Matagalpa

Hey guys,

At last, we are in December - the nicest month in Nicaragua! It's been surprisingly cooler in Chinandega. It feels cooler than it was last December! The past few days of service out in Ojo have been really windy, which is a very refreshing change. It's still hotter than the planet's core at midday, but certainly not as extreme.

The Mainers departed yesterday, and we had a great time. Last week, we went up to Matagalpa for a couple of days to visit my friends Kimmy & Ashlee. They lived in Chinandega for about five years while serving in the Sign Language congregation, but their circuit overseer recently asked them if they would move to Matagalpa to help form a new sign language group. They've been living there for a couple of months now, and it's been a very nice change for them, especially the climate - it's a lot cooler than Chinandega! They've moved into a really nice and spacious house, and let us stay with them during our visit.

Matagalpa is a beautiful town. It's situated up in the mountains. Very scenic. 

The day we arrived, we headed up to a beautiful waterfall called Santa Emilia. It involved taking a long, overcrowded bus ride, but it was definitely worth it!

The water was nice and cold! It made for a very refreshing swim. It's an awesome spot, even if we found a bunch of leeches later on (that's a story for another day). 

The next day, we headed up to the Selva Negra park for a horseback riding tour.

Bree smiling at the start of the tour...until one of the horses ran past her and bit her leg! Ouch! It left quite the bruise, but we had a lot of fun despite the injury.

Although the Matagalpa trip was quick, it was certainly memorable. And of course, it had to end with a problematic bus ride back to Chinandega. The bus kept stopping for really long periods of time, which I was very happy about...

...but I would do it all over again!

But that's not all! The remaining week we had in Chinandega was also a week to be remembered. Next post. :)

Sam