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Published: January 17th 2011
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According to our guide and Worldflags101.com:
The colors of the Nicaraguan flag originate from the flag of the former federation of the United Provinces of Central America. The two blue stripes represent the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea; while white symbolizes peace. A modern interpretation indicates that the color blue symbolizes justice and loyalty; while the color white represents virtue and purity. The coat of arms features an equilateral triangle which represents equality. Inside the triangle are five volcanoes, which represent the five members of the federation. The triangle also contains symbols of liberty and peace - represented by a red Phrygian cap, white rays and rainbow.
The blue-white-blue pattern of the Nicaraguan flag is common to all of the Central American countries. It is a reminder of the United Provinces of Central America. Each of the five member countries found a way to differentiate its flag - for example Costa Rica put a red stripe in the middle, Nicaragua and El Salvador put their coats of arms on their flags, Honduras used five stars, and Guatemala turned the stripes vertically. All of the countries gained independence from Spain together on September 15, 1821.
The Iran-Contra affair is what we
usually associate with Nicaragua. This happened during the Reagen Administration 1981-1988 when Oliver North sold weapons to Iran to fund the Contras (1985-90). The Contra’s were against the Sandinistas, led by Daniel Ortega who became president in 1984-90, tried three times to get reelected, was accused of sexually abusing his step daughter, and finally reelected in 2007 and is up for reelection in 2011. In 1990 Violeta Barrios de Chamorio was the first woman President in the Hemisphere. The US backed her, guaranteeing aid and lifting the embargo that we had against Nicaragua at the time. In 1937 the Somoza family led the country with it’s corrupt dictatorship for 42 years. The Sandistas from Sandino is the son of a wealthy landowner and a servant woman. His logo is a black silhouette on a red background, which symbolizes resurrection. In 1972 there was a horrific earthquake that killed 6 thousand people and left 300,000 homeless.
Sunday December 26th, 2010
We were are off to the beach San Juan Del Sur, and although Ryan and Ashley were hobbling over from their climb, Shaun was off in a dash for a jog on the beach and a pick up
game of American Football. Days later he would meet a dude from Seattle with whom he had played football and high fived him like a veritable local, very much at home in the community. Another famous ex-pat made his mark during the Californian gold rush in the 1850s, Cornelius Vanderbilt made a route from NY to San Francisco via Nicaragua. The 45-day trip cost $145. Deforestation is a major problem; in 1992 there were 22 timber companies and 600 in 1995. In 1999 20 of 25 coffee Finca’s closed!
Monday December 27th
“El que anda con lobos aula aprende” He who walks with wolves learns to howl. We stalked the “Survivors” (The TV show based this year in Nicaragua) to Playa Hermosa (Beautiful Beach) and Kim took pictures of every rock that someone from Survivor might have stepped on. ☺ Sasha and Shaun took a boat trip to snorkel and later, after lazying in hammocks, Shaun taught a few of the girls to surf. A large Oliver Riddley turtle strutted the beach, an unlikely site during the day time hours, and we worried for her safety from egg poachers who were tracking her movements.
These turtles lay two “clutches” of eggs a season, averaging around 100 eggs each. They have an incubation time of 50 days, and there were trips going to see them every night and we didn’t take one and Sasha says that’s okay cause we did lots other exciting things. Hummmmm
We went to see sunset at Pelican Eyes Resort, a fancy hotel with three tiers of swimming pools.
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