coming home after being away-even for a short time-can be kind of weird and disorienting. especially when the relatively short time you were away actually seemed pretty lengthy. 

Nicaragua is a beautiful country full of gorgeous flora and fauna, and hosts a culture of people who are lovely inside and out. i saw so many amazing sights, met some wonderful people, and had a lot of interesting experiences...which i am doing my best to document while they are all still fresh in my mind. jet lag is a weird creature, let me tell you. 

so for now, i wll just update my list of hope to's/hope to not's... :)

• have an amazing time CHECK
• make and strengthen friendships CHECK
• experience a fascinating culture CHECK
• sample some delicious(hopefully) cuisine, including a sweet little cake called tres leches, which i had years ago and remember fondly.. CHECK
• maybe feel an earthquake or two no tremors. bummer. ah well...maybe next time. 
• climb a volcano...or three CHECK, CHECK, only climbed on two...but that was enough, heheh
• spend a weekend on a volcanic island in the middle of the world's only fresh water lake that is inhabited by sharks...CHECK
• swim in the pacific ocean for the very first time CHECK
• lounge in a hammock CHECK 
• get to practice my VERY limited spanish & likely get made fun of by the locals CHECK (though i didn't really get made fun of...actually, i was told "you sound espanish when you speak spanish. not like an american trying to speak spanish." heheh so cudos to Señor Ralston for being such a pronunciation nazi.)
• maybe see a monkey..which i am kind of excited about and freaked out about at the same time CHECK (after the experience, i am still kind of excited and freaked out. heheh...monkies can break your face. and they are especially intimidating when you're alone and they outnumber you by half a dozen.)
• take a boat trip CHECK 
• see some awesome trees and other natural beauty CHECK 
• and mooooooooore. :) CHECK 

some things that i could live without experiencing: 

• seeing a tarantula 
• seeing a python...from too close, anyway  
• finding a critter in my sleeping station..whatever that may be thankfully, the only one of the "hope not to's" that i experienced was the critters in the sleeping stations...geckos for sure, maybe a centipede, ants, don't even want to think about what else was tickling my arm and feet when i was sleeping on the floor...
• having my eardrum(s) rupture, or getting a migraine because of these aggravating sinus issues i'm having
• heartburn.