Last Day At Mukul

How quickly time flies when you are having fun. Today is our last day so we choose to make the best of it at Mukul. Since we got to Mukul we have not really left the property until yesterday to explore Ometepe. Mukul has 1,600 acres of land and so much to explore right here. Besides Mukul Spa has been listed as a Top World Spa. I can see why, there are six individual villas as treatment rooms. I was able to get to two of them.

The Healing Hut

and the

Crystal Temple

 Upon arriving to your spa casita, therapists welcome you inside the private entry garden with a footbath ritual, It's then and there all notion of time seems to vanish as you leave the everyday world behind. Treatment rooms are like large luxury suites with private steam and tropical showers, changing areas and relaxation spaces with outdoor pools. This is your own private spa. Loved Loved loved. The outdoor pools after the treatments were spectacular with amazing views of the Pacific Ocean and tropical birds flying by. I am ready to go back right now. Especially  when our flights were only 79.00 each way with Spirit Air.

So yes I took advantage of the spa on my last day during the am and Mike on the other hand enjoyed the beautiful golf course for a round of 18 holes. Hole 18 was the most beautiful and the surrounding trees had families of Howler Monkey's

After we all had our activities we met up for lunch and enjoyed one of our favorite drinks from Mukul ....the Makualito, yummy they are sooooo good.

After a fabulous lunch we headed to the peaceful Guacalito beach located on property. Our friend Luis from Mukul drove us over and asked if we needed anything and I said well 2 paddle boards and a cooler with refreshments would be great. You see at Mukul if you ask you will receive, this place had the best service I have ever experienced. Everyone was ready to help and please. Within 10 min like magic it all appeared at the beach.

Now its about 3:30 and Mike was ready to get back to the hotel beach because around this time nature just turns on the good surf waves. I think this was the best part of Mikes trip, he had the whole beach to him self. Hard to believe no one at Mukul was surfing with such perfect waves just rolling in. No waiting just one after another. It was a good break with sandy

bottom and good consistent waves. Bliss .... happy hubby.

Our evening ended with dinner at La Parilla a restaurant located about 25 min from Mukul. They were given a heads up we were dining with them as guest from Mukul and they made a special dinner for us with ribs, sausage, chicken, red beans and rice and fried plantains. It was yummy. While sitting outdoors dining as you look around you see many random things like a horse wondering around the road, dogs walking in and out, kids playing hide and seek. It was interesting.

Just like that our vacation was over, but we saw so much. We actually saw most of the Country. Having the driver was the way to go, it saved us so much time from getting lost, we saw so much more than if we would have tried to get around on our own like we usually do. The drivers we had were so proud of their Country and their knowledge was exceptional. Keep in mind Nicaragua is the poorest Country in Central America, it felt good to contribute by using their service and listen to them explain their history and sites we would see while on the road. It was the first time we had gone on a vacation that we were able to sit back and enjoy the view with out stress. Besides isn't that what vacation is all about?

The people in Nicaragua were delightful they all had smiles and so welcoming. 

The World has so many places to visit and so many Cultures to explore that it is hard for me to say I will go back, but we may because Mike loved the surf at Mukul so much we just might visit again.

 The beaches and the water in Central America just don't do it for me. The black sand on the beach are not welcoming for me. I like to see my toes in the water.

 

Unfortunately Central America has not completely caught on of the importance of the environment. Due to their economy they have also sold out  "made deals "  with  China, Lake Nicaragua was depleted of sharks for their fins. Also deforestation is one of the principal culprits, wild life is not abundant and seems to be becoming scarce. With  this being said it is still a beautiful Country with noble people.

I feel so thankful and fortunate to be able to travel and see the world how it is today. I have optimism that there is hope.

Peace out Nica!



The Volcanic Island Of Ometepe

The name Ometepe means ‘two hills’ in the native ‘náhuatl’ language. The island measures 276 square kilometers and it houses two majestic volcanoes connected through a small strip of land the volcanoes are Concepcion and Maderas. 

