So, here we are again. Time for a new travel update. I am currently in Granada, Nicaragua. Let me just say this before you think I am in Spain. I am waiting for a bus to Ometepe, but it does not leave for another hour and a half. So I am sitting in the shade with my laptop (I will add a picture of it). And what better thing can I do than write an update? I wonder if I will be able to finish it in that time, because sometimes you are surprised at how long it will take. Let’s get started then!
In my previous travel update I was on my way to El Salvador. I also wrote then that I found it difficult to leave Guatemala, and the people I had met there, behind me and start over. And I certainly suffered from that for a day. “Am I going to have to keep doing this the whole time?” I asked myself. But I have to say that I was fortunately able to change that thought. I try to think about the next meeting that is coming up and that makes me excited! So for now no plans to go home (unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on whether you like me) 😉
So El Salvador, the first country I have been to that was named after me, quite nice! And also country number 40 for me in my life, not too bad. But certainly not the last country 😉 For those who don’t know: El Salvador has changed a lot (positively) in recent years. In 2017, the capital was known as the ‘murder capital’ of the world. Since the new president, however, that has changed drastically, all ‘gangs’ have been thrown in jail and the streets are closely guarded by the military. And you can notice that in the country, soldiers everywhere with big guns. It should make you feel safe, but I have to say that is not always the case. There is also some discussion that innocent people are currently in prison, just to show the other side of the coin. But you can say what you want, it does seem to have helped. The locals seem very happy that they can walk the streets safely again, of course it was a bit of a shock that there was such a dangerous boy like me walking around but that all went well.
Santa Ana, that was the first stop in El Salvador. There I noticed that the temperatures were going up (and it is much worse in Nicaragua at the moment). In El Salvador they eat 1 thing everywhere: the pupusa. This is a dough shape with filling and if something is the national dish, you should also try to make it. I did a cooking course in Santa Ana and that was fun to do. Pupusas are honestly very tasty, but after a few weeks in the country it was also okay to eat some other food.
As you know, attending a football match is always something I do my best for. I looked up the local competition schedule and saw which match I could go to. In this case, that brought me to Ahuachapan, a town where there was no backpacker to be found. I bought a jersey the day before and then it was finally time. Full of excitement, I went to the stadium, I was looking forward to it! There was one problem, though. Apparently, the night before it had been decided not to play the match in Ahuachapan, but in San Salvador. 2 hours away. That sucked! So there I was, standing there in my jersey, looking like an idiot. Well, at least I had gotten a good impression of a local town in El Salvador, and a new football shirt. To stick to football terms: “every disadvantage has its advantage” (famous quote of Johan Cruijff, a Dutch football legend).
Then on to the next stop: la Ruta de las Flores, a rather romantic name and for those who don’t speak Spanish: the route of the flowers. This region owes its name to the coffee trees that can be found here (you would think to call it the route of the trees, but who am I?). I stayed in Juayúa and this place is known for the 7 waterfalls tour that you can do from here. You’ll never guess but it’s a tour with 7 waterfalls. And you can even climb one with a rope, pretty cool. After that I rented a scooter and explored the route, and of course tried some coffee.
Obviously I still had to get my football fix so it was time to see the ‘murder capital’ San Salvador up close, because there would be a match there. I arrived at my hostel and walked about 40 minutes to the stadium. I didn’t buy a shirt this time, I have an agreement with myself that I can ‘only’ buy 1 shirt per country. Carrying that backpack has to be somewhat fun of course. I arrived at the stadium, looked at the number of people who had come to the match and thought that San Salvador might still be the murder capital of the world. It wasn’t very busy to say the least 😉 And because of that they needed manpower to wave flags. I was one of the chosen ones and I waved vigorously for 45 minutes, at half time I thought it was enough. Many supporters or few supporters, it didn’t matter to Alianza: the home team won 1-0.
