Leon, Nicaragua

Leon is one of two major historic cities in Nicaragua, built on a dry plain, it’s both charming and stiflingly hot. The Leon Cathedral is just massive and completely outsizes the town it lies at the centre of, all heavenly grandeur within... but find the secret little portal in the back of the building, and for a couple of bucks you can get a ticket to the white-washed roof. Up a narrow stairwell in the bell tower, you’ll find a vantage point on all sides... and when you stand among the domes on top of the tallest building in a town of only single storeys... on a flat plain... you can see everything! Down the streets with their colourful facades, to the other four major churches, north, south, east and west... and to the volcanoes on the horizon.