Luke's World Tour: NICARAGUA

Leon & Granada, Nicaragua

Leon and Granada are two beautiful old colonel towns dating back to the Spanish colonizers of 1524. Both are very vibrant, colorful towns, with a student feel to them. All the houses are painted with different colors on their walls and doors. They both have a lot of connections with the politics of Nicaragua and the uprising and independence of the country.

I took some Spanish classes in Leon and learned a little more about the local culture from my teacher. A lawyer who could not get any work and so she turned her hand to teaching. She told me that the average wage was still about $40dollars a month and that half the country is still unemployed, it was still uncommon for a man today to have not only have a wife but also 4-5 other lovers (hence her divorce).

In the towns you have all types of shops you would need white goods (fridges, tv´s etc), supermarkets, chemists etc. However as soon as you leave the town for the countryside you see mainly four walled huts made of clay mud and a corrugated roofs. The majority working as subsistence farmers. That is also the way it is Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Very poor but great fun loving people. i loved Nicaragua.

Volcano Boarding, Leon

This was one of the maddest experiences i have had to date. Sledging down a live volcano on stones and rocks on a plank of wood at 68kph for about a km or 2! SHIT! At the foot of the volcano we were given protective suits, goggles for our eyes and a wooden sledge with a piece of plastic attached to the bottom for maximum speed. (see video below).

We walked up the side of this volcano for about an hour and a half in the baking sun. As you will see from the pics the view at the top was amazing. We got to the edge of the volcano and Gemma our guide said, you see that huge steep slope down there where you will be going, and it was long and steep, well the next drop which you cant see is even steeper and i don't want to see anyone breaking. Oh My God! The girls went first and had no major wipe outs. The guys went second, with Gemma saying she didnt want to see any guys breaking. and one guy did really well, not breaking at all. I was the last but one to go. Cruising down the first slope at full speed, only breaking slightly then i got to the second slope and i just felt the speed increase. I thought OH SHIT. You know when you ski full speed down a slope, sometimes you go too fast and just lose it co;pletely. Well. I was hacking it down, at least 40km i guess, then i thought oh shit,

this is getting out of hand, small rocks flying into my face and body (thank god for the goggles). I tried to break a little with my feet but at that speed it was realy not easy to keep it together. Finally at full speed i wiped out just before the end of the last slope. It hurt. I rolled and rolled, body all loose, stones and dust everywhere. Finally coming to a stand still 20metres further on i slowly got up. My left wrist was bleading badly. it´s now scarred for life. My legs were scratched badly but they healed. All in all i was ok but it was a heavy tumble, not like faling on soft snow.

The funny thing is you know, i wanted to do it again. I wanted to do it again, get some practice so i could do all the slope at full speed. Crazy! Next time maybe, but it was a truly awesome and unique experience. Volcano boarding, you gotta try it! Leon, Nicaragua. Brilliant.

Isla Omepete

When i arrived on this island, the largest fresh water lake in Central America (178km x 68km) i immediately felt the chilled vibe. There are two volcano's, Madera (1400m) and Constantine, that make up the volcanic island. I stayed near Madera volcano with some other travelers i met on the boat. One day we did the 8hour hike up Madera volcano. Bloody hardcore, that's all i can say. After the first 2-3 grueling hours were over the last hour going up was just magical. I will never forget it. Crawling on hands and knees through Primary rain forest, trees of 400yrs old plus

that couldn't grow straight up due to the wind so they grew sideways down the volcano. We literally crawled over and under roots to get to the top, wiping water from the moss of the branches to freshen up my face. I just felt like an interpid explorer. I loved it. At the top we had a clear view of the crater lake and chilled out and ate lunch. I have added some pics i hope you are able to appreciate the beauty of it. Words don't justify the beauty. Put it this way, its the first real Primary rain forst i have experienced, ...and it wont be the last. All Costa Rica is Secondary. Thats how precious the prim