I thought it was about time to go to the beach again and took the local bus to El Tunco. Traveling by bus, something I want to say more about: it is an experience every time. Some travelers choose the option to book a shuttle via the hostel, but I really enjoy traveling with the local bus. Sometimes it is so chaotic that you can’t believe your eyes. I always get to talk to local people and children, and those are always nice conversations. You just have to assume that you will lose the whole day to traveling, to avoid frustrations. In addition, you don’t have to bring food or drinks, the vendors just come on the bus and you can find all kinds of things there. Something we don’t know at all in the Netherlands.
El Tunco, better known as the ‘surf city’. The only surfing I do is on the internet, so not necessarily something I came for. I have surfed in the past (in the water) but I didn’t anymore get much pleasure out of surfing for 1 day and then not for a few months. Maybe I should do a surf camp in the future, that seems fun to me. What did I come for? Doing nothing. Or well, going to the gym in the morning, having a healthy breakfast, chilling, having a healthy lunch, going to the beach, watching the sunset, having a nice dinner and going a drink. That’s pretty much what my days looked like there. And I was in good company. I had met Andrés, a guy from Ecuador but who lives in Austria, there and we got along really well. We had a lot of fun there. The best thing was playing football on the beach for about 3-4 hours. Because there is nothing more fun than keeping a ball in the air with two people and a few minutes later being joined by local children and other tourists. That’s how you end up in a football game on the beach. I was in one team and Andrés in the other, and of course I won (Yes Andrés, it’s my blog so I can write whatever I want, nobody was there!)
After a stopover in La Unión, where I slept on a volcano for another night, it was time to go to Nicaragua. And we were going to do that via Honduras. This time with a shuttle, because border crossings are often a hassle. The border with Honduras was easy, but in Nicaragua we had to wait about 2 hours for everything. Oh well, like I said before; I’m already crossing off travel days in my head. Finally reached destination: León, Nicaragua.
And the first thing I noticed there was the heat, because man was it hot. So you have to drink enough, water to be clear. I did a walking tour, as I often do on this trip, and went here to do what almost every traveler in León does: volcano boarding. Yes, that is indeed going down a volcano with a board. I can hear you thinking: he is not going surfing, but he is going down a volcano with a board. Exactly. Fortunately, volcano boarding is done sitting down and the fastest ever went faster than 100 km/h. I have no experience with snowboarding or skiing myself, so I did not think about breaking this record. Secretly, I was a little tiny bit scared. In the end, it was great fun and I reached 45 km/h, not bad, right? Afterwards there was a nice party and there was plenty to drink, no water to be clear. With Katrien, Loes & Lea I tried to look flexible in the hips on the dancefloor.
With 2 hangovers (Ajax had been beaten up by NEC) I left for Granada the next day. I did not do anything special in Granada. Well, I ran for the first time on my trip. I wanted to see if I could run 5 kilometers under 25 minutes, which is a minimum for me. And luckily I still could. The fact that I almost died didn’t matter. And in Granada I started writing this travel update. I didn’t manage to finish it in those 90 minutes because I’m currently in Ometepe, an island on a lake.
I’ve been here the past few days with Lea (from the volcano board tour) and we had a relaxing time, we both needed that I think. She had rented a motorbike (yes a motorbike, not a scooter, I was also surprised when she picked me up from the ferry) and we toured a bit with it. And what do you do when you want to have a relaxing time? Then you have a movie night, those are always nice moments. Well-known recipe: pizzas in the house and off we go. I also tried yoga (because I wasn’t that flexible in the hips on that dance floor) and that was a funny experience too. And then something really fun I did today: a quiz with my football team! They are probably now drinking themselves into a stupor on their team weekend. They had a quiz earlier today and I could participate online, and of course I won it (it remains my blog so whether this is true is the question) 😉 But it was nice to feel like I was part of the team again, thanks guys!
For my next new experiences you will have to read the next travel update, for now I will leave it at this! Thanks for reading again and warm greetings from a warm Nicaragua!