Say the word Nicaragua and mentioned that you have traveled
there and the first response will be:
“Isn't it dangerous? What about the Sandinista and Contra war? Ah, the
reputation continues. We all do it, we get an idea in our head and we are
reluctant to ever change or to take the time to understand the situation from a
new perspective or even find the truth.
I first traveled to Nicaragua in February 2005; it now has
been six trips over the past ten years for me.
On my first trip, everyone said I probably would never make it back
alive….no kidding. But I had done my
research and I was an experienced traveler, so I had no concerns. So what’s up with Nicaragua; a tropical paradise
or a war torn country?
Political History
First, let’s get the Iran-Contra incident out of the way
because it is the most common question I hear.
The native people of Nicaragua were colonized by the Spanish, having
been visited by Christopher Columbus in 1502. The beautiful and well preserved
city of Granada, which now is a major tourist destination, is the oldest
permanent settlement in the Americas having been founded in 1524. In the year 1821 Nicaragua achieved its
independence from the Spanish and life was good for a long time. But in the early 1900s, economic problems created
political turmoil and the United States sent help in the form of “boots on the
ground” and U.S Marines occupied Nicaragua from 1912 to 1933. The leader of the rebellion against the U.S.
occupation was Augusto César Sandino (1895–1934), from who the Sandinistas get
their name. In 1933 an agreement was met and a cease fire achieved, but in 1934
Augusto Sandino was assassinated by the Nicaraguan National Guard, which was
the U.S. backed police force of the ruling Somoza family who ruled Nicaragua as
a dictatorship from 1936 to 1979.The beginning of the end of the Somoza dynasty started with a very powerful earthquake that hit the capitol city of Managua in 1972. Eighty percent of the city was leveled, leaving over 10,000 people dead. Millions of dollars in aid was sent, largely from the United States, but the Somoza family kept most of the money for themselves and spent little to help the Nicaragua people who had already been suffering under the Somoza regime for several generations. This was the breaking point and thousands of young Nicaraguan men organized and fought to overthrow the government to achieve freedom and democracy. They became known as the Sandinistas. In 1979, the Somoza family fled to Paraguay and "Tachito” Somoza was assassinated there in 1980. With the Somoza family gone, the Sandinistas were in power.
Here is where the story of the “Contras” begins. In opposition to the new Sandinista
government the Contras were formed in 1979 with help from the CIA, which
provided funding and training. The backlash the Nicaraguan people received from
the Contras was severe and nearly 30,000 people were murdered in rural areas
during the war. In 1983 the United
States Congress stopped U.S. funding of the Contras, but some within the U.S.
military decided to proceed on their own by selling arms to Iran and using the
money to continue to fund the Contras.
You know…like a bake sale for the military. It is now referred to as the
Iran-Contra affair. In 1984 the Sandinistas won the general election and took
power once again in Nicaragua.
I was in Nicaragua during
the 2011 general election when President Daniel Ortega was re-elected for a
second term in a landslide victory for the Sandinista party. I can tell you that everyone was dancing in
the streets and the party went on for days.
For those that do not like President Ortega, he is often referred to as
a benevolent dictator, although every election meets international standards of
fairness.
Nature and Beauty
Nicaragua is nearly the size of the state of Washington and
has a population of six million. It is the largest country in Central America
and is bordered to the north by Honduras, to south by Costa Rica, to the east
by the tranquil calm Caribbean seacoast and to the west by the strong waves of
the Pacific Ocean. One fifth of the
country is designated as a protected national park or reserve and the whole
country is located within the tropic zone. So if you love traveling amongst
abundant pristine nature, Nicaragua is a wonderful option and has a lot to
offer. For birders, there are over 700 different species of birds to find and
observe.
The rainforest of the Atlantic lowlands along the 120 mile
long Rio San Juan River is spectacular.
Most of the Rio San Juan is the border between Nicaragua and Costa
Rica. There are no roads, only boats to
get you up and down the river. In addition to an abundance of birds, amphibians
and reptiles, you will find three species of monkeys. In the Sabalos area, the Howler monkeys will
sit in the trees above your jungle cabin and through the night they howl and
call. It is an amazing experience to be awakened in the middle of the night to
the songs of the midnight jungle. Any visit to the Atlantic lowlands should
include a day or more at the Indio Maíz Biological Reserve. The rainforest here is pristine and abundant
with magnificent trees and a wide range of wildlife.
The stunning central
highlands of Nicaragua rise to elevations of 5,900 feet in the cloud forest,
which is also the coffee growing region.
In some areas this is more of a deciduous dry forest with a thin
understory. The Peñas Blancas Massif is
part of the huge Bosawas Biosphere Reserve and here the rainy season is longer
and wetter and so you will find amazing waterfalls and tranquility. This area has just recently opened up to
tourism due to better road construction and there are already several
eco-lodges and educational centers here. It is definitely worth a visit if you
travel to Nicaragua.
Culture
All my best memories of Nicaragua are of the
people. In the early days of my travels
to Nicaragua, I knew very little Spanish and it was the local people who showed
tremendous kindness in helping me as I traveled through the country. The people I met were proud of their communities
and eager to show me the beauty of their land.
They always fed me well and gave me great advice, although much
communication was done via drawing pictures as I stumbled through my Spanish
phrase book.
The people of Nicaragua, also called “Nicas”, are a diverse
group. The population is a mix between
Spanish and indigenous people. Spanish
is the main language, but there are four indigenous languages which are still
spoken. Along the Caribbean coast, many
Afro-Nicaraguans speak English as their first language. In the late 1800’s many immigrants from
Germany and The Netherlands settled in Nicaragua.
Unlike most Latin America countries where soccer is the
dominate sport, Nicaraguans love American-style baseball. It is the country’s most popular sport and 12
major league baseball players in the U.S. have come from Nicaragua.
Economy
Tourism has become the second largest industry and increases
significantly every year. The increase
in tourism has also brought more foreign investment to the country. Last year
about 60,000 U.S. citizens visited Nicaragua. When I travel to Nicaragua I
rarely meet Americans, most of the foreigners I meet are Europeans and
Canadians. I think it is unfortunate,
but for many Americans, Nicaragua still has a reputation of being a dangerous
war torn place. One thing I love about
Nicaragua is that the tourist infrastructure is still developing. You can visit Nicaragua and still feel the
culture and its natural beauty. So let
it go and think again: Nicaragua is a
wonderful place to visit.
If you would like to visit Nicaragua and join a tour,
considering traveling with me at Kaiyote Tours.
You can check out tours to Nicaragua at KaiyoteTours.com.