Show me the lava: Fire and dirt in Nicaragua

Our Costa Rican taxi driver had warned us to be careful in Nicaragua as it is a poorer country and the children will pick your pockets and cut open your bags and there were even warnings about avoiding taxis in Nicaragua, so we were feeling cautious as we arrived in Granada, a major colonial town. The only problem we had was that getting off the bus Ali put his foot in a big muddy puddle, but as it happens he soon found a local was helping clean his feet with water from a dripping fire hydrant. Later we had a friendly conversation with a local old man on his bicycle telling us about the town, and although he was also warning us to be careful with our valuables, we felt pretty comfortable in the town centre.

So we arrived safely at our hotel, with all our belongings, to enjoy a little more luxury as as a birthday present, Malcolm had kindly booked us into a grand spa hotel in large colonial buildings with tall rooms and quiet courtyards with gardens and a pool. We were soon refreshed and took a tour of several of the churches in Granada that show the European influence along with large shady plazas and children playing football in the street. 

On our second day in Granada we encountered a large parade in the central square, with many colourful costumes that seemed to illustrate a story mocking old colonials. Later, we took a kayak tour around some of the Isletas, many small islands in the enormous 'Lago de Nicaragua' lake. We were soon wondering why all the other tourists had opted for a motor boat tour however our hard paddling paid off with a very serene cruise through picturesque wetlands with loads of birdlife and an insight into some of the expensive holiday homes of the rich and famous on these islands.

Nicaraguan cuisine gets a thumbs up from Ali after sampling Quesillo, a creamy cheese treat in a fried wrap. We also had some great meals at vegetarian(ish) restaurants, El Kapuyo and the Garden Cafe and it seems that at least in Granada the country has embraced budget travellers and tourists but managed to maintain a sophisticated but rustic charm. And the dollar does seem to go a bit further here than in Costa Rica or Panama.

Our next stop was Leon, the other famous colonial city, and although it is not quite as impressive, we were here for another reason. More volcanoes. The ridge of volcanoes running through Central America seems to be particularly active in Nicaragua and we took a couple of exciting trips near to Leon with Quetraltrekkers, an organisation run by volunteers that guide hikes to fund projects helping street children.

Cerro Negro is a relatively new volcano that was formed only in the last couple hundred years, and still warm and steaming, there is little plant growth yet and its terrain is entirely dark black rocky gravel. One face of the volcano is a nice even slope and makes a great place send backpackers shooting down on wooden sledges. It takes an hour to walk up and less than a minute to ride down but this was such fun that we walked up again for another go. Despite a jumpsuit and goggles, the black grit sprays everywhere filling hair, ears and mouth, and there was little time left in the day after washing it all out before we were packing for our next trip.

Volcan Telica is the most active volcano in the region and erupts every few years, with a constant pume of smoke to be seen from its cone and were excited that lava could be seen at the crater. A two day hike didn't register as too challenging until we arrived in the morning and were each handed 8 litres of water to carry along with food and camping gear. We realised we were spoiled on our camping in Madagascar where porters carried all this for us! Still, the promise of lava spurred us on and we ascended the 11km in just five hours in some stifling heat enjoying some magnificent views of the volcano range and some bubbling mud pools. Arriving covered in dirt from the dry dusty track we set up camp in a unexpectedly green grassy area a short distance down from the crater. The imposing smoking cone was impressive and the sulphurous gases became noxious as we walked up the final leg, scratching our throats and making everyone cough. Peering into the crater was exciting as you can see and hear the volcano roar and hiss as jets of gases escape. The lava, well, it was more like a big barbecue but it was pretty awesome when we returned later after sunset.

Just two weeks left in Central America and three countries to see so pretty sharpish we take a bus north to Honduras and return to the Caribbean once again...