Leon is Nicaragua’s second largest city and the culture and political capital of Nicaragua. It’s home to some of the countries most beautiful historic buildings and the revolution that shaped Nicaragua as we know it today. Leon and Nicaragua in general has taken a downturn in tourism due to the civil unrest and street violence following the government announcement that it would reform its pension system and reduce benefits by five per cent. The demonstrations and protests began in a peaceful manner but quickly descended in bloody and deadly protests which saw police officers brutally force protesters to their knees and brutally execute them. This made Nicaragua and it’s main cities dangerous destination for tourist and forced hostels to close their doors. Thankfully peace has been restored somewhat and the UK, USA and Canadian governments to name a few have lifted their warning against travel to Nicaragua. During my time in Nicaragua, I found it to be very safe and peaceful, albeit sparse of many other backpackers. Leon is a beautiful colonial city in the north of Nicaragua. I spent a wonderful two days in the city roaming around and two days on the…
Honduras lies between Guatemala to the north, El Salvador to the west, the Caribbean to the east and Nicaragua to its south. It’s another country that’s often omitted or hurried through en route to the Bay islands due to its dangerous image. It’s listed as the second most dangerous country in the world and its capital San Pedro Sula is ranked the worlds most dangerous and violent city, outside of a war zone. I don’t want to jinx myself now as I’m writing this whilst still in the country but I have found Honduras really safe and the locals I’ve come across have all had much better English compared to Guatemala and El Salvador, and really willing to help with directions and answering questions. I was certain I wasn’t going to let such sensational scaremongering put me off discovering such a beautiful country. Honduras is one of the most biodiverse and gorgeous countries in Central America. It’s made up of beautiful national parks, rain forests, amazing waterfalls and a lot more to offer then just the Bay Islands, where most backpackers go to dive. I spend…
I had been told by many people to bring as little as possible and really only bring the essentials as you will be carrying it around and unpacking and repacking every few days. I knew I would struggle with this as I like to have options for every situation and am not a minimalist. At one stage I owned over 30 pairs of jeans so that will give you an idea… Within the first week I met a friend who is a seasoned backpacker and had a 55L backpack for her 10 weeks around central America. She advised me to get ruthless and start binning/donating clothes. I packed a 85L backpack to the brim and a day pack which is 35L, also stuffed. At 5’6, a 18 kg backpack is not easily lugged around the world. I would suggest no more then 65L for a female and 75L for a male. No idea why backpacks are measured in litres. Tips for packing Lay out the things you need to bring and pack your back pack. Unpack it, remove half of the clothes, repack and repeat this once more. Invest in a decent backpack. The Osprey backpacks…
This is the part where I start sweating buckets and probably don’t stop for the next four months. First impression of El Salvador, it’s warm. Very warm and I’ve resigned myself to the fact I’m going to have a SUL (sweaty upper lip) for the remainder of my time here. El Salvador is the second least densiely populated country in Central America and currently the most dangerous country in the world due to having the highest murder rate in the world. Reading about El Salvador’s high crime rate and shocking murder rate should have been a deterrent to heading off hiking and running on trails alone but after a few days here I felt very safe and found the people so genuinely friendly. Not like other countries where if someone is being friendly I was always thinking right, what is it you want? It seems here people are nice for nothing. I’ve been running and hiking alone and have come back unscathed. So far so safe in El Salvador, touch wood. I’m still in the country so I’m afraid of jinxing it. El Salvador…
I visited two gyms in my month in Guatemala. The first was in Xela, the second biggest city in Guatemala and the second was in Antigua. Xela There are a few options for gyms in Xela. I usually try running outdoors if I can but sometimes it’s not always safe or the streets aren’t runner friendly. I didn’t find Xela runner friendly although there is a running track at the complejo deportivo. It has a standard size track, soccer pitch, baseball field, tennis courts, basketball courts, swimming pool, and climbing wall. The track, fields, and courts are free to use, but the pool and climbing wall have monthly fees. Complejo is open 6am to 6pm during the week. On Saturdays they open 6am until 12pm and are closed Sundays. They have reduced hours Saturday, 6am to 12pm, and are closed Sunday. There are always people put running and there is security on the gate so it’s very safe. Gyms Gimnasio Shaddi– this was the first gym I checked out as it was the cheapest and near my house. On further inspection I decided that would not be where I would choose…
