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Published: September 8th 2008
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Sunset Over the Infinity Pool
Piedras y Olas Resort / Pelican Eyes We rented the house my niece had been living in. She left her furniture in case she changed her mind and wanted to come back. It was her way of hanging on to San Juan del Sur. As long as some of her things were still there she wasn't gone forever. All the furniture had come to Nicaragua, in large containers, by boat. It had been an expensive affair and it wasn't worth sending the things back. Besides, most of it had stayed with the boyfriend in his huge house on the north end of the bay. She also left behind a 4-wheel drive SUV. I thought we'd use the car until the boyfriend came around looking for it.
Our new house was modern by Nicaraguan standards. We were in the center of town about a block from the produce market and two blocks from the bay. We quickly fell into the rhythm of life in San Juan del Sur. Morning runs on the beach. Breakfast at the tiny indoor market "restaurants." These are really just open wood-fire grills with a few tables in front and a waitress. Cooking in the small hot "kitchens" are usually one or two grandmotherly-like
women in colorful bandanas and homemade aprons. There are several of these little eateries, in a row, in the market, and there is friendly competition between them, but not much difference in the food. We became friends with the nice waitress at the first kitchen and were loyal to them from then on. They serve breakfast and lunch. A good "home cooked" meal, of chicken or a whole fried fish, caught that morning, or a huge bowl of soup (known around town as "the hangover cure"), costs a couple of dollars, including a drink!
Then there were the afternoon "siestas." It gets very hot and humid between twelve and two o'clock. Many of the businesses close down in the afternoon for, "almuerzo," the midday meal. The afternoon break is long enough to get in a rest or a nap, which I found very civilized. Our routine soon included a trip to the nearest surfing beach in the afternoons, where my daughter started to learn how to surf. Playa Maderas would become my favorite beach. There are many beautiful beaches, both North and South of San Juan del Sur, but Maderas has some wild waves that constantly reminded me, that
around nature, one should never get too cocky. At Playa Maderas there is also a two-floor beach-shack that has become somewhat of a haven for surfers and "beach bums", both local and foreign. There you can get a hot meal in the afternoons and a cold beer or soda. The second floor has a few rooms that can be had for very little, or if the beds are all taken, you might find an empty hammock or a spot on the floor and a blanket.
Most days, after our trips to the beach, we would head back into town for a swim in the pool at the local resort, Piedras y Olas also known as Pelican Eyes. This resort sits high on a hill on the back end of town. If you walk a few blocks away from the bay and look up you will see a huge thatch-roofed structure that brings to mind some ancient Mexican or Hawaiian temple. It's really a magnificent design. There's a steep road that can be used to drive up or you can walk up the tropical landscaped steps to the top. We always chose to walk so we could enjoy the beautiful array
of flowers and tropical trees. At the top, you find a lush garden of a hotel with an incredible Infinity pool and beautiful views of the bay and the village below. The thatched structure turns out to be the open-air roof of the very elegant restaurant, La Cascada, which includes a beautiful full bar that runs out to the pool and has the best drinks in town. At the back of the hotel and up the hills is a growing small community of private luxury homes.
This spot had been my niece's favorite place in town and she spent many hours there reading by the pool and making friends. We soon got to know the owner who had come to San Juan del Sur from San Francisco, many years before, on his 42-foot sailboat, the Pelican Eyes. This place had been his vision and now we were enjoying the end results of that vision daily. The sunsets over the bay, seen from the Piedras y Olas Resort, were some of the most breathtaking sunsets I'd ever seen.
The Journey / Travel with Me
A. Zudro a.k.a. Gloria
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