rivas • 6 comments • To get to Costa Rica from San Juan Del Sur we took a cab ride to Rivas to catch another Tica Bus (this cab ride was much more pleasant than the last one). We’ve used Tica Bus before and normally we embarked and disembarked at proper bus terminals. This time there was no terminal, just an unmarked curb, in the sun, to wait for the bus. Under a tree and near a construction site, we found a pile of bricks to sit on just a few feet from where the other passengers were waiting. Keeping us amused were these unsupervised Nicaraguan children and their dangerous shenanigans (if you can’t tell they’re trying to reach through barbed wire): Next stop: Costa Rica!
tell the teacher we're surfin' • 9 comments • San Juan Del Sur is a surfer's paradise. Too bad we're not surfers. We were told the waves are excellent and that it's a great place to learn. Apparently, this is not true in January. On the day we went out for our lesson, it was so windy that we were getting knocked around while walking down the street. On the beach, surf boards were flying everywhere. I was getting pushed over by the smallest of waves and Alex got stung by jellyfish several times. We didn't take our camera to the lesson (kinda glad - would have been embarrassing to document how pathetic we were), but here's a shot of me posing with the surf board:
posada azul • 6 comments • Sometimes it's difficult finding accommodations when we're on the road. When planning a vacation you typically only have to focus on one place and have a lot of time. Constantly scouring tripadvisor for reviews and researching places can become very tedious - especially when there's a deadline. Before heading to Nicaragua, we found a spot that seemed to be perfect, but unfortunately there was a misunderstanding with the owner. He referred us to Posada Azul - which was the spot we had those great breakfasts every morning. Several of the places we've researched in Central America are overpriced and pretty sketch. It's hard to know if you're going to be happy with a place until you see it. Posada Azul was no frills - but it was spacious, clean, and they had a book exchange and a sweet pool.
b & b • 19 comments • A breakfast that starts off with a huge plate of fresh fruit is so invigorating. While in San Juan Del Sur, we woke up to one every morning. The pineapples are white (we're used to them being yellow): ...and the oranges are green. We've seen all of these fruits growing during our long bus rides. Neither of us enjoy papaya. We'd like to. It looks fresh and juicy, but the flavour is just not our thing - maybe because it's not very popular back home. All these fruits are known to us and we're looking forward to trying some foreign and weird looking fruits during our travels.
flying frogs • 14 comments • In a rural area, just outside of San Juan Del Sur, we zipped down cables at up to 70km an hour speeds. After a lot of lazy-ing around in the hot sun, we felt like doing something a little more exciting. Zip-lining seemed to be the obvious remedy to our ennui. Following a bumpy ride through a farming community, we arrived at a small cabin where we 'geared up' and headed to the top of a hill where there is a stunning view of the beach town and the tree-filled area that encompasses it. It took less than an hour to complete the 17 platforms which were mostly located in trees. If you squint, you can see me on the middle of this wire: Our guide, from "Da Flying Frog" Canopy Tours, was a pro: ...and a shot of Mina: The cables vary in length and speed, the longest (and most fun) being 328 metres that passes over a 70 metre deep canyon. Mina would get a little nervous on each platform before getting attached to the wire - but once she was zipping along, she was fine. It was definitely a unique way to view the landscape. - Alex
liquid diet • 11 comments • The sticky, hot air in San Juan Del Sur had us drinking like fish. Thankfully, the bottled water was cheap and we consumed several litres a day. Although, agua pura does the job of quenching our thirst, it does get boring and we started searching for other liquid refreshments. The Bambu Beach Club serves a variety of different flavored lemonades that had us coming back almost daily. Strawberry, Mango, Peach... we wished we were there longer just to sample all the flavors. The best one? Mint. When I'm done traveling, I've decided that I'm going to have fresh mint on hand, in the kitchen, at all times. Try it in your next lemonade, it's amazing.
thank you • 7 comments • ... for all of the birthday greetings! You guys are sweet. xo, Mina Photo taken during a walk in San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua
granada • 8 comments • We were in Granada for just enough time to grab a quick lunch and snap some photos: This "Irish pub" purported to have the best fish 'n' chips in all of Central America. They were pretty good. They also made delicious smoothies. It was kind of a random place to eat, but it hit the spot. Granada was quaint, but we were excited to get to surfing in San Juan Del Sur!
managua • 16 comments • We arrived in Nicaragua's capital, by bus, late at night. There was only one 'cab driver' who quoted us a price of $6. He looked kind of sketchy (and was inexplicably wearing a Kate Hudson tee from the Skeleton Key), but an armed police man at the bus station assured us that it would be a safe ride. Once we were inside the cab, he told us it was $6, per person. We had experienced this sort of thing in Egypt. Normally we are savvy enough to make sure the fare that is quoted is for both of us, but we were exhausted and just wanted to get to our hotel. Mina was able to negotiate the price down and we started driving through the completely empty streets of Managua. After a few minutes of driving, he stopped and went inside a house. When he came out, he tried to tell us that because our hotel was a "5 star hotel" (it wasn't), that our fare should be $26 - we told him that we didn't understand what he was saying and he eventually got frustrated and started driving again. It was terribly disconcerting that there was not one other person on the roads - no cars, no pedestrians. After several minutes of anxiously trying to figure out if he was actually going to take us to our destination (or rob/kill us), we were relieved to see the sign for our hotel. We finished the night with a relaxing dip in the pool:
