This week not only did Chica Brava welcomed Sara, Maria, and Stephanie to the Surf House, but a new surf instructor too! Marie, who is from Montreal, started her first week with Chica Brava and we are so excited to have her on our team!
Sunday
Surfs Up – PLAYA MADERAS!
Our three Chica Brava ladies, Sara from New York, Marie from Guatemala, and Stephanie from Texas were all super stoked to be in Nicaragua and learning to surf. Sunday started off with breakfast where the ladies got to meet their surf team, then board assignments, and getting the truck loaded to head out to Playa Maderas! Once we arrived the ladies got a quick introduction to Playa Maderas and then they hit the sand to practice their pop ups and find the right one for each of them. It wasn’t long before we were in the white water and the ladies were getting their first-ever surf stoke going! It was such a fun day learning and playing on the inside with everyone cheering each other on and having so much fun!
Monday
Surfs Up – PLAYA HERMOSA!
The ladies, Marie, and I were all excited to go to Playa Hermosa for the day. We arrived a couple hours before high tide. After some theory on the beach and a quick intro to the beach, we hit the inside for some super fun and long rides on the white water. This was probably the best day I’ve ever had teaching at Hermosa. The day was beautiful and the conditions were perfect. There wasn’t a lot of current so Marie and I were able to get the chicas on some really nice baby green waves. Their pop-ups were starting to feel more comfortable and getting super solid. After the first hour the ladies enjoyed lunch and well deserved tona time. After lunch we went back to play on the inside again, this time for an hour and a half! The chicas decided not to get back in the water for the 3rd hour and instead decided to enjoy the beach and taking some time to relax while Marie and I hit the waves and caught some super fun rides. We ended the day late in the evening and headed back to the surf house so they could to get ready for dinner with Lindsey.
Paddle Drill Tuesday!
Surfs Up – PLAYA REMANSO!
The ladies were at Playa Remanso for surf’s up on Tuesday, which was the perfect size waes to get to the outside and learn to paddle! After going over the turtle roll and practicing a little on the inside, the ladies were ready to really get out there! I grabbed my board and we headed to the outside for a paddle drill and to catch some waves! First up was Stephanie who was in a little bit of pain from being hit by the board but ready to charge it! She caught a nice wave and went all the way to the beach! So amazing! Then came Sarah whose paddle game was strong, and after some misses, she caught a sweet ride! Sweet Maria was next and she got up on her wave and even angled it left, riding way to the beach! Such an amazing first ride for all the ladies! Their determination was contagious and all 3 of them charged hard, paddling as hard as they could and catching as many waves as possible. We stayed on the outside for 1.5 hours and then took a break for lunch. When lunch was done Sarah and Maria decided to paddle out again while Stephanie rested and enjoyed the beach. Our second hour in the water was a fun one! The ladies were getting tired so they rested a bit (because it’s always a good idea to listen to your body!) They caught several waves each and decided to call it a day after going hard for another 1.5 hours! We decided to go to dinner at the Cerveceria for some yummy tacos and draft beer, the perfect way to end an amazing day in the lineup!
Wednesday – Catamaran!
Sara, Maria, and Stephanie all decided to take a day off from surfing and heading out to sea with Nica Sail and Surf for an amazing day on a catamaran, touring the north of the Emerald Coast and playing on the white sands at Playa Blanca!
The ladies got to the port around 1pm and met all the other people we would be spending the day with. Everyone including the crew we amazing. We then all jumped on the board and were served Mai Tais to start off a good day. The catamaran took them to beautiful private beach where the ladies go to jump off the boat, swam to the beach, enjoy cocktails on the sand, eat yummy food, and play football on the beach. After a few hours of pure fun and stoke, they made their way back to the port while enjoying the sunset. They decided to eat dinner at Parlour with Marie before heading back to the surf house for the night. All around a wonderful day!
Thursday
Surfs Up – PLAYA REMANSO
Refreshed from a fun day on the catamaran and ready to get back into their surfing groove we heading out to Playa Remanso for some super fun waves! The ladies charged to the outside and were riding green waves all the way to the beach in no time! While Maria and Sara started angling, Stephanie was super stoked to ride down the face of the wave! Everyone did an amazing job with their pop ups and getting all of the surf commands. All the ladies even caught their own waves with only verbal commands from me, which is what surfing is all about!
For dinner we decided to go to Nacho Libre for burgers stacked high and fun, funny converstaion and Tonas.
Friday Funday
Surfs Up – PLAYA REMANSO
While Stephanie decided to take it easy with a fun day around town, Sara and Maria headed to Playa Remanso for Friday Funday which was all about finding their personal surf style and just really having fun! While the conditions weren’t the best, the ladies didn’t let that get them down and they charged hard and with huge smiles on their faces! We surfed all day and into the sunset before calling it a day and heading back to the surf house. After getting ready for dinner we watch their videos from the past 2 days and the ladies were STOKED to see how far they’ve come riding waves!
We headed out with the whole Chica Brava gang and went to El Pollito Pescador for some yummy dinner. Stephanie and Maria called it a night early, but Sara, Marie and I headed to Parlour for some tequila shots, Tonas, and hilarious conversation. But the fun didn’t end there! As soon as there was a break in the rain, we headed to PachaMama Hostel for some drinks and beer pong! Really the best way to end an amazing week!
Nicole Nee
Surf Instructor and Host
SH 05/06-05/13″