¿Qué Pasa, Nicaragua?

Hi all, Carver here. I’ve been eagerly awaiting my first post on the MindBodyGreen blog, but I didn’t want to post just anything (I’ve been told this is an inappropriate venue for Lolcats). And because I’m one of the technology guys around here, I figured my first post would involve something...techy. However, I just took a really cool trip to Nicaragua, so I decided to talk about that!

Before I get into the parallels between my trip and the mission of MindBodyGreen, I have to say that Nicaragua is a gorgeous country full of friendly people, and thus an excellent vacation option. When I told people where I was going, I received quite a few “are you crazy?!” reactions. The conversation would then invariably lead to questions of safety. Many people recall the Contra war against the Sandinista-led government of the 80’s and do not realize that the political climate has been stable since the early 90’s. While this conflict severely damaged the nation’s economy and infrastructure, it is recovering at a brisk clip.

Today, Nicaragua is “the new Costa Rica.” Although true in some sense, this statement will elicit an eye-roll from expats, and likely worse from the locals who have a strong and proud cultural identity (not to mention a bit of bad blood with their southern neighbors). But in terms of tourism, the “gringos” are definitely coming. What is yet to be determined is how the infrastructure to support this tourism develops. The eventual existence of the megaresort is a near certainty, but there is also a nascent and timely eco-tourism movement that could tip the scales and put Nicaragua into a unique position as a truly “green” destination.

To quote Wikipedia, “Nicaragua is home to 78 protected areas covering over 20% of its landmass, and is home to 7% of the world’s biodiversity.” Now I’m no scientist, but that sounds pretty impressive. In each town we visited, there were businesses offering services for the eco-tourist – from nature guides and outfitters to eco-lodges. One of particular note was Morgan’s Rock, which is an eco-lodge just outside of San Juan del Sur on Nicaragua’s south Pacific coast. This place looks amazing, and I truly hope to make it back there for a stay. In an attempt to keep this post short I won’t go into the numerous online resources for such travel, as I assume you can all search Google just as well as I can. However, if you’re curious and looking for a great out-of-the-way spot for your next trip, I found this site to be a great resource.

Now I must add, and I think it goes without saying, that Nicaragua (or anywhere else for that matter) doesn’t require an “eco-friendly” tag to be enjoyed by the environmentally conscious. By its very nature it is eco-friendly in that it is relatively untouched by heavy industry and tourism, not to mention its own population. All one has to do is take a hike to the top of one of the many volcanoes, or rent a board and surf some of the best waves in the Pacific on any one of the beautiful, empty beaches. Just go before too many other people get the same idea!

Safe travels,

Carver