Thus far we have written about some of the more intense elements of our trip to Nicaragua. This post is about a whole different side of Nicaragua. The day we arrived in Nicaragua was quite busy and filled with new experiences. Once we arrived at our hotel (Real Granada) toward the end of the day,Keep Reading!
During our whirlwind one day tour of Nicaragua, we had the opportunity to see Apoyo Crater Lake between Masaya and Granada, followed by a trip to the Santiago crater at the peak of the Masaya Volcano. We finished our day with a quick boat ride on Lake Nicaragua. We glimpsed some of Nicaragua’s natural wondersKeep Reading!
We returned from Nicaragua last night about 8:30 pm. This is a fairly reasonable time for our kids. None of us sleep while traveling – car, plane, train, bus – be it two in the afternoon or two in the morning, we are all generally alert. But during the last half of our trip homeKeep Reading!
Once completing our crossing of the border into Nicaragua (story here) we were on the road in Nicaragua. As I mentioned before, we signed up for some sort of “one day tour” as part of our transportation to Nicaragua, but we had absolutely no knowledge of what was included. Berman, our Nicaraguan guide, who weKeep Reading!
Costa Rica grants 90 day visas to visitors and since we are here for a longer period than 90 days, we had to renew our visas. The renewal process is simple. Leave the country for 72 hours and earn another 90 days when you come back. It’s as easy as that. We opted to takeKeep Reading!
I am not a great surfer yet. In fact, chances are, if a wave comes my way, I’ve got a 50/50 chance of catching it, and an even lower chance of actually popping up and riding it. Erin, on the other hand, has (of course) become quite the surfer. It’s quite inspiring. She’s a naturalKeep Reading!
We are off to Nicaragua at 4 am tomorrow morning. This marks the official half way mark of our “set time” in Tamarindo. Reflections thus far… It’s gone by WAY too fast. It’s going by way too fast. I just want time to pause for a second. Wow, the greatest gift I have received thusKeep Reading!
Well, we have been here for three months and since day one I just crossed my fingers that we would all remain perfectly healthy. Knock on this wooden table, not even a sniffle to report. We have had lots of new food, have only been drinking tap water, have had lots of sunburns and bugbites,Keep Reading!
Ben is currently working on a project for school about the tides so I thought it might be cool to shoot a time lapse video of the tides going out over Playa Grande. My experiment didn’t work all that well as the sun went down before the “real” low tide, but the overall result isKeep Reading!
Last week we said goodbye to our home for two and a half months at the Luna Llena and moved into a rental house for the next month. It was with excitement and sorrow that we bid adios to our home at the Luna Llena. Our new house is up on the hill in Tamarindo,Keep Reading!
This past week both Jacob and Abby were able to see and talk with their classes on Skype again! Jacob had a great time as usual speaking with his class and Abby really enjoyed getting to see her class for the first time since we’ve been gone. Abby clammed up a little bit as sheKeep Reading!
You’ve gotta love the GoPro cameras. This is the first video we shot of Jacob after adding the GoPro Surf Mount to their board. Turned out great 🙂 I need to use more RainX to keep the drops off the lens, but it’s a great start. Plus, how fun is it to watch Jacob surf?!Keep Reading!
First quick video of Ben surfing with the GoPro mounted directly on his surfboard. Can’t wait to do more! This is surfing at Playa Tamarindo near the river mouth. Below are some pix from the session as well.Keep Reading!
After a collective 404 hours of spanish classes at the Coastal Spanish Institue in Tamarindo, we have now officially graduated! We have learned quite a bit and feel much more comfortable with the language now. Graduation day’s highlight was the homemade piñata that kids all made with their teachers. Below is a copy of theKeep Reading!
Monte Verde was a cool town. It reminded us of many mountain towns in Colorado . There was a small downtown, restaurants and hotels. The town was very focused on community, cleanliness and the environment. If you are in Costa Rica and have time to visit Monte Verde, I would highly suggest the trip. WeKeep Reading!
After our walk through the cloud forest on the hanging bridges and a quick lunch, we ventured into the Butterfly Garden. It’s the largest butterfly garden in Costa Rica from what I remember being told and it was quick incredible. Erin and I both agreed that they should have weddings in there. It kind ofKeep Reading!
Our second day in Monte Verde we ventured up to Selvatura Park, another incredible experience. First stop for the day was a guided walking tour on the hanging bridges (sky bridges) that weave in and out of the cloud forest. I can’t remember how many of them there were, but it was a lot. ReallyKeep Reading!
When we arrived in Monte Verde the first thing we noticed was the temperature. It was actually COLD! Quite a refreshing feeling after spending two months in the dry and hot northwest coast of Costa Rica. The second thing we noticed is that it’s green. Everywhere. Monte Verde is incredibly lush. The plants and trees areKeep Reading!
It’s sounds cooler than it is, but there is a cool service that will take you from La Fortuna / Arenal across Lake Arenal to Monte Verde saving you the drive around the lake. It’s a very big lake. It’s called the Jeep – Boat – Jeep, but it could have been called the ShuttleKeep Reading!
Tabacon Hot Springs is one of the coolest places we’ve ever seen. Close your eyes. Imagine a combination of Disney World design with luxury, water and nature. Now take that image and triple it. That’s Tabacon. I think the most amazing element to Tabacon was that it was in a natural setting. They took aKeep Reading!