Sail Windsong

Inland Nicaragua Touring

Nicaragua is a beautiful country with nice people. S/V Windsong stayed at Marina Puesta del Sol (www.marinapuestadelsol.com), or (505)276-0323). It’s a small marina that is very clean and nice restrooms and shower facilities. They have fresh water on the docks, electricity, cable TV, a fuel dock, and wireless internet. They also have a nice laundry room and a good restaurant. There is a beautiful swimming pool at the marina and also, a swimming pool just a short walk away, at the palapa on the beach. Twice a week they have a car going to town so, you can buy provisions. The best feature, in our opinion, is it’s very quiet! No jet skis buzzing around, no Para-sailors, no powerboats’ zipping by with huge wakes!

We did inland travel throughout Nicaragua. We took a Chicken Bus to Chinendega (approx. 14 Cordobas each), then a taxi to the minivan station to go to Leon (approximately 8 Cordobas each), then the minivan to Leon and a taxi to the hotel (20 Corbobas for both of us). In Leon we stayed at Posada del Doctor (www.laposadadeldoctor.com). The rooms are small and clean with nice linens. There’s an overhead fan and A/C, private bath (no hot water) and includes breakfast. We paid $30 (w/o AC) for the two of us). Guido is from Argentina and works there, he speaks excellent English and is a good source for information. The hotel has a restaurant near Parque Centro, called “El Sesteo”, and if you stay at the hotel you receive a 15% discount at the restaurant. Across the street is the Cathedral, which is quite nice. On Mondays and Saturdays you can get tours of the top of the Cathedral and/or the catacombs.

La Posda del Doctor Hotel Courtyard Leon Cathedral One Painting of Stations Of The Cross

The next day we took a taxi back to the bus terminal (10 Cordobas for both of us) to head to Selva Negra (circa Matagalpa). There was to be a minivan going direct to Matagalpa at 0730, but after waiting one hour the van did not fill up, so it was cancelled. Instead we took a minivan to San Isadro and got off at the crossroads to catch a Chicken Bus to Matagalpa. When we arrived at the bus terminal in Matagalpa we took a taxi (180 Cordobas for both of us) to the Selva Negra Resort (www.selvanegra.com). This is in the mountains and the rooms are large with private baths (including hot water). We paid $30 US per night for a room; we could have had a private casita (LR with fireplace & BR and small porch, for $50 US per night). This area is similar to the Black Forest in Germany. It was begun in the late 1800’s, and is still operated by immigrants & family from Germany.

Selva Negra Restaurant By The Lake Our Room In The Forest Stone Bridge

A lot of the land is set aside as a Nature Reserve. They give you a map of hiking trails (it’s a good idea to have good walking shoes) where you can see wildlife on your hikes. This is the Cloud Forest, so it is damp and cold. In the morning we woke up to the sound of Howler Monkeys (we did not see them), although on one of our hikes we did see several Spider Monkeys playing in the treetops. We also saw lots of birds and several small animals on our hikes and came across a Den where a Puma lives. There was a caution sign at the cave, and we did not investigate! At one point, we stopped on a trail at a very muddy, slippery spot. Seconds later we were being attacked by swarms of large red army ants crawling up our legs! They bite!

Frank On The Trail Fer De Lance Snake - VERY DEADLY! Shirley Gingerly Crossing A Bridge

We took a tour of the finca (farm). They are very close to being self-sufficient. They grow and process Coffee; they have cows, which are used for the milk to make really good cheese (the feta is really good…although made from cows milk). They have pigs, which are slaughtered for pork products (excellent smoked German sausages are made, and smoked right there; ham; excellent bacon, etc.). They grow their own fruits (great fresh orange juice) and vegetables (about 15 varieties). They also have chickens (eggs and poultry) and horses that you can ride. We stayed 3 days/2 nights and it was Wonderful!

The Coffee Roasting House Fresh Coffee Beans Roasting Coffee (It's sure Smoky!)

Baby Pigs Smoking Sausages Packaging The Ground Coffee

Flower Nursery Matagalpa Town In The Distance The Coffee Bag of Selva Negra

The Staff arranged to have a taxi pick us up and take us back to the bus terminal (150 Corbodas for both of us) heading towards Granada. We arrived at the terminal at 0915 (just in time for the express Chicken Bus) to go to Managua (50 Cordobas each). In Managua, we had to go to the UCA University minivan station to get a minivan to Granada. We learned a lesson with the taxi drivers here…the taxi drivers almost grab you off the bus to get your business. The driver spoke very good English. We told him where we were going and he said 100 Cordobas, we negotiated on 80 Cordobas. He then proceeded to crowd three more people in (one guy, female and small child). He ended up taking us to the Chicken Bus terminal, where the buses go to Granada. We told him this was the wrong place and that we said we wanted to go to the UCA University minivan station. We even had a map of Managua, and showed him on the map before starting out! After a small argument he continued on for a few blocks where he pulled over to the side street and demanded 50 Cordobas more. We told him it was his mistake, and we would not pay another cent. After much arguing, we said we were getting out, and got the taxi door open. He then told us it was a bad street and we said we were getting out. He then said ok, just the original 80 Cordobas. We noted that during this whole argument, the Taxi Driver no longer spoke English, only Spanish! He dropped off the man in the front seat (near where we stopped) and continued on to the UCA minivan station (the lady next to us knew we were upset and angry and she assured us he was going in the correct direction). From Managua we took a minivan to Granada.

