Leon: 30th September - 5th October 2025
30th September – Tuesday
I’m now in Leon and getting here was priceless. Luckily, I had planned to leave my hotel at 11 am, Agoda.com said checkout was at 2 pm, but the receptionist came knocking at 10:45 informing me that it was at 11 am. I took a few photos of some of the artwork in the hotel as it was absolutely stunning then the security guard hailed me a taxi. I agreed the price, which I thought was 400c. While in the taxi I realised that was about £8 and was furious with myself. However, when we got to the bus station, I handed over 500c and received 400 in change!
There was a bus leaving, and I really mean leaving, it was pull out, as I was getting my change. The bus conductor literally ripped my rucksack off my back and threw it into the back of the bus and then jumped onto the bus. OMG, my luggage almost went to Leon without me! Before I had a chance to panic, I ran and jumped onto the back of the moving bus, luckily it wasn’t moving too fast and the conductor, who was hanging off the back, helped and pull me on. If he hadn’t, I don’t think I would have made it and would have been waving goodbye to all my clothes and toiletries. Luckily, I keep my passport, laptop and other valuables in a separate bag which I never let go of. The fare was only 50c, but 2 minutes after paying the conductor, who was a fairly old man with missing front teeth, came and gave me the fare back. I was quite shocked but very happy. He then started to talking to me and didn’t leave my side for ages. In the end I gave him G translate to speak into. When he returned my phone, he headed to the front of the bus and the message on it was ‘I love you’ – lol. I spent the rest of the journey staring out of the window and messaging on the family WhatsApp group trying to avoid his attention.
San Cristobel Volcano looked humongous and as you would expect a volcano to look. Most of the others I’ve seen so far just look like very pointy tall mountains due to all of the greenery that covers them. San Cristobel did not look green, it looked very rugged and rocky, maybe because it last erupted in June 2024. I read that, from a distance, you can see steam rising from it, but I didn’t see any. It is actually the tallest in Nicaragua, standing at 1,745 meters, I must try to go to the national park and stand at the bottom of it. The rest of the scenery was fairly much similar to that between Potosi and Chinandega, however this time I did notice far more volcanos in the distance. So far Nicaragua appears to be a very beautiful mix of farmed landed, wooded areas and volcanos, with many one-story shacks and houses dotted around. I did read that most of the volcanos and towns are actually this side of the country, the west, while the east is mainly farmed and a lot less inhabited. This side is the pacific coast, while the east is the Caribbean coast, therefore the landscape, weather, people, culture and food are quite different east to west.
I went for a little walk soon after arriving, to find an ATM. Leon is so different to Chinandega, I didn’t realise but it is university town, so it has a very vibrant feel to it, and it is clean and very pretty looking. My hotel is a 5-minute walk from the main square, which I didn’t go to, and the main market, unfortunately the stall holders were packing up as I walked through it. With my belly rumbling I looked for some ‘local’ food stores like the two I had used in Chinandega, but couldn’t find any so I settled for pizza and my first bottle of Nicaraguan beer, which is extremely delicious. I ordered garlic bread and a small vegetarian pizza but almost fell off my chair when it was brought to my table, it was far too much. So I now have half of my dinner boxed and in the hotel fridge – tomorrows brunch 
I am exhausted so have decided to be a hermit (again), it has just started raining, so it was the right decision. Anyway, being a hermit has given me time to research; there is so much to do here. I have booked myself on a free walking tour tomorrow morning but am not sure what I will do in the afternoon. Maybe I will have a siesta and head to one of the many bars in the evening.
This afternoon, before I went for my walk, I got a message from Kaleesa, which is a bit of a
coincidence as I haven’t heard from her in quite a few weeks and thought about sending her a message yesterday – perhaps she felt me thinking about her (?) She invited me to join a Dreamweaver meeting, so I did. It was actually very therapeutic talking about Jay to ‘other’ people, even if was just on Zoom. I have spoken to Justine (face to face) and messaged with a couple of friends, but it’s the first time I spoken so freely and in ‘safe’ group environment. Feeling and seeing their compassion was so warming. I did shed a tear, but I didn’t cry, which is a first. There was a new lady at the meeting Tishma, and she spoke about losing her grandmother, who was called Ruth, she said she felt warmth when she saw my name come up on the screen – I gave her a virtual hug.
