessary expenses.

First load for the moving van

The moving van

Jean carrying in our new oven

The View

Islands

Three years ago, I went to Corn Island. That was just a vacation, but it was a time I could never forget. It stayed with me over these last few years and now with my wife we are happily relocated and serving on the very same Island that captured me years ago.

this is the post I made three years ago
http://pioneerabroad.blogspot.com/2013/05/corn-islands.html


A highlight of that trip for me, was seeing one of the first meetings of a new group starting out on the smaller of the two Corn Islands. At that time most of Little Corn's inhabitants had never received a witness before. Unfortunately the brother who was boldly taking the lead with the pre-group and living on the island had to leave and the meetings ceased for a time.

That is changing now. The Spanish congregation here on the Big Island has been making visits to the little island for the sake of the preaching work, and also holding meetings at one of the homes. Only a few have taken place and it was my privilege once again to take part in extending the good news to this little jewel in the Caribbean. I was asked to conduct the watchtower study in Spanish (which i still barely speak). I can't express how exciting it was to come back and pick up where we left off years ago.

Preparing for the meeting

Our group left from Big Corn in the morning by panga, with plans to return on a cargo ship in the night. The sea was calm that day which meant a smooth ride where everyone stayed dry. After we arrived we went and dropped out bags off at a house where one of our sisters is living. She is the only witness on the little Island and is unable to travel to the Big Island for the meetings, so she is very appreciative when the congregation can come and hold the meeting at her house.

There isn't a lot of territory to cover on Little Island, but that really isn't a problem, because you can spend a whole day doing one block. Everyone wants to have a bible study right on the spot, even if they're working. In most cases that is just what we do. Though it is small in relation to Big Corn its actually a sizable community, possibly even larger than Pearl Lagoon itself (not including haulover, raitipura etc).

The interior of Little Corn is reminiscent of Orinoco in the way its laid out. There are no cars or motorized vehicles, so instead of streets there are only foot paths, with modest but colorful homes tightly packed around them. Thought the houses are very close to the street, there is no shortage of land space, behind the houses there are open fields, hills covered with fruit trees, and even a few farms. Its a very, very relaxing environment. Little Corn only has electricity during the night and afternoon, so in the morning your ears "ring" from the silence. No blasting music, no traffic noise, no planes landing or taking off, only the occasional creole mother shouting at her child "NO PLAY WIT DAT KOM MAKE I TOMP YOU"

We had some good experiences before the meeting while working one path in the territory. I spoke to a woman who had been studying the bible with the witnesses in Bluefields that relocated to Little Corn a year ago, she was quite excited to see us there. I also had a long conversation with a police man about world conditions, and the cause of today's problems.

The cargo ships came in at 2:00 PM, which admittedly drew a lot of people away from the meeting, as when the ship comes everyone has either something to receive or something to ship out. We had to make the meeting this day though, because we were depending on that same ship to get back to Big Corn. They spent the afternoon unloading and after the meeting we had time for a quick swim and some pizza.

The wharf

Tranquilo

We also ate at Tranquilo Cafe earlier in the day. I went very reluctantly, as I don't like to support businesses that charge excessive prices just because they can. I'll admit though it was nice, the food was good. What bothers me is that they sell it to tourists by advertising their "locally baked coconut bread" that for some reason makes a sandwich worth $8. I guess the tourists don't know you can buy a loaf of coconut bread for about 17 cents anywhere you go. Everything included, the plate of food I ordered would cost them less than a dollar to make, and they sell it for 8. Most restaurants make about 50% profit on food items, they're probably getting about 800%... I think I need to get into the restaurant business.

There was also an unexpected surprise at the end of the day. We didn't just see the stars in the sky, but in the water as well! As we walked into the water in the evening, just after sunset we could see tiny lights like fireflies in the water swirling around our feet. Bio-luminescent plankton was shining as it was stirred up. We could even see it from the boat on our trip back, as the water splashed away from the bow it sparkled in the night.

Only Jehovah knows what future there is for the meetings and the preaching work on Little Corn, but I wait eagerly to see what happens.

Circuit assembly, January 2016

We've just recently made it back from our Circuit assembly in Bluefields. It was very exciting, particularly because its the first one we've had completely in Creole. Our circuit is made up of mostly people from abroad who have come to serve in Nicaragua, as yet there are very few creole people in the truth on Corn Island, so we are all doing our best to speak the dialect with varying success.

Fala Jehoava Egzampl!

