Before continuing on…I just want to give you an idea where the Rio Coco is located in Nicaragua. The country is about the size of the state of New York and the Rio Coco runs along the northern border between Nicaragua and Honduras. The area is known for it’s remoteness and is the second largest rain forest in the hemisphere, obviously the Amazon being the first. There are a number of indigenous villages along the river and the area we visited consisted of Miskito and Mayangna villages, both having their own languages and cultures.
The primary means of transportation to these villages is by water as there are very few roads. The river can rise and fall as much as twenty plus feet throughout the year depending on rainfall…making the travel hazardous and the need for experienced boat drivers that really know and understand the river. In the map below, a good portion of the the river (in yellow) within the green box was the area we traveled.
It was a very early morning start and off we went in a truck loaded with our personal items, water for the week and enough fuel (scary!) to keep our boats going for seven days. Our first stop was at a roadside stand…
oh my…isn’t he adorable? One day soon he’ll be helping his mom by gathering wood for her tortilla business!
After two plus hours we made it to our launching point in Wiwili, only to learn that the water was too shallow for us to take off…so we headed on for another two plus hours on a very bumpy, rutted, dirt road to launch further up the river. See the young boy and woman with the pink scarf in the image below? They were looking to hitch a ride with us. She was his grandmother…blind…and had been waiting three days to find a ride to return to their village. When we dropped them off, they still had a two hour walk to get home. This is life on the Rio Coco.
So now it’s time to learn the difference between a panga and a cayuco. We had been told earlier that we’d be in a cayuco, but thank god we ended up in a panga. They are very similar, but the difference is that a panga is larger and has a motor whereas a cayuco is much smaller and propelled by paddling only. Big difference for this trip! Below is a panga filled with villagers and supplies. You have a person that handles the motor and another to guide the boat through the water…he uses his eyes and a big stick (called a push poll) to ensure the water is deep enough to handle the load. You’ll be hearing more about my “panga boys” in a future post. Loved them!
I think that’s enough for this posting…just wanted to give you a flavor for the area as we begin this journey! So there’s two things I learned from my original posting on this trip…it’s a panga and not a cayuco…and there’s crocodiles in the Rio Coco, not alligators. (Not that I know the difference in the latter.)
Have a great weekend!
More soon! gg
P.S. For those that follow along…you may recall my “not for fame or fortune” posting about the free portfolio review hosted by the New York Times Lens blog. Well I was not chosen, but it was a great learning experience as it forced me to think about photography projects and what really interests me. Thanks so much for all of your positive thoughts! So appreciated!
I love all the flavors that you have to share and love that little cutie in the chair! Such an amazing adventure!
The more time I have…the more I process from this trip! Flavors is a perfect word! There was a smorgasbord of flavors for sure!! ♥
Thank you so much for explaining the details and the map. Love the photographs and the little cutie pie.
It’s so amazing that just a day in the life of other people in other countries and cultures can be so difficult from the time they rise to the time they go to sleep and even where and what they sleep on and those conditions. Such a contrast between just a regular hard days work, coming home, taking a nice bath, turning on the TV and having a glass and wine and dinner. Our definition of “hard work” is nothing in comparision to what millions of people around the world go through in just a day. The last photo speaks volumes.
Glad your people gave the young man and his blind grandmother a ride. Imagine, a 2-hour walk after.
I feel like never complaining about anything ever again. We all know many people struggle, are homeless, etc. but there is just something so eye-opening about your experiences from around the world and the fact that you meet and see the everyday struggles that are so ordinary to them, because they know of no other life or way.
I’m sure this was one of the hardest journey you’ve endured and learned so much.
As far as the NY Times Lens Blog – Obviously they are as blind as the poor woman in the pink scarf. My take on it, is that your photographs are so perfect, there’s nothing to critique – really. But, as you said, it was a great learning experience and got you thinking about YOUR interests and that’s what really counts. Also, once again, I must say how very proud I am of you to push yourself past your comfort zone (in a different way than this trip!), and take the plunge! There are great things in store for your future. The most important is you and your happiness and what photography, art and writing do for you – The next is that you are so generous to share these with us. I am so grateful and priviledged to know you and how you’ve enriched my life. The future will hold so much more for you, when the time is right, the opportunity will find it’s way to you and your beautiful photographs and stories will be available for a much bigger audience to enjoy, as we are so lucky to.
