Selva Negra

Since my parents had survived ziplining, climbing up 177 stairs to peer into a sulfur-spouting volcanic crater, and spending a sweltering night in non-airconditioned cabin with a compost toilet, I decided to cut them some slack and take them to more hospitable environs.  Off we went to Selva Negra, a nearly self-sustaining coffee finca, organic farm, and eco-lodge a few hours north of Managua, in Matagalpa.  Matagalpa is at a higher elevation and is significantly cooler than anywhere else we'd been.  Someone had recommended that we bring sweaters and, I admit, I scoffed.  You have to understand, the guards at my house put on big puffy winter coats and ski caps if the night temperature approaches 70--so when a sweater was recommended, I wasn't buying it.

WRONG!!!!!

It was probably around 70 when we arrive, at noon.  Unheard of!!!  At night, I'd say that the temperature hovered in the low 60s and yes, I was glad that I'd brought a lightweight sweatshirt with me.

Selva Negra means "Black Forest" and the owners are descendants of German immigrants who settled in the area.  There are a variety of lodging options to choose from; we went for a small brick cabin that had 2 bedrooms, a living room, a bathroom, and a small porch area with two rocking chairs.

The finca has its own restaurant, and virtually all of the food served in the restaurant is grown or (if animal) raised onsite.  They even make their own cheese, and let me tell you, after going 6 months without Camembert, I could have cried with joy when I saw that wheel of cheese.   This was the off-season, though, so we didn't see any coffee production in action, but we took a tour and drove all over the finca, saw the fields, saw the processing area / equipment, and learned a lot about coffee production.  Apparently, the farm sells most of its beans to larger coffee producers, and keeps a small amount for itself, for the restaurant, etc. Although our guide did tell me that you can buy Selva Negra coffee in Whole Foods, but I have no idea if that's still true.  I will say, though, that this was some of the best coffee I've ever had; good enough for me to drink black, and I'm the kind of gal that likes a little coffee with her milk. 

The finca really takes the self-sustaining bit seriously; plant matter that is left after the beans are harvested and de-husked is used to feed the worms in the worm farm, and after the worms eat and the material passes through, the end product is used to fertilize the fields where the coffee, fruits, vegetables, etc. are grown.  By the way, am I the only one who thinks its funny to describe worm shit as an "end product"?  

Selva Negra is also very family-friendly; there were swingsets, rope swings hanging from trees, a tetherball pole, and a small playground scattered throughout the farm.   I'm also not too ashamed to admit that I whipped the Mini-Menace at tetherball.  So what if I have a significant height advantage. 

There is also a beautiful stone chapel on the property, with simple benches and beautiful stained-glass windows.  

We met the owners' son-in-law at breakfast and he told us that the chapel had been built for their wedding.

The restaurant is set on the side of a small (and not deep) lagoon; we ate dinner and watched a guy balance himself in a small wooden boat and use a pitchfork to to pull something akin to seaweed out of the bottom of the lake.  

Nice view!!  I'm talking about the lake, of course.

And have I mentioned the howler monkeys?  There are two bands of howler monkeys that live in the forest around our cabin, but alas, there was no repeat of the Monkey-in-My-Lap.  Howler monkeys are loud, and sound pretty scary; it was like a really deep, baritone bark.  No pictures, unfortunately, but my dad and I enjoyed our little hike; there are some great trails on the property.

Next time, I might plan ahead and take advantage of the stables and go  horseback riding instead.  And eat my body weight in Camembert, of course.  

Roughing It

The most popular destination in Nicaragua is, I think, the beach.  Any beach, in fact.  San Juan del Sur is especially popular with the surfing community.  I've heard that it's overrated, though, and depending on where you are, the beach is rocky, and full of litter.  Friends who came to visit spent one day there before blowing town and heading to Corn Island instead.  Other friends felt like they were in San Diego or some other US surf town...full of English-speaking surfer dudes (or as my friend Stefano likes to call them, "dreadlocks").  I suppose it all comes down to what you can put up with....if you want to have a really low-budget weekend at a hostel, you can't expect too much.  Other friends rented a nice house and loved it.

At any rate, I knew I wanted to take the Parental Menaces to the beach while they were here.   I hadn't been to the beach yet, but the Mini Menace had and loved it.  My family are not really beach-going people--I think the last time I was at the beach was 2nd grade when we visited relatives in Florida--but since this vacation was all about new experiences, I thought I'd drag them along  Hell, after ziplining, I figured they'd be pretty happy to sit around and relax.  I'd heard great things about Los Cardones, an eco-friendly surf lodge about 90 minutes from Managua, so off we went....

Los Cardones is definitely one of the most environmentally-conscious places I've seen in a country that has a terrible problem with litter.  Honestly, there is trash EVERYWHERE and people think nothing of just throwing garbage out the bus window, etc.  It's a shame, because the county has amazing natural resources and stunning beauty. So I thought we'd support a business that is trying to minimize it's negative impact on the environment.  No electricity, solar power only, use well water, compost toilets, and the buildings use local materials and methods, and are designed to blend in to the surrounding vegetation.  We stayed in a gorgeous wooden lodge on stilts, with a thatched roof, a spacious deck, bunk beds, and hammocks.  Meals and drinks are included, and one thing that I really liked was that dinner--for the whole lodge--was served at the same time.  Guests placed their orders earlier in the day, and at 7:00, we all showed up, had a few drinks, and sat down for dinner together....it was a great opportunity to meet the other guests.  They also had several shelves of books, games, a basketball hope and--to the Mini-Menace's delight--a ping-pong table.   We pretty much sat around, ate, drank, walked on the beach, went swimming, napped in hammocks, and played a lot of ping-pong.

You are roughing it, though, so at night, there are no fans, no electricity, just you, the sound of the waves, and if you're lucky, a breeze to cool things off.  My parents were real troopers, though, and had a great attitude, despite the heat.

Close Encounters

So, on Day 2 of my parents' vacation, we again availed ourselves of the services of a guide and driver, mainly because I was too damn lazy to drive and explain what we were seeing. We had another busy day, hitting a pottery workshop:

My parents also deserve a TON of credit for letting me con them into ziplining.

They deserve even more credit for not killing me for posting VIDEO of them ziplining.

Although truth be told, my mom sounds like she's almost sort-of kinda enjoying this....or maybe that's just because this was the last line (of about 8 to 10...I stopped counting after I the upside-down Spiderman thing. I was pretty much just thankful to be alive.) Anyhow, they definitely cemented their hold on the title of Coolest Parents of All Time.


We also hit one of the Mini-Menace's favorite sightseeing activities, sailing around the small islands (Las Isletas) in Lake Nicaragua. This time, we got up close and personal with Lucy the Monkey. She noticed that we had cashews and fresh watermelon and decided to come maker herself at home.

Poor Mom didn't think this was nearly as entertaining as the rest of us, who were giggling away as she was fervently hoping that the cashews and watermelon didn't cause Lucy any sort of gastric distress.


It was worth it, though, because Ms. Lucy kindly obliged me with a nice photo before abandoning ship and heading back to Monkey Island:

Next up: forcing my parents to rough it at a eco-friendly surf lodge and then realizing that yes, there ARE places in Nicaragua where you need a light sweatshirt (aka Selva Negra).   Also, if I can figure out how to edit the video to a more manageable length, I'll post the video of Lucy getting cozy in my lap.

Adventures in Parentsitting

Yes, I *am* referencing an old Elizabeth Shue movie, thank you very much. 

My parents came to visit for Semana Santa; I was lucky enough to be able to take about a week and a half off work to hang out with them...not parent-sitting at all.  Actually, I didn't even have to use that much annual leave, because Holy Thursday and Good Friday are Nicaraguan holidays, and since the Embassy observes U.S. federal and local host nation holidays, I had two free days off.  Score!!!

This trip was a big deal for both my parents; I don't think either one had been to a country that doesn't speak English as its primary language.  In fact, I know my mother had to get a passport for this trip (she'd been to Canada years ago, before passports were required).  At any rate, I took advantage of the VIP Lounge at the airport....for a fee, someone meets you as you disembark and escorts you to a lovely lounge with free food, drinks, comfortable couches, and flat-screen TVs.  You wait while someone takes your passport and immigration forms, gets everything stamped, gets your visa, and picks up your luggage.  Once they have everything, they come get you from the lounge and you're on your way!  It worked really well, I thought, especially for folks who may not have a lot of experience with international travel or who don't speak the language. 

I didn't really give my parents much time to rest....they arrived at 9pm one night, and we were off with a guide and driver at 8:30 the next morning.  On our first day, we went to the Masaya volcano, craft market, "real" market, and the Catarina viewpoint that overlooks Laguna de Apoyo.

At the Volcan de Masaya

It was much easier on the way back down...

Hammock-weaving, in action.

 

I broke down and ordered myself a custom hammock.  It's really for the Mini-Menace, in his favorite color, with both our names woven in on the fringe on either side.  It only took a week to finish--I haven't seen it yet, I have to go get it and then get myself a hammock stand; unfortunately, as awesome as my house is, there really isn't a decent place to hang a hammock--the trees are too far apart, and there's no decent place to sink hooks into the walls.  I'm not letting that stop me, though.....I plan to exploit that hammock to the fullest!

Next post:  Day 2: Pottery, Granada, Ziplining, and a monkey in my lap.  Stay tuned, folks!!