It is the largest island in Lake Nicaragua as well as the largest volcanic island inside a fresh water lake in the world.

Getting to Ometepe was the best part of this day. At first I had a guide planned to go with us that I arranged from home. The hotel made it seem like it was close, yeah right. When we went to confirm the detail the evening before they said those magic words be ready to leave at 5:30 am!!! Hahaha right  there my eyes bugged out of my head and I turned around and looked at my friend and said what do you think about a helicopter ride to Ometepe? If we would have gone by car it would have taken us 1 1/2 drive to a ferry dock then an hour across the lake on a public ferry and then all over again on the way back. I don't think we would have enjoyed Ometepe like we did by going by helicopter that got us there in 15 min. I must say we made the right choice. Now our trip started at 8:30 am and we got to se so much more, we had a full aerial view of Nicaragua and it's major cities plus the active volcano of Masaya. We flew over Mombacho volcano the to the very active Masaya volcano and were able to view the volcanic activity. Then over Apoyo that is shared by the city if Masaya and Granada provinces. From here we continued to the city of Granada which is very colorful and beautiful also it   is the oldest colonial city in Nicaragua & the all-time-rival of Leon. Continuing on we flew over  the Isleta's which means tiny Islands and there are over 365 of these small islands scattered about the Asese peninsula.

All I could think about while I was flying over them was how I wish I could be down there to paddle board around that area even though the water was very brown I think a paddle board or a kayak would be amazing. At this point the helicopter pilot was flying very low so we were able to see everything very well.

By now we were up in the air for about 45 minutes getting the most amazing view and tour of Nicaragua. Our next stop was Ometepe. By the way we did have a local guide with us that came from the hotel called Danillo he is 20 years old while he  would explain everything we were looking at in Spanish I would then translate in English to Mike and my 2 friends from 

Tampa that joined us mid trip .Dannilo  proceeded to tell us that the helicopter ride was the second time he has ever been up in the air! We were all wondering why he looked so nervous. Dannilo was born and raised in Ometepe so we knew we were going to be in for a treat and see more than the average traveler. 

Our first stop was Charco Verde and natural preserve located between the two volcanoes of Ometepe. Here we saw a family of howler monkeys that I enjoyed photographing. We proceeded to hike up to Mirador Guachipilin were the view were spectacular. 

The islanders tell many legends about the lagoon of Charco Verde and its surroundings. The most popular story is about the demonic figure of Chico Largo, who dwells at the bottom of the green pond. Chico Largo materializes on the lonely roads surrounding Hacienda Venecia. Not everybody is able to see him, but those who do are lured into making an evil pact.It is also said that on the bottom of the lagoon is a village called "El Encanto" which is populated by people who picked fruits and hunted in Charco Verde. For punishment they were turned into cows, pigs, crocodiles or turtles. Butchers in the area claim that they found calf's and cows who had gold teeth like humans.

Moving along we drove through some of the towns and everywhere you looked were pigs pigs and more pigs. We then arrived to the town of Altagracia , Astalgalpa, as the Nahuatl indians called it, was the indigenous capital of Ometepe in pre-columbian times.

On the eastern side of Altagracia's central park is the parochial church, built in 1924, and its wooden bell tower. On the grounds of the church you can admire some of the biggest stone idols found on Ometepe. Other vestiges of Ometepe's rich pre-Columbian past are found in the nearby archeological museum, along with some information about geology and culture of the island. This church was a bite strange to me, there was Jesus sitting in a chair that looked like Captain Morgan? Services are not held in this church it was just there for display. Behind the odd Jesus was a wall and behind that wall we found a colony of bats!! Yes bats , they are so ugly and creepy looking. 

In this town there was a strong Sandinista influence with red paint on every street corner or pole in the town also various painting of a man in a hat, a symbol for the Sandinista.

From here we moved on to the petroglyphs which were located on the property of a hostel, as we were entering we noticed a very loud hum and as I looked up the hum was black bee's the size of the palm of my hand! Good thing they were not aggressive. 