Love you.
xoxoxo
Your very first paragraph is what I love so much about travel. I find myself off in thought so often thinking about what is happening at this exact minute in a land that I’ve visited before as well as in so much of this world I will never even see in my life time. This morning I woke up and took my cup of coffee up on our observation deck and watched the sun come up over the McDowell mountains…and my thoughts immediately went to seeing a young girl probably no more than ten years old with a large bucket on her head walking back from the village’s water source. That so puts things in perspective. Thank you always for your wonderful comments and how you see the world as well. This is what makes this blog so fun for me! Big hugs Lisa…big hugs!
So, we’re heading out! Thank you for give the map visual to help us get started….
You’re getting into some of my past-life experiences, Robin, in Peru, with the Campa Pajonal indigenous tribes people. In that day, there were a handful of us in our dugout canoe on the Amazon…when we were more afraid of piranhas than crocs/gators! The little boy in Rebecca’s chair will, indeed, be helping her soon. I actually helped make tortillas on such a clay/dirt stove with iron plate once. It’s a technique that takes a bit of doing before it catches on. A nice challenge.
You are bringing back so many memories and you’ve barely started. Thank you. I didn’t take pictures back then like I do now…but I still remember a lot.
Oh yes Ginnie…I recall those conversations we had when I visited you in the Netherlands. I loved hearing those stories when you were on your missions. And I can so see you making those tortillas! It didn’t surprise me that your eyes would pick up on “Rebecca’s” chair. Love it! Thank you so much for your thoughts, comments and just being in my world!
http://www.diffen.com/difference/Alligator_vs_Crocodile
It is good to know that the crocodile is more aggressive 🙂 (kidding)
I read what Lisa wrote and I think in a country like this, everybody helps each other, for one day it might be YOU that need help. Here, we think three times or even 4 times if we offer help ‘you never know what the creep wants’…..
Thank you for showing how the stove works. I know that your pictures will be an eye opening. Thank you for taking us on your trip.
Love and hugs.
What a great comparison! So good to know this now versus earlier, ha! So true…everyone helps and we can learn so much from other cultures. Thanks Astrid…love your visits!
Since travelling to remote and (very) different places I learned to be more rekaxed about home “disasters” . The washing machine brakes down after a weekend with 10 visitors? Tough -but I have a washing machine and don’t need to go to the next river to do the washing, I don’t need to collect wood to cook on a stove in a hut while nursing a baby and/ or watching over many more children.
Your pictures show that there is a very different world out there and that we should stop sometimes and re-consider our lifestyle. Just sharing a little of what we have might go a long way somewhere else.
The little boy ? Such a cutie!
OH how I agree Karen! I can’t even begin to tell you what a neat freak I was during my corporate life…but age coupled with travel has brought me a long way. Still a bit, but nothing like in the past. So I can relate to your thoughts about being more relaxed with the things that life brings. Thank you so much and so looking forward to hearing about your upcoming travels to Africa! xo
Robin, I am reading your posts aloud to my dear husband, and we look forward to each installment as though waiting for a letter from family away from home. Thank you for breaking down your posts into manageable chunks so that I may better digest the information and process my reaction to your experiences.
I am not prone to melancholy, but I do sometimes have days when I question my priorities or wonder about what matters most in this life. Your posts on this remote area absolutely bring perspective – and your experiences influence the way I interact with the people in my little corner of the world – hopefully making me more compassionate, patient, and grateful.
Your images are outstanding! They tell your story with respect and openness. The journey sounds arduous and yet, you prevailed – because people matter. Every. One.
And as for the NY Times contest, you took the risk to enter your work. And it helped you to gather your own voice about what is important to you. Whether your audience is one or many matters not – because to connect with and move even one person deeply is surely success! Keep trying.
What a thoughtful note! I can’t tell you how often I think the same as you mentioned…questioning my priorities…whether or not I’m making an impact…what matters most… It’s trips like this that help me with those thoughts. Thank you so much for tagging along, and giving me that push to keep trying! You so inspire me with your words and your amazing art!
Makes me feel so spoiled when I see how rustic and rugged life is for so many
who aren’t comfy Americans. We do live a little like kings. That grandmother.
Beautiful sights so worth seeing and being honored…..THANK you.
Happy trails,
Jennifer
So true Jennifer…we really do live like kings while so many areas of the world have so little…Thank you for your visits!
Such beautiful photos and moving story of hardships in life most of us have never known. I pray everyday that people everywhere will have all they need and find peace and some joy in their days. Thank you so much for sharing. I look forward to continuing the trip with you. XoXo
Thanks VK! That’s why I really enjoy traveling in developing countries…we really have no clue as we sit in our plush homes and automobiles…it keeps life real for me! xoxoxo
Amazing!