At the end of the meeting, for the benefit of Tishmas, Kaleesa explained what the Dreamweaver movement is all about, empowering women to fulfil their dreams, and then explained that you ‘gift’ $1440 to join. She talked about the 5 different levels and how after reaching the third level (water) and recruiting two new members you receive a ‘gift’ of $8000. One of the other ladies, Sarah Jane, told us how she is now on the second level (earth) and sold a piece of jewellery to join and didn’t tell her husband, he was against it, but now she is reaping the benefits he is fine with it. When Tishma said she didn’t have that kind of money but Kaleesa said she would happily take instalments! Once again I got that suspicious feeling come over me. All this talk of handing over money (gift or no gift) just didn’t sound right. While eating my pizza I did some research, it’s a glorified pyramid scheme! Sorry Kaleesa, as lovely as you are, I am not joining a pyramid scheme, I will not be ‘gifting’ you $1440 – it really is that simple. As I wrote a few weeks back, my gut instincts are there for a reason, to protect me
1st October – Wednesday
I’ve had a fabulous day. The tour was really informative, it was good to hear the perspective of a young Nicaraguan although he did try his best to stay neutral. It was mainly history based and I was a little disappointed that we did he did not take us to more of the churches/cathedrals/places of interest, but we did go to the university and had a very nice coffee at a posh hotel. I think the highlight of the tour was at the end when we went to market. There were three of us on the tour and we gave him 70c each and he bought lots of traditional bits and bobs for us to try, from cakes to fruit and finally a plate of food that was beef based and had lots of root vegetables and plantain, as well as two plantain and cheese deserts and a really delicious purple drink that had chia seeds in it.
This afternoon I went looking for a hairdressers, I tried several shops, one of which I couldn’t find and found myself almost walking out of town looking for it, even the ones in the market were all busy so, feeling hot and sweaty I decided to return to my room. On route back I passed a Chinese shop, so thought I’d see if they had any tiger balm, they didn’t. However, they did have sachets of black shampoo dye, similar to the type I used in Thailand when I first went travelling, so I bought a box of 10 for a mere £2. I ended up needing to use 4 sachet and didn’t do a brilliant job of dying my hair but it certainly looks better than it was.
Just after dying my hair I received a message from Leo, the tour guide, asking if I fancied meeting for a coffee. Unfortunately, I couldn’t as still needed to oil and twist my locks, but I did suggest meeting later for drink. So, this evening I have been on a date with a 28-year old Nicaraguan tour guide, he thought I was 45! And what a lovely young man he was and surprisingly we had so much in common, from travelling to computers, we didn’t stop chatting for a good three hours. He has also suggested meeting up tomorrow evening, but I am wondering if he was just being polite, I didn’t actually tell him my age but he did eventually work out that I must be at least 55, old enough to be his mother!
2nd October – Thursday
Another good day – life has definitely taken a turn for the better. El Salvador brought sadness, Nicaragua, so far, has returned my happiness.
I set out to visit two museums today but only ended up in one. First I got a coffee and then headed to the market for brunch, but I saw the back of Leo with his tour group and not wanting him to think I was chasing him, I returned to the main square for half an hour and then went back and had my brunch. I had a traditional dish similar to the one we tried yesterday on the tour, but the meat was tough and the root veggies stringy. The best bits were the plantain and coleslaw.
After eating I went to the Museum of Traditions and Legends, which is housed in an old prison. What a funny weird little museum that was. There was not much information about the prison which was a shame. However, there were a lot of strangely dressed mannequins representing different Nicaraguan folk laws, some of which are quite funny, for example there is one about a very ugly woman who could not find a husband and even though her father offered a lot of money no man would marry her. She now walks the streets of Leon, with enlarged breasts, looking for a man and when she finds one she likes forces him to suck upon her nipples, leaving them mortified and asphyxiated! The museum guard was also a bit strange. I was the only visitor and he locked the gates and proceeded to follow me around with a rather wide grin and pointed at all of the information boards, which were in Spanish and English, for me to read. I was a little concerned to begin with, but then I realised that he was harmless and must have just been bored and happy to have someone to show around.
There are a lot of second-hand clothes shops here in Leon, so after the museum I went shopping. The clothes I have are really frumpy; my main outfits consist of the clothes I used to go to work in when I was Cambodia. I did buy two new dresses in Guatemala and seem to one of them all the time, which is very boring of me. Anyway, I tried on 6 dresses and bought 3, all of which I am
really happy with. I’m still lugging around my cut off black jeans which are too small, I really must get rid of them but at the same time don’t want to and hope to lose enough weight to be able to wear them again. This scenario is very reminiscent of my SE Asia travels; I carried a pair of red demin shorts that were too small to wear with me for months before I did the right thing and departed with them. I find it difficult to dispose of old truly loved clothes. However, I was very happy to dispose of a school skirt and tight-fitting top today – two out three in
On my back to the hostel I popped into ViaVia, which is the busiest hostel here in town, and yes it was packed and very up-beat. I didn’t stay, just had a nose around, however I think I may there go tonight. Leo hasn’t contacted, I didn’t actually think he would, and am quite pleased. It was nice to spend the evening in his company and it certainly boosted my ego, but I am not a cradle snatcher – lol.