Granada Street Main Square Cathedral San Francisco Convent Museum

Granada is an old Spanish Colonial town that is very beautiful (similar to Antigua, Guatemala). It has lots of old Churches. Since Tourism is in it’s infancy in Nicaragua, Granada is still a sleepy, quiet town. (Like what Antigua, Guatemala was 40 years ago). We walked everywhere in Granada and did not use taxi’s. We checked a few hotels that had been recommended, and found the prices had increased (actually most all prices during our visit increased from a month prior due to the high price of gasoline). We decided on the Casa San Francisco hotel located near the San Francisco Cathedral and Convent (www.csf-hotel-granada.com.

Hotel Courtyard and Dining Area Hotel Bar Area Hotel Swimming Pool

We had a beautiful room with breakfast, A/C, ceiling fan, swimming pool, cable TV (out of NY…yes NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, etc) for $40 US per night (we stayed 5 days/4 nights). It had a private bath, with hot water. We actually had nice bath towels, hand towels, washcloths and a bath mat…highly unusual in the third world. The owners are two ladies (Nancy & Terry) from San Francisco, CA, who are former Peace Corps workers. Their hospitality is fantastic. There are many nice restaurants in Granada and the prices are quite reasonable. While we were in Granada, Shirley had her hair frosted (150 Cordobas), at Letty’s, and they did a great job. We took a tour of the surrounding area with Lawrence Goodlive, a retired American doctor (www.landcruisertours.com or legoodlive@att.net). We paid $49 US each, plus lunch, for the entire day. We went to the Active Volcano, a volcanic lake, and a few of the artisan villages where they make pottery, etc. We also visited, on our own, the San Francisco Convent and Cathedral, which is also a museum. In the museum they have about 30 stone statues carved by the ancient residents of Nicaragua.

Shirley & Lawrence At The Volcano Erupting Volcano (Toxic Fumes!) Lake In The Cone of Extinct Volcano

Pre-Columbian Stone Statue Making Pottery Pre-Columbian Stone Statue

We decided to visit San Juan del Sur (via land, instead of taking Windsong) so we walked to the bus terminal and got the Chicken Bus. We were told there was a direct bus to Rivas where we could transfer to another bus to San Juan del Sur. When we got to the bus terminal, there was no bus sitting there and we were told that we had to take the bus to Nandaime (9 Cordobas each) then transfer to a bus for Rivas (15 Cordobas each). As we were turning the corner on the bus leaving Granada, what do we see, but the direct bus for Rivas heading into the terminal? We have been told (and believe it) that you cannot believe what they tell you when getting on any buses. They want your business and will tell you anything to get you on their bus…so be aware. The trip was fine and we probably would have had to wait 30 to 60 minutes for the Rivas bus to fill up, so it was no big deal. In Rivas we took a bus to San Juan del Sur (12 Cordobas each). When we arrived in San Juan del Sur we checked into a new hotel “El Puerto.” It is located about 2 blocks east of the Snider Realty office. It opened in January 2005 and is owned by a family from Frankfurt, Germany. We had a very basic room with fan and a private bath (no hot water) for $20 US per night (we stayed 2 nights). The room was clean, but the 2 bath towels were paper-thin, and did not absorb much water. (I would carry my own towel next time). We looked at other places but they were more than twice the price. “Ricardo’s” is a bar/restaurant, right on the beachfront. It’s a local gringo hangout and you can get some good information about the surrounding area. We also had a nice breakfast (homemade Cinnamon French toast with sautéed apples) at “El Gato Negro” Bookstore/Coffee Shop (www.elgatonegronicaragua.com or Kelly@picassodreams.com) . It’s only been open for a month, and operated by a couple from Houston, TX.

Ricardo's Bar On The Beach San Juan del Sur Boats In the Harbor

After our stay in San Juan del Sur, it was time to return to Windsong. We hired a taxi ($5 US total for the both of us, No other passengers!) to take us to Rivas Chicken Bus Terminal. We arrived just as the bus to Managua (90 Cordobas each) was leaving. We got off the bus just before the bus terminal in Managua, and checked with several taxis on the street to take us to the Mercado Boer where we could get a minivan to Chinandega. We negotiated 80 Cordobas total for the taxi (no other passengers) to take us to the terminal. When we arrived at the terminal, the taxi driver wanted 90 Cordobas because he said he had to pay 10 Cordobas to get out of the terminal (we paid it). Again, he spoke English when we got into the taxi, but only Spanish when we were arguing! We took a minivan from Managua to Chinandega (40 Cordobas each) then a taxi (8 Cordobas each) to the mercardito one block north of the park. We took a Chicken Bus from Chinandega to El Viejo (3 Cordobas each). We got off the bus and walked to Parque Centro near the Mercado and took a Chicken Bus to Asseradores (14 Cordobas each). This bus takes you to the Texaco gas station at Marina Puesta del Sol. The last bus to Asseradores leaves El Viejo at 3 PM, so plan your trip carefully. We left San Juan del Sur at 8 AM and arrived back at the marina at 5 PM.

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