After a slow start to the morning with the best breakfast burrito & at least two of the best coffees is had in a while we set off on the motorbike to explore the coast.
We first headed to Rivas to check out some of the incredible old churches. It was a fairly smooth ride albeit a long one. All the churches were closed for restoration but we managed to sneak into one & up to the bell tower to grab amazing views of the town & volcanoes on the horizon.
We made it to San Juan by 3pm, had more awesome coffee at the el Cato negro cafe and then headed up to the giant Jesus statue on the hill to take in the view. It was a hot steep hike up the hill as out little bike couldn't make it with both of us! It was well worth the effort though :)
From there we ventured to Playa Maderas & then to another smaller beach. The sun was setting and we were a bit spooked about riding back for two hours on dodgy roads in the dark through a storm but we stayed for a quick dinner at the beach either way. Had some tasty fish tacos and an unexpected dinner guest - a large crocodile from the river that runs into the beach! He was just in the water below the deck staring at us. The comedor owner was feeding the croc which I guess made sure he wouldn't eat us but was a little worrying all the same!
Riding back it was pitch black, our backsides hurt & there was epic lightening ahead. We had around a 2hour ride to get back so we just pushed through.
We stopped again in Rivas for some fuel and ended up sitting in on a local football match for a while. It was cool & a well needed break for our bums!
Got back around 9pm and it started to bucket down. Best timing by us. Not recommended to ride in the dark on sandy roads in a storm right? All in all we had been out for like 10 hours- an epic adventure. Our friends back here thought something had happened to us & were so relieved to see we got home safe. I was glad we got home safe as there were a few hairy moments!
Another night of hilarious beachside chats and drinks. Met Nicaragua's best surfer too - a cool kid called Kevin.
