Nicaraguan Adventure Overview

Dates - 12/27/10-1/8/11

I had asked a friend about where to go in Nicaragua and he said he had enjoyed the southern area of the country which is amazonian in nature. It sounded like a great time, but I was more interested in the mountain area, as I tend to be. So I planned the trip for my friend and I hitting up things both of us wanted from this trip, he wanted to spend time on a beach and I wanted to explore the plantations and do the home stays. I will say staying in the coffee plantations family's homes was one of my favorite experiences to date. Those people are some of the warmest people I have ever met and being away from the cities and seeing how they live their life (not to mention having really good home cooked meals) was fantastic. I have to thank La Luz y Luna hostel for setting it up and helping support the local workers and their families by hooking the tourists up to stay with them. I highly recommend everyone who goes to Nicaragua, take some time to go up to Esteli and spend some time on the plantations.

Sunsets are amazing! Even better when in the middle of nature!

I also enjoyed the fact that outside of the capital, the people seemed to be very honest (I guess there is a reason my friend told me to get out of the capital asap) and helpful people. My Spanish not being the best, I figured people could potentially be taking advantage of this silly gringo traveling on the buses (loved that their buses between cities were yellow school buses), so I was extremely happy when I found out they were quoting me the prices that were established on the web and what not. 

The cheap and endless supply of Flor de Cana was one of the better parts of the trip. A friend turned me onto the rum a little bit before the trip, so I already enjoyed the bang for the buck this rum provides (even their 7 year is tasty without mixers). However, it is everywhere down there, as it should be, and the price is even better.

The rum special in Leon at the hostel. Amazing! Especially since that coke was rarely (if ever) touched. 

If you are looking for a cheap alternative to Costa Rica, I cannot recommend Nicaragua enough. Country is full of beauty, with tons of things to see and do. We got by with broken Spanish, which was fun practicing at times and frustrating at others, and had a blast everywhere we went.

Cheers Nicaragua! It was an amazing time! Hope I get to see you again soon!