seekingmygreaterperhaps

León, Nicaragua- the city of students and volcano boarding. I learned that many regions in Central America were being hit by the rains of a tropical storm the week I was in Nicaragua, and I could really tell. It rained almost the entire day… every day. Before this trip started, I knew it was rainy season, but I didn’t think it would be as impactful. I was happy to learn that the tropical storm rain would be moving on (just in time for me to leave Nica) and hopefully it would return to just regular rainy season. With that being said, León still charmed the pants off of me, and I met 2 gals in my hostel who made my stay here so much better.

The day I arrived, I walked to chat with the tour companies I wanted to participate in my activities with and get all set with them. While I was on that side of town, it started pouring rain. I had my umbrella and I was fearless, so I started heading back to my hostel. I quickly learned that León doesn’t have a sewer system so the water all rushes and creates fun rivers on the streets. The sidewalks are fine but then as soon as you want to cross somewhere, you are walking through ankle deep water. Of course, my trusty chacos that I’ve had for 10 years gave up the ghost before this trip, so I don’t have “water shoes” with me. But you get to a certain point and if it’s soaked, it’s not going to get more wet, so just go for it. So I was walking home and I moved to the side to let an older lady pass by me, tripped on something and fell and scraped my knee… but more sadly, broke my umbrella. I was super embarrassed and hustled away, while internally chastising myself. Mad at myself, mad at the rain, and mad that my shoes were soaked, I passed by a store selling “crocs” for super cheap and said YES- these are my new water shoes. So I shopped around and found light blue ones that the teens at my school would love. Why they are back in fashion, I don’t understand, but they are my “all weather” shoes now. (And of course I don’t quite have room for them inside my backpack, so they get to dangle off a carabiner.)

For dinner that night, I got the birria tacos at El Bodegon and they were 10/10 delicious.

The next day was a full one- I started with a dance at the top of the Cathedral to twirl amongst the domes.

I took advantage of the clear sky to gallivant on the roof. It was clear enough to see the volcanoes in the distance too, so that was neat. A $3 attraction that is an easy climb, this cathedral is the largest in Central America.

I immediately started a walking tour, and my favorite part was the visit to the central market. We all pitched in 50 cordobas (like a dollar and a half) and tasted so many different kinds of Nicaraguan traditional street food. We tried a few candies, a few fruits, two different cheese breads, what looked like a meat pancake, essentially fritos, and even a drink. It was quite an extensive market tour! If you’re interested, Leo from Guru Walks was a fantastic guide!

Soon, I boarded a “chicken bus” alongside fellow adventure seekers and we headed to the Cerro Negro volcano to do volcano boarding! A chicken bus is a public bus used all along Central America. They are old USA school buses, often repainted. This one that we rode was not for public use, it is just for Bigfoot hostel to do the volcano boarding. It was also turned into a party bus and had lights and music and all sorts of fun stuff inside.

We got lucky, and the sky was clear and we were able to see the landscape along the hike up to the top of the volcano. It was interesting because the dirt at the top is warmer- volcano or something, eh?

A side note- I (and my new friends) paid a local guy $5 to carry my board up to the top of the mountain. It’s the only way he earns income, and as a bonus, I didn’t have to carry my board up. It’s heavy, volcanic rock is really slippery- a win win.

About 5 minutes before we were starting, the clouds rolled in and it started to lightly rain. Visibility went down to nothing, which intensified the beginning of the volcano boarding. Carmen, Calen, and I went first out of the whole group to board down the mountain. (It’s more like sledding, so picture us sitting on the boards.) Well, as it turns out, that was a mistake. We essentially paved the way for everyone else, meaning it was much much slower. We had to scoot and dump out the gathered rocks and keep going.

In the rainy season, volcano boarding is much more of a scoot than a slide. It’s not like I wouldn’t have still done it, but it is not the extreme sport it was advertised to us.

We watched some people behind us zip down the volcano, and tried not to get angry about it. But it’s not like I was hiking back up there, ha! Overall, I checked it off the bucket list but it was not quite what I had been picturing.

The day after was a calm day. The hike I had booked was canceled due to the weather, so I had a relaxing morning. Carmen led a workout class for the three of us in the hostel, and then we all went out for lunch. I’m telling ya, the people you met can make a huge difference.

After lunch I wandered around a little bit, stopped at a cafe for some Tres leches cake and to finish my book, and then walked towards the hostel.

I stumbled on an incredible art museum that I now believe everyone going to León who likes art in any capacity should visit: Centro de Arte Fundacion Ortiz Guardian. I stopped in the first building, which was kind of small and dawdled around. They were like, don’t forget the second building, and so I went over there… and it was huge. It felt like it took up an entire block. You’d walk into a courtyard with art and turn the corner and there would be another room, and then another courtyard.

I was so happy because this art museum has Central American artists! So many of the museums I’ve been to recently feature European artists, and I would rather see people from the place I am in. This art museum was absolutely lovely. I loved the rooms filled with indigenous art, but it was right at the end and I was pushing to see it all before the museum closed. I wish I hadn’t dawdled so much in the first part, but alas I am still glad I happened upon this museum.

My last full day in Nicaragua kicked off with a walking tour of the street art in León. I love both walking tours and street art, and it turned out I was the only one who signed up, so it was a private tour. I learned a lot about folklore and some of the history that went down in León. I was reminded that students here begun a lot of the revolutions. Where knowledge and free thinking abounds, the challenge of ideas is sure to follow. Seen above is my favorite of the murals I saw- and it combines a lot of the elements I had seen during the tour.

Afterwards, I took a bus to Managua and stayed in an airport hotel because I had an early flight the next day. Next up- a whirlwind day in El Salvador!