About Nicaragua

NICARAGUA

Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American isthmus, south of Mexico it is bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south.  It is in the tropics being around 12 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere.  Temperatures average between 25 and 30 degrees.   

There are two seasons in Nicaragua, the wet and the dry.  During the dry season (Jan to June) there is virtually no rain and everything gets very dry and dusty.  The rains start to come around June/July and by August and September it often rains around once a day with some spectacular tropical rainstorms.

It rains more in the eastern part of the country than the west.

To the west is The Pacific Ocean and the Carribean sea is to the east. The country is made up of the Pacific lowlands, the wetter, cooler central highlands; and the Caribbean lowlands.

Two of the largest fresh water lakes in Central America are found in Nicaragua - Lake Managua and Lake Nicaragua - these are both on the Pacific side of the country.  Unfortunately Lake Managua is quite polluted so not the best place to head when needing to cool off from the warm tropical temperature of Nicaragua.

The Spanish Empire conquered the region in the 16th century and the main language is Spanish although in some areas English Creole is spoken and the indigenous tribes also speak their native languages including Miskito, Sumo and Rama. Nicaragua has been independent from Spain since 1821 and although it now enjoys relative political stability it has over the years suffered a number of periods of political unrest, dictatorship, and fiscal crisis—including the Nicaraguan revolution of the 1960s and 1970s. 

Nicaragua is a country of biological diversity with a number of active volcanoes, the one below found in Masaya but it's just one of a chain of 25 Nicaraguan volcanoes that can be seen on the Pacific coast.

In English this volcano is simply called the Masaya Volcano Nicaragua but it is also known by the indigenous Chorotenga tribe as Popogatepe which means 'the mountain that burns'.

MASAYA

Our initial destination is Masaya, also known as 'the city of flowers it is situated approximately 14 km west of Granada and 31 km southeast from the capital Managua. 

 The town itself is situated just East of Masaya Volcano (above)  (Volcán de Masaya).  The population is around 146,000 (2005) and is Nicaragua's third most populous city.  

Masaya is an important cultural centre for Nicaragua and is well known for its market, dance, music, street theatre and colorful processions.