#nad it was going so good i loved that place it was clean and fresh and comfortable it was great

[whywoulditho]

vent time. ignore

[who-ever-said-i-was-nice]

Yeyyy I'm glad i found you ehe xD and stalked you so i can found many

interesting HCs xD #sorrryyyyy

May i request for HC ikevamp about MC forget her period schedule and accidentally stain his bf's bed (arthur, moz, isaac, theo, whoever u like xD)

Thank you so muchhhhh and nice to meet youuu 💞💞💞💞

Oh my God! Nice to meet you too @liviavivi04!❤️❤️❤️ Btw Livia, dear I don’t mind, you don’t have to apologize for stalking me😂😂😂.I do it to. What who said that. Also I’m sooooo happy you like my hcs. I put mah hear and mah soul into it. Yes that was a meme reference, I’m a dork. Moving on, this is not what I’m here to do. I’m here to provide you with some wholesome Theo, Arthur, Isaac, Mozart, Jean because he deserves love, Comte because he’s a good mother and Leo because he’s dead inside content. I can’t do more at the moment but maybe I’ll do a part two if you’s like and this turns out ok

Theo

it was a wonderful morning

SIKE

you woke up and you turned sleepily towards each other

he smiled at you mumbling a good morning

you smiled back, but then you felt something

Theo saw the color draining from your face

you jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom

Theo was like the F is wrong with you you stupid Hondjie( he didn’t actually say it but his face says it all)

I’m kidding he would never say that he loves you to much he was just surprised until he smelled IT

he looked at the spot you where a second ago and..

there was a spot of blood there

he doesn’t mind one bit

You rush back and you see the stain and immediately start apologizing

“ Why are you apologizing for something like this?” It’s not like you wanted to stain the bed”

He actually helps you clean it up even thought you insist that he doesn’t have to and he also gets you snacks

Thank you for your services Theo

Arthur

he knows

that’s it that’s the canon

no I’m kidding

but he does know

he wakes up and smiles at you

then his smile fades and turns into confusion as he sniffs the air a little

“ Luv...?”

you immediately look down and panic

you rush to the bathroom

Arthur just sits there with a small smile on his face you little

he gets up and asks if you need anything and if he can come in to get a wet rag ok i take it back

you let him in and he gets the rag and cleans the stain

you exit the bathroom looking very distraught, only to find... nothing

not stain and no Arthur

you break down crying

a few minutes later Arthur is back with snacks and is like girl why u crying?

you cuddle and he feeds you the snacks

THAT’S MY BOO

Isaac

homeboy is just super confused

he can smell it but he doesn’t know how to tell you

or should he tell you? What if he sounds like a creep? What if you freak out? What if you break up with him? and the worst what if you yell at him

yup

he’s torn

actually he’s thinking about it so hard that you ask him what’s going on

but then you realize to and you look down and see the stain and panic

now we all know Isaac is a little sensitive to blood

not in a he will faint kind of way more like a I-will-pounce-on-you-and-suck-your-blood-out-and-most-probably-do-you kind of way ya know

but no it’s a canon that vampires don’t find period blood tempting at all so that is not why you panicked

you did so because he’s a little shy and socially awkward

when I say a little I actually mean a lot I’m just being nice

sorta

anyway you ran to the bathroom and Isaac sat there like well snap

he got up and slowly walked to the door and knocked

“ H-h-hey Y/N are you alright?”

you reassure him everything’s fine

you come out of the bathroom clean the stain and look at Isaac who may or may not be standing in the corner

yes he is that is definitely the case

you ask him what’s wrong and he says that if he had told you maybe you wouldn’t have freaked out

sweet baby boy is blaming himself

you kiss him gently and explain to him that it is ok, it was not his fault and you guys cuddle for like 1,2,3,4 fine fine 8 hours

yeah you cuddle all day, that was just a mediocre joke sorry

Mozart

ok so, clean freak

 you woke up after a long night of uhhh stuff

I’m kidding nothing happened, I make stupid jokes like this cause I’ve never written smut. In conclusion: I’m nasty

 so yeah

you woke up and turned to your boyfriend

Wolf swept a stray lock from your face and placed it behind you ear

you smiled and he smiled back

and then you felt it

you jumped out of bed and ran for the bathroom

you went so fast and it was so unpredictable that you scared Mozart

like he jumped back in surprise

then he became a little confused like why did you leave? did he do something?

