Nicaragua 2022

Thursday27October

Waking up in our surfer's cabin in Aposentillo.

The door of our accommodation.

We take advantage of the low tide for a last little tour on the beach before taking the road which leads to the city of Masaya 200 kilometers from here.

Lunch break in Managua where we test the "pupusa", a traditional dish originating from El Salvador. These are two cakes enclosing between them, cheese, meat, red beans, peppers or any other ingredient that will please you...  

Here we are in Masaya in the Airbnb accommodation of "Miguel". We have a small room but outside, there is a large kitchen and a large patio. We will spend three nights here.

And in addition, we are entitled to the swimming pool! And we will be able to enjoy it because there is only the owner who lives in this large complex!

The small room with its two beds.

The bathroom and its classic electric shower head...  

The kitchen open to the patio.

And tonight, it's President Daniel Ortega who declaims a long speech on TV. We feel the inspiration of Fidel Castro. Although he was one of the important actors in the liberation of the country in 1979, he is today very criticized for his authoritarianism and human rights violations. He has now been in power for 15 consecutive years.

Friday28October

In the patio, we are not really alone. Miguel the owner "raises" seven turtles! I will only ever see one at a time...  

Here we are on the shores of the Apoyo lagoon located 15 minutes from Masaya. This small lake 200 meters deep and almost five kilometers in diameter was born 23 thousand years ago following the collapse of the volcano.

The lagoon houses several restaurants, with tables right by the water.  

We therefore take advantage of the place to eat, alternating swimming and dishes...  

After this good time, we take height by joining the village of Diriá south of the lagoon.

Viewpoint on the area where we were earlier.

Return to Masaya, at the Coyotepe fortress. Perched on a hill, this old fort offers a panoramic view of the city and its surroundings. It is also possible to explore the building which in turn became a defense building, resistance and prison, among others...;

On the right, the smoking Masaya volcano that we will reach tomorrow...

The city of Masaya

Here we are in the fort that a guide shows us. In the first room, illustrations relate the events of some figures of the country, including General Zeledón, a hero of the Nicaraguan resistance.

Passage into the undergrounds of the fort.

The basement is now inhabited by bats, but for a long period, it was prisoners who paced these walls...

The three crosses are here in memory of Ismael Castillo (known as Fredy), Walter Mendoza Martínez and Franklin Porras (known as Oscar). On July 7, 1979, they were captured by the Somoza Guard. Walter and Franklin were shot, while Ismael was forced to carry their bodies here before being killed himself...;

Return to the center of Masaya and its Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption.

There is activity here, the party is preparing... Tonight, the inhabitants of Masaya will raise the temperature with the "Aguizotes"...;

In the meantime, we wander the streets of the city. Here, the Centro Cultural Mercado de Artesanías, the former covered market which now hosts traditional Nicaraguan crafts.

Fresco inside the building enclosure.

The kiosk of the central park and its dancer.

Makeup preparation for the Agüizotes evening...

The San Jeronimo church

San Jerónimo, Saint Jerome, is the Patron Saint of Masaya and he is considered the "Doctor que cura sin medicinas", the doctor who cures without medicine...  

The "Malecón", promenade along Lake Masaya with a superb view of the eponymous volcano and its setting Sun...

The Sun, once set, reveals the nocturnal star.

She is heading straight for her first quarter.

It's 9:30 PM and that's it, the party has already started well! The "Agüizotes" parade is in full swing! This popular tradition takes place in Masaya on the last Friday and Sunday of October. The inhabitants dress up, make up as everything that embodies fear or horror. Between demons, witches, zombies and other eccentric creatures from literature and cinema, everything is good to have fun with each other's fears. The goal is to ward off fate before really celebrating the dead on All Saints' Day.

The atmosphere is good-natured. Everyone comes with friends, family, to the sound of brass bands from the city's neighborhoods.

And many will come to pose in front of my camera! With all these dead people, the event must logically be "immortalized"!

The success is total. The whole city seems to have come out into the streets, as actors or spectators.

And there you go, we let the party end quietly. We are going to sleep to resume our discovery of volcanoes with two more on the program for tomorrow!