The ladybug goes to the finca

Hello again!

Long time no speak. So I left you in Granada…

The next morning we left to go to the beautiful island of Ometepe. There are two volcanoes on Ometepe, Volcán Concepción and Volcán Madera. We stayed at a farm at the base of Madera. The two volcanoes are in the middle of Lake Nicaragua and we took a ferry to get there. It was sooooo beautiful! The Island is filled with beautiful palm trees, rainforest plants, and huge colorful flowers. The farm had the most stunning view of Concepcion. That night we did not do too much. We had some bonding activities, which were very fun, and then we discussed some of the book we had read for the class.

The next morning we went on a hike through the forest to visit the coffee farm. It was so beautiful! There are howler monkeys everywhere and they make these funny noises that sound like angry bears. The farm is all organic, and there were stinging nettles everywhere that you had to be very careful around. The farmers also planned the trees in the farm that are used for shade very well. They use these trees that open their leaves in the day and close them at night so the humidity and moisture is regulated beneath the canopy.

We then went back to the farm for lunch, and then hiked the kilometer into “town” where some of my group challenged a soccer game with locals. It started downpouring and it was fun to watch my friends slide around and get muddy. I was not feeling so well so I just observed and cheered them on. When we got back to the farm I realized I was really not feeling well. All of the lymph nodes on the side of my neck were the size of golfballs and I started a fever. So I kept it easy that night and tried to get better.

The next morning I was feeling worse, but it was a pretty easy day. We discussed the coffee book, and then Christine and Marina did their presentations. Christine did very well. She had graphs correlating gas prices with coffee sales for Starbucks. After lunch I did not move from a hammock. I had been reading a book at the farm, and I used the opportunity to spend the rest of the day finishing it. Since I had a fever and golf ball lymph nodes, rest was much needed.

Ok I am tired of typing. I am not finished yet, so stay tuned for the last of our trip.

Love,
Ceci