Granada

Journal

I am exhausted. We took the chicken bus from Managua to Granada. They pack you into these old school buses. There was a crazy Australian on board who started in L.A. and was working his way down through Central America.

My first impressions of Granada were not so favorable. The bus station we got off at was in a dirty, run down part of town. We decided to hail a cab and head to the city center. The center was considerably better Granada is dripping with charm. I can't wait to see it during daylight.

We went into one hostel that was booked. Luckily we found an American who pointed us in the right direction, hostel row. The hostel we settled on is basic but pretty nice, cleaner and nicer than a lot of places in Europe. The guy at the front desk spoke very good English. $30 for a night.

Dinner was average. It was at a Mexican place. The whole meal, for both of us, cost $20. After that we went out for a couple of drinks. We tried two sleepy bars before going into the Moon guide recommended, "Zoom". Gator memorabilia decked the walls. It turns out, the proprietor is from Florida, a huge Gator fan. he served up the local rum and filled us in on the details regarding baseball. Granada has a very proud baseball tradition. The minor leagues are a bigger deal than the majors. The local team is called, Los Tiburones, The Sharks, so named because Granada (in lake Nicaragua) boasts the only freshwater sharks in the world. The baseball stadium is just outside of town and we are honored guests for tomorrow night. For $2.50 we can sit just behind home plate.