It was June 11, 2013 my grandmothers 100th birthday, I wanted to surprise her and do something special for her big day. So I flew from New York to Los Angeles to meet her and my mom at a beautiful resort right on the beach in Santa Monica. Once we were all settled in my mum and I scurried out to the beach to explore the beautiful area and check out the ocean.. It was windy and cold but sunny for June ~ not many people on the beach but there was a lone sign by some abandoned beach bags and gear that said “Surf Lessons” .
I still remember hearing myself say out loud to my mom SURF LESSONS?? we continued down the beach but I was still thinking about that sign and I don’t know why but I knew that I wanted to try a surf lesson! So I stopped and said mom I want to go back and check out that sign and see if anyone had come back so I could ask about a lesson, sure enough and to my delight there were a couple guys now standing there ..so I excitedly ask a bunch of questions and before I knew it I was putting on a wetsuit for the very first time! I had never surfed before nor had it ever entered my mind to even try since the majority of my life was spent in Alaska, Oregon and New York, I was however lucky enough to have always been in great athletic shape just was never in or near the ocean much. Well suddenly I found myself doing these dry land pop ups on the surfboard under the watchful eye of my now surf instructor, somehow he was able to determine after numerous tries that I was now ready to go in the ocean and try to catch my first wave.
I remember feeling super excited with the whole process and couldn’t wait to get in the water.It was COLD but I was determined to get out passed the breaking waves that kept pushing me back, of course I was being helped by my instructor but I still felt like a fish out of water as I was thrown about by mother ocean wave after wave! Finally and after much effort it was suddenly very calm once we got past the breaking waves and I was able to sit up on my surfboard for the very first time and look around ~ I was in love instantly with being in such close contact with the gentle swaying movement of the ocean so close beneath me as my legs dangled in the water ~ I remember in that moment there was no place else I’d rather be and nothing else I would rather be doing.
So began my love and intrigue with surfing, once back in New York I scouted out places to surf and stumbled upon Locals Surf School at Rockaway Beach. I started lessons immediately and was completely smitten with everything surfing. There was only one problem, I was always cold and literally just shivering on my board as I took tumble after tumble learning to stand up. So after four months of being in the cold water learning to surf I decided I wanted to go somewhere warm where I could surf my lil heart out all day everyday with out being cold. So I searched tropical surf destination on the Internet and came across Nicaragua south and a place that looked super awesome Popoyo Surf Lodge. I booked my trip and unbeknownst to me this was the beginning of my journey with the creation of Ola Popoyo.
The trip there was long due to a 3am departure and delayed flight problems so when I finally arrived at my destination I was completely exhausted and I wasn’t even at the beach yet, PSL is like 5 minutes from the beach, my mood was very sour so I lied down for an hour just to rest but it was going to be sunset soon and I just knew I had to see the ocean before dark. I got up put on my bathing suit and asked to be driven to the beach for sunset. The driver approached a large wooden gate and a guard came out to open it. As I watched the gate slowly open my mouth gasped open in awe as I saw the majestic beauty of the ocean just a short distance ahead. As soon as the car was parked I jumped out, took off my shorts and T shirt and made a beeline straight to the water. The beach was so sandy as far as I could see and as I walked into the ocean it felt so warm, I kept wading in deeper and deeper until finally I just completely submerged myself in its warm saltiness. I came up and remember feeling this burst of vitality flowing through out my entire body just like every little cell within me was dancing with joy. I instantly felt this overwhelming sense of this is why I’m here, there was something very magical about that moment that I will never forget.
I had the most amazing week there surfing and exploring Nicaragua. I loved it so much that within a few months I was back and continued going back until finally I ended up buying the beachfront property in the exact same spot of my very first magical moment. After more than a year of intense construction work and designing by Horizon (www.horizonnicaragua.com) ~ Ola Popoyo now stands in all her majestic and simple beauty. My dream is for you to come and experience this amazing magical ocean oasis!
Diana
