12/12/2019 - San Jose -> Granada/Nicaragua

It's my first night on vacation without earplugs. I have to wake up very early. The alarm is set for 3:30 AM. It works on the tablet, but I can't change the time on my phone. So it stays on German time and I have to calculate when the alarm will go off. Unfortunately, I miscalculated and the phone alarm goes off an hour early.
Of course, I wonder what I'll do if the booked taxi doesn't arrive at 4:05 AM. I sneak out of the hotel and keep my fingers crossed that it will come. It's only 3:50 AM. And there it is... the taxi is already waiting. The driver is really nice, but he doesn't follow the traffic rules. There's obviously no traffic at this time, but still... he just ignores red lights and we're not in a hurry. He tells me that he works 15-20 hours a day, 6 days a week. He has four children to support. He went to bed at 1 AM today and picked me up shortly before 4 AM. Hopefully, he won't end up crashing a fully loaded bus into a tree!

The airport in San Jose is very modern. We could learn a thing or two from them. The restrooms could be from a five-star hotel. Every other seat in the gates has an outlet and two USB ports. The flight is as punctual as any other mode of transportation.
The flight to Managua only takes 1 hour and Carlos, the hotel owner, picks me up to take me to Granada, which is 50 km away. It costs 35 USD.
My room is not ready yet this early. The rooms are arranged around a courtyard. There's a hammock in front of each room.

Carlos gives a short city tour to three other guests from Spain. Granada is the third largest and most beautiful city in Nicaragua, and we get a historical background and see the main attractions of this old colonial city, which was founded in 1524.

The city has been attacked and burned down by pirates several times. Granada is located west of Lake Nicaragua, the largest lake in Central America with an area of ​​8,157 km² and the third largest in South America after Lake Maracaibo and Lake Titicaca. There is a ship connection to the Caribbean Sea via this lake and the San Juan River.

I get an overview from the tower of the La Merced Church before checking out the sights. The ratio of street vendors to tourists here is 10 to 1. But they're not very persistent.

Today, I treat myself to really good food. The prices are similar to ours, but the portions are generous and delicious. Steamed fish with vegetables, potatoes, rice, and flambéed banana.

Many of the houses have beautiful courtyards.