I could not decide where to end my Nicaragua trip. Sometimes I get very indecisive when traveling - I want to make the best decision to have the best experience. And I cut my trip short a few days, so I didn't have time to do everything on my Nicaragua list. Stopping in Granada was the original plan, but then we drove through it on the way to San Juan, and I wasn't impressed - I thought I got the gist from that 10 minute drive. Well due to easier logistics and time, I decided to end my trip in Granada after all. And I'm glad I did. It was so much more than what we saw in the first drive.
But first I had to get there…I decided to travel the local way on Chicken buses. These are old, discarded school buses from America, where you are packed on like chickens. But they are CHEAP!
Even though I was getting over colonial cities, Granada felt different. It was clean and had character. The buildings were colorful and a stark contrast to the cream, decay and dirt of Leon.
I spent my first day walking the streets and seeing the sights - which are churches. They are spectacular on the outside but nothing on the inside. I'm pretty over seeing churches, but it was still a nice day.
I went up to the top of the Catherdral and Merced church. The views from the Merced bell tower were beautiful. But I could have done without climbing to the top of the cathedral.
That night on I went for a walk and dinner on Calle La Calzada, a street lined with restaurants and bars. There were a few street performers, and a whole lot of people hassling me to buy things.
The next morning I set off to hike Mombato volcano. I decided to take the chicken buses and go without a guide. While at the park, waiting for the bus up (the hike up is 50 degree slopes and two hours), I befriended a group from Portland who were in town exploring before starting a mission (Nicaragua has a lot of missions - and a lot of need). There are two hikes at the top - a 4 hour difficult hike or a 1.5 moderate hike (I read about a third hike but it's really a combo). I didn't want to do four hours, but the shorter trail was much easier and quicker than expected. While it was very cool to walk through the jungle, due to clouds we could not see the craters or any view. It was a bit disappointing - no real volcano experience and not really a hike either. I wish I would have splurged for the big hiking trail, or hiked up. But hindsight is 20/20. I did get to see a baby sloth up close and personal.
I joined the Portlanders for lunch afterwards. We wanted something local, and their driver and guide suggested a place. However it was 30 minutes away in the opposite direction. And he missed it twice. To top it off, it wasn't anything special to warrant the extra drive- ok food and no view. I could not figure why he picked this place when basically all restaurants are Nicaraguan food. We had good laughs about it, but definitely not the day I expected.
While overall Granada is lovely, I have two complaints on the city - it's a sweat box and super hot. And I have never been cat called or whistled at so much while walking down the street. While having a drink at an outside cafe, I had a group so blatantly staring at me I had to leave. The come ons really made me not enjoying walking around by myself.
My flight was at 1 am so I headed out of Granda after the hike. Before going to the airport, I stopped in Managua to see a friend from home I grew up, Shauna. Her and her husband have been in Nicaragua for the last 9 weeks completing the adoption of their two young children and working on their mission projects. The kids could not have been more cute. I was so happy to see the life she is creating for them, and hear about their plans. I'm so proud of them! After just a few minutes of conversation, I wanted to stay and see the work they were doing, see that side of Nicaragua and try to help. If only changing flights wasn't so expensive. And if only I also really was ready to go home, and Shauna didn't need another (bigger) kid to worry about right now ;) next time!
