First Impressions...

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We arrived in Managua, Nicaragua yesterday afternoon greeted by the expected slue of eagar taxi drivers. But we wandered out of the airport circling roads and across the highway where we found a much more reasonable cab. Back into it already. The travel learned seems like riding a bike. We then found a group of also eagar boys willing to find us a hostel... one of which was so drunk he was not in any condition to do much at all accept fight the other boys. We managed to actually find a place, droped our stuff and began wandering about. We found a very nice monument that I guess you´re not supposed to get too close to. How could i have know the stairs weren´t actually for climbing, but an armed guard was kind enough to inform me. We found the things we needed, like a bank and dinner. But the city was too busy, dirty and the streets were much too highway like to be inviting to walk down. Such are capital cities i suppose. This morning we got up, got turned around and walked in a big square before ending up right where we had started, only to find out that the breakfast place we were looking for was about a block down the same street. And at that point i decided the map really didn´t make any sense based on where it Said our hostel was. We made our way to the microbus station, where we were led to one bus and after getting in and waiting with the driver, I asked him a few questions which led me to understand that we weren´t headed to exactly where i had planned. We got off and on to another. Good thing. The micro took us to Masaya where we are now. We found our hostel easily, and made our way through town. This is a nice place. When we got off the bus no one offered us a hostel or six. We were able to make our way to where we had wanted to look. We found the markets that this city is known for, Huge wandering market fit inside the walls of what looks like an old fort or something. This old market (mercado viejo) was definately geared towards tourists, but the owners were surprisingly laid back and fun to chat with. We walked a little further to a church that we stepped inside. It was so nice, flowing white curtains down the pillars, totally open with tons of windows, dark wood, carved pews, big altar and nativity scene, it all seemed very... almost out of place. But if you looked up, there was the tin roof that kept it from sticking out of the crowd of surrounding buildings. Too there are intertwined homes here that seem so well kept and beautiful with gated front gardens and small porches, they too stand out. Wandering on we found another market with a greater local flair. Of course, we weren´t looking for twine, or sugar by the 10-50lb sac, nor beans of live anything but it was what we were looking for to get a feel for the place. Still maintaining it´s first impression of a much more laid back place than managua we found the bus station, which we´ll be needing tomorrow morning. We walked back and beyond down the same street but in the opposite direction all the way down to the lake we were expecting to find. Along the way we saw little boys at baseball practice sharing the back to back diamonds with a groups of dads and sons playing catch. What we were looking for at the end of the road was Lago Masaya, formed and framed by the Masaya Volcano. It was gorgeous and the whole area was so set off to the side. We found a park, with a black top fenced place for soccer, which of Course was in a continuous game as little kids ran in and out. At one point there were more Girls on the court than boys, this grabbed my attention and i had to grab a seat and watch. We ended up watching for close to an hour or so. It was awesome. I didn´t play, not sure why. Next time. Just beyond this full playground, there was an empty lot, empty accept for a few driving school lessons on going. At first there we only a few kids and their dads playing catch with a baseball. Eventually a ton more kids came and it turned into a whole game. Everywhere were locals, young kids making out in the park or older couples with kids. Lot of dads and their sons juggling soccer balls or playing catch. Just next to the empty lot was a huge full out baseball stadium. Everything about this area maintained and reinforced both my first impressions of this town, and what I love about this part of the world. Tomorrow we head to Granada and then to Isla Ometepe to hike one of the two volcanoes that formed the island!

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