Author Archives: Richard Griffith

About Richard Griffith

My first independent travel experience was a trip to Israel, in 1997, it was here that I caught the 'travel' bug! In 2001 I took an 8-month sabbatical and traveled around South East Asia. Since then I have managed to visit most of Eastern Europe along with India, Bangladesh, and a few other destinations in between. I love travel and I love meeting new people.

In need of some TLC.

Rivas (Nicaragua) – POP 50,600. The attack and robbery on Ometepe had shaken my confidence. I needed to find somewhere safe to get my head together. Rivas has its fans – people say it’s authentic and lively with some wonderful … Continue reading

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An unfortunate set of events unfold in Nicaragua.

What I carry in my day pack on a normal day: an iPhone, a camera, a water bottle, sun cream, insect repellent, a handkerchief, hand cleaning gel, a pen, a small notebook, a Berghaus long-sleeved top (black), and a wallet … Continue reading

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Isla de Ometepe (Nicaragua).

11/02/2016: Took the early morning bus from Granada to Rivas (1.5 hrs) and then shared a surprisingly cheap taxi to the ferry port at San Jorge. It normally takes 1-hour to get to Moyogalpa (on Ometepe), however, the weather was … Continue reading

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Photogenic Granada (Nicaragua).

Granada drips with photogenic elegance, a picture postcard at every turn. It’s no wonder many travelers use the city as a base, spending at least a day bopping along cobblestone roads from church to church in the city centre, then … Continue reading

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Matagalpa – Coffee Farm Tour – Nicaragua.

“If you love coffee, mountains and urbanity, then you can have your cake and eat it in Matagalpa, a town where for decades an ever increasing number of Liberal coffee patriarchs and subsistence Sandinista farmers have rubbed shoulders during city … Continue reading

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Cigar Factory Tour – Estelí (Nicaragua).

Tobacco leaves are harvested and aged using a process that combines use of heat and shade to reduce sugar and water content without causing the large leaves to rot. This first part of the process, called curing, takes between 25 … Continue reading

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Drop dead gorgeous León (Nicaragua).

“Lots of people fall in love with Granada, but most of them leave their heart in León.” Buzzing with energy and, at times, drop dead gorgeous (in a crumbling, colonial kind of way), León is a city of awe inspiring … Continue reading

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Two border crossings in one day.

In order to get to Nicaragua from El Salvador you have go through Honduras. From Ataco (western El Salvador) several chicken busses painfully transported me through Sonsonate, San Salvador and eventually to San Miguel, a big dirty city in eastern … Continue reading

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Ruta de Las Flores (El Salvador).

Ruta de Las Flores is without doubt the ‘ace card’ of Salvadoran tourism. It’s a 36km-long winding trip through brightly coloured colonial towns famed for lazy weekends of gastronomy and gallery hopping, as well as more adventurous pursuits like mountain … Continue reading

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Volcán de Santa Ana (El Salvador).

The only downside to travelling from Suchitoto to Santa Ana (again using the local chicken bus) was having to pass through San Salvador, which looks and feels like any other midsized Central American city, with its wide boulevards prey to … Continue reading

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