then something cathes his eye

a fresh blood stain on his perfectly white sheets

He’s quickly realized what happened and got out of bed

you came out of the bathroom only to find Mozart bent over the bed cleaning up the stain

“Wolf what are you doing?” “ Cleaning the stain are you blind” “ Yes , I mean no, but why, I can clean it” “ You sit down” “ Where did you get the rag from” “ I always have them on hand so if a particular forgetful girl stains the bed I can clean it up” “ I love you too”

Jean

poor boy has no idea what’s going on

so when you jump out of the bed and run to the bathroom and he sees a blood stain on the bed sheet he is shooketh

He gets up quickly and runs into the bathroom

“ Y/n are you alright?” “ Jean WHAT THE HECK I’M FINE AND I’M ALSO ON THE TOILET”

you shoo him out of the bathroom and you do your thing in there bla bla bla

you come out and explain to Jean very slowly what’s going on

he nods and points to the blood stain

“ So that’s your period blood”

you turn red and mumble out a bunch of thing and all of a sudden this guy says

“ Thank God I thought you where dying”

you raise your eyebrows and burst out laughing

he just stares at you ‘cause he was trying to be serious so like why are you laughing

he helps you clean up and you cuddle

Comte

he knows nr.2

he’s a pure blood so he can smell things better then the rest of the vampires

he’s also more educated in these things then the rest of the vampires

accept Arthur but he a little ho so it don’t count

anywoo so you woke up next to your boyfriend

Comte smiled at you and swept a lock of hair out of your face

“ Good morning ma chéri” “ Mornin’ ” you mumbled sleepily

but then all of a sudden

“OH sHIT” you bolt to the bathroom

Comte takes one stiff and is like yeah

however he is the gentlest gentleman out of all the gentlemen yes well done Lia

he gets up and asks if you need anything

when you say your fine he cleans the patch of blood and gets you snacks

you exit the bathroom and have no idea what the heck just happened because there is no stain, you have extra fluffy pillows, extra blankets, snacks, a hot water bottle and Comte the most important one of all🥰🥰🥰

“Y/N you don’t have to work today I have informed Sebastian that you will be taking a day off”

Damn Comte you went all out but like, doesn’t he always 

Leonardo da hot mess

what? yes I called him a hot mess and yes I made a joke about it

Damn I’m funny

Anyway Leonardo

he knows nr.3

so you woke up in Leo’s arms

“ Good morning Cara mia!’he smiled brightly and stroked your hair

“Wow that’s some bed hair” you playfully slapped his arm and giggled

and at that moment you felt it 

you pulled up the covers in a panic and saw the blood you shoved the blankets onto Leo’s head and rushed to the bathroom

“ Ow Cara what’s..oh”

yeah he smelled it before he saw it

but he’s a super chill guy

he gets up and knocks on the bathroom door

“You alright in there” when he hears a muffled yes he nods his head a small smile playing on his lips

he goes and gets a few extra pillows and blankets from the closet

when you exit the bathroom he’s standing in the middle of his messy room completely hidden by the bundle of blankets in his hand

“ Oh hello Cara mia!”

you burst out laughing

you to cuddled for the rest of the day

So that is it! Now that I think about it they should make a horror movie out of this like I’m not even kidding. Anyway hope you have an awesome day! Stay safe everyone!

