Postcard from Nicaragua

The San Juan Surf (Ad)venture

As the saying goes; a change is as good as a rest. One of our designers, Charlie Brown (yep, that is her real name), decided that the sea down on the south coast, in our local spot on Wittering, could no longer satisfy her love of surfing in her spare time.

Having worked with some leading design agencies including Deep and the Nokia design team and with clients such as the Ritz Hotel, Piccadilly and Centenary; she now, as well as working with The Neon Hive, is changing the face of San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua. Charlie and boyfriend, Sean Dennis, took a leap of faith just over a year ago and relocated to the warm and beautiful waters of Nicaragua in Central America.

The new lifestyle has fuelled her creativity; utilising a combination of their skills, to build a online tourism directory. SanJuanSurf.com provides vital information, to locals and visitors alike, amidst a rapid growth in tourism. During their time in San Juan, they have witnessed the town become busier, the social life grow and more and more people start to fill local bars and restaurants. Despite the rapid growth, they realised there was still so little information available to people looking to find out where to stay, where to go, what to do or where to catch the best breaks! The directory is designed to help local businesses promote themselves to their community and the tourist trade, to mutual benefit.

Surfing is an intrinsic part of life in San Juan del Sur. Local legend, Rex Calderon (pictured here flying across a wave), recently returned from the Junior World Championships in Ecuador having won the title of Junior Central American Champion. Between juggling the launch of SanJuanSurf.com and some of our projects, Charlie and Sean try to make it out to one of the many beaches close to town - Playa Madera, Remanso or Playa Yankee - for a surf as often as possible and maintain a healthy work/life balance. Their home, complete with stunning view overlooking the Bay of San Juan del Sur, is pretty close to a newly built statue of Jesus which is rumoured to be only 3 foot shorter than the one in Rio de Janeiro!

SanJuanSurf.com features some truly awesome photography and the gallery is updated frequently with the latest surf images. So whether you want to plan the ultimate surf adventure, experience a real fiesta or just want some R&R, no doubt SanJuanSurf.com will come in mighty handy! All that remains to be said is, please help us support the San Juan community… whilst I start planning our next team holiday to Nicaragua!

For more information or if you’re interested in becoming an affiliate, advertiser or editorial contributor, please get in touch with our good friends, Charlie and Sean: hola@sanjuansurf.com