Surfing Turtles and Bearded Monkeys

For some reason many hostels in Central America feel the need to name themselves after an animal doing or possessing something absurd. For example in Isla Los Brasiles we stayed at the Surfing Turtle Lodge and we are now currently in Grenada staying at the Bearded Monkey. Back in Guatemala we enjoyed a lovely lakeside lunch at the Lost Iguana and if all goes we will be keeping the trend up as we head south! I cannot wait to see what ridiculous name is next!

Now updates from the Happy Humans...

Our time in Nicaragua thus far has been fabulous! Our original plan was to breeze through Nicaragua and spend the bulk of our time before heading to South America in Costa Rica. We realized quickly however that there is a ton to do in beautiful Nicaragua and the price is certainly right. So now after a week, we are still going strong in this historic country filled with volcanos, lakes, colonial cities and bearded monkies.

Our first stop on our tour of Nicaragua was in Leon. We stayed at the Big Foot hostel (where I ran into a friend from Camp Tawonga-- small small world) and filled our days with visiting beautiful old cathedrals, touring the city, mojitos and volcano boarding. What is volcano boarding you may be asking... Well you see, volcano boarding is where you hike up one side of an active volcano and then essentially toboggan back down (on a giant slab of wood) in the volcanic ash on the opposite side. Some people go as fast as 80 km down the volcano-- I opted for a much slower (and safer) pace-- infact I went so slow that my speed was unable to register on the spedometer!... I was pretty proud of that one! To partake in the volcano boarding fun we had to wear orange jail-esque jumpsuits, goggles, bandanas, etc. We slightly resembled criminals picking garbage up from the side of the highway for community service!... We wore the look well! It was an incredible adventure from start to finish, inlcuding the crazy off-road style truck ride to and from the volcano-- transportation in Central America is always a wild ride. We were greeting back to the hostel with  mojitos (the house specialty of our hostel), which always were given out in twos-- I like how they operate!

After Leon, we made our way to Isla Los Brasiles-- about 20 minutes north of Leon. We stayed at the Surfing Turtle Lodge, an incredible oceanside oasis owned by some folks from Toronto! The Surfing Turtle featured (all oceanside) a sand volleyball court, bonfire pit, bar and grill. The sun was shining bright upon our arrival and we quickly got set-up, suitted up and enjoyed the afternoon laying out by the ocean, walking along the beach and getting our rest and relaxation on. Dinner was a delicious family style meal consisting of fresh caught grilled mackerel, potatoes and green beans in a delicous sauce... It was incredible! After dinner we introduced our new Aussie and Kiwi friends to the fine art of smore making as we enjoyed a classic campfire evening-- guitar, singing and all!

We are now in Grenada which features the usual line-up of churches, colonial architecture, a bustling central park area and a rich history to learn about. Our plans for today include a tour of a chocolate factory, a tour of a cigar factory, a walk to the pier, some swimming, sunset from a cathedral roof and an evening massage at a local spa to indulge ourselves just a little-- or I suppose to further indulge ourselves based on the amazingness of our journey so far! We will be in Grenada for a couple days and then off to San Juan Del Sur-- a surf, backpacker and party paradise, south of our current location.

Me gusta Nicaragua... Surfing Turtle, Bearded Monkey and all!