Tags: @nad-zeta @jeanstan @sweettangy

[ikemensweetheart]

Unloved Characters Month Day 1: Beginnings

Zero x reader

My contribution to @the-moonlight-dreams Unloved Characters Month

Taglist: @stardust-dreamer13 @hamster-damn @canaria-blackwell @nad-zeta @tickotaku @thesirenwashere

Warnings: brief description of pregnancy

___________

The sun shone overhead as you took a deep breath of the fresh air. Warm, clean springtime air, there was nothing you loved more.

Well, that wasn't true. You loved the man next to more than anything else.

You were walking through the Central Quarter. Just you and Zero.

There were many other people out that day too. Enjoying the spring weather with their family and friends.

"Hey." Zero suddenly said, catching your attention. "What is it?" You asked. "There's something I want to show you." You frowned at your husband as he began walking in a different direction.

Curious, you follow him. "Where are we going?" You inquired. "You'll see." Was all he said.

You follow him into a quiet little neighborhood with cute little houses all lined up neatly. Some of them had budding trees in their yards, while others were filled with tulips, daffodils and irises, though almost all of them had at least a child outside playing.

"Zero, what is this?" You looked at him in confusion. "There's a house for sale in this street." He explained. "It's quiet and safe. There are plenty of other families here too, so I thought it would be a good place for ours." He places a gentle hand on your rounding belly before looking up at you. "What do you think? We've been talking about finding a house for a while now. I thought this would be a good place."

You smiled at him before looking out at the street. It was almost something out of a painting. "I think this will be the perfect place to start our family." You told him.

He gave you a relieved smile. His sapphire blue eyes sparkled. "Come on, I'll show you the house." You took you by the hand and led you down the street to a little house near the end of the row.

The house's pale blue paint was peeling a little, and the yard needed some love, but it looked like a sturdy house. "What do you think?" Zero asked. "It's beautiful." You said to him. "This'll be the perfect place for us to start our family."

You take your husband's hand in yours and rest your head on his shoulder.

Already dreaming of the days to come.

__________

Thanks for reading. I hope you all enjoyed!

Stay safe!!

[ladyideal]

This Is Us Part 2

Pairing: Legolas x OC!reader

Word Count: 1615

Summary: When the One Ring was found, it becomes a journey across Middle Earth to destroy it. Watch as the Fellowship is formed, and crossed the continent, where loyalty will be tested, and love will blossom at the most unexpected places.

A/n: Apologize this was a little shorter than I wanted it to. I’ll make it up in the next few chapters. With this out of the way, I can finally get to my requests which for now are open indefinitely. :)

Chapter 1 ~ Chapter 2 ~ Chapter 3

As the Fellowship made their way towards the gap of Rohan, you took the chance to get to know them better. 

There was Gimli the dwarf, the loud one around the campfire, was usually the comic relief. Boromir, the Captain of the White Tower, would snort at the dwarf's efforts, but grin regardless. The four hobbits took turns making stew and food, with the occasional lembas bread from Legolas. You met Aragorn, who normally took the lead during the day travel, and the third on the night watch.

Gandalf would sit alongside the camp, blowing smoke out of his pipe, quiet mostly, but still involved in the nightly conversations. He had pulled you aside as soon as the Council finished, asking why you were sent to Middle Earth.

The same mission as he had, that you were able to protect yourself, you replied, but you knew that explanation alone wasn't going to keep him from worrying. You didn't need a bodyguard, you could handle yourself if need be. 

Lastly, you met Alena, the other lady in the Fellowship, was a fellow Ranger to Aragorn. And from the sea of men, it was a breath of fresh air to speak with someone you could easily relate to.

So while Sam was cooking food, and Boromir was teaching Merry and Pippin, you sidled up beside the elf lady. Aragorn sat nearby, a pipe in his mouth, but otherwise giving out pointers to the young hobbits. 

"Hey," You spoke, folding your knees to the side, watching the mock fight with interest. 

"Hello," She greeted you, but otherwise paying no mind to you. In her hand, she was absentmindedly rubbing something around her neck. Curiously, you leaned in to get a better idea of what it was. 

