Dorado, but soon after we had to get going down to the travel agency for our trip to Volcan Masaya and the surrounding villages. In typical central american fashion, the bus was running late, so we spent some time talking to the other people in our group, getting to know them a bit better, while Josh and Marisa were sipping on breakfast smoothies. We eventually left Granada for the one hour trip to the National Park, and along the way we stopped for our guide to point out a fortress high up on a hill, telling us about it´s tumultuous history and various uses over the centuries. We then arrived at the gate to the park, our guide paid the entrance fee for us, and 
we proceeded through the laval field of 1772 and towards the upper parking lot right next to the active crater. There was lots of smoke and fumes rising from it, though the laval itself could only be seen on the night volcano tour; nonetheless, the volcano still acts up every now and then, such as a few years back when hot lava rocks started spewing out of the crater to the horror of the tourists close by. While nobody died, a few people were injured and a number of cars destroyed - for that reason, it is mandatory to park the car facing the exit of the lot, in case a quick departure is required, and along with your entry ticket you receive a pamphlet instructing you to seek 
shelter under a vehicle should such an even occur again, along with the obligatory disclaimers regarding getting so close to an active crater. After looking into the crater and taking the obligatory pictures, we walked up a whole bunch of steps before arriving at the top of a hill overlooking the entire volcano complex, where you can see a replica of a cross that was set up there by the Spaniards in the hopes of keeping evil spirits at bay. The volcano was so threatening and active that they thought it was literally the gates of hell, so that was their way of assuring themselves that they would be safe. While the view was fantastic from there, there were so many bugs around that we couldn´t even speak without getting a nice sized serving of protein. While talking to our guide, we mentioned that we would be heading to Isla Ometepe, and he also confirmed that the San Ramon waterfall has been wiped out by Tropical Storm Alma and the landslides that followed. Once we descended from the cross, we went to see one of the 
extinct craters, took more pictures and observed the zopilotes (vultures) circling the area above us. We moved out and back towards the parking lot as some pretty nasty and dark clouds moved in, and drove half way out of the park, stopping at the Tourist Centre and Museum for Volcan Masaya. This time the guide actually accompanied us inside, answered any questions we had, and even told us a few interesting stories. Apparently the first plans for a canal between the Atlantic and the Pacific were drawn up in Nicaragua, which wanted to build two canals, one from San Juan del Sur to Lago de Nicaragua, and then another one from the east shores of the lake to the Caribbean sea. Sounded like a great plan, but political forces interfered 
and the project was moved down to Panama. Our guide also told us a funny story about a tree the locals call ´the gringo tree´, because in the summer its bark turns red, then peels off, just like the skin of the gringos in the sun.
Back on the bus, we drove to the nearby city of Masaya, where before the market we made another stop at a lookout point over Laguna Masaya, giving us a chance to see the volcano from further away. We then headed to the market, where we had about an hour and a half to browse around, and bargain our hearts out; we were getting pretty hungry though, so we
stopped at a stall in the market and decided to try Bajos, a typical Masayan lunch, consisting of pork, yuca, cabbage, plantain and casava all wrapped in a banana leaf. After our delicious lunch, we wondered about the market, Marisa bought a necklace and a bracelet, but aside from that we couldn´t really buy that much since we still had a lot of traveling ahead of us. We finished off the visit there with a cold drink, before boarding the bus and heading to Catarina, one of the many pueblos blancos (white villages) surrounding Masaya. This was the so-called ´flower village´and we passed by countless stores and stalls selling any type of plant that would grow in 
this environment; our destination however, was the mirador (lookout point) over Laguna de Apoyo, a lake in a dormant crater which is the lowest point in all of Central America. There were lots of people around, many more so than last time I visited it, but then I remembered it was sunday, so many locals came out as well. There was a band playing traditional music, people dancing around, and we saw a whole bunch of paragliders flying over our heads. In the background we could see both the city of Granada and the nearby Volcan Mombacho, which I have still to climb.
Our last stop on the tour was San Juan del Oriente, another pueblo blanco, this one specializing
in ceramics; we went to a different shop than my first visit, and this one proved to be much more educational. As opposed to rushing us to the shop so we can buy souvenirs, the owner of the shop took us through the whole process from the lump of clay to creating a vase (without the finishing process since we would have been there for days). At the end some of us bought a few pieces to bring home to friends and family, but again, as a backpacker there is the issue of carrying things around for months, let alone worrying about something breaking. As the tour wound down, we started heading back to Granada, but not before another exciting moment: as we passed through one of the other villages, we came across a mob of people on either side of the road. Our guide told us that it was a festival taking place between two villages locked in mock-fighting with bamboo whips - he told us they are not supposed to hit anyone above the neck, but as we passed through the crowd I did see a few people bleeding from their heads.
