Weekend in Nicaragua

Market Street in Granada

Well I am back from my weekend in Nicaragua and what an experience it was. We drove 11 hours from Heredia across the border, through Rivas and into Granada, the oldest city in the country. I was immediately struck by the beauty of the city and by the stark contrast of rich and poor. I later learned that Nicaragua has about 20% wealthy people and 80% living in poverty. Because of its history of colonialism, occupation, and corruption, it is still a country with virtually no middle class. On Friday night, and Saturday and Sunday for that matter, my friend Carrine and I hit the clubs and danced until the wee hours. We met a Nica (the term for Nicaraguans) who used to live in Kent Washington and he served as our guide, taking us to clubs and keeping us out of places we shouldn't be. On Sunday, the group took a boat through some of the 400 islands that dot Lake Nicaragua. Most are no bigger than an acre or two and are owned by some of the wealthy Nicas and gringo ex-pats. On one island, we saw the home of Violetta Chamorra, who's successful run for president in 1990 ended the rule of the Sandinistas and made her the first democratically elected female head of state in the history of the Americas. I spend most of the day on a resort island swimming, relaxing in the sun and playing cards.