Nicaragua
This is my 'travelogue' for my first trip to Nicaragua in the winter of 2025/2026. I will describe all the wonderful things that I've seen, done and experienced between November 27 2025 - April 14 2026.
My flight arrived in Managua around 11:35pm, but there was a very long lineup at Migración. I paid my US $10.00 entry fee and proceeded to pick up my luggage. My niece's husband (Franco) picked me up and it was almost 2am by the time we left the airport. I wasn't able to see much, but the warm temperature sure felt nice.
I spent the day Friday running errands for items that I needed for my stay. My niece Natalie drove me to a few places, including a bank ATM to withdraw local currency (the Córdoba). Saturday, Franco drove me the one hour drive to Granada where I would spend the next 4.5 months. I got settled in "Vista Mombacho Apartments". The 'highway' drive there wasn't your typical highway, as the speed limit was 80 km/hr and even 50 km/hr at times as we drove through villages along the way. Lots of motorcycles on the road as well as old cars, buses, horse drawn carriages and carts to share the road.
I was under the impression that I needed USD in order to exchange for the Córdoba and to use my USD credit card - which I did, until I realized that I was exchanging CAD to USD (online) to Córdobas at the ATM. Rick and I experimented with using my CAD debit card in order to withdraw the Cordoba (the ATM only gives out USD or Cords). That's the way I did it for the duration of the trip. With my TDCanadatrust account, I have the 'All Inclusive" account so that I didn't have to pay any additional fees when withdrawing local currency.
The major supermarkets (La Colonia, La Union, Maxi Palí) accepted credit cards, as well as the larger pharmacies. Otherwise, you had to pay in cash. I had to see a doctor a couple of times here for minor ailments, and he only accepted USD or Cords, while the dermatologist I saw, accepted credit cards. The Canadian exchange rate was between 25 - 26%, while the USD was at 36.6% as stated by the government here. I would usually withdraw 6,000 Cords at a time, and at first, it cost about $179.00 USD using my USD debit card; but when I withdrew from my CAD account, it was around $233.00 CAD. When buying things, we usually divided by 25 to get the CAD equivalent. Groceries are fairly expensive as most items are imported from the US. The 'fresh market' (mercado) offers fresh local fruits and veggies as well as other vendors who sold clothing and housewares. There are even a few watch repair vendors as well as a guy who has his sewing machine ready to fix anything at a really inexpensive price (a dollar or two CAD). These vendors are all lined up along both sides of a street called: Atravasada. They are there 7 days a week from dawn to dusk (5:40am - 5:55pm).
The length of day doesn't fluctuate much during the year, as we are so close to the equator.
Maxi Palí is a discounted version of La Union, and they are both owned by Walmart.
Other than the Atrasavada market, there are other vendors near the central park (Parque Centrale) who sells all kinds of refreshments, home made food, or hand made items like: bracelets, necklaces, earrings, some sold locally made button down shirts and t-shirts.
Visitor's VISA: upon arrival, your passport is stamped and is valid for 90 days. Americans and Canadians who live there full time, do what they call a 'border run'. as their 90 days approach, they will hire someone to take them to the border of Costa Rica to have their passport stamped going out of Nicaragua; stamped going in Costa Rica; they turn around and enter Nicaragus for another 90 days. As for the temporary visitor like me, I went to the Migración office in Granada, fill out a form, pay the $40.00 USD fee, drop off the passport and pick it up again in a week as they ship it to Managua for processing.
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| The second one |
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| Ankle bracelet (a dumbbbell) |
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| A street vendor And here is calle Atrasavada where the 'mercado' (street market) is located. |
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| Cars and people everywhere Beautiful trees, cobblestone roads, stray dogs here and there, people walking along narrow streets, you can tell its a very old city - very quaint. Temperatures around 28C (82F) in December, January & February, then 30C in March, and the 2 weeks before I left, it was around 32-34C - it was almost getting too hot by then. Sunrise / sunset: 5:49am - 5:17pm. |
The dry season is between December and April. The avocado tree in the back yard has lost most of its leaves, but is still producing fruit. The dry leaves fall into the pool and needs to be scooped out daily (sometimes by me - it gives me something to do).
Staff here are super nice and helpful - I’m not so scared in making conversations in Spanish - I’m better than I thought. :-) I can make myself understood with the vocabulary that I’ve gathered so far. When they respond to my question or comment, I have a difficult time understanding as they talk fast, so I have prepared a few responses: "hablas despacio, por favor" (speak slower, please); "hablas muy rapido" (you speak very fast) "lo siento, no entiendo" (I'm sorry I don't understand).
Horse drawn carriages are widely used here, as well as motorcycles are very popular as they are very inexpensive for locals.
Restaurant food is generally inexpensive as well, but some items that are imported are expensive. Well-known 'expat' restaurants can be more expensive as they are 'high end' and cater mostly to American and Canadian expats who have more disposable income to spend.
The last time Mombacho volcano erupted was 1570 - its still dormant today. There is however a volcano not too far away in Masaya that is active. The last time it erupted was 2008. Not sure I want to explore that volcano, but we did walk the trails and zip lining on Mombacho.
Most households do not have hot water or air conditioning - I’m happy to say that I have both in my unit (and the other units in the building).
There are hundreds of tv channels available in the apartment building where I was staying - majority in Spanish (talk about immersion), but that’s ok - except for Jeopardy isn’t available. :-(
Even the young adults & teenagers are different here, compared to North America. They will hang around in small groups and chat amongst themselves, without their phones, without bullying others, there's no entitlement, no privileged. Just humble people.
Travelling to nearby towns or cities requires taking a bus. The driver would weave in and out of traffic amid the other drivers honking their horn, not as an angry tone, but more of a warning tone.
There's a driver and another guy hanging out the door, yelling out to people who want to catch a ride along the way. With the door half open as he yelled his spiel and the driver constantly honking his horn to warn people he was coming. When the bus came to a stop, it was more of a 'rolling stop' with people hopping on and off while the bus was moving - unless there was more than one person hopping. The fare: 28 Cordobas ($1.10 CAD) one way.
You will hear a lot of vehicle horns honking, but its not meant in an aggressive way - usually taxis will honk to see if you need a ride; some intersections aren't well marked for stop signs, so they usually honk to let others know they are coming; motorcycles in particular honk at an intersection as they want to make sure they are seen; often times, you'll hear the sound of "Shave and a hair cut, 2 bits" from motorists - one vehicle will honk: "shave and a haircut", while the second vehicle will honk: "2 bits". The first time I heard it I roared out laughing. I've never seen anyone make an actual 'stop' at a stop sign - they usually just yield and I've seen a lot of close calls.
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| A busy mercado (fresh market) |
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| That's one way to deliver mattresses |
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| Tame rabbits who live in the back yard |
There are a lot of stray dogs in the city, roaming the streets looking for scraps of food. Some residents own dogs, but sometimes, if the dog becomes sick, they abandon it, and there is a group of people (NicaPaws) who rescue dogs, treat them and release them, as there isn't a place to house them as they heal. Sometimes, they will post on FB, asking if anyone can foster a particular dog. One of the rescuers (Ana Mareya) has more than 10 dogs, as well as my cousin, Noëlla, has 8 or 9, as well as 2 cats. The cats usually stay around her house, as they know that's where their next meal comes from.
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| Laguna de Apoyo |
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| A typical day in Granada |
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| Typical side street |
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Nicas are very inventive when it comes to fixing things - we refer to them as 'Macgyvers' - as in they can MacGyver just about anything that is broken. Just about everything is reused, repurposed or recycled.
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Have a medical issue? Need to see a doctor or a specialist? No problem. No waiting. I found a local doctor near the apartment building who charges $20.00 USD for a consult; $40.00 if a procedure is required. I also saw a dermatologist and had my appointment within a day or 2. She charged $40.00 per appointment. In Canada, there is a wait of 3-4 months. Both doctors were very efficient, caring, and helped with my health issues.
You'll see a lot of home with signs indicating what they sell (no license required). Some, like the neighbours across the street from the apartment building, they sold (hot, cooked) red beans. No sign, just word of mouth; others sold ice (hielo).
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