In my last post, I hinted (or rather, blatantly stated) that I had been taking it easy throughout my time in Granada.
I’ve occupied my days with sunset strolls, fresh smoothies and juices, aimless wandering, and plenty of time for photography and writing. I’ve teamed up with a trio of solo female travelers in my hostel, and together we’ve spent our days chatting, eating, drinking and exploring, and it has been glorious.
What’s more, we’ve allowed ourselves to truly indulge in one of Granada’s most “sinful” attractions: the ChocoMuseo.
Chocolate lovers be warned: this place will pull you in and entice you to “sample” just one more bit of chocolate…and then another…and then another…
…And well, you know the drill.
ChocoMuseo is definitely designed to appeal to Western tourists, but don’t let that fool you into thinking that it’s worth a miss. In fact, if you’re looking for a fun place in Granada for some serious female bonding time (or really, ANY kind of bonding time), there is probably NO better place than a massive colonial style building that’s devoted entirely to chocolate.
My first night in Granada, I met a handful of people who were also traveling on their own through Nicaragua: a girl from London, a girl from Portland, a girl from the Netherlands, and a guy from Pennsylvania. Over the course of the next few days, the girls and I would make not one, but two trips to the ChocoMuseo, both of which turned out to be heavenly.
Visit numero uno revolved around a two hour chocolate-making workshop. We were the only ones in our class, which made for an extremely personalized and highly entertaining experience.
Our instructor walked us through the process of making chocolate, beginning with an explanation of how cocoa beans are grown, harvested, and fermented. We then moved on to the roasting process, and tried our hand at roasting the beans on our own.
We learned that there are three signs to watch out for to know when your cocoa beans are done roasting: 1) They’ll darken in color, 2) They’ll crack and make popping sounds like popcorn, and 3) They will smell A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.
When our beans were good and roasted, we cracked them open to remove the shell and tossed them into a stone mortar. We used a stone pestl to smash the beans by hand until they formed a creamy paste. This cocoa paste was our base for three classic chocolate drinks, which our instructor prepared and we sampled one by one.
We tasted traditional Mayan (bitter), Aztec (spicy), and European (sweet) chocolate drinks, all of which had their own unique histories and flavors.
Finally, it was time to create our own chocolate bars! The ingredients need to be churned for around 15 hours before they’re ready to be used, so our instructor had a batch already prepared for us. He handed us each a bowl of hot melted chocolate, and we proceeded to spoon the chocolate into a set of four plastic molds (licking your fingers is totally encouraged).
The fun part was adding flavors and ingredients to our chocolate bars. I opted for one distinct flavor per bar, liberally sprinkling on chili flakes, sea salt, coffee, and almond pieces.
The bars need to chill for at least two hours before they can be eaten, and since we had plans to visit a market outside of town later that day, we decided to come back for our chocolate bars the following day.
But truth be told, we had ulterior motives for wanting to return the next day. ChocoMuseo is home to a gorgeous and luxurious swimming pool, and day passes are available for just 5USD. Even better, it’s possible to acquire a day pass for FREE!
The catch? You first have to purchase one of ChocoMuseo’s spa offerings.
…Hmm, we could probably swing that.
So, the following morning we slipped into our swimsuits and flip flops and made our way back down the street to the ChocoMueso. We each purchased a 30-minute hand and foot reflexology massage for 16 USD, making us the proud new owners of a shiny day pass.
16 USD for a 30 minute hand/foot massage AND a pool pass? I’d say that’s money well spent!
We spent the better part of the day lounging by the pool and enjoying our lush oasis in the middle of sweltering Granada. As beautiful as the city is, the heat does become a bit oppressive after a while, and to escape to a shady and tropical haven by the water was as refreshing as it gets.
It was a perfect girls’ day, with a hint of swimming, a bit of reading, and a whole lot of swapping stories and chatting about our travels. And, of course, sampling the previous day’s handmade chocolates, with the sea salt and chili flake varieties coming out on top as the group favorites.
Was it a day filled with excitement and adventure? Not at all. But was it a day well spent. Absolutely!
Would you want to visit Granada’s ChocoMuseo? Do you like to include lazy days in your travel plans?
Kaelene @ Unlocking Kiki says
Yumm! That looks like chocolate heaven!
Kaelene @ Unlocking Kiki recently posted…A Luxurious Weekend At Hotel Rangá
Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
It was chocolate heaven for sure!
Elizabeth | Something Saturdays says
This looks AMAZING! We visited a Chocolate Museum in the Ruta Puuc in Mexico and it was so interesting, with a highlight being that we had the chance to sample some Maya hot chocolate!
But I so wish we could have gone through the whole chocolate making process from scratch, that sounds like so much fun! And you can’t really go wrong with a chocolate museum that is also a spa. Unreal!
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Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
I know, the whole process was so much fun! And our instructor was hilarious, which made for a really great time overall. Guess you’ll just have to visit another chocolate museum some day 😉
Silvia says
Omg no, I can’t even look at these pictures. Need chocolate. Now!
Silvia recently posted…How to Make A New Place Feel Like Home in 2 Easy Steps
Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
Hahah I feel ya on that one. Thinking about it still makes me hungry!
Amanda | Lesson Plans & Layovers says
Chocolate…how could anyone NOT include this into their travel plans!? Delicious!
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Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
I know! It was quite amazing.
Ashley @ The Wandering Weekenderd says
A chocolate bar creating class, a spa, and a pool, this place sounds like heaven! I can’t believe you got a massage for only $16, plus you got to make your own chocolate bar! This place sounds like a blast!
Ashley @ The Wandering Weekenderd recently posted…Weekend Wanderings- New Orleans {Part 2}
Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
Yeah, it was honestly quite tempting to go straight back the following day!
Rachel says
Wow, that is a solid deal! No wonder you came back twice. Those homemade chocolate bars look dank – I love chilies in chocolate! Also, you are making me SO pumped about my trip. Not only because you’ve made friends so quickly and easily, but also because you’ve been able to crank out a couple blog posts already! Hooray!
Rachel recently posted…I’m Quitting My Job to Travel!
Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
Haha I know, I’m quite impressed with myself for that actually. Now let’s see if I can keep it up for the next couple months…
The London Girl says
Thanks for the shoutout, Kelly! Lovely to meet you too!
Great writing, I’ll look forward to following your adventures through your blog! Ground. Beef. Hahaha. X
Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
Hahah thanks!
“Like Hamburger! You know HAMBURGER?!” I’m still cringing…
Camille says
Chocolate, spa and swimming-pool – are you serious?! What do you mean no excitement? I’m totally excited reading about this!
Camille recently posted…Sigulda, Europe’s Undiscovered Adventure Playground
Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
Hahah fair enough, maybe it WAS pretty exciting.
Hayley says
Chocolate AND a spa?! *rushes off to book plane ticket*
Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
Haha, that’s probably a good idea!!
Amar - Gap Year Escape says
I’m just here for the chocolate, no one needs to get hurt! Haha
This place looks amazing. Lovely pictures 🙂
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Kelly | The Wandering Blonde says
Hahah, exactly!! 🙂 It was amazing, thanks!