Outbound Flight: Granada, Nicaragua 01/10/08-01/16/08

Highlights:

Disenchanted by Granada
I lost my shorts.
I started drinking beer.
Creative packaging

Summary of Granada:

Granada is Nicragua's tourist center. It is a colonial city with a central square surrounded by beautiful colonial buildings. There is plenty of tourist infrastructure, and all the

parasites that go with it. I got a lot more of their attention than I wanted. As a result, I did not get a warm feeling from Granada. I just got the sense that I was viewed as a source of money and that there was no intention to be nice to me to get it.

Don't get me wrong--the people working in the restaurants and hotels are just fine, and if you ask a stranger a question (e.g., "Where is the bus station?") they are very friendly. It is just that there are way too many people trying to get your attention, and when someone tries to get a tourist's attention, it is never to the tourist's benefit. It isn't even so much the "Hey, come take my tour/use my taxi/eat at my restaurant/shop at my store" and other semi-legitimate stuff--in fact, I see surprisingly little of that. It isn't even the beggars. It's the panhandlers and

the people who seem to just want to annoy you because you are a tourist. Granted, these people are a tiny percent of the people around, but if you can't walk down the street with out someone harranging you, it is little comfort that most of the people are not. The ubiquitous "Give me a dollar" people are here, of course, but the odd thing is that some of them shout it at you with a sneer. I get the impression that the meaning is actually "Screw you, tourist!" but that they don't know the words. Or possibly they know just how annoying it is to have people constantly saying "Give me a dollar". At any rate, it is clearly intended to annoy.

As far as the much touted colonial beauty of Granada, the town square is indeed quite beautiful with its restored colonial buildings. And there are a few nice churches around too, and one or two other restored streets. Other than that, there is not much here. There are plenty of tour agencies, some (relatively) upscale restaurants, and bars. In other words, there is a tourism infrastructure. Tourists come here because is it a place for tourists.

There are several things in the area to do, such as tour the little islands in Lago Nicaragua, and visit nearby volcanos and lagoons. These are also accessible from the nearby town of Masaya, which has fewer annoyances and is more low key.

Granada sits on Lago Nicaragua and Masaya sits on Laguna Masaya. I personally think that Laguna Masaya is the prettier of the two.

My goal in Granada was to relax. I had been traveling very fast for the previous several days and needed to just take a break. That I did, but I could have chosen a better place to do it.

The Details:

I took the microbus from Leon to Managua. I hopped right into another microbus to Granada and was on my way.

The microbus dropped me at the square downtown. I walked from the square toward the market where my first choice hotel was located. It was starting to drizzle. I already liked Granada more than Leon. It was much more lively. I would later revise this opinion after getting sick of people annoying me.

I walked through the market to the hotel, which is right in the market area across from the interesting old market building. Surprisingly, the hotel (Hospidaje Esfinge) is quiet--the sound from the chaotic market outside does not penetrate. There is a little courtyard shaded by vines with tables and hammocks.

Every day in Granada, I had lunch at a little place a block from my hotel--Cafetin La Laguna. The young waiter got to know my order by the third day--plate of the day with a glass of water. Service was very attentive there--a rarity in Nicaragua. The pleasant service was the main reason I came there every day.

I walked to the square and around. I walked down the touristy street towards the lake. This was not so cool. The developed part abruptly ended in dirt where the renovation is continuing. I walked all the way to the lake, with a cute kid rolling a tire tagging along part of the way trying to get money from me.

The lake was not very pretty. Much worse were the swarms of flying insects that were like clouds there. They were like tiny winged aphids. I did not get a good vibe there either. I definitely felt one of those "I'm the only tourist in a place with many predators" feelings. I walked back to downtown. I saw a few churches and took pics. I felt like I had done everything there was to do already. It made me wonder what the rest of my trip will be like. It seems like I am getting to places, walking around for an hour, and saying "Is that it?"

I really did very little in Granada. Other than eat and drink, I don't think there is much to do there. I think it is mainly a launching point to other places. I could have taken a boat trip on the lake.

Just as I was surprised to find myself drinking coffee every day in Mexico, I am even more surprised to find myself drinking beer every day in Nicaragua. I have been ordering it with meals. In Nicaragua, there are 2 local beers--Tona and Victoria. Tona has a milder flavor, so I prefer it. (By the way, I stopped drinking coffee.)

When I took my clothes to the laundry to be washed, they came back minus my only pair of shorts. I went back the next day and was told that I should come back later because the appropriate person was not there. I walked past this place every day, so each day for 6 days I asked, and each day I was told that I needed to come back and ask someone else.

Finally, on the last day, I said that this had gone on for a week, either say yes or no. The guy there was kind of shocked that it had gone on so long--I never talked to the same person twice and apparently they were pretty disorganized. After a thorough search of the shop, they were not found, and it was finally over.

I finally burned my photos to CDs. This took longer than hoped. Then I had to package them. Since the only supermarket did not sell tape, I had to wander through the marketplace until I found a stall that sold it. Then I needed cardboard. Fortunately, walking home from the market, I found a discarded piece of cardboard in the gutter--Granada's trash can. A few minutes later, it was all packaged. Unfortunately, I never could find a post office in Granada. It took another week to get it mailed. My point: simple things can be surprisingly hard in an unfamiliar environment.

Speaking of the supermarket, I noticed a sign there that translates to "Always low prices. Always!" Sound familiar? Then I noticed that on the back of one of the cashiers' badge it said Wal-Mart. They really do have there fingers in Latin America.

When I finally left Granada, I headed to