Day 2 - Nicaragua

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Today we began the day with breakfast at the InterContinental. The breakfast buffet here is amazing. There was gallo pinto, omelletes, pastries, queso frito (which is freaking amazing), and a lot of other great things. We filled up on breakfast and afterwards got on the bus to begin our journey to Granada and Las Isletas.

The start of the drive was a lot of fun because Arturo forgot Ana and we had to stop to wait for her to catch up to us. Needless to say that Ana was furious, but luckily got over being left behind quickly and we continued on the way to Granada.

Right before we arrived in the city of Granada we visited a cigar factory where they make hand roll cigars off of organic leaves. We bought a 6 pack of their organic sampler for $15. The actual factory is tiny with four people hand rolling everyday. The central courtyard was very nice as was all the archeticeture in Granada since its all Spanish Colonial.

Once we arrived in Granada we began our walking tour of the central park with the historic cathedral and the side streets with all of the hotels and local businesses. Granada is a typical Spanish city that is very tourist friendly and there are a lot of expats retiring there. We took a lot of pictures by the famous yellow cathedral right onthe central park, which is arguably the most recognized building in all of Nicaragua.

From here we proceeded to the Hotel Dario because once we passed it on the street and looked into their central courtyard we had to go in and see it close up. There are beautiful flowers all around the walls outside the doors, but the central courtyard has a little garden with a great fountain. The hotel, like so many other buildings in Granada, was originally just one home, but is now divided into separate rooms or restuarants and encompass entire city blocks. This is a very beautiful city and Granada has got to be on the top of the list of places to visit inside of Nicaragua.

After walking around Granada we stopped over at the convent. From here you could see Mombacho in the backdrop and you have great views of the bell towers of the Cathedral and the steeples of the various buildings.

We went back to the bus after taking some more pictures and proceeded to the little park where we took 16 people little pangas to go to thehouse they had on one of Las Isletas. The boat ride over was very relaxing and there were some great pictures of fishermen and locals in the water. The actual house was very cute and had about four bedrooms and a pool. The house is extremely relaxing and is worth a vacation in itself. You could also see Mombacho in the backdrop.

Instantly when we got to the house we saw the caja china cooking the pig that was going to be our lunch in the back. The flor de cana began to pour and everyone was having a great time just hanging out. We had music going, the pool was great, and I found my spot when I got on the hammock. I just did not want to move from there because it had a great crossbreeze and was such a nice view.

Once the pig was ready we all gathered to worship at the alter of the pig and begin to pick at it while the man with a large knife was cutting it up. This was one of the most delicious pigs I have ever had. It was seasoned simply with celery, garlic, salt, and water through injection into the meat. The pig was specatucular and perfectly cooked. It was served with refried beans, cheese, mariquitas, and tortillas along with a cream sause that is akin to a liquid sour cream. The entire meal was amazing and after eating I went back to my spot at the hammock to relax and enjoy the scenery and atomsphere.

People went back into the pool and the drinks continued to flow. At this point some people without bathing suits decided to just go in with their regular clothes. Overall it was a lot of fun, but since we were not able to spend the night here because there are so many of us we had to begin to pack up and head back. We waited for our turn for the panga to take us back to the mainland and as we were tired of waiting we all hopped on and the boat rode back a little low on the water from the overcrowding.

Luckily we made it back to the dock and got back on the bus to ride back to Managua. The ride back felt eternal after the day we have had. However, music began to be played on the bus and the random singing into pretend microphones began. After all of this commotion we finally made ti back to Managua and took a long bath to get ready for the dinner.

Tonight dinner was at a choice of several places in this grove like place in the middle of Managua called Las Galerias. We ended up eating in a big group at Tacontento. The food was once again amazing. We have yet to have a bad meal in this Country. They ordered an appetizer type platter for everyone to share that was massive. The total meal with food and drinks ended up being about $11 per person. The meal was great and we had a great time with everyone together.

Again some people decided to go clubbing, but we headed back to the hotel to rest up because this was a very long and great day. Can't wait for tomorrow when we head out to Mombacho for the day.

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