It was finally time for lunch so we headed to Hotel Villa Paraiso that was located right on the lake with great views plus tropical birds trying to get a free snack. I really enjoyed this lunch the food was great except for the small insects that kept trying to swim in my coke.

After our lunch we finally were making way to the reason I wanted to visit Ometepe, Ojo De Agua lagoon. The water of Ojo de Agua has a special quality as the pools are filled with thermal spring water from an underground well at the bottom of the upper pool. A continuous stream of fresh water flows through the pools which are almost 4 ft  deep.  This was a great place to unwind and relax after a fun filled day of site seeing. We took a relaxing cool dip and enjoyed the tropical setting.

At this point we started heading back, but  we made one more stop since we had a little bit more time left before we needed to head back to Mukul. Our stop was at El Ceibo Museum, I am not big on Museums but it's important to  know  the history of an area. The museum has two specific sections on two separate buildings, one is Nicaraguan  numismatics, and another about pre Hispanic archaeology of the area. There were many pieces from BC and AC but due to the lack of funding there was not much information on the pieces.

Our guide at the museum asked us if we wanted to go to the 

basement we all looked perplexed but we followed her

down  

and boy 

was it worth it. 

The basement was filled with hundreds of bats!!Yes more 

bats! It took everything in my power to hold me back from 

spooking them out of the basement and watching them fly 

out like a good old vampire movie

It was an amazing day and even better than what I had envisioned. Now the best part, back to the helicopter for a quick 15 min ride back to the beautiful Mukul.

Mukul the Mayan word for "secret"

Mukul
Today is Wednesday October 16 and we are headed to Mukul

 Nicaragua's First Luxury Beach Resort that is located on the Emerald Coast of Nicaragua a 30-mile stretch of Pacific shoreline dotted with pristine jungles, rising cliffs, charming fishing villages, historic colonial architecture, and untouched sandy beaches. Mukul sits directly on the beach and has  over 1,600 private acres of lush vegetation.

Our driver Juan from Mukul picked us up at 8:00 from El Convento in Leon. It is a 3 1/2 hour drive from Leon to Guacalito De La Isla where Mukul is located. Since we had plenty of time I asked the driver to make a quick stop at Leon Viejo.

The Ruins of León Viejo are an exceptional testimony of the first European settlements in the New World. Founded in 

1524 by Francisco Hernández de Córdoba, during its short 
history, the city has undergone a series of natural disasters. Partially destroyed by the Momotombo volcano that irrupted in 1578, the earthquake of 1610 struck the final blow by destroying what remained standing. The decision was taken 
to move the city and to rebuild it six leagues away. The 

gradual burial of the city due to natural disasters has preserved the vestiges unaltered and in the same environment, without having undergone any change.

 

From here we continued our drive, Juan our driver was a 

wealth of information, it was so worth it to have a driver instead of us driving ourselves like we usually do. We would have missed so much.We had all day with him so we didn't rush to get to the hotel and he gave us a grand tour of the Pacific coast cities of Nicaragua during our drive.By the way the drive like MR. Toads wild ride at Disney, I am surprised 

we didn't run over a person, cow, dog etc....they were all on 

the road. Never saw one dead animal on the road either 
these street dogs are like the Nicaraguan gangsters the know how to run the roads, they even use the roundabouts.

Our next stop was Masaya, a very colorful town that Juan thought was important forums to check out. Here we stopped at the Mercado Artesania. The claim to fame is for savvy buyers to come here to purchase Nicaragua finest handcrafts. I could have spent hours here but there was a few other stops we wanted to make so we looked around and I purchased a beautiful hammock for 10.00!!! On our way out of the market a wonderful smell took over my senses and Juan said do you want to go see what that is, well I was  a dish called Baho. It was a flavorful dish that had yucca, plantains, vegetables and lots of meat!

Once we finished up with our lunch we were off again but this time the destination was Mukul our home away from home. 

