Mitchell, Lauren, and Ezra Yoder: Sledding

Happy holidays! While you all are enjoying the cold, snowy weather [most of you, anyway], we've been basking in the sun. Although, basking makes it sound downright enjoyable. More accurate phrases might be 'sweltering in the sun,' or 'suffocating in the heat.' Now that's probably an exaggeration. Suffice it to say, we miss the comfort of a warm house when it's cold outside. Our James Taylor Christmas album doesn't sound the same at 90 degrees! When we heard about the early snowstorms and saw pictures of children and animals frolicking in the snow, we decided we needed to do something about this lack of winter activities in our lives. So we went sledding. Here in Nicaragua. More on that later.

We're continuing to learn Spanish every day. Right now we need practice, practice, practice. One way we've been practicing is by taking advantage of our flexibility and traveling! It's been nice to get out of Managua and see some of the other cities. Taking a bus is very inexpensive, so we're able to move easily through Nicaragua, and we're hoping to continue traveling as much as possible before our jobs begin!

After spending Thanksgiving with other North Americans who understood the holiday, the next day we caught a bus to León, an old city to the northwest of Managua. We stayed for two nights, and we thoroughly enjoyed it. Lauren now has a favorite city in Nicaragua :) The city has a much different feel than Managua, and it was nice to walk the streets comfortably after dark without much fear. There were many families, tourists, and students taking in the sights. One of the coolest parts of the city is the cathedrals. We went touring on Sunday morning and attended 4 different masses [a portion of each]. It was pretty cool to be in buildings that were so incredibly old, yet still filled with people seeking the Lord.

But the most unique part of the weekend was our Saturday morning activity, volcano boarding. Much to Mitch's surprise, Lauren wanted to sled down a volcano. So we signed up and joined a group that took us to Cerro Negro, a volcano 30 minutes from León. We hiked to the top, battling some serious winds while holding our boards, which acted like extremely heavy kites. After turning the corner on one of the switchbacks, Mitch's sunglasses were blown right off his face and down into the crater! Managing the boards and traversing a narrow path with steep drops on either side caused a few moments of angst for Lauren, but no harm befell us.

When we reached the top, our guide told us to sweep aside the top layer of sand and feel the ground underneath. It was extremely hot! Cerro Negro is an active volcano, and there was clearly action under the surface. After catching our breath and calming Lauren's nerves, we prepared to slip over the edge. There's no denying that the hill was steep, and quite a few people were feeling less than brave. The guide showed us how to ride the boards and how to control our speed. Knowing she could slow herself down if she wanted made Lauren feel much better about the whole situation.

Finally people started the descent on two separate tracks. The boards zipped right over the volcanic sand and kicked plenty up of dust. Mitch waited at the top until Lauren went so she had a little extra moral support. After she started, Mitch took off on the second track. Even though Lauren had a 30 second headstart, Mitch arrived at the bottom and had time to take quite a few pictures and a couple of videos of her descent. Let's just say she didn't break any speed records.

Nevertheless, it was an exciting ride down, though once was enough for Lauren. We got the chance to go a second time, and Lauren chose to run down while Mitch boarded. Doubt we'll ever do it again as a couple, but if you're looking for something to do while you're here, Mitch would gladly go with you!

That's the most recent news from us. We'll probably post something soon about how we're fitting in to a daily rhythm, but we wanted to share our trip to León because it was a great time for us to get out of Managua and relax for a bit. If you do come visit, León would be a good candidate for us all to explore together! Below you'll find a few pictures of our sledding adventure, plus a video of Lauren tearing up the mountainside. Below that is a sampling of the beautiful cathedrals we visited. If you're sitting in the snow and cold, enjoy the sun in our pictures! We'd gladly trade a little bit of sun for a little bit of cold :)

Make it a great day,

Mitch and Lauren