Nicaragua and Amigas

Last year I went on my first solo travel adventure. I chose Nicaragua because of the awesome waves and weather and that Nicaragua was also the home base of Surf with Amigas surf and yoga retreat. After finding Surf with Amigas and saw it was run by a pro surfer and the days would consist of surfing, yoga, volcano boarding and experiencing local culture all with a bunch of cool girls, I knew I had found my dream trip. I felt completely safe in Nicaragua despite the reputation I knew it had. The waves, weather and girls were all AMAZING!!!!

I arrived in Nicaragua knowing nothing about the culture, not knowing any of the girls that would be at the retreat and really no idea what to expect. I was blown away at the awesomeness of it all! I stayed in the very poor community of El Manzano Uno at El Coco Loco, an eco friendly "resort". There were no hot showers, flushing toilets and there were even bats in our cabana but it was absolute paradise to me. Peaceful, beautiful and simple are the best ways I can describe El Coco Loco and the community of El Manzano Uno.

Outside of my cabana. The hammock on the porch was perfect for relaxing afternoons.

Surfing the bay right by El Coco Loco

The Volcano we hiked up then boarded down. It was huge!!

I love jumping pictures! At the top of the volcano!!

Volcano boarding

Having dinner up in the hills

Inside my cabana

The showers and bathrooms were all outdoors

The most peaceful way to take a shower. Outdoors in the middle of beautiful nature.

The main part of the resort where we'd eat all the meals and hang out.

Outdoor yoga studio overlooking the ocean 

Sunset on an empty beach

Fun girls!!!

Heading out to go surf. Loved this board!

First time riding a horse ever! I was terrified!!

Relaxing after another awesome surf session

The California Coast

We just got back from an amazing, trip taking the coastal route from San Diego to the Oregon border. Since we have both grown up in Southern California, we didn't really need to explore much in this region so our exploring part of the trip really began in Central California.

The coastal towns are so small and mellow once you leave Southern California. We brought a book full of surf breaks with us and stopped at some of the better waves. It was a great experience to explore the Central and Northern California culture. We talked to local surfers and hung out in hippy towns. We hiked in forests, along deserted coasts and along coastal bluffs. It was a phenomenal trip and we recommend it to everyone! Our favorite stretch of coastline in the state would probably have to be the Sonoma County Coast, just north of Bodega Bay. It is isolated, scenic and absolutely beautiful. Once you leave Southern California, the hotels are very affordable too. We did the trip in 5 days up and 2 days down. Here are some of the main highlights from the road trip:

Hiking in Patrick's Point State Park

Redwoods State Park

Exploring the Lost Coast

Smith River

Sunrise on the Sonoma County coast

Cute little surf town of Capitola

Surfing Santa Cruz

The hook surf break

Big Sur

Delicious cinnamon rolls in Pismo Beach

Christmas Ornaments

While traveling, we typically like to avoid major tourist areas, however, there is one thing we always go to tourist shops for.... Christmas Ornaments! We started a tradition a few years ago of collecting Christmas ornaments from every where we travel. It's so fun to be able to reminisce over great memories every Christmas season as we decorate the tree with our ornaments from around the world. Here are a few of our favorites!

Tahiti

Riviera Maya

Kauai

NYC

Nicaragua

Oahu

New Zealand

New Zealand Part 2 - South Island

After exploring the warm North Island, we flew over to the South Island to find an extreme temperature drop but also the most extraordinary scenery either of us had ever seen in our lives. Below are our top spots to check out on New Zealand's South Island!

Driving the beautiful Arthur's Pass. This drive was stunning.

Hike to Fox and Franz Josef glaciers. These glaciers were about 15 minutes from the beach.

Take a cruise through Milford Sound

Milford Sound

Milford Sound

Milford Sound

Hiking at dawn in Queenstown.

Walk around Queenstown Harbor and downtown. There was a cool little hike in the hills above the city.

Hike the Kepler Trek

Dunedin Lighthouse

Downtown Dunedin

Go on an adventure hunt to find penguins. They were the cutest little guys ever.

Check out the funky beach town of Hokitika

Dining beachside in Hokitika. This was a cool little sleepy beach town.