I’m aware there are certainly more gyms than one gym in Belize but that’s all I managed to check out. Oasis Fitness Gym and Cafe in Hopkins is the one and only gym I visited. It is a small gym and has a good cafe serving sandwiches, salads, juices and protein shakes. Upstairs the gym had cardio equipment and downstairs was a small weights room but had a squat rack, a bench press, kettlebells, dumbbells and a few other weighted machines. I was the only person there that morning so I had no issue with the small weights area. It was $24 BZ/ $12 US for a day pass. Its opening hours are 06.00-19.00 everyday apart from Sundays when they close at 13.00. I tried to find a gym in Caye Caulker and I was told there is none. There is one located on the bigger island of San Pedro. Whilst in San Ignacio I saw a gym but didn’t have time to go. Needless to say on the smaller cayes there is no gym. Make your own with the beach and the sea…
I like to keep fit, it’s mainly so I can eat all the amazing food but also I like how it makes me feel. I give up all hope of maintaining and shread of abdominal definition the minute I get on a plane and tuck into bags of the free peanuts on board. I know people might think its crazy to go to the gym on holidays but I’m not exactly on a two week holiday where I can resume my normal exercise schedule when I get home. I love hiking and keeping active when I’m away and rack up over 15,000 steps on an average day when I’m travelling. Most days its closer to 20,000 but for those days it’s not, I like to find a gym and try out some usually archaic equipment and watch some hilarious aerobics classes from the squat rack, providing there is one. I’ve written a little review of the gyms I’ve tried along my travels. If there is a gym I usually will seek it out and give it a go even once…
Antigua is a foodies dream. It’s a hub for backpackers and tourists so it caters for all and has all types of cuisine. Here are a list of some of the restaurants I tried and that I would recommend. Amanecer juice bar– I was so happy to see iced or hot matcha lattes on the menu. Lovely small juice bar doing coffees, teas, protein smoothies, juices, acai bowls and wraps right opposite Bigfoot Hostel. Good for a healthy snack, drink, breakfast or lunch. Tienda La Canche – this came recommended by a friend and by the lonely planet. To be honest I was very underwhelmed. It was a table at the back someone’s house and was insanely cheap but the food wasn’t great. They had one option on the menu, a chicken stew but by the time it was my turn to order there was none left so I beans and rice with tortillas. Standard Guatemalan dinner! Good for a budget backpacker and hopefully you’ll be in luck with their speciality. Cafe Boheme-this is a really cute cafe that is run by a French lady. It caters for vegans and…
Antigua is a small colonial city surrounded by volcanoes about an hour drive from Guatemala City. Antigua is a picture perfect city with its cobbled streets, colourful buildings and historical churches all with the back drop of a volcano to make it an insta worthy city. It is my favourite place in Guatemala and maybe it shouldn’t be due to the high volume of tourists and that is very westernised but I loved it. Each building is a cookie cutter colonial building painted in vibrant colours. Simply put, the first word the springs to mind when you visit Antigua is cute. It has a vibrant bar scene, good restaurants and great artesian markets. It is relatively cheap but more expensive compared to San Pedro or Xela. Anituga has good bus connections to other parts of the country and internationally to El Salvador, Mexico, Hondouras and Nicaragua. Antigua is heaving with backpackers and has so many great options to sleep, eat and party. Ten things to do in Antigua: Visit the Arco de Santa Catalina. The backdrop to this famous arch is a volcano which can be seen on a clear day. Best time to go is early in…
There are two ways to get from Xela to Lake Atitlan, by taking a shuttle for about an hour and a half or the best way in my opinion, hiking the 46km through the countryside surrounded by volcanos. Of course I opted for the 2 night 3 day multi day trek. I had heard great things about this physically challenging hike and it turned out to be the highlight of my month in Guatemala. The cost of the trek is 750 Q and 100 Q for the bag drop. This includes everything from breakfast the first morning to lunch on the third day, except a beer or ice cream on the second day. I did the trek with Quetzaltrekkers, the only non-profit, all volunteer-run trekking and outdoors association in Guatemala. 100% of the profits goes to support a school and provide housing for children who would otherwise be working and living on the streets in Xela. The trek runs on Tuesdays and Saturdays only so plan your time in Xela accordingly. The night before the hike we met at the Quetzaltrekkers office at 6pm for a pre departure meeting. In the group we were 22 participants and 4…