Before I dive back into the Nicaragua adventures…I do have a quick self promotion. I will be reading this Thursday, August 4th at Local 61 in Brooklyn. The read starts at 6:20 and is part of the Big Words, Etc reading series. I’m not sure if I am going to be reading poetry or prose, but it will be a great time! Hope to see you there!

Back to Nicaragua! You might remember that I set the intention for my trip (to go with the flow)…I nearly immediately broke it. One of the results of our delay was that we would miss a day of activities. It was decided that we would stay in San Juan del Sur, getting more beach time, instead of pressing on and driving  further afield. Who could be opposed to more beach? Sadly, this would mean that we would miss zip lining. I’ve never been zip lining before (once, in eight grade, we almost did a ropes course, but that is a sad story for another day), and it was one of the trip activities I was looking most forward to. I knew I had intention, but I had to speak up. When I told the trip leader how disappointed I was that we wouldn’t be zip lining, he worked hard to find a place we could go locally. Although I didn’t quite stick to my original intention, I am glad I spoke up for myself!

I think that for traveling, especially in groups, there needs to be this balance between going with the flow and speaking up for oneself. It reminds me of the Warrior Two yoga position. Your feet are firmly planted into the ground, your body centered. Yet, one arm stretches forward and the other backwards. A teacher once made the analogy that any good warrior stays firmly grounded in the present but also keeps one hand on the past and one hand forward to the future.

The morning started with an early yoga class and filling breakfast. To get to the course, we had to drive in an ATV up a steep muddy track.

The view from the top at the Parque de Adventura Las Nubes (I highly, highly recommend them for any local tours) was spectacular! Above the cloud line, the countryside spread out below us. The zip line course was a series of platforms of different heights through the forest. Some were as high as 90 feet! Our guides were professional, friendly, and very knowledgeable. Standing on the platforms waiting to go on the line was the most terrifying part for me. We were hooked to the tree base, so I knew I wasn’t going to fall. But something about being high up and crowded against our group, made me feel pretty panicky. But the actual zip lining part was a blast! Some were pretty straight forward, going from point A to point B. Others were faster or slower. One we could even do hanging upside down! One of the best parts was being up in the trees and seeing monkeys climbing around. Being in the trees was thrilling.

Afterwards, we headed back down the mountain to relax before yoga class.

A few of us took a quick walk through the town, stopping for a drink and ceviche on the beach! One of Nicaragua’s most famous exports is its rum, which made the mojito extra delicious. Of course, the fish was fresh and tasty.  Afterwards, we unwound from the day with another phenomenal yoga class. Check back next week for more adventures exploring Nicaragua!