Bienvendios a Granada.. PDF Print E-mail
Written by Keith Rhoades   
Sunday, 28 September 2008
Hello family and friend.   Next spring when i start planning my trip...remind me to look into iceland or sweeden or antartica!  Why do i always go to the hottest places on earth?  It is south east asia revisited with the humidity!

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Ruins of the Old Cathedral in Managua
Well, a lot has happened since i last wrote and the pace has picked up.  After Ricardo was finished with work...we took a taxi to the old center of managua and the ruins.  the area was destroyed in 1972 by a massive earthquake and never rebuilt...It is also a dangerous area and hardly anyone there except squatters.   The ruins of the cathedral were beautiful and there were guards prohibiting people to enter...but with Ricardos help I was able to bribe them for a dollar and they let me go inside the ruins which could collapse at any time.  So i got some good pictures.  WE then walked by the old theater and some of the old delapitated monuments and over to the shores of lake managua which smelled horrific...it was all sewage.  At this point i had not ate and the heat was getting to me and i needed to sit down ...so i found a place in the shade and all of a sudden i felt pain on my feet and legs and to my horror i was being swarmed by fire ants.   the mothers hurt so bad....Ricardo called us a taxi and we went to the mall for something to eat.   We then went back to his place and rested while a tropical storm came in....lighting thunder, heavy rain, i thought the roof was going to leak.

At 8 pm we met up with some of his friends and went to various clubs until 2 AM....it was a lot of fun...but ages since ive been out that late at night dancing.  I sweated so much...the bars  and discos do not close until 6 am...but by 2 i told them i had had enough.  So i guess not too bad for someone pushing 40!  managua at night is very very scary and thankfully i was with ricardo becasue there was a lot of shady stuff happening on the streets. We got back to his place and i went to bed about 3 am.  he has a personal friend who is his taxi...because he told me that often you get into a taxi and they rob you at gunpoint..so you should know your taxi driver.  By the way Ricardo spoke only a little English...so i really had to use my spanish which is tiring....but there is no better way to learn than by immersion.  Capital Cities always pose a higher level of danger but the vibe from Managua was very scary...probably one of the most dangerous i´ve been in.

I woke up at 8 am and at 10 said my goodbyes to Ricardo and took a cab to the bus station....what a fiasco...i hate these transit days...i vowed after Vietnam and cambodia I would not do any more chicken busses....well, before i knew it i paid $2 and was on a cramped full van with so many people, no air.  the only saving grace was that it was only one hour to granada...but they stop all along the way to let people off and on.  i finally got to Granada and thankfully here i made reservations for a resortish type place...it is not a resort like we know...but nice, clean, air condition, english spèaking, and centrally located.  of course i´m paying a bit more...but that is ok.  i am glad i am here for 5 days..i feel like i can slow down and enjoy things at a pace.  So I just got here a few hours...it reminds me in some ways of Siem Reap or Angtiqua and i really like the vibe of Granada..very laid back, nice, colonial town.  i took a nice shower, got some coffee and relaxed.   Now catching up on emails and after this will go eat a bite, have a frozen mocha and walk down to the lake where perhaps it will be cooler.

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Main Cathedral of Granada
There are many things to do around Granada from Canopy junles, volcanoe, kayaking, markets, coffee plantations, etc  So i have enough to keep me busy for the next few days.  Well, i´m off to enjoy the day...tonight will call in early.  I again have cable tV in my room!!

With peace and love
Last Updated ( Tuesday, 14 October 2008 )
 
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