Six days and nights at Marina Puesta Del Sol in Nicaragua
We spent six nights in
Marina Puesta Del Sol
on the Estero Aserradores (estuary) in Nicaragua. This
full service marina, with floating slips, an easy-access fuel dock,
30 and 50 amp electrical power, potable water, clean showers
with plenty of hot water, swimming pool, and onsite restaurant also
features a very nice hotel for fly-in guests.
As we have headed further south, the ranks of cruisers is being winnowed down.
When we arrived at the marina, there was only one other cruising couple here,
Frank and Denise from CURSAIL, who sail six months a year and were in
the process of leaving their boat here for the 6 months they return to the U.S.
However, there were a number of hotel guests that made for lively cocktail and
dinner conversation. We got to meet Dan and Marcus, a father-son pair
from McMinnville, Oregon, who had flown down here to surf in the warm tropical
waters. The surfing must be pretty good, because we also got to meet Foster and
Dylan, who flew in from Hawaii to surf the outer beaches around Punta Aposentillo.
The staff were great, from Joel the dockmaster, to Sanir and Walter
the waiter/bartenders,to the waitresses and chef, all of whom we got to spend some time with.
One of our favorite new friends of the trip was Ramiro, a dockworker and boat hand
who not only spent time with me fishing, showing me how to rig to catch the local pargo
(snapper), but who also became very close to us due to his endearing heartfelt manner.
We also had a wonderful, interesting conversation with the owner, Roberto Membreno,
a native born Nicaraguan who became a U.S. citizen, studied engineering after serving
in the U.S. armed forces in Korea, and who returned to Nicaragua to build, among other
things, this beautiful marina, as well as a local elementary school that helps over a
hundred children. He also provides scholarships and actively helps his staff to get
higher education. One of the waitresses is getting a degree in economics, and several
other staff have gotten advanced degrees in computer sciences and engineering.
Roberto gave us quite a perspective on Nicaraguan politics and
U.S. - Nicaraguan relations, setting us straight on a few misconceptions we had.
The Nicaraguan people are among the friendliest in Central America, and any notion that
they dislike Americans is unfounded. Far from it, they rather consider that the United
States has helped them thru crisis, both natural and political, and consider us close
allies and friends. We never felt uncomfortable or unsafe in Nicaragua and would highly
recommend it, particularly Marina Puesta Del Sol, as a vacation destination.
One of the highlights of being there, for me, was that I got to play some tunes at the
restaurant bar and received lots of praise from the workers and guests. In fact, Roberto
has invited me to come back in December, along with a band, probably
Theo and the Zydeco Patrol, to perform at their big annual fishing tournement.
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