Getting high in the churches of Nicaragua

I know this has been a VERY long time coming but here is the next instalment of my travel blog …
So, with great reluctance, I knew it was finally time to leave the cosy Costa Rican beach where I had been surfing for the previous month, and being so close (or so I thought) to Nicaragua I thought I should head north and check it out. 

Late night border crossings … never again!
My first adventure in Nicaragua would have to be the border crossing. I broke all the rules in the book of travelling and, on the advice of a fellow traveller and without a trusty lonely planet in my possession, I thought I could make it all the way from where I was in Costa Rica to Granada (in Nicaragua) easily in one day … how wrong I was. So I ended up by myself at a very lonely border crossing after dark, without any local currency (infact not even knowing what the local currency was!), without any local buses running, not a tourist in sight and just truckies all lined up as far as the eye could see whistling at the stupid gringa girl who didn’t know what she was doing!! To say the least, I was quite freaked out! To top it off I had a very determined taxi driver following me on the lonely 600 metre walk from the Costa Rican side to the Nicaraguan side offering me the services of his taxi to take me to the next town. Due to my stupidity, I had to succumb to the taxi driver as there were no more buses running but he decided to drop me off at the dodgiest hotel in town where the lock was so flimsy that I didn’t even want to leave the room to get food so I went to bed on an empty stomach and with hardly any water … and I slept with my bag up against the door for fear of intruders … It was definitely something I’ll never do again and has taught me a lesson on timing border crossings!! 

Chilling out in Granada and getting high in the church!
So the gorgeous colonial town of Granada was the place I chose to stop for a few  weeks. Here I went back to school to study Spanish, lived with a Nicaraguan family, chilled out in cafes during the day studying and got back into salsa! 

It was also in Granada that I met the dutchman Bas who became my travel buddy, salsa buddy and (almost) surfing buddy! Together we explored the colonial city that is famous for its churches and cathedrals. At sunset one night we climbed La Merced Church for fantastic views over the city. However we were a little bit naughty, as we were just given the key to climb up by the church tower by ourselves, from the ‘safe’ viewing area, we could see that there was this tiny tiny little gate above that had been left unlocked … so of course we decided to be daring and climb out onto the ledge around the top of the cathedral that had absolutely no railing or protection between us and the 50 metre drop to the ground below! However it was worth it for the spectacular views and of course the adrenaline rush!! Watching the sunset from this position was truly amazing. We also took a few photos with the church bells that you can see, all the time keeping an eye on our watches that we weren’t inside the bell on the hour or half hour incase there was some automated ringing that was going to start up! 

I again had the ‘family living’ experience when I was in Granada where I was placed with a very well meaning family for a week of my stay. It was quite a change though from the lovely hostel I was in previously where you can see from the picture there was even an indoor swimming pool in the hostel. It was definitely the best hostel I’ve been in in all of my stay! So, back to the family, I loved their company but their food left a lot to be desired … they served me fried everything for every meal, definitely not my idea of healthy or even edible food. The worst however was when the day before I left I filled in the comments sheet at the school on my family and I made a comment regarding the terribly fatty food, and the school decided there was no time like the present to let the family know my views and so they rang  the family up to tell them my opinions !! It was terrible and definitely one of the most uncomfortable experiences of my trip where I had to live with the family for another 24 hours whilst they all knew and were commenting on the fact that I didn’t like their food, definitely not ideal! 

Also in Granada, Bas and I did a morning cruise around the unusual isletas in Lake Nicaragua just close to Granada. These 300+ isletas were formed some 20,000 years ago from the explosion of Mombacho volcano. It was on these islands that we got to see the lives of the rich and famous from Nicaragua that all own isletas and build grandiose mansions so their wealth is on display for all to see, including helicopter pads for easy access! 

Relaxing at Apoyo Lagoon
Just out of Granada is a fantastic retreat called Apoyo Lagoon where Bas and I stayed the night and spent the days relaxing by the lake, swimming out to the floating dock, having a beer whilst floating in the water and reading books on the deck, it was very tough indeed! Here I also met fellow Aussie Suzanne who kept me  entertained back in Granada as well. There was a fabulous hostel at the Lagoon called Crater Lodge where we relaxed and had dinner by candlelight and a fantastic buffet breakfast whilst having the magnificent view of the lagoon. However it was also here that I’ve come the closest to doing any ‘work’ in the 6 months of my trip when the owner found out I was an accountant and wanted some assistance with a spreadsheet .. luckily after an hour of discussion I must not have convinced her sufficiently of my excel skills so I escaped the task … of course she was offering me a free $10 night stay in the hostel for my efforts!! 

Surfing in San Juan del Sur
Of course, I was again drawn to the surfing mecca in Nicaragua of San Juan del Sur. So I embraced the bumpiest bus ride of my trip thus far (there was a lot of records set in Nicaragua as you can see!) into Madera Beach where I knew there was a hostel right on the beach, perfect for surfing!! Here I reunited with Bas as we’d agreed to meet up that day, however by the time I  got there on the later bus the only accommodation left was the 
the dog house! So with much reluctance I settled into my dog kennel which had only enough room for sitting up and required a bit of manoeuvring to get in and out and get changed whilst dripping wet or covered in sand … not well ventilated and not really my favourite accommodation! You can see in the pictures how tiny these were. 

Back to surfing, it had been a while since I’d been out on the waves as I’d taken a break due to hurting my ribs. Hoping I was OK I paddled out, but soon realised that even the adrenaline of catching waves couldn’t mask the pain I was in each time I tried to sit up on the board or especially going for a wave! So, reluctantly I realised that surfing and me weren’t meant to be for at least a little longer until the ribs were fully repaired. 

Heading to Panama with Queen Latifah
So after only 2 days at the beach, I had to say goodbye to Bas and the beach and made the bumpy trip back to San Juan del Sur, ready to embrace a 36 hour bus ride through to Panama city!!  I caught the trusty TICA Bus which connects city to city within Central America. I was extremely lucky with the entertainment on the bus trip as well, as I was able to see not one, not two, not three but four Queen Latifa movies in a row!! I didn’t actually realise she’d done that many but anyway I definitely was not a fan of the Queen Latifah marathon … the only downside of the TICA bus. 

So here ends my Nicaraguan adventures …