A big help is when bible students help us to speak it properly. The situation is improving though, as many creole people are getting baptized. The most exciting part of the assembly for those of us from the Island was to see a bible student who is a native of Corn Island be baptized, the first one from the new Creole group. Some of his family are studying as well and are likely soon to follow.

This is a big accomplishment for the newly baptized brother, because its very difficult for someone on the Island to make such changes and big decisions on their own. Family ties are very tight and many are very interested in the good news, but out of fear of upsetting their relatives or pressure from their former church they cannot make a stand and come to the meetings. Because of this it takes a long time for students to make progress, although many people show interest and will start studying immediately.

Arriving for this assembly was not easy though, as recent events have created complications. A chartered panga capsized on its way to little corn killing several tourists a few weeks ago. Normally no one ever hears about something like that, but because they were from Costa Rica it became an international incident, even being mentioned on CNN

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/24/americas/nicaragua-boat-capsizes/index.html

It was a tragedy, but really should have been avoided by common sense. It was in the middle of one of the worst storms of the year, and the Navy was refusing to let any boats leave due to high winds and waves. Evidently, the passengers pressured the diver into going anyway, since it was a charter and they had places to be.

Because it was an international incident, the government promised to tighten restrictions and safety regulations for all water transport in the country, and because there was another storm brewing no boats were leaving the Island for the week of the assembly, so we got a one way flight to Bluefields.

Our plan after the assembly was to go to Pearl Lagoon to get our bicycles and bring them with us by boat back to Corn Island. During the assembly however, things changed. It was then that the government put its new safety regulations into effect, all transport companies were required to meet these requirements or they would not be allowed to leave. From what I've heard the requirements included life jackets with whistles and signal lights, flare guns, GPS, and some other safety equipment. The problem is, one cannot buy these items on the Atlantic coast, and evidently someone didn't realize that the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua does not have roads and that all transport is by water.

So what this all means, basically, is that there was a military blockade of ALL transportation. Bluefields and the Corn Islands were effectively cut off from all outside access. Tourists and other travelers who had made it as far as Rama were forced to turn back, and some who were still in Pearl Lagoon did not make it to the assembly. This was more than a mere inconvenience as well, because it was not only passenger boats that were affected. Shipping came to a halt as well, and after a few days with no concessions food, gas, drinking water and other necessities started running low. Worse yet people in neighboring communities could not make it to the hospital in Bluefields. By Monday the ban on travel had lasted several days, and we heard that riots had broken out in Rama. We went down to the wharf to see if we might be allowed to travel to pearl lagoon, or back home to Corn Island.

We decided to turn back when we saw the wharf. A riot had started in Bluefields as well, and an angry mob was burning tires and firing off fireworks trying to smo
ke the navy out of the capitania. The riot gained momentum through the day and we heard more and more fireworks, black smoke filling the air. Ambulances kept going by heading to the wharf and we decided it best just to stay inside.

We started  to think about just flying home to Corn Island, but then heard that rioters had taken over the airport on Corn Island, and were burning tires on the runway. This may seem extreme, but one has to remember that without sea travel, Corn Island has no food, no drinking water, and no electricity. Everything is shipped in, even the gas for the power plant. In a few more days people would be starving.

Thankfully, by Tuesday the regulations were lifted and boats were able to travel again. The authorities conceded to allow 6 months time to find the new life jackets and other equipment. We made a call to see when the next boat would leave for Corn Island and it was the same night, so despite our experience the last time, we decided to go back on the Captain D that same evening.

Castaways

Jean and I have been married for roughly two months now, and it was time to make my three month visa run to Bluefields. We decided to make the most of the trip by bringing more of our things from Pearl Lagoon. It should have been a routine trip, but traveling in Nicaragua rarely goes according to plan.

We set off from Corn Island on Saturday night on the Captain D, the largest and allegedly safest of the boats available. The trip was very smooth, neither of us are prone to sea sickness but we took some nausea pills regardless to be sure. We woke up in Bluefields the next morning, and spent the day with our friends in Bluefields. The next day we made the obligatory stop at immigration, did some shopping then headed to Pearl Lagoon. It was nice to be "home" again and to see all the brothers, and all the exciting things that had happened lately with the new boat and Miskito class. When it was time to leave on Wednesday (there are normally two boats travelling to Corn Island on Wednesdays) we crammed as many things including wedding gifts into as many suitcases as we could manage to drag with us. Either the pangero (panga driver) was in a good mood or just wasn't paying attention, because we didn't get charged a single Cordoba for all our bags. As we pulled into Bluefields we saw the Captain D pulling into the dock at the same time, it looked like we were making all our connections easily this time.

