Hotel Lomas Sn. Thomas Matagalpa

... She explained that the farm, named La Pita, was a hacienda turned cooperative-comunity when the Patron (an american) took off during the war. The families have been on this land for generations, and were granted back ownership once the war was over. There are 286 ( if memory serves me correctly) people living in the community, all of which work together in the fields. Apart from coffee, there are ...

... in Nicaragua! Don't know why they have a different day here, but it was quite a celebration. Of interest to a few: Carlos Fonseca, a founding father of the FSLN, was born here, but his house-turned-museum was closed. Last note on Matagalpa: prettiest girls in Nicaragua (perhaps Central America), no joke. It was ridiculous. I wish I could've spent more time in Matagalpa, especially for the hiking opportunities. <br><br>Took a day in Selva Negra, a finca-esque place about 10 km from ...

... looking for a decent restaraunt that sells vegtables but keep ending up with bad pizza from the supermarket across the road. We do find a nice italian for one meal but in general matagalpa is just a sick bed for us. We goto the pharmacia to get some antibiotics for becca because she still doesn´t feel completly right and after googling them we decide they are probably safe to take but after 3 days we decide we have to move on to hopefully better food in leon.

... in the hills surrounding the town. In the states we are big coffee drinkers but it seems we do not give much thought as to where it comes from and the communities that are affected. We met a couple of girls while waiting for the bus back whose parents work in the coffee farms.....(theres my plug for fair trade coffee) Alright, the fam just came in looking to go for food....anyone hungry for rice and beans?!? Thanks all for staying in touch!

... we counted only 3 cars in the parking lot. One was a truck that pulled up with the bed packed, at least 10 guys. There are about 300 witnesses total in the city. Vince is still recovering from his ride so tomorrow we plan to lay low, just explore the city more. I will upload some pictures of the area as soon as we take some. I hope all is going well for everyone. Take care friends and family!

... a few rums the night before in the student dive bars of Leon, so it was a tight squeeze on to the 2.45. Trying to fit western bums onto "2 seater" nicaraguan spaces was a bit of a challenge, especially when a burlap sack at my feet was squirming with trussed iguanas and chickens ( a real chicken bus! hurrah!). We arrived in Matagalpa and the streets were already buzzing with ...

... Resort). The reserve has excellent trails that can be explored either on horse or foot (we choose for exploring the trails by foot). Near the reserve there also are coffee plantations.<br><br> The paths lead through a 70-year old secondary cloud forest full of howler monkeys, ocelots, agouti,... The bird life of the reserve includes the legendary quetzal, toucans, hummingbirds and at least 75 other species. At the end of the trails you can ...

... and Jinotega, and also make a little visit to the town of San Rafael del Norte.<br><br>Jinotega is located in the north central mountains of Nicaragua, 160 kilometers from the capital, Managua. The city is situated in a valley encircled by high mountains, some covered with pine trees and some covered with cloud-covered rain forests.<br><br>Located in a small ...

... und das Klima etwas kühler als im Tiefland. Perfekt also! Da hier der Tourismus noch nicht so entwickelt ist, gibt es so gut wie keine Hostels und wir gönnten und ein Doppelzimmer in einem kleinen Hotel. Inklusive Gratis-Kaffee und eigenem Kabelfernsehen. Nach zahlreichen Nächten in engen, vollen und miefigen Dorms ein wahrer Traum. Um das Ganze auch richtig zu nutzen, deckten wir uns mit dem gesamten ...

(Jan. 28) Got up around 8 and washed all our laundry by hand. The lavanderías (laundromats) that were everywhere in South America are curiously absent here. (Jan. 29) Took a day trip up to a town called Jinotega. Pretty uneventful except that we found flipflops for Joel (he has lost 2 pairs already to bus rides) and some less greasy enchiladas (which in Nicaragua are actually more like tacos). Not much to see there but good to get out. (Feb. 1 ...