Blogs from Capital Region, Nicaragua, Central America Caribbean - page 5

Nicaragua. January 24, 2012 5 a.m. and we were on the bus once again, this time much wiser than on our first trip. When we crossed the border, the money changers were very close to the daily rate posted on the net. We gladly exchanged our excess US dollars for cordobas. The rate was about 23 cordobas per US dollar. Our Nicaraguan plan was to take a cab from Managua to Granada and then find a room there. Arriving at about 8PM, we selected an older cab driver to drive us the hour and a half to Granada. Once we had filled up with gas, away we went and on the way we asked if he knew of a nice, reasonably priced hotel and he assured us he did. He also provided us with a bit ... read more

Day 3 As I write this the music is blaring in the background---a Saturday fiesta to celebrate the procession of kids graduating on to the next level. Truth be told, this is not much different from other nights---there is the constant, familiar hum of life in San Juan---which I have grown somewhat accustomed to. This includes the fireworks which are set off at random, the roosters, the chickens, and hundreds of dogs--and believe me, when one is set off, they all are set off! The roofed houses with adobe construction are packed tightly togther around the central park and the ever present old church. Only the center of town qualifies for paving, otherwise it's all dirt roads where pigs, chickens, and skeletal dogs roam, bordered by houses built out of rough-hewn planks with outdoor kitchens, zinc ... read more

The last few days we have spent in Leon and Masaya, population 150,000 and 100,000 respectively. As mentioned before, Leon is a colonial town and it was our launching pad for Las Penitas. The night we left Las Penitas back for Leon we had a pretty awesome lightning show over the ocean. I would venture to say that lightning struck every two seconds or so for a few hours. Interestingly, it never rained in Las Penitas while we were there, but the rain seemed to go on either side of Las Penitas every afternoon. Overall, Leon was a neat colonial town that had a great little cafe just a block off of the central park called LaRosita - I highly recommend if you are passing through Leon. Our hostel was about a half a block from ... read more

Definitely get to Masaya, especially to get away from Managua for the day. It's also an easy day trip from Granada. The market is excellent and you're probably not going to walk away from it without a hammock. The square is lively, comfortable and safe. The lake is dead due to pollution, but it makes for a wonderful view. There are more photos below.... read more

I lived in Managua 1982 to 1983. This was during the insurrection but Managua was peaceful. Some damage remained from the earthquake. The people were very friendly to me. I would return. ... read more