Nicaragua
Downtown Granada
Unlike other countries we’ve visited, we didn’t spend much time in Nicaragua, we only got a quick glimpse of this country on a one-day excursion from Costa Rica with Frank-the-Tank CR tours. Knowing we were going to be so close to the Nicaraguan border, we signed up for the excursion weeks before arriving in Costa Rica. However, after hearing thoughts about Nicaragua ranging from wonderful to terrifying, I admit I was on edge making the trip across the border. Thankfully, our guides were thorough and efficient, ensuring not only our safety throughout the day, but also that we learned much about the history, culture, and geography of this special country.
The day required hours traveling by bus, multiple transfers, and several passport stamps as we passed back and forth through immigration. As our guide explained, Nicaragua is the “land of lakes and volcanoes,” and we experienced a bit of each, plus more.
We had breakfast beside Lake Nicaragua
We watched as the rain and fog cleared away to reveal a beautiful crater lake at the Catarina Volcano Outlook Point, then shopped from local vendors selling clothing, hand-painted pottery and other trinkets
We stood on the edge of a 192-meter deep, active crater at Volcan Masaya National Park
We visited the historic town of Granada and shopped at a number of the local markets
Our main impression of the day was that Nicaragua is a beautiful, but devastatingly poor nation. Neither of us have personally witnessed such poverty and it was hard at times to take in. Everywhere we looked, buildings were decaying, animals were heartbreakingly malnourished, and people seemed to be doing whatever they could merely to survive.
Masking the sadness was a rainbow of color everywhere we looked. It felt almost as if if you could wash away the dirt and destruction (physically, emotionally and politically), you might find a beautiful gem in what the country once was.
ADDENDUM: In some of our subsequent travels, we’ve had the opportunity to talk with fellow travels who have spent more time - even lived - in Nicaragua. While our glimpse of the country was as described above, we’ve been told there are other areas more prosperous than those we experienced.