Later: I went to ViaVia this evening. It was not as busy as this afternoon and there was a group of bikers there, not that they stopped me. I had two very delicious and very strong mojitos without all the bits of mint in them. They were very refreshing and along with the drink I had before I got there, I was very merry by the time I left. It was also raining by then, but I hugged the walls on the 7 minute walk back and was surprisingly only slightly damp when I got back.
I’ve just taken two Nytol as I have not been sleeping too well, but better than before, and could do with a solid nights sleep
3rd October – Friday
Well, what can I say, it’s been a good day with a bit of a sour ending. I slept so well and didn’t wake until 9am, and to be honest I could have slept some more. Instead, I went downstairs and got hot water for my coffee and while drinking it made the decision to go to Leon Viejo. This is the locations and ruins of the original city of Leon, which is the region of Puerto Momotombo, and is overlooked by Momotombo volcano. I was a bit nervous about the trip as it entailed a chicken bus to La Paz and then another to Leon Viejo, but she who dares wins!
Leon de Viejo was ‘founded’ by the Spanish in 1524, and is one of the oldest colonial settlements in the Americas. It was partially destroyed by the Momotombo irruption in 1578, with the final blow happening in 1610, when the city of Leon was moved to its current position. The site is typical of all the ‘Spanish’ settlements in regards to its layout, with a grid like layout to the road and a central square surrounded by the government buildings.
I decided to have a guide while there, especially as his cost was included in the entry fee, but he could not speak English! We started of in the one room, 5 display case, museum, and I was very impressed with myself in that I could understand most of what he was saying. However, I gave him my phone and G Translate came to rescue as needed. From there we walked around the ruins which, if I am to be honest, were not that impressive, but it was still interesting. On route we came across several trees with fruit attached to the truck and branches that looked like enlarged round green Christmas lights – I have never seen anything like it before. The guide also showed me the leaf from the tree which was in the shape of a cross. The indigenous people used the leaf as a compass as one of its segments pointed out more than the others, and they used that to indicate north.
Our final stop on the tour was the fortress and wow, what a view. Momotombo Volcano impressively looked down upon us and you could also see the four other volcanos from this range very clearly. I could have sat there for quite a while to savour the view, but the guide was having none of it and clearly was looking forward to getting back to his air-conditioned office. But in saying that, he was a good guide and I got the chance to practice my Spanish with him and I loved the way he politely corrected me when I was wrong so I gave him a tip, not a big one but enough to cover his dinner or at least 4 beers in the local bar.
I sat waiting where I had been dropped off for the chicken bus watching the black clouds looming and several lightning strikes praying I wouldn’t get rained upon. I asked one lady if I was waiting in the right place, she said yes, but after about 20 minutes I asked another. She rattled away in Spanish but I caught enough, she told me that the bus doesn’t always come down the road I was waiting on and I was better of walking to the main road, so this I did. When I got to the main road I asked another lady who was selling fruit and veg from outside of her house if I was in the right place, she said I was and then pulled up a chair for me to sit on. How lovely was that, except I have never been covered in so many flies in all my life. She had 3 dogs, a budgerigar and several hens and a cockerel. All her fruit and veg was rotting and infested with flies. I was so uncomfortable but didn’t want to be rude so sat there trying not to let the flies irritate and tried to make small talk with her, obviously in Spanish. Lucking the bus didn’t take long to arrive, I thanked her for her hospitality and help and the smile she gave me in return was priceless.
Rather than return to my room, I decided to head to ViaVia for food and their delicious mojito. I had a scrumptious chicken kebab and 2 mojitos. My bill came to 608 c, so I gave the guy 700 and he returned with one change, I explained that this wrong and he came back with another 1 c coin. I explained again that I had given him 700 but he said I didn’t. I know very well that I did as I had used my last 10 and some change to buy some fruit at the bus station. Anyway, he ushered me over to the till and the manager, she insisted that they had given me the right change and suggested we check the CCTV cameras together. OMG, they have every table covered! The camera showed that I had 200 in my left my but it was not clear what I had in my right hand, she kept saying, ‘see you have the 200, we gave you the right change’. Yes, and I still have it and showed it to her, I explained that I only had 100 notes, no tens as I had used the only one I had. I was persistent and wasn’t about to leave short changed, she was not happy. Eventually she said that they would return my 100, so I explained that I didn’t want 100, just the 90 that they owed me. I walked away with the correct change I left infuriated and will never be going there again, that’s for sure. That was such a sour end to what was actually a really lovely day.
4th Ocotober – Saturday
Today has been awesome – I went on the Cerro Negro Volcano boarding trip. It all started at 8am when a guy came and picked me up. I could have died when he dropped me off at ViaVia, so much for not going there again! It was where the trip organisers operate from. Luckily the staff and manager from last night were not there so I breathed a sigh of release, got my free T-shirt and relaxed while we waited to depart. We were quite a big party with a large group of people from Honduros and a few guys from Nicaragua. The journey to the volcano didn’t take long, I sat at the back where the guys were and I could hear them talking about me, the decided that I was 45 years old, 50 at the very most. I really must start telling people that I am 45, with a 25 year old daughter, Teon can be 5, Rachel 3 and Lucas a new born – lol.