Jean stayed with the bags while I went up to the office to buy our tickets, and then we hauled all our luggage onto the ship. Being so early we managed to get a bunk on the lower decks, today the boat was especially crowded, as we learned that Rio Escondido (the government owned passenger boat that normally leaves the same day) had broken down and was not running. In any case the Captain D is very large so we had enough space. The boat was scheduled to leave at 10:00 AM, so we waited on board, also meeting several other witnesses who were also traveling to Corn Island at the same time. At this point, everything looked great. Time went on, and we saw that the boat was not leaving on time. This is nothing new, in fact they never leave on time so we thought nothing of it. People from the wharf began coming on board to sell food and snacks to the passengers, I had a rather nice slice of pizza.

Excited to go to Corn Island... we thought.

We finally set off around 1:00 PM. We seemed to be moving slowly across the bay, although the boat needs to follow a long winding channel to get across due to the shallowness of the bay of Bluefields. We made it to the Bluff, a small island where the military checkpoint is before heading out to sea. It took about two hours to get there, it normally takes 45 minutes to one hour. As we waited for the paperwork to be finalized we heard the engines starting up... well, trying to. They fired up twice, and then went silent. No one paid much attention, but after several hours went by we knew something was wrong.

Finally around 5:00 PM, the captain came to inform everyone that the boat would not be able to travel, and that anyone that wanted a refund could get it from the office in bluefields. We were also told that another boat would be by shortly to pick up those that wished to carry on. This is the last piece of information that anyone was given voluntarily. As the hours went by, rumors spread throughout the ship among passengers. Some said the boat had just left from rama which was 6 hours away, others said it was coming form Corn Island. I had personally seen the boat in question (Isleño) in Bluefields as we were pulling away. Others said it had broken down as well, or that it was loaded down with cargo and wasn't taking anyone. In reality, it was coming from Bluefields but it was just taking its sweet time.

It finally arrived, well after dark. The boat was out of food to sell to the passengers, and people had only left what they brought with them. Jean and I had put our luggage on the deck in preparation to leave the boat, and were waiting upstairs by the bridge so that we could see what was going on. Isleño pulled up next to captain D, and immediately passengers started scrambling across the deck, climbing over cargo and vehicles to try and jump on to the Isleño. Several made it on board, only to be told to get off the boat and wait until they were called. We watched the chaos, worrying mostly about our luggage which now had people standing on top of it. Another hour went by with people standing and waiting to be let on the Isleño. Some were lining up to enter the bridge to speak to the captain, and find out if they would be allowed on. He explained that passengers who had come from Rama (and thus had been on the ship for 6 hours already before it reached bluefields) would be given priority. Jean and I were on the "third list" meaning that we would not likely be getting on. Isleño has a capacity for 60 according to rumors, and there were 40 passengers from Rama. So we knew we wouldn't be getting on.

seeing that people were starting to panic, we decided it would be best to get off the ship. We called the brothers and made contact with the local congregation at the bluff to find accommodation. Getting off the ship was easier said than done though. We took our backpacks off, after climbing and squeezing through a wall of frustrated people. Jean sat with the luggage on the wharf, while I tried to squeeze through and get our suitcases one by one. It took hours, because at times people were not willing to move from the spot they were standing for me to pick up the suitcase.

Finally, the Navy told everyone to get off of the ship... Nobody moved. I still couldn't get to my suitcases, and I couldn't get off the ship even without them because the people standing behind me wouldn't move either. Finally workers started unloading the cargo onto isleño (which evidently had priority over the passengers) and there was more room to move, I grabbed the last two suitcases and got off. The navy again told everyone to get off the ship, and no one moved. 

Refugee camp at the brother's home

Once we had our things we left, leaving the angry mess of people behind. The brothers were already waiting for us outside the gate. 9 other witnesses also decided to stay at the bluff. We later heard that people were asked to form two lines, one of those from Rama, and one of those from bluefields in order to board the ship. No one cooperated, and people crammed on in a mad panic until the boat was full, and it left with only a fraction of the passengers from captain D, leaving the rest to sleep on the street at El Bluff without any food or water, only what they could find on the street. El bluff has no hotels and very few restaurants. I estimate around 120 people were left behind. The brothers found mattresses for people to sleep on the floor in one of their houses, and we were able to use the kitchen to prepare a proper meal.

The next morning we decided to go in service, to make the most of our time. We walked up a hill to a rock-quarry and preached to people sitting in makeshift tents, smashing rocks with a hammer. They were making gravel by hand evidently for a very small salary. It kind of helped put things in perspective to see what these people had to do to make a living.

