beach-facing hilltop, choices range from
Moroccan hammam to crystal therapy. I opt for
the signature therapy of massages and indulge
an afternoon in my oversized sanctuary overlooking the infinite bay below.
If surfing is an interest, this is the place to do
it. After sunrise yoga and breakfast, I prefer to
sleep it off in a hammock by the breezy beach.
Offshore Caribbean islands
Mainland Nicaragua is ablaze with diversity
from cultural to geographical. But 60kms
offshore are the blissfully remote sundrenched tropical Little Corn Island. Getting
there involves a flight from the capital
Managua, followed by an hour’s speedboat
journey cross-Caribbean Sea. Little Corn is
a heady mix of Caribbean lifestyle, natural
wonder and laid-back bohemianism.
Lying in ‘Shavasana’ pose, on a wooden platform shrouded by virgin forest, on this tiny
island suspended in the Caribbean Sea, I can
finally breathe again. Morning yoga ends when
Rebecca Gonzales, the wellness director at
Yemaya Island Hideaway, presses her fingers
on my temples and massages with soothing
lavender oil.
In this tropical oasis of beach and jungle, it’s
an awakening of the body and mind, being
soothed by the bounty of nature. It’s surreal
to be suspended on this droplet of sand
lolling in the ocean, which most have no
idea even exists, where lifestyle and culture
reflects the Caribbean, yet positioned in
Hispanic Central America.
Embraced by the sea air laced with warmth, I
feel a different type of release to that at home;
here, stress is the foreigner.
Morning meditation and yoga is swiftly
followed by organic breakfast, imbibing from
fresh smoothie menu of ingredients such as
raw cacao, lemongrass and seaweed, and
virtually inhaling organic breakfasts, grown in
446
Yemaya’s on-site garden. It’s a very casual affair,
as in most of Nicaragua; more barefoot than
Burberry. The luxury lies in the magnificence
of nature rather than a 5* indoor experience.
Over breakfast, the sun strengthens in intensity. The warmth evolves into heat and the
engulfing sea, from this panoramic headland
on which Yemaya nests, deepens through
waves of luminous green to brilliant blue.
After several days greeting the sun with salutations, either on the forest platform nestled in
the lush interior or on the breathtaking raised
pavilion overlooking the Caribbean Sea, I
feel stronger. My muscle memory, which I’d
resigned to memory, returns and I feel spring
cleansed. So much so, that I almost forget the
dubious journey to Little Corn Island.
It was a scene from ‘The Perfect Storm’ but in
a wooden motorboat. After a sketchy internal
flight to Big Corn Island, crossing the sea to
Little Corn is meant to be the fun part. Wrong.
Pummelled by vicious raging ten-foot waves,
battering us from all directions, we passed
right through the eye of a storm on the hourlong crossing. At every angle, a wall of water.
The heavens poured incessantly whilst the sea
level peaked and troughed like a heart monitor
on steroids. Every crest of a wave vanished to a
deep trough, as the boat freefell to an aggressive thump, threatening to eject me overboard. On arrival, I quickly learned that this is
fairly standard and that I wasn’t about to die,
most probably. Yemaya has just bought a new
hovercraft since my visit, to make this passage
more seamless. On arrival, I quickly realise that
it was worth it.
Yemaya Island Hideaway is a luxury eco-lodge
of 16 cabanas, nesting on the quiet side of
Little Corn Island. Bordered by a sumptuous
bosom of isolated beaches and remote hidden
coves, the sparkling waters cradle thriving
coral reef; the best in Nicaragua and in which
I find myself snorkelling entirely in own
company. Alternatively, I can be found lazing in
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