I was actually quite nervous about the event, not about the boarding down but rather the initial hike up the volcano. But really I had nothing to be nervous about, it turned out to a very short and easy hike, and my legs are actually a lot stronger than I give them credit for. The volcano is called Cerro Nigro, which means Black Hill, because it is (mainly) black. It is one of the newest volcanos in Nicaragua. It came into existence in 1850 and has erupted 23 times since then, with the last eruption in August 1999. I overheard someone saying that another eruption is due, but that didn’t stop me. On the way up we passed a couple of outlets that had steam pouring from them. The guide informed me that these are actually small craters and eruptions can take place from any of them.
One thing I am glad of is that I paid the 200 c to have my board taken up for me, it was so heavy and I really don’t think I would have managed with it. A couple of the Honduros guys decided to take theirs up themselves and I could see them struggling. Once at the top we put on our yellow jumpsuits, wrapped bandanas round out mouths (I bought one yesterday at the bus station market) and put on protective goggles. Luckily the goggles were big enough to accommodate my glasses. I sat on my board at the top of the far right path down and had to wait for the signal before I could push off. I was able to see others leave on the other paths and they all seems to have problems, in that their boards stuck and they could not get up any speed. We had been told that if you lay back with your legs bent you go fast and if you sit forward with your legs straight you go slow.
The wait was long and by now I was actually feeling quite nervous about the decent. Eventually the signal came and I pushed off. OMG, I must have been on the fast path, my board did not stick, and off I went at what felt like a 100 miles and hour. I got faster and faster and I screamed louder and louder. Realising I was leaning back, I tried to sit forward to slow myself down and came of the board! It was quite a challenge to get back on whilst holding the handle at the same time because the board just wanted to keep moving. Anyway, back on I got and then hurtled even faster down the volcano, I am not sure what speed I hit, but I swear it was it was faster than I used to drive my car on the motorways. It was quite a relief to come to the end and only once I was standing could I actually say that it was awesome, but I am not sure I would want to do it again. When I fell off I grazed my ankle, not badly but it was caked in black volcano ash and stung like mad. I had water, so gave it a good clean before we got back on the bas for the return trip.
They dropped us of at ViaVia and informed us that there was a free sandwich and a drink for each of us. So in I marched only to see the waiters and manager from last night. They were absolutely horrified to see me. But I stood my ground and held my head up high, they could see I had the trip wristband on and so could say absolutely nothing about me being there. But to be honest I couldn’t wait to finish my food and leave, it was not a comfortable atmosphere, but it did make my day.
5th October – Sunday
I am so not happy. This bloody laptop is playing up and I’ve sat at the poolside all afternoon trying to fix it. The screen keeps flickering and changing from red to green. I have tried everything I can think of; I uninstalled all my apps, tried to download windows 11, it keeps telling me I don’t have enough space on my hard drive, I really don’t know how to free up any more space, all that is on it is Windows 10 – FFS. I tried updating the bios, but I don’t have enough space! It was suggested I use an external drive for added space, so I did and then I just kept getting error messages and the laptop would re-start. I have even tried uninstalling the graphic driver and reinstalling it – all to no avail. I had to uninstall Microsoft Office but then obviously could not do my diary, so eventually I re-installed it only to be asked for a product key or £89.99 a year. FFS, Blake at Westgate gave me a product key when I first started working there. So I have been a bit naughty and messaged him to see if he would give it to me again. I don’t expect him to as it has been years since we spoke, but if you don’t ask you never know. So this will probably be my last diary entry for a few days, I have decided that, in the morning, before I leave for the beach, I will take the laptop to a repair service and see if they can fix my issue. I have to pass back through Leon after the beach, I’m only staying three nights, so I can pick it up then.
This morning wasn’t so frustrating, I went for a little walk and got some brunch, yuca root, beef and pork in a tomato curry type sauce and coleslaw, it was actually very delicious, much softer and tastier than the version of the same dish I had at the market. On my route back I stopped at the square and had a coffee, it was quite awesome watching 1000s of pigeons leave the cathedral, fly round the square and then back to the cathedral, it’s amazing how so many birds can fly together and not crash into each other. I also bought some socks, the three pairs I have are not enough, I’ve been wearing them for two/three days in a row and noticed yesterday that my feet were smelly. I also gave a man who was rummaging in the bins 20c – my good deed for the day!
It’s been raining all afternoon, so sitting here by the poolside, although frustrating, hasn’t been such a bad call. There is actually one other thing that has narked me today, but I cannot remember what it was, so I’ll leave it at that – lol