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Nicaragua Travel Blogs

Background: The Pacific Coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. Free elections in 1990, 1996, and again in 2001 saw the Sandinistas defeated. The country has slowly rebuilt its economy during the 1990s, but was hard hit by Hurricane Mitch in 1998.

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By Keren
July 6th 2008

Ometepe

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Isla de Ometepe » Santo Domingo

Thursday morning Mo joined us for breakfast at Betty's. Again, Betty cooked a traditional Latinoamerican breakfast with lots of fruit, avocado, tomato salad, fried plantains (!!), and rice & beans. At 9am we left for San Jorge where we boarded a one-hour ferry to the island. The island is made from the eruptions of two volcanoes. The lava from both volcanoes has connected to form one island. The natural sites are amazing but the people on the island seem unhappy and the service we received at Hotel Paraiso was extremely poor. The place (not much different than mainland Nicaragua) is evidently [View Full Entry]

By El Desperado de las Montanas
July 5th 2008

Fresh Fish

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » San Juan Del Sur

Beautiful Beach

The soothing sound of churning waves. The fresh smell of salty air carried by a cooling breeze. Powerful sunlight, filtered through leaves and tree branches warms as it's absorbed into my skin. Soft grains of sand between my toes. The flat line of the horizon formed over the distant ocean as the earth curves out of sight. Soft, billowing clouds float effortlessly in the blue sky, constantly shifting and morphing shape. I take a deep breath, simultaneously taking in the ambiance of the moment. The present, the now, the moment, that infinitely thin film between the limitless future and the [View Full Entry]

By KateK
July 5th 2008

Hablas Español?

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Granada

Marching Band
You´ve got to give it to them. The Nicaraguans know how to make noise...

¿Hablas Español? by George After an important stop in San Juan Del Sur we once again packed our "sacks" and got on the chicken bus. Despite pontificating with Rob and Rachel about the name we were still none the wiser after a whole bottle of Flora de Caña, the local rum. Popular suggsestions included "They pack you in like chickens", "It´s possible you could sit next to one" and my personal favourite "It´s what the drivers like to play". Anyway, despite our ignorance as to the name´s derivation we arrived safely in Granada, the oldest continually i [View Full Entry]

By KTreehugger
July 4th 2008

Grrrr

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Leon

My pants were stolen (not while I was wearing them - from the clothes line) and my camera is broken. Grrrrr... On the plus side, I did get to see something today that makes NY cab drivers look perfectly docile - on the microbus ride from Granada to Masaya, another microbus edged in on my drivers route, which caused him to park diagonally across the highway, blocking a very important shipment of Flor de Caña. When those drivers had the nerve to yell at him, the money guy on the bus pulled a baseball bat out of nowhere, and started pounding [View Full Entry]

By Jamiewlim
July 4th 2008

Granada - Day 2

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Granada

Colorful House

Despite the increase in tourism to Granada and the many new developments, one cannot go anywhere without being besieged by children asking for money, or selling food or cigarettes. It is hard to know what to do, and whether to give or buy anything. I find it difficult to turn a blind eye when an eight year old boy with no shoes asks me to buy his pastries. Plus, the look of happiness on his face when I give him a few cordoba (a few US cents) breaks my heart. This happens in a place where speculation by American investors has [View Full Entry]

By Jamiewlim
July 3rd 2008

Granada

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Granada

Patio de Malinche

We are in Granada now, a Spanish colonial town in Nicaragua. The hotel we are at, The Patio de Malinche, is a beautifully restored Spanish building with red-tile roof, and gorgeous brick courtyard with swimming pool. Granada is the most developed of all the places we have been to. The buildings have been restored with fresh paint, the roads are free of potholes, and there are tourists milling about. Similar to Leon, the city centers around the Cathedral and Central Park. The houses are brightly painted in shades of orange and blue, and horse drawn carriages wait for patrons. Like Leon, [View Full Entry]

By KTreehugger
July 3rd 2008

Still here in Granada

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Granada » Hostel Oasis

But I swear I am leaving today - and not in the sense of the 3 lies of traveling (which are 1. I'm not drinking tonight, 2. I'm leaving tomorrow and 3. I love you). I haven't decided yet whether I am going to slowly make my way back up and stop in Leon and Esteli (both in Nicaragua) or if I am going to to undertake the long trek backup to Honduras (12 hours! and that's not even to my final destination). (I'm apparently feeling very parenthetical today.) Granada has been lovely, or I should say Hostel Oasis has been [View Full Entry]

By Jamiewlim
July 2nd 2008

Mas Rapido!

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Isla de Ometepe

The Volcano

For some reason we were stricken with the idea to climb a volcano. This, despite the various literature telling us it was extremely difficult and required one to be very fit. The smaller volcano on Ometepe takes approximately 7 to 8 hours to climb, and we wisely chose Maderas vs. Conception (which takes ten). We set off with our guide Felix at 8:30 in the morning from El Encanto. Felix is 44, but is extremely fit. He entertained us with his poems, songs and anecdotes from his life. He told us that he is known as 'The Chinese' because of his [View Full Entry]

By days here and there
July 2nd 2008

The "Mouth of Hell" except for Parrots

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Leon

School Kids on Mombacho

Said our farewells to Rene and Li Nhi at Rivas, they departed for the Tica Bus heading south, we went in the opposite direction on yet another chicken bus, our backpacks ended up on top of a load of dirty vegetables. Read good reviews about two hostels in Granada, the Bearded Monkey and Oasis, one a bit more lively than the other. We plumped for the quieter Oasis, especially when one traveller declared that it was the best hostel he had stayed in. Overheard an English girl on the bus mention Oasis, made the mistake when we reached the bus station [View Full Entry]

By Swans
July 1st 2008

Granada

Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua » Granada

Granada was a really pretty place with old Spanish style buildings

Beautiful city on Lake Nicaragua [View Full Entry]

Just before ringing the bell much louder than intended!

Links: Nicaragua Travel Blogs (all) | Nicaragua Travel Photos | Nicaragua Travel Forum | Nicaragua Facts | Map of Nicaragua

Travel Blog » Central America Caribbean » Nicaragua