Rock smasher tent

We went to the wharf again in the afternoon to see what we could find out. There were people everywhere, they had been there since the night before sleeping on the ground and in hammocks outside the gate. Some approached and asked us if we knew where to find a hotel, or food. Many had spent the night on the Captain D which was repaired and returned to Bluefields that morning. They had then taken a panga Back to the bluff in order to board the ship again as it was allegedly departing again the same day in the afternoon. One of the sistsers decided to go on our behalf and get the money back for our tickets, then return to the bluff to go on the next boat scheduled to leave Friday at 3:00 AM.

While she was in the office however she learned new in formation which she told us about by phone. There was in fact, no boat coming that afternoon, but one would be coming at 3:00 AM the next morning and that we should use our same tickets to board it. She wrote down our names on the "list" to get on, however she and the others decided to return to bluefields and cancel their trip to corn island for the time being. The company garunteed that everyone on that list would be allowed on the boat that was definitely coming at 3:00 AM Friday. So we spent another night with the brothers at the bluff.

Late that night however we got information of someone working at the company who we phoned. He told us the boat would not be coming at three, but at 5, or maybe 6 or 7 in the morning. Many of those sleeping on the street had given up and gone home during the day, leaving only about 50 who were determined to get to Corn Island. They were not aware of this development, although we tried to inform some of them, but they had been assured that it was coming at 3.

It never came. We showed up at the wharf with all our bags, along the way busting a wheel on one of the suitcases. Again, people were all over the place sleeping on the ground waiting and hoping that a boat would arrive. Hours went by, no boat. We made some phone calls and found out from someone in Rama (6 hours down the river) that he could see both of the boats that were supposed to have come at 3, and they were still there at the port not even moving. Around the same time the Navy told us the boat would arrive around 9 or 10:00 AM, which would be about 1 hour. Needless to say it never came. We kept phoning our contact in Rama and he kept telling us the same thing "The boat is still here". And every time, they kept telling us it would soon arrive. We phoned the company as well, and they said captain D was being fixed and would arrive shortly. We spent the entire day waiting, waiting, and waiting. Mid-day passed, some sisters from the bluff brought us food around lunch time.

Meanwhile we heard from our friends in Rama that the Isleño was not allowed to leave from Rama because it was overloaded with cargo (no passengers yet). The captain was unwilling to unload any cargo, so they sat there for another day. Finally around 5:00 pm, one of the passengers who had showed up later form the bluff, expecting to get on the Captain D decided to phone his buddy who owned a lobster ship to come and give everyone a ride. Word spread quickly among the stranded passengers and the general mood started to improve. Some were even singing and playing the guitar. 

Me, Jean, and another sister when we found out a boat was coming

After about an hour the lobster boat arrived, and the captain came out from the port. Everyone waited silently to see what would happen.

"Everyone goes" said the captain. We all sighed with relief and were ecstatic to finally be going. Meanwhile we got a phone call from "Transporte Norman Downs" (the captain d's company) saying they were getting the boat ready and it should be able to leave soon. I said "Ok thanks" and hung up. We had waited two days and had lost count of the number of lies this company told us. They were trying not to lose the money they had made from the tickets and didn't want us going anywhere without them, but we were going.

Everyone was buzzing with excitement as we climbed on to the fishing boat, the crew helping people with their bags. We all kept thanking them for finally taking us home, and when we asked how much the trip would cost they said "Nothing". Furthermore, the fishing boat was cleaner and in better condition than any of the passenger boats. The boat was empty and on its way back to Corn Island, so it had no lobster cages or any fishing equipment, so all the passengers just put blankets and mattresses down on the deck, leaving more than enough room for everyone.

On board the Pacific Dream, the fishing boat that rescued us.

It was a smooth and happy ride back to Corn Island, we made it in around midnight. It was an eye opening experience. Kind of a good reminder that anything can happen and then no one is entitled to anything. Thanks to the brotherhood we passed through the ordeal without being in any serious danger or being completely lost. If this had happened in any other country, there would be no end to the lawsuits and it would be all over the news, but in reality no one will likely be held accountable and things will carry on as usual. Isleño finally did leave Rama, but they didn't stop to pick anyone up at the bluff. So much for the "Guarantee". Captain D is still broken.

I've also started a new side business, we're trying to make a little as "Travel advisers" using our experience in the area to plan and book vacations. Check out the information page at:
http://nicaraguadrift.blogspot.com/

Now we're looking forward to our assembly at the end of the month, hopefully our next attempt to get to Bluefields and back is a bit more successful.