Playa Roca, Las Pinatas.

We have been here since Friday and it has been wonderful. Saturday and Sunday were quite busy with people driving from Leon to spend the day at the beach. We have chatted with Americans, Dutch, Austrian and Germans in addition to Nicaraguan locals. Leon is a university town and considered liberal - rather like our Berkeley campus and attracts a lot of young idealistic foreigners who come to study and help with social working. They teach, counsel and help build homes, new water systems, whatever is needed. As a rule, they seem to stay about 6 months and all have told us that they have had great experiences and enjoyed their stay. Nicaragua does appear to be quite stable and foreigner friendly. We will be able to judge more as we travel through the country. We have seen some beautiful sunsets here and enjoyed the beach and the local beer, Tona which is similar to a pilsner. We have also sampled Nicaraguan rum, which is a gold rum and rather tasty! Today, we are leaving to head inland to the National Park and Volcanoes of Masaya and then on to Granada, update to follow.