"Is that a ring?" You chanced, resuming your previous position. 

"It is," Alena confirmed. "Haldir braided my hair before I left for Rivendell. See?"

You leaned back to take in the view of her braided hair, and gently took the courting braid in your hand. "It's beautiful."

"Thank you."

You and Alena continued watching Boromir and the two hobbits fight. 

"Come on, good," The Captain spoke, before accidentally nicking Pippin's hand.

"Aaahh!"

"Sorry!" He apologized before falling on his knees at the sudden kick at his shins.

"Aahh!"

"Get him!" Merry joined in.

As you and Alena cheered for the hobbits, you almost swore that the half elf glanced curiously at you. During watch, you and her had swapped stories. While you avoided speaking of your lineage as much as possible, you had a faint feeling that the Ranger was suspicious of you.

While Aragorn broke up the fight, Legolas stood up, staring at something from the South. You nudged Alena, and indicated at the elf with a slight tilt of your head. Sam, noticing Legolas, stood up as well from beside the bubbling stew.

"What is that?" The hobbit inquired.

"Nothing, just a cloud," Gimli spoke with a shrug.

"It's moving fast, and against the wind," The mock fallen Captain rose from the ground, dusting himself off.

"Crebain!" Legolas shouted after a moment. "From Dunland."

"Hurry!"

"Hide!"

As the Fellowship scrambled made for the rock outcroppings or under bushes, Sam hurriedly put out the fire and you helped hurry everyone else into hiding. 

The two Rangers huddled with the hobbits, pulling their green cloaks over the group, in an effort to blend in with the clumps of bushes. Suddenly, Legolas wrenched you away from them by the crook of your arm, towing you backwards towards the shadows of the rocks.

"Lego-," You yelped, but was instantly shushed by the elf when he placed a finger on your lips. 

And waited with bated breath. For a moment, all you could think of was how close his body was against yours, the finger on your lips, the crease on his forehead as he concentrated, and the frown on his face. There was a rather uncomfortable pebble wedged against one of your knee, and you shifted around impatiently.

In a burst of darkness against the light of day, a flock of black birds rushed  overhead, cawing loudly. They circled the hill a few times, before one cawed and the murder of crows turned and left.

Slowly, one of the hobbits peeked out from around the bushes. "They're gone!"

With a collective sigh of relief, the company crept out from their respective hiding places. You smiled at Legolas as he helped you pull yourself up to your feet.

"Hannad," You spoke, dusting the pebbles off your clothes. (Thanks.)

"Nad dithen," He spoke, echoing a warm smile back at you. (Just a little thing.)

"That was too close," Aragorn muttered as he helped Alena up. "Too close."

"Spies of Saruman! The passage South is being watched," Gandalf uttered the moment he too straightened up from the other rock outcroppings. "We must take the Pass of Caradhras."

You glanced worriedly at him, but agreed with a nod. Worry gnawed at your thoughts at the change of direction, but bravely pushed it away for now.

~

As the Fellowship climbed through the glistening, fresh snow beneath the great blue sky, Frodo lost his footing and fell, rolling down the slope towards Aragorn.

"Frodo!" Aragorn righted the hobbit up, helping him brush the snow off his clothes.

Regaining his footing, Frodo placed an instinctive hand to his neck for the Ring, slung across a chain. Finding it missing, he wrenched his gaze back up the slope, where the Ring laid in the snow, glistening from the sunlight above.

Seeing the Ring, Boromir reached for the chain, and stared sadly down at it. "It is a strange fate we should suffer so much fear and doubt, over so small a thing. Such a little thing."

"Boromir!" Aragorn sharply responded, gripping the hilt of his sword. "Give the Ring to Frodo."

Soon, everyone watched him, hands on their respected weapon. You watched nervously, hand already reaching back for an arrow. 