After returning to Granada, we took a walk towards the lake, stopping at the beach front for a
cold beer and for some people watching; again being a weekend, the atmosphere was great, good music and we were surrounded by laughing, happy people. Aside from people watching, we were also watching the dark clouds moving across the lake towards us, until the rain started and everyone scattered about. We took a cab back to Hostel Dorado and got ready to go out for dinner at a Tequila Vallarta, a mexican restaurant on Calle La Calzada. We got another lesson as to how innacurate the Lonely Planet maps are, as we did a few circles around the neighbourhood before one of the locals pointed us in the right direction. After dinner, we returned to the hostel, getting ready to move on to Isla Ometepe the following day.
extinct craters, took more pictures and observed the zopilotes (vultures) circling the area above us. We moved out and back towards the parking lot as some pretty nasty and dark clouds moved in, and drove half way out of the park, stopping at the Tourist Centre and Museum for Volcan Masaya. This time the guide actually accompanied us inside, answered any questions we had, and even told us a few interesting stories. Apparently the first plans for a canal between the Atlantic and the Pacific were drawn up in Nicaragua, which wanted to build two canals, one from San Juan del Sur to Lago de Nicaragua, and then another one from the east shores of the lake to the Caribbean sea. Sounded like a great plan, but political forces interfered 
and the project was moved down to Panama. Our guide also told us a funny story about a tree the locals call ´the gringo tree´, because in the summer its bark turns red, then peels off, just like the skin of the gringos in the sun.Back on the bus, we drove to the nearby city of Masaya, where before the market we made another stop at a lookout point over Laguna Masaya, giving us a chance to see the volcano from further away. We then headed to the market, where we had about an hour and a half to browse around, and bargain our hearts out; we were getting pretty hungry though, so we
stopped at a stall in the market and decided to try Bajos, a typical Masayan lunch, consisting of pork, yuca, cabbage, plantain and casava all wrapped in a banana leaf. After our delicious lunch, we wondered about the market, Marisa bought a necklace and a bracelet, but aside from that we couldn´t really buy that much since we still had a lot of traveling ahead of us. We finished off the visit there with a cold drink, before boarding the bus and heading to Catarina, one of the many pueblos blancos (white villages) surrounding Masaya. This was the so-called ´flower village´and we passed by countless stores and stalls selling any type of plant that would grow in 
this environment; our destination however, was the mirador (lookout point) over Laguna de Apoyo, a lake in a dormant crater which is the lowest point in all of Central America. There were lots of people around, many more so than last time I visited it, but then I remembered it was sunday, so many locals came out as well. There was a band playing traditional music, people dancing around, and we saw a whole bunch of paragliders flying over our heads. In the background we could see both the city of Granada and the nearby Volcan Mombacho, which I have still to climb.Our last stop on the tour was San Juan del Oriente, another pueblo blanco, this one specializing
in ceramics; we went to a different shop than my first visit, and this one proved to be much more educational. As opposed to rushing us to the shop so we can buy souvenirs, the owner of the shop took us through the whole process from the lump of clay to creating a vase (without the finishing process since we would have been there for days). At the end some of us bought a few pieces to bring home to friends and family, but again, as a backpacker there is the issue of carrying things around for months, let alone worrying about something breaking. As the tour wound down, we started heading back to Granada, but not before another exciting moment: as we passed through one of the other villages, we came across a mob of people on either side of the road. Our guide told us that it was a festival taking place between two villages locked in mock-fighting with bamboo whips - he told us they are not supposed to hit anyone above the neck, but as we passed through the crowd I did see a few people bleeding from their heads.After returning to Granada, we took a walk towards the lake, stopping at the beach front for a
cold beer and for some people watching; again being a weekend, the atmosphere was great, good music and we were surrounded by laughing, happy people. Aside from people watching, we were also watching the dark clouds moving across the lake towards us, until the rain started and everyone scattered about. We took a cab back to Hostel Dorado and got ready to go out for dinner at a Tequila Vallarta, a mexican restaurant on Calle La Calzada. We got another lesson as to how innacurate the Lonely Planet maps are, as we did a few circles around the neighbourhood before one of the locals pointed us in the right direction. After dinner, we returned to the hostel, getting ready to move on to Isla Ometepe the following day. 
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