Sunday Jan 2nd,
An early bus ride found us in Managua by 10:30am. The exit from the bus involved running a gauntlet of extremely pushy taxi drivers offering transport at prices bordering on robbery.
Settling on a price of $3 ( a bargain by Canadian standards, but a rip-off compared to other Nicaraguan towns) we were driven to the Plaza de la Revolucion to visit the Palacio National- now a museum. Normally open on Sunday, it was closed- probably because of the New Years weekend. Adjacent to the museum, the ancient cathedral, partially destroyed in the 1972 earthquake was fenced off, having been deemed unsafe. With much of the roof gone and several walls collapsed it was reminiscent of several of the religious buildings in Antigua, Guatemala- also damaged in previous earthquakes. After sauntering through a couple of the parks in the area we had a brief walk along the Malecon. Listed as a pleasant walk along the lakefront, it turned out to be a view blocked by one ramshackle restaurant after another. Adding to the lack of appeal, a fairly steady wind was whipping dust into our eyes.
Flagging down a taxi, we headed back to the centre of town, the driver dropping us off in front of a modern looking shopping mall. Air-conditioned and occupied by stores clearly geared to tourists and the more affluent locals it proved to be a comfortable break from the mid-day heat. A fast food court featured a selection of standard North American chains like McPuke and Booger King as well as several Nicaraguan equivalents.
$3.75 was enough to purchase a meaty and quite juicy pechuga de pollo- fried chicken breast, including a drink, fries and coleslaw.
Most of the calories consumed were walked and sweated off during a hike to Laguna de de Tiscapa, a small but quite pretty volcanic lake close to the town centre. Heading back in the direction of the mall and bus stop, we made a slight diversion to see the new cathedral, essentially a concrete box, totally devoid of the artistry of the old one.
The bus ride back to Granada was a representation of the life of a sardine. I am not sure what the Guinness book of records has listed for most people on a mini-bus but we had to have been close. I was more than glad to get off the bus in Granada, debating whether or not to wash or just burn my clothing once we got back to the hotel.
Sunday’s dinner stop was Jimmy Three Fingers and I am happy to say the meal was significantly better than our visit last year.
The new location was much better in terms of lighting and ambiance and there were no complaints about food or service.
Stopping outside the restaurant, we struck up with 2 visitors from Kingston, one of whom had lived near our home town of Listowel for several years- small world.
Monday after breakfast a visit to Tierra Tours found us quickly packing a few days clothing for a trip to Leon.
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