masaya, masaya, masaya, masaya. the volcano that is.

Welcome to the gates of hell on earth, as the Spanish referred to this looming giant just outside the city of Masaya. Interesting how religion explained the inexplicable back when the scientific workings of a volcano were unknown. The indigenous population used to offer human sacrifices to the "god" / volcano, and then when the Spanish came they placed a cross on the top of the Volcano's mouth in order to exercise the "demons" below. They must be working out awfully hard because to this day they are still letting off a lot of gas!

With that said, Matt and I ventured forth to face our fears. Standing at the edge of a very active volcano: CHECK. I guess we can cross that off our list now as not needing to be repeated.

But wow, what a sight it was. Once we finally got to the top, and stood at the edge, watching the smoke and gases rising out in waves, hearing the rumblings below, and smelling the intense sulfur which was strong enough to cause coughing, we decided... hmm, maybe we should go home now.

I mean, much like the warnings of tucking your head between your knees in case of an airplane crash, this sign below shows one some very rational safety measures.

Except- what happens if you don't have a car? And as the case in 2000, what happens if a rock flies out and crushes your car?

But with all those statements made, we can honestly say it was worth the adventure and a beautiful, mysterious sight to see. No angry Gods or Demons ate us alive or chased us away.