Nature in November

Although I have no scientific proof, I believe the temperature in November dropped a few degrees.  My only evidence was that the amount of sweat on my body during the hours of 11am to 3pm had slightly diminished and my mood had drastically improved!  It’s wild what a few degrees can do to a girl’s state of mind!  I was running around like the happiest little clam.  The ‘cooler’ weather was reminding me of ‘Fall’ in Florida and was starting to get me really excited for the Holiday season.  My weekends in November were full of outdoor activities appropriate for such wonderful weather. 

At the base of the Volcano Momotombo, lies an adorable little rural town where I teach.  My counterpart teachers and community members kept telling me about beautiful scenic places to visit.  There are Laguna’s and multiple volcanoes to hike, but I wasn’t sure exactly how to reach them and for the first few months working there, I was looking for opportunity to go explore.  One day after class, while waiting for the bus, a nice couple offered me a ride back to La Paz Centro, cutting about 2 hours from my commute.  During the drive, this lovely couple, Ed and Aida, who own a small hotel in Momotombo, told me about the Laguna de Asososca and gave me directions.  Finally having solid directions, I invited some Peace Corps friends to come visit my site and spend the day hiking, swimming and exploring a new part of the country.  

Starting early on a sunny Saturday morning, we paid a nice moto-taxi driver just over $3.00 to drive the four of us from the city of La Paz Centro down a beautiful windy road for about 30 minutes until we reached the ‘fork in the road’.  Here we disembarked to begin our journey.  Ed had told me to look left at the fork and take the ‘small dirt road’.  So, we looked left, and took the only ‘dirt’ path that we saw.  

The directions were to continue down the dirt pathway veering left at every opportunity until we ran into a man named Renaldo. 

It was quite the adventure and we didn’t even get lost!  We found Renaldo like promised and paid him about $1.00 each to ‘enter’ the park.  

Renaldo

El Hoyo, Las Pilas and Laguna de Asoscas

The clean and pristine Laguna was as beautiful as promised.  Surrounded by volcanoes that haven’t erupted for thousands of years, the view was spectacular and the water was so very refreshing.     

Laguna de Asososca, La Paz Centro, Leon, Nicaragua

The next Saturday a PCV in Leon invited me to go on a volcano hike with an NGO that teaches environmental awareness to Nicaraguan youth.  This volcano, Casita, is extremely hard to access because it is on the private property of a coffee farmer who doesn’t like tourists walking through his coffee plants.  Since this was an environmental education trip with local Nicaraguan youth, they allowed us to enter their property.  I was so excited to have such an awesome opportunity!  It was my hardest volcano hike thus far, four long and exhausting hours to reach the top.

But the difficulty was quickly forgotten when I turned a corner and starred straight into the mouth of Volcano San Cristobal, the same volcano that erupted and caused me to be evacuated from my site in September.  What a spectacular and breath taking view.  This is when I decided I want to hike every volcano in Nicaragua during my time here.

Volcan San Cristobol, Chinandega, Nicaragua

In the same week, my counterpart from my school in Momotombo and I took our students on a field trip – to climb Volcan Momotombo!  

This 3 hour hike up the volcano was difficult because the ground was soft volcanic ash, very similar to the texture of beach sand, and it was extremely difficult to get good footing.  There wasn't a clear path up the mountain so I was relieved to be with a group of locals who knew where they were going.  Fighting extremely strong winds, we eventually made it to the top.  

Volcan Momotombo

The view of Lagunas, lakes, and other volcanoes was spectacular.  We sat at the top eating lunch and goofing around for a few hours.  I even fell asleep for about an hour under the shade of a tree.  First time peacefully napping on an active volcano!

My kids were so sweet.  They found everyone walking sticks and offered to carry my bag and the only other female student's bag up the volcano when the path got really steep and difficult.

On the way back to the school the kids took us on a ‘short cut’ which consisted of two students stripping down to basketball shorts and swimming across the extremely polluted Lake Managua.

 They retrieved an old rickety boat from the other side of the lake which they then insisted that I climb into, as they were feverishly dumping water out of the slowly sinking device.

  I held my breath as the boat almost flipped over 3 times, until I saw a view that I would only ever see from the center of the lake – a perfect view of Momotombo being reflected in the water.  Spectacular. 

Volcan Momotombo, Leon, Nicaragua

On the other side of the lake, it was another hour long walk along the beach shoreline of Lake Managua until we reached the town sunburnt, sore and black from Volcanic ash.

On Thanksgiving Day, two girlfriends and I hiked a waterfall Cascada Blanca in the mountains of Matagalpa in northern Nicaragua.  

Here the weather is cool and the coffee is fresh and so very delicious.  

I used my 'light jacket' for the first time in 7 months while visiting Matagalpa!  

Casacada Blanca, Matagalpa, Nicaragua

The water was Freezing!  But it was definitely worth taking the plunge.  

(Thanks for these pictures Kacie)

My first Thanksgiving away from my family, I thought the day would be difficult.  But it turned out to be one of my best days in Nicaragua thus far!  It was a beautiful, relaxed, and perfect day!  We even convinced the hostel owners to let us use their kitchen to prepare a Thanksgiving dinner and I baked my first turkey!  Hugo, who came out of the oven moist and delicious!  

It was a one of a kind special Thanksgiving surrounded by beautiful mountains, hot fresh coffee and wonderful friends. 

Nicaragua is an absolutely beautiful country with so much to explore.  This is just the beginning of the adventure!  I am excited to have two years to venture to every end of this diverse little part of the world!  

Happy Holidays!