After traveling through dirt roads that were washed out by rain storms we arrived to the lush and  tropical entrance of Mukul.The second you arrive the service begins, ice cold towels and a yummy Mukalito cocktail. I love that there is no reception desk here like typical hotels you are welcomed here like if it was your home. Your checking is done at your accommodation. The designer of this villa did not miss a beat, the rooms are exquisite furnished with all local artesanian pieces. I can do a blog on just the bathroom, they are huge totally open space with an amazing tub right in the middle, fresh yummy robes and amazing bath products. Facing the ocean is your super comfy bed with a huge sliding glass doors and what a surprise awaits you when they are opened , your own private plunge pool, outdoor seating area and a private outdoor garden shower. Just simply amazing.

After getting settled in we went to the open air lounge at the main area of the hotel to wait for our friends from Tampa that were joining us. We had a wonderful dinner and called it a night. What a great day.

Leon Nicaragua

León

León is a land of volcanoes, hot weather and interesting cities. Leon has one of the most impressive colonial cities in the country. Here, you will find hotels, restaurants, bars, tour operators, museums, cultural centers, several colonial churches and the largest cathedral in Central America. Leon has 2 UNESCO World Heritage sites that are located in Leon a city we will visit, the two sites are  The Ruins of Leon Viejo &The Leon Cathedral

Leon also has a couple of famous beaches: Poneloya and Las Peñitas. 

Leon has eight volcanoes, all of which are part of the 'Cordillera de Los Maribios'. The most interesting might be Cerro Negro, which is a young, small volcano that offers incredible views and slopes to practice ash boarding!! 

Ok so the story begins. 
We arrived at Managua within 2:20 from Ft Lauderdale , a smooth quick flight. Once we arrived we were met by the VIP agent from Mukul, this was an excellent service. You hand over your passport to VIP they escort you to a private lounge and while you are enjoying complementary cocktail as they are checking you in with customs and immigration. When they came to get us at the lounge around 10 mins later they had all our luggage and our private car ready for us. 


We arrived at our Hotel El Convento which was founded in 1639 and was the first convent in the city. It is located in the city center walking distance to everything we wanted to see. So we dropped our luggage off in our room and headed to our first Uneseco World Heritage 

site the Leon Cathedral. Took a brief  45 min tour then off for some cocktails and snacks at El Seteo.There is a church in just about very corner of this city and it is also the most safe citie in the country for tourist to roam around.I must say it's little nerve wracking Nicaraguans love fireworks and they shoot them off in the early am,day and night.Sounds like gun fights outside. Woke up this morning to them and a parade at 8 am with a giante float of St. Theresa on a float going by the hotel.

Today we were up early because of the 2 hour time change. Vapues tour company picked us up at 9 am for our ash boarding. It was an 1 1/2 drive on a dirt road by 4x4,I set up a private guide so it was just Mike and I and what a better way to celebrate your 

21st anniversary by throwing yourselves down a volcano.

On the way to the volcano is saw what I thought were odd looking goats in people's yards but we got a closer look ant they were pigalopes or maybe we had discovered a new species. I had to get a closer look so I had the driver stop, they were pigs that had 2 twigs placed on their heads to keep them from going through the fence to neighbors yards, a very innovative Nicaraguan invention. Below is a picture.

Leon Cathederal 

                                            

                                                               Pigalopes 

We arrived at the ranger station at Cerro Negro and looked at our gear, unfortunately the snowboard was not usable for me my feet were to small for the bindings so I was a little let down, I was going to do it anyways but it was so loose I would have twisted an ankle. Since we have snowboarded for so long we really wanted to board down so Mike had a board and I had a Nicaraguan sled which turns out to be much faster you can clock up to 90 kilometers.So we headed up for our hike with our gear. It was 1hr walk up to the summit of the volcano. We had cloud coverage and a breeze so it made it comfortable but it was strenuous and steep in some areas. In the steep area there was loose rocks and stones,looking down at my every step gave me nausea so next thing was I hurled , Jojo left here mark on Cerro Negro. I got over that quick drank some water and continued. I was determined because this was the  reason I came to Nicaragua. I recently read an article of the 20 most adventurous things to do before you die and ash boarding at Cerro Negro was number 2.

