May
14
2010
By Robyn Hodson
I wasn't sure when I woke up in the morning under a table, wrapped around a bottle of rum, whether the carnage inside the bar was due to the hurricane or the hurricane party!
As I looked out of the window, I saw bits of the bar and my adjoining hotel float past. The night had been extremely hectic. We had watched CNN on the only television in the bar, tracking the hurricane, until the satellite dish had blown off the roof and into the sea. After that it all got a little hazy.
Apparently the islands had only experienced the tail end of this gigantic storm. I think I challenged CNN quite vocally to “stand a little closer than the capital and tell us that again”! Much like the people who gave themselves over to the temptations of local “boogey-juice” that night, the island received one hell of a lashing.
The good news was that the storm had passed, the airport had reopened and stranded tourists were being flown back to Managua.
A few days later I found myself standing on a ferry being carried out to Ometepe Island and the Concepción Volcano. This island is in Lake Nicaragua and close to the Pacific Coast – a far cry from my recent adventure in the Caribbean. The volcano was puffing away and I was relieved to read in the guidebook that this was normal. Suddenly there was a shudder, a crack and a loud roar culminating in a gigantic belch of cloud. Was THIS normal? No-one appeared to turn a hair but as we docked I noticed what looked to be serious dandruff on the shoulders of the other passengers. It was ash! We were asked to stay on the dock until they’d decided whether the eruption was cause for concern.
Is it just me or should I be beginning to take these natural disasters personally? Or is this just Nicaragua - a place well known for danger-venture? And would this little tectonic wobble kibosh my plans to volcano-board the Cerro Negro?
Robyn Hodson is a writer and travel editor for justtheplanet.com and is trying not to take things personally. Whether you're looking for a danger-venture, or a trip free of flying rubble, check out Trufflepig for trip-planning help.