Nicaragua

Nicaragua was cheaper, quieter and wilder than its neighbors in 2011. Granada, with its colorful colonial streets and yellow cathedral on Lake Nicaragua, is ridiculously pretty. León, up north, is the opposite: a little grittier, full of students, murals and revolutionary history on the walls. I liked León more, and I think that tells you something about me.

The highlight was the boat across Lake Nicaragua, one of the biggest lakes in the Americas, to the twin volcanoes of Ometepe. It's the kind of place where the road ends, the power goes out and nobody minds. Up near León you can sandboard down an active volcano, which is exactly as dumb and fun as it sounds. Nicaragua has had a rough time since, but the country I saw was one of the best surprises of the whole trip.