 In my mind I had thoughts that this may turn out cheesy but when we got up there Mike looked at me and said you are Loca... Crazy in Spanish! It was steep! A 40 degree face.We put on our suits, goggles and gloves and off we were. I knew that sled was going to fly down and it did! You start off slow but once you get momentum your flying! To control the sled you use your feet, you dig them in to slow down or place them On the sled in front of you to fly there is also a hand cable to manuver right and left.On the way down sand and pebbles are blasting on to your face and body but you don't really feel them with the suit. It was very adventurous and exilarating. You can see previous tracks in the pics.

 

 

 

 

Of course when the guide went to take photos of me going down and he said the camera had error. But I have a great go pro video just can't post with this slow internet. 

After the boarding we returned back to our tranquil hotel and had a late lunch by the pool. Shortly after the peace BOOM the fireworks started again. Leon is a very festive city. Also every thing is very inexpensive, $8.00 for 3 beers 1 lemonade and a snack!

Well it is 7:00 am and the alarm at the hotel has gone off again, sounds like an evacuation alarm and it goes on for a full minute. I think it has always gone off to wake up the Nuns for prayer.

Getting picked up at 8:00 by Mukul to head to some pure relaxation now and we are ready. Off to Mukul we go with a scenic 3 1/2 hour drive. 

Nicaragua Despierta

Nicaragua Despierta

" Awakens"

Hey we are going to Nicaragua...... reply from others.... What ???? Why?? My answer and number one reason is ash boarding yes ash boarding down a Volcano! But more to come on that subject later. 

Currently Nicaragua is more like Costa Rica was 20 years ago . Costa Rica though having many more accommodations for traveler Nicaragua is more authentic when it comes to cultural and historical attractions. Nicaragua is also the largest Central American country. Nicaragua tourism is emerging, the country is  "awakening." It is able to offer a diverse tourism experience with its colonial towns, pre-Columbian history, and unique geography, which all offer the tourist a unique and diverse experience from that of Costa Rica.  It has 2 UNESCO World Heritage sites that are located in Leon a city we will visit, the two sites are  The Ruins of Leon Viejo &The Leon Cathederal. I have a personal interest to visit any  UNESECO World Heritage site. I have visited 14 out of the 981, have lots more traveling to do. Here is a list if you are interested http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/ 

Nicaragua  is also home to the largest lake in Central America and 19th largest in the Americas.While visiting we will explore Lake Nicaragua with a visit to Ometepe Island an island formed from two volcanoes as well as the largest volcanic  island in a fresh water lake in the world. 

The destination  started with  going through an issue of Travel and Leisure and came across a new hot spot with a must visit hotel before the secret gets out called Mukul. The second I saw it had I to go, i ditched a trip to Machu Picchu for Nicaragua maybe not the best idea since I am not a big fan of Central America. Once i started to get further into the article I was hooked. I am not a fan of Resorts actually the word resort skeeves  me out, but some great minds out there have found a way to make home away from home idyllic and intriguing with this beautiful boutique resort.  In all honesty I would have never gone to Nicaragua if i would have not found this heavenly looking place. In English Mukul means secret but i think shhhhh the secret will be out soon. 

 The $250 million, low-density resort property is the dream of Nicaraguan entrepreneur Don Carlos Pellas, the fifth-generation heir to the Flor de Caña rum fortune. From the beginning, Don Carlos and his wife  envisioned Guacalito as a sanctuary where guests could connect to the land, culture and locals. Mukul is set on a pristine 1,670-acre property on the southern Pacific Coast of Guacalito De la Isla and low impact of the environment.It improved the life of the locals by providing employment opportunities and investments in local infrastructure.

There were a few others options in Nicaragua but I love the thought of new as in new beds, bathrooms, pool outdoor garden shower and most of all service, its vacation " cocktail please".