Hello mudda, hello fadda

Granada, Nicaragua bears the distinction of earliest city founding date in the Americas, 1524. Situated near the northern tip of Lake Nicaragua, Granada is a top tourist attraction both for its Spanish colonial architecture and for its high-end (and high-priced) amenities geared toward its growing norteamericano population. Boutique hotels, jewel box restaurants and specialty shops, parks and internationally-themed pubs and gathering places combine to create a gringo-friendly consumer economy unlike anywhere else in this country. For many U.S. expats, it is tropical heaven on earth. For me? Well, I did not come to Nicaragua to live in Fort Lauderdale. But when Beth invited me along to take her cat to be neutered by a Granada vet, I did not hesitate to hop in the car. Granada has the best-stocked super market in Nicaragua, and I needed to replenish some spices and scratch a couple culinary itches. Two months without Philadelphia cream cheese is just wrong.

The drive from Diriamba through Jinotepe to Granada is flat-out gorgeous. We passed numerous grand haciendas, a few of which we could actually see; most are behind high concrete walls. But the lush greenery and the shaded winding road create a separate universe from the coastal desert of La Boquita.

We dropped off the cat at the vet's office, and picked up Beth's friend Melissa for lunch at a local Chinese restaurant. "Chinese New Year" has not a single Chinese person in evidence, but it features most of the takeout items to be found in your basic Panda House or Great Wall of Pearls eatery in any mall in the States. Wonton soup -- here, it's wantan, fried rice, beef and broccoli, steamed dumplings, and chop suey. My order of the latter featured corn, lima beans, and a couple of mystery veggies, and no water chestnuts or bamboo shoots, but it was all very fresh and delicious.

We took a stroll through a pedestrian mall that connects the famed Granada cathedral and Lake Nicaragua. A bit too precious for my taste, but overflowing with darling-ness, as shown:

The twin bell towers of Granada's cathedral and its large dome are visible for miles around the city. The cathedral's  iconic yellow and white scheme, with the rust-colored domes is key to the city's identity. My photo from ground level didn't do it justice, so I lifted this one from a tourist website!

There has been a church on the site since the late 16th-century. This latest incarnation was completed 100 years ago. The large park opposite the cathedral is shady, but the heat is intense nevertheless. Souvenir booths line the perimeter.

And to one side is Independence Plaza, which was the scene for a corn festival. Difference corn-based foods were being prepared and agricultural displays were interspersed with my old friends from the Institute of Tourism, and their demon-eyed cattle!

                                                     Looking back toward the cathedral

We were due to collect the cat from the vet, so we returned to our car, walking past the Cathedral (and Convent) of St. Francis with its triple bell tower, below on the right. I'll share more from Granada in a future post. When somebody comes to visit me -- if anyone ever comes to visit me-- I will enjoy taking my guest on a water tour of the Islets of Granada, more than 300 tiny islands along the northwest shores of Lake Nicaragua. And I would like to see the inside of these two cathedrals. Work to do, work to do!