Shaken out of his trance, the Captain glanced at the Ranger then back at the Ring. There was a moment of silence as he took in the crossed expressions of the Fellowship before acquiescing. Holding it out for the hobbit to take, he snorted, "As you wish, I care not. "

You shook your head, and turned away as Frodo quickly snatched the Ring back under his possession. There was a tension in the air, and suspicion amongst the group. While everyone harbored under the weight of sloughing through the ice and snow, you, Alena, and Legolas bounced above.

The air was clean and crisp. Only in the mountains would there would ever be a place so beautiful, yet dangerous at the same time. 

Doing his best to ward off the snow from hitting his face, Legolas peered into the storm. "There's a fell voice in the wind!"

"What did you say?" Alena called out, barely heard from the howling of the blizzard storm. 

"It's Saruman!" Gandalf responded, striking his staff through the snow to get better footing. 

"He's trying to bring down the mountain! Gandalf, we must turn back!" Aragorn stopped his trek.

"No!" The grey wizard lifted his hands up and repeatedly made a calming motion. "Losto Caradhras, sedho, hodo, nuitho i 'ruith!" (Sleep, Caradhras, be still, lie still, hold your wrath!)

His voice was drowned out by a more terrible cry in the maelstrom. You shook your head sadly. Saruman.

"Gandalf! It's no use," You too added your growing concern.

Lightning strike the tip of Caradhras, sending a second avalanche of white ice onto the Fellowship. Before Gandalf was pulled down the edge, Legolas hurled him against the cliff just before the ice-fall hit the place he stood just mere seconds ago. Alena pulled you back roughly, and you felt the tumbling pebbles against your back.

The avalanche cascaded over the Fellowship, and snow buried everyone completely. After a moment, Alena's head popped out first. With the hobbits shivering, and teeth involuntarily clacking, you knew the company couldn't stay any longer.

While the two Rangers brought the hobbits closer to themselves for warmth, all heads went back to Gandalf once more. You stood close to Legolas, as he brought his arm around your shoulder in the hopes of warming you up.

"We must get off the mountain! Make for the Gap of Rohan and take the west road to my city!" The Captain of the White Tower shouted, covered in snow from head to foot.

"That's too close to Isengard, Boromir!" Aragorn countered, pulling his cloak tighter around Merry and Pippin.

"If we cannot pass over the mountain, let us go under it. Let us go through the mines of Moria." Gimli suggested, shaking the snow of his beard the best he could. 

You watched as Gandalf stilled against the mountain, an emotion from him you haven't seen in a long time. 

Fear.

If he had his full powers, there was nothing standing against him. But now, his powers were lessened in Arda, and there was nothing he could do about it. A shadow of doubt flitted through his features, and you nervously watched. You didn't have full access to your power either. Whatever was down in Moria, was powerful enough to scare the wise wizard.

"We cannot stay here! This will be the death of the Hobbits!" Boromir continued shouting through the harsh blizzard.

"Let the Ring bearer decide." Gandalf finally decided. "Frodo?"

As all eyes turned to the young ring bearer, Alena hugged him and Sam closer to her, doing her best to keep the warmth.

"We'll go through the mines."

As Gandalf's eyes met your gaze once more, you nodded slowly. This was going to turn ugly.

Permanent Tags: @asraime @mournthewicked 

[pixelatedlenses]

So I want to talk to you about 3.11.

In large part, because it’s 7:48 p.m., I’m sleepy, and Fukushima is ever-present in my mind. because I went to Tomioka Town, a city on the coast, and a place that recently opened up for new and old residence and residents, nearly six years after the devastating damage of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Fukushima Diaiichi Nuclear Distater.

I’m writing about this because while I’m hesitant to light a candle in my apartment -tatami and too many flammable things- I hold vigil in my heart, sit silent for a moment to think about this place. In this moment, I think about the past six years that I haven’t seen, and the near 8 months I’ve called myself a resident of Fukushima, and what I’ve seen up to this evening.

This won’t be long because I’m tired and will actually talk about my time in Tomioka tomorrow when I’ve slept and feel more awake, but I do want to say that Fukushima is a beautiful place for healing of many kinds: I have felt myself return more to Me in the past few months than I did back home. Perhaps, what I mean, is that I’ve been able to be myself: I don’t think I’ve regressed, but constantly moved forward in this place. 

There’s something about banning together, being a part of a massive community, that has helped me understand why recovery was nothing but fate for Fukushima. So many helping hands clean and cleanse: so many helping hands grow the food from the land that’s still in the media as “blighted”, fish the seas that are played up to horrify Americans and Canadians, strive to continue to heal Fukushima’s name after both Japan and many Western countries spread misinformation that is obvious in the countless geiger counters, in the labels of Kibitan on my rice bag, in the sorrow my teacher’s faces show when we talk about That Day. I think of the students I taught from Tomioka, how so many of them are refugees in their own prefecture, how now they can go home, but instead, are going to Tochigi and Tokyo, Miyagi and Nara, America, and Okinawa: they’re off to college and work, and won’t be coming home to Tomioka, but will make home in new places, or return to Fukushima City where so much of the past years of their lives have been lived. But I also know that I think of how happy it must be to say, “I can return”. It’s a feeling I don’t think I’ll ever personally know, but one I feel that I can understand.

I think of all of that today, and how much of a blessing it was that I got to come here and understand. That is at the core of my feelings: a new understanding, and thus appreciation, for what the citizens of Fukushima are making into the prefecture’s legacy.

It’s a story about healing and being a community.

Fukushima is healing. Six years later, I believe it is a testament to what happens when hope is kept, and we strive together for the good of everyone. It’s an honor to be a part of the Big Picture, to be able to assist and see seeds turn to blooms, goals and ambitions turn into positivity. I certainly think that next year on this day, I’ll be able to reflect and see a Fukushima that is closer to opening more places, a Fukushima that continues to use love and hope to heal. I know that one day, we’ll all stand together and see our home happy and hearty again: I beg you to think that it already is. Healing means continuous change.

I believe eyes from another place, a place without pain and with gentle quiet, look down on Fukushima nad think of their home, of a prefecture with mountains, green, good food, fresh water, and kind hearts. Of a place that is striving towards Healing, remembering those were lost, proud to see that in their memory, Fukushima continues on. And continue on things will: forwad, until the last bit of damage is healed, until everyone in Fukushima is taken care of and helped. Hands won’t stop even after that: kidnness isn’t a one-time thing. It’s for life, and I’d dare say that Fukushima has taken that to the heart of overcoming grief in the lingering wake of disaster.

After all...

We are Fukushima strong: we are Fukushima fighting.

[adventuras-de-nicaragua]

Todos los deportes en Matagalpa

Flying into Matagalpa from the mountains was a refreshing and scenic way to end our cycling for the day. We quickly saw why Matagalpa is referred to as San Francisco; it has very sharp inclined streets throughout the city. Our hotel we booked was located on the north side of town and worked well as we were coming from the north. We picked a hotel based on its good booking.com rating and also our Swiss friends we made in Esteli had a pleasant stay there earlier in their travels.

After sorting out the bikes and showering we set out to explore Matagalpa and find the tour agency. We heard there was only one tour company and that Matagalpa was a basic city, even more so than Esteli by the Swiss Couple. We were a bit surprised by that as we had read it is the 4th largest city and hoped it would be a bit more interesting than Esteli. After a walk to the south end of town to find Matagalpa tour company we were feeling good about the city, it seemed to have lots more interesting things included endless good looking coffee shops. At the tour company we really wanted to do a coffee tour and get to see some coffee farms and the coffee process. At first the tour company told us they were booked and doing the coffee tour wouldn't be possible, but after several calls were able to arrange it for the following day starting at 11:30. We left happy that we were going to be able to visit a farm and learn the artisans way of coffee making.

On our journey back to the hotel we first stopped in a juice/smoothie shop. The girl working spoke great English and everything seemed a bit easier than it had been for the last couple of days. We happily drank delicious fruit and smoothie drinks out of maison jars before heading on our way back to the hotel. We took the main street back and walked past many good option eateries and more cafes. Looking down one street we even spotted a Yum Yum donut shop, that of course we had to check out. The girl working in there also spoke good English and we learned a bit about the city. The donut shop was 2 years old and the city has been building up its attractive appearing cafe's and restaurants in the last 5 years. Walking around town you could see all the new construction and showed that investment was being put into the city. Our hotel looked very pristine and they were adding on upward. Be interesting to see what the city will look like in another 5 years. 

That night we headed back to the main street and settled on a "The Balcon", a three level building with the first level being a shop and the upper two the restaurant. As the name indicates the second layer had a nice balcony overlooking the street which was the reason Alex and I chose it. We happily ordered the Flor de Cana and Cola and watched the world go by. Every other vehicle ended up being a Toyota Hilux, or in the US is the Tacoma, as the truck bed was used to mostly transport many people. In an hour time you would see more than 40 Hilux drive through the street!

We revert to some comfort and ordered a pasta dish each and pleasantly happy with the quality and quantity of it. After eating it was still early and were not sure what to do. On the way back was a stadium and we saw people coming in and out so decided to go in and see what was going on. Local adult league of soccer was going on and we took a seat in the bleachers to watch. The next morning we had our first breakfast at the hotel and were very pleased. Half was buffet style and the other you order you main plate. We saw a picture of eggs, bacon and pancakes on the menu and asked for the picture. It was a great big plate of food on top of the fruit, toast, coffe and juice we got as well. We spent the morning walking around and really killing the time before 11:30 came and our guide would pick us up for our coffee tour.

Right on time our guide for the day, Hector picked us up. He had a truck from the company and he took us up the mountain, the way we cycled yesterday, to the Fundadora area. The Fundadora is a protective land area that is owned by 65 families. The history has a very turbulent past with difficulties from the government, but after many years of hard ships the land has been returned to the families. The land is used mostly for farming of diverse crops with coffee being one of them. 

I had originally hoped to stay at the Fundadora ecolodge, however the lodge was booked and we were not able to. A bit happy about not being able to stay after seeing the poor quality of the road leading there from the main road, although the area was lovely and be an ideal place to wake up and drink your first cup of coffee. We visited a small coffee farm called 'La Lotteria', were our amazing guide become our translator to understand the history and coffee process from the farmer. First we were severed lunch and were joined by an earlier tour that went around the farm in the morning. Lunch was traditional Nica food of rice and beans, plantain chips, chicken, veggies, local cheese, and tortilla with a cup of fresh juice. The other group were nice to chat with being a very international group. 

After being well food the farmer took us around his farm and explained to us the coffee making process. There are two main types of coffee beans Robusta or Arabica, with our farm being Arabica. Arabica types of coffee are more flavorful and require more shade for a quality crop. This is the reason it is grown at high altitude and most commonly under large banana trees. Robusta beans can be grown with more sun and commonly grown at lower attitudes. The farmer showed us what a healthy looking cherry and we split open a couple to look at the quality of the beans within. He explained how Nov through Feb was the cherry picking stage and that a tree will mature its cherries at all different times. After picking the cherries, the process of separating the seeds from the cherry occurs and at a small farm like we were at this is through a hand cranked depulper. The pulp, or cherry, will be used to make compost for the soil while the seeds then go through the next stage.

The seeds will then go through the fermentation process for 24-36 hours to get some of the sugar/stickiness out. After that the seeds are washed and dried in wood built trays. Once they are dried you have to remove the last shell covering, the parchment, which can be done with a large pastel mortar. Finally, you are ready to roast the coffee beans. Over an open fire coffee beans can be roasted making sure to be stirred constantly. How strong you want your roast really just depends on how long you roast the coffee beans.

For a coffee farmer who does not have access to a nice grinder or espresso maker they resort to a more basic way of coffee making. They use a three legged hand grind stone to grind the beans to a powder. Once they have done that they boil water and some of hte powder to create coffee. We helped due this and were rewarded with a fresh cup of coffee. Although it was good we had a feeling that if we grinded it in a grinder nad used a proper machine it will come out slightly better so ended up buying some fresh beans to try at home. Going through the farm the farmer explained how to grow a coffee tree, which really just involved taking a good looking coffee seed and planting it and nursing it till it becomes 6 months old. Alex and I's eyes lit up as we both had the same idea, we want to try to make our own coffee plants! We nicely asked if it was possible to take some seeds home and try and of course this would be fine, just warned about customs and if they find our seeds. We know it probably will never fruit and create coffee as it needs a certain climate, but hey worth a shot. 

The tour ended and we journey through the small town of Fundarora and got to see some of the other farms and some trucks being put into good work. That night we chose a local Mexican restaurant and after a delicious burrito and fajitas we weren't sure what to do. So clearly we wondered back to the stadium in the middle of town to see what was going on. Tonight was the master's basketball league and we happily sat and watched the local sport for the night. Our last full day in Matagalpa and we didn't have too much on. We spoke to our tour guide Hector the day before he recommended the hike to the cross at the top of a mountain to get a good view of town. There was two overlook points of the city and of course we picked the higher one. We journeyed up a more basic route while passing crosses with imagery of Jesus carrying the cross all the way up; seemed to be a pilgrimage hike. Near the top was another coffee farm and tempted to go pick cherries but restrained. 

It was a perfect blue skied day and the view was fantastic. We could see down in the valley of where Matagalpa sat as well as 360 mountain views. We chose a different path down and were treated to more pleasant views and a better hiking path. Near the end we journed a bubbling stream and ended up in fields near a house. Seemed we went up the none hiking way and at the end we took the hiking way which meant we ownded about a dollar each to exit. Oh well. After our hike it was only mid day and we went to go pick up our clothes. We had decided to get our clothes washed at the local launderia as it was close to our hotel and traveling back in clean clothes would be nice. The rest of the day we floated in cafes and on our way back to the hotel heard loud dance music coming from the stadium. Surprised it was so early we popped in and were treated to the championship volleyball game for the local high school. The atmosphere was crazy and it was easy to sit and be captured by it all. Our last night in Matagalpa and we went back to the Balcon for the farewell dinner. Again we ordered our Flor de Cana and pasta and watched the Hilux roll on by. Since we had already watched our local sport for the day we headed back and started to think about our cycle back to Managua tomorrow and flying home.

One last amazing breakfast and we were off for 120 km mostly downhill back to the Best Western hotel. I started not to feel very good and although it should be easy cycling with favorable winds and downhill I struggled. As we started losing elevation the temperature spiked hitting about 90 degrees. The sky was bight blue without a cloud in sight which aided in gorgeous mountain/volcano/lake views as we swept out of the mountain region to the low lands. We stopped for lunch only with 25 km left to go at a Comedora and ate our last Nica lunch of rice and beans with chicken and fruit juice. 

By the time we reached the hotel we were pretty cooked and just wanted to cool off. We anxiously asked if they had received our mail addressed to me. Alex had forgotten to take his green card and my mom was nice enough to ship it to the hotel. The hotel, however did not speak very good English and although we think they said it would be okay to send to the hotel and they would keep it, we weren't sure what woudl really happen. After searching for our piece of mail for longer than we would have liked the mail was delivered to us and a weight was lifted off our shoulders. 

We also got back our bike boxes and Alex packed the bikes back up as I watched some television and cooled off. We spent our last sunset by the pool and then headed for an early dinner. Our flight was scheduled for 2:23 in the morning so we were planning on going to bed around 8 and catching 4 hours of sleep before our flight. When the alarms went off at midnight we quickly got ready and lugged the bike boxes across the street, say 100 meters, to the airport door. Once the bikes were happily accepted we were on our long journey back home to the frigid temperatures of single digits.