The Grandeur of Granada - Nicaragua

Founded in the 1520s, Granada is a real Colonial gem in Nicaragua. If you take the plunge and visit, you will have this beautiful place pretty much all to yourself with all its plazas, porticos, and colonnades...

People are welcoming and friendly, and the whole place has a very intimate small town feel, somewhat dwarfed and daunted by the grandeur and scale of such elegant architecture...

There are numerous beautiful churches, chapels, and a stunning cathedral. Brightly coloured colonial streets and alleys head off in every direction, and who can resist all these gorgeous doors and windows...

Granada is a very accessible 45 minute cab ride from Managua Airport, and provides a great base for a week or so, as there are some great day trips that can be taken from here, such as the volcanoes at Masaya and Mombacho, as well as the pueblos blancos, and the markets at Masaya. There are enough bars, cafes, and restaurants to sustain a week's stay, and a great hotel for accomodation is the Casa San Francisco. At 65USD for a double room it is great value, and Octavio the chef cooks up wonderful food every night. Check it out at www.casasanfrancisco.com and for more My World Tuesday postings click here...

Shadow Shot Sunday 35 - Rio Nazas

Just a grimy little black window on a bright blue wall around the corner from where I live, but I like the colour contrast as well as all the geometric angles and shapes cast by the shadow. For more shadows cast around the world check out Shadow Shot Sunday by clicking here....

Mexico City Hotspots - Hosteria La Bota

I adore Mexican folk art and kitsch, so you can imagine my unadulterated sheer joy and delight when I stumbled, purely by chance, across this humble watering hole last weekend in the heart of the Centro Historico. Can you spot the barman amongst all these objets d'art adorning every surface of bar, walls, and ceiling??

After the initial sense of being overwhelmed, you manage to get your eye in, and then you can spot all kinds of antique treasures from bicycles, chairs and gas rings, to bulls' heads, lucha libre masks and skulls. Next you zoom in on the boxing gloves, frying pans, pinatas, masks, tin trays, bottles, and an entire array of Joseph Cornell - style boxes...

I stopped by for a glass of wine whilst I was wandering about by myself, and the atmosphere was perfectly friendly, chilled and laid back ...

You can see why I felt so at home when I show you a couple of corners of my own apartment here in Mexico City, dubbed"The Red Palace", which are very quickly developing into Mexican kitsch corners...

Here are my latest acquisitions - a pair of demented and deranged papier mache Lucha Libre wrestlers. One has his pants on fire, and the other has a skull emblazoned on his lunch box - Don't you just love them??

Hosteria La Bota is located on Calle Regina between Bolivar and 5 de Febrero amidst a number of other funky, quirky bars and cafes. Watch out for further postings on this very interesting street....

Mexico City Hotspots - Zincos Jazz Club

Zincos jazz club is an effortlessly cool nightspot in the heart of the Centro Historico located deep in the vaults of a former bank. Blacked out basement with low ceilings, red velvet curtains, and candle-lit cabaret style tables, it is the authentic jazz bar you are always so pleased to stumble upon - and there is always someone good playing whichever night you go...

Last night the band was "People Project", a jazz ensemble with Brazilian, Mexican, Canadian, and Venezuelan musicians, fresh from the Monteal Jazz Festival, presenting their new CD "Natural". They played a real mixture of Jazz Fusion, Blues, and Funk all tending towards a Brazilian sound.

Zincos is open from Wednesday to Saturday, and is located at Motolinia 20, esq Cinco de Mayo. Entrance is 200 pesos (16USD) and it is certainly a good idea to book a table in advance. The only touch of authenticity lacking is the smokey haze across the basement due to DF's no smoking policy - Hooray!! Check out their website for future programming at http://www.zincojazz.com/. Enjoy! To check out other great places around the globe, click here for My World Tuesday - where do you like to go for a guaranteed great night out??

Shadow Shot Sunday 34 - Managua Airport

Managua International Airport, Augusto C. Sandino, in Nicaragua is a bright, spacious, airy kind of place providing a pleasant welcome to the country. This is the foyer and all the interplay of shadows, patterns, reflections and shadow writing caught my attention as I was waiting for my flight back to Mexico via San Jose....

And where else in the world could you see such an idealistic cosy shoulder to shoulder relationship between the States and Iran and Libya... Don't you just love this admirably objective choice of clocks showing the International time??

For more fun with shadows check out Shadow Shot Sunday by clicking here. Enjoy!

Nipping around and about in Nicaragua....

If you want to soak up the real vibe of a country then the only way to travel is by public transport. In this way you have a real chance to step inside a culture, interact with the locals on a more equal footing, and enjoy the country from a more modest perspective. In Nicaragua you are spoilt for choice, as like India, Vietnam and other developing countries, everything is on the same road whatever the speed, from ox and cart, to horse and carriage, buses, tuk-tuks, bicycles, and speedy limo taxis..

The buses are the highly ornate decorated yellow school buses which are such a trademark feature of Central Amerca - here perfectly safe and fun to use. In Nicaragua, horse and carts are very common for the working day, and horse and carriages are the local taxi of choice in Granada. Bicycles are very popular too, and more often or not they accomodate two or even three passengers quite comfortably....

And let's not forget the very convenient option of the tuk-tuk seen in the smaller villages around Granada, such as this fleet both spotted and used in the small town of Diriomo....




















Wouldn't you miss out on so much if you only viewed Nicaragua from behind the wheel of a hire car?? For more windows on the world check out My World Tuesday posts by clicking here

Shadow Shot Sunday 33 - Nicaragua

Nicaragua is a country full of baseball fans, and most seemed to be supporting the New York Yankees in the World Series last week, judging by the high numbers of NY baseball caps being worn everywhere. Large screens were erected in the streets so fans could sit and watch in the comfort of the cooler air. Granada, a beautiful colonial town in Nicaragua, has its own baseball field where players love to emulate their heros, encouraged by high numbers of spectators both on the bleachers, and peering through the wire mesh fence. This roadside shack serving drinks sits at the edge of that baseball field. Don't those three red bar stools look particularly friendly and inviting??
For more inviting shadows check out Shadow Shot Sunday by clicking here