Granada

Granada, on the edge of lake Nicaragua, is a beautiful colonial city.  While in Granada, we stayed with a very comical Spanish woman at her club.  She warned us when we arrived that it would be very loud at night.  At first we did not believe this.  The club was empty when we went to bed, and the music was low.  Of course, later in the night we awoke to an unpleasant surprise.  Loud, banging beats of club music vibrated the whole room.  We didn't sleep much after that.

 

The city was wonderful to walk around in.  We visited the old fort and climbed the tower of one of the churches.  The city itself is colorful and alive.  The main street going to the lake is always filled with people having food or coffee.  This main part of town feels fairly developed, but in this same city not more than a couple kilometers away was the most disgusting market place I have ever seen.  The floor of the outdoor market was piled with food scraps and garbage.  The meat vendors kept their items out on tables; unrefrigerated and stinking.  It was truly a sight.

Outside of Granada is an old volcanic crater that is now a lake: Apoyo.  You can take a short bus ride to Catarina and walk up the hill to the overlook.  From there you can look down over the crater lake Apoyo.