Happy 4th of July!

This is the second year in a row where I don't get to celebrate the forth of July with fireworks at home. However, I'm quite glad to be celebrating here in Nicaragua.


Yesterday was a low-key kind of day with class in the morning and a discussion on issues in Nicaragua such as trash, electricity, and water. It was very informative and because most of it was in english, I could understand what was going on. The classes have been very good and while the conversation is exhausting, it's excellent practice for what I've learned in the grammar part of the class. Last night we went to a bar that's know for its pork. We checked out the "kitchen" which was a room off the main dining area that had a ton of raw pig sitting on the counter. After it was cooked, it was delicious. After that, we went back to the pizza place that we went to on Wednesday because on Friday night they have a mirimba band. They were excellent but there were only 2 other people in the place so no one was dancing which was rather disappointing.


Today was a trip to the Mombacho volcano. It was a beautiful day and we headed up to volcano in what seemed to be an old World War 2 era vehicle. The road was narrow and extremely steep (I think it was steeper than some of those roads we rode up in Italy, Jonathan). We took a break halfway up where we sampled some coffee which was excellent. When we finally got to the top, we joined a guide who took us on the Puma trail around the main crater. I thought it was a dormant volcano but we could smell the sulfur and could see the gases at some points. At the start of the hike, it was rather cold but as soon as we started to hike, it became humid and hot. The area was very green and lush and the hike itself was strenuous. We were constantly hiking either up or down but the trail was well-maintained with steps built into the terrain. It was also very windy at all the lookout spots but we had a great view of the crater and surrounding towns. Overall, it was a great national park and if you're ever in the area, I'd highly recommend it.