León, Nicaragua
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Firstly, an update on Elder, (the truck driver we met at the border). I'd been keeping in touch with him via WhatsApp and he informed us that he eventually crossed into Nicaragua 52 hours after joining the queue of trucks on the Honduran side. 52 hours!!!
We left the border town of Somatillo at 6 and the air was reasonably cool. Best of all, the road was lovely and quiet. Because of the time it takes for trucks to cross the border, only one gets through every few minutes. This means interminable delays for drivers like Elder but lovely quiet roads for cyclists like us.
Our landmark for the ride towards León was this magnificent volcano. The haze made it hard to get a clear picture and this one does not really do it justice or indicate the scale of it. It really did stand out from miles away.
For the first time in a long while we rode on dirt. This time it was by choice. The road network was like an isosceles triangle: the two long, equal sides were tarmac, whist the other, short side was dirt. We opted for 6km of dirt rather than 