Part One: From Flores south, to Poptún Most visitors to Guatemala dart diagonally from Tikal’s ruins to colonial Antigua, via the bathing pools of Semuc Champey. Although by accepting a volunteer position at an old farm, I got the chance to linger on the country’s eastern fringes. Over the course of a month, I was treated…
In Nicaragua, almost half the population sit below the poverty line, which is why Granada comes as a surprise. Its colonial-era riches stand strong in its architecture and a recent tourism boom has given rise to a high-end foodie culture and niche shops.
I wasn’t able to spend long enough in León. Nicaragua’s most northern city has long been respected as the country’s seat of intellectual and political challenge. A few days before I planned to cross the border, it started a new and important fight. Stories about the student-led uprising against Nicaragua’s sitting government flooded through to…
Waves draw people to this coastal town in southern Nicaragua. The remote beaches either side of San Juan Del Sur offer some of the best surf in the Americas. Although the town itself is also worth a day or two. Why go? I’ve already mentioned the waves but for me, the small-town atmosphere, sunsets over…
Rain clouds are gathering over Santa Ana’s main square. The cream facade of the gothic cathedral looms spookily against the dull sky. Below, a chaotic arrangement of food stall owners serve up curly fries, oblivious to the approaching storm. DAY 1 Located in El Salvador’s north, Santa Ana is closer to the border with Guatemala than…
I felt uncomfortable that my time in Guatemala, though wonderful, was influenced by a recent rise in robberies and attacks on tourists. Perhaps I ran a fine line between exercising caution and hindering my experience. During the two months I spent in Guatemala, I heard stories from other backpackers of armed robberies on buses, aggressive…
I was desperate to fall for Costa Rica. To feel the admiration for it that others held. To swoon about its nature, its people and its Puravida. However, as time went on I felt a niggling sense of disappointment. Following my first visit to the country’s carribean coast in December 2017, I made excuses for this…
