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globe-trotters.chDana & Mathias on Tour |
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globe-trotters.chDana & Mathias on Tour |
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At the Nicaraguan border, a band of Nico kids runs towards us. We pick Gabriel, shining smile, to help us with the border
procedures. Gabriel lives with his parents and his nine
brothers and sisters in Masaya, and spends vacation with his cousins near the Costa Rican border. At the age of thirteen, he helps selling handicrafts at the Masayan market, has workable English and pleasent manners.
The Nicaraguan border officials work efficiently. In half an hour, we have our papers and the papers for the car. In the meantime,
the angel Gabriel with his friends and a lot of enthousiasm have washed our car and told us everything about their lives.
The first thing we see in Nicaragua is the big, dark Lake of Nicaragua, with two massive volcanos sitting in it, fuming. Fourty-five rivers flow into the
this "sweet sea", making it the largest lake in Central America. The 180 kilometers long,on average
60 kilometers large, and down to 70 meters deep lake is home to a lot of remarkable species, including the rare, up to three meters long freshwater bull sharks. Although some parts of the lake are polluted, the wind is blowing and kiting conceivable.
We pass nice fincas, huge cows and bulls watching our red car with interest. The villagers, old and young waive their hands as we pass.
The population is much more joyful than we would have imagined, given the
country was in a civil war and under the trade embargo less than 20 years ago. We do meet men in their 40s with golden teeth, a missing leg, or a troubled mind. Particularly the policemen look a bit weird However, most people are positive and friendly. The population is also strikingly young. Indeed, the statistics say more than 70 per cent of the Nicaraguan population are less than 30 years old.
Full of nice boats, borded by dramatic cliffs, the bay of San Juan del Sur somewhat reminds me of Levanto in Italy. The tranquil and colorful fishing village is the perfect place to savour lobster and ceviche. After a nice meal, we cross a river and drive towards the undevelopped beaches stretching north of San Juan. At Playa Madera, a Dutch couple will open a surf station shortly. It seems the wave is there every day, although it is very gentle today.
In the afternoon, we arrive at the stunning Playa Gigante.
The two parts of the eight kilometers long beach are separated by rock formations. A fishing village lies to the left of the rocks. A beautiful, untouched, white sand beach stretches itself to the right. The right part of the beach is deserted, except for a woman showing her daughter around.
The left part of the beach is busier, with fishermen repairing their nets, women getting ready for the tonight's dancing, the cow family grassing. What strucks me in the village and in the country in general is the small number of dogs around. The national pet in Nicaragua seems to be the pig. Small, big, rosa or brown, we see pigs instead of dogs in front of the houses, we see people walking the pigs on a leash. No beach dog around in Gigante. As we eat our fruit platter, a pig comes to see us, begging. When it receives a piece of papaya, it makes happy noises, then goes for a swim.
The fine colonial town of Granada, founded by Spaniards in the 16th century, has always played a prime role in the country's troubled history. The Lake of Nicaragua and the navigable Rio San Juan gave the city access to the Carribean, and from there to Europe, making the town an important and rich trade center. From early on, conservative Granada was locked in a bitter rivalry with liberal Leon, a city founded at about the same time in the northern part of the colony. Although Leon was chosen to be the colony's capital and the ecclesiastical center for both Nicaragua and Costa Rica, Granada was always richer and vied for political supremacy. The rivalry between the two towns intensified after Nicaragua's independence from Spain, erupting in full blown civil war in 1850. In 1855, the Leonese anti-Spanish Liberals supporting reforms based on US and French revolutions, asked William Walker, an adventurer from the US, to help them gaining the upper hand. Walker prevailed and declared himself president of Nicaragua.
The US recognized Walker's government and from then on, Nicaraguan politics were mainly driven by US intervention. The US originally became interested in Nicaragua because it was one of the potential spots to build an interoceanic canal in Central America (which was later built in Panama). Wiliam Walker's ambitions grew and soon he declared his intentions to take over the remaining Central American countries. However, these nations joined, ousted Walker and Liberals lost power. Followed a series of violent coups and dictatorships, US mostly supporting the Conservatives. In 1920's, Augusto Sandino successfully organized the famous Sandinist movement to resist the US involvement. By 1934, general Somoza engineered Sandinas' assasination, marking the beginning of a four-decade cruel dictatorship of the Somoza dynasty. In the late 1970's, after hostage takings and assassinations, Sandinistas with the support of the civilians overthrew the dictatorship. In early 1980's, Ronald Reagan started to fund the Contras operating out of Honduras, and initiated a trade embargo with Nicaragua to gain the power back from the left orientated Sandinistas. The Contras stopped fighting by 1990. The fathers of the Nica families still remember the violence, but the empoverished country seems to have settled in peace and growth.
Granada displays fine colonial architecture and an impressive number of churches.
We take a tour in a carriage powered by well treated horses, admire the colorful passages, mainly neoclassical houses, and fountains, and listen to the explanations of a well educated guide.
West of Granada, the road is dotted by pretty villages called Pueblos Blancos, so named for their white-stuccoed homes and churches with brightly painted doors and window frames.
The main activity in the Pueblos is handicraft making. Fine pottery, baskets, rocking chairs..
The volcano Mombacho stands guard over Granada. Since the late 16th century, it has been standing silent, occasionally sending a smoke ring around.
On the other side, Mombacho overlooks the lovely Apoyo Crater Lake. From the road built at the extremity of the crater, the lake looks inaccessible. But yes, there is a way to drive down the steep crater slopes, long overgrown with lush tropical forest. In the crater, the life is peaceful.
Bats and birds fly around, howler monkeys dwell in the treetops, their howling echoing in the valley. A swim in the lake's crystalline waters is refreshing and relaxing. The night enters quiet, the moon bathing in the lake. In the morning, a nice constant wind starts blowing. This could be a fine kite spot, one would only need a boat for a safe water start..
The historic Leon is waking up. Horses bring fruits and vegetables to the market. The owners of the shoe repair shops install the massive Singer sewing machines dating back to the 1920's on the street. The shopkeepers of hundreds of little shops around the town open their door. The day will be busy and hot.
Leon, former capital of Nicaragua, is today the second largest city of the country after Managua. It remains the center of the agriculturally rich lowlands surrounding it, has a vibrant cultural and political life and its own university.
Although the town's historic buildings are generally less well kept than those of Granada, the city has a lot of pretty churches and charming streets.
Leon's cathedral is the largest in Central America. Its construction began in the middle of the eighteen's century and lasted for hundred years.
Leonine statues guard the entrance to the cathedral, sit in the fountains on the plaza central, and stand in the courtyards of Leonese homes, watching the time passing.
Wide, pristine beaches lie just twenty kilometers dirty road from Leon. We stay in the neat Oasis bungalows at Playa Poneloya run by a French-Nica couple. The fish soup with an ocean view tastes just great. We go bodyboarding, read and write. Two American girls drinking good quality Nicaraguan rum ask us to take a picture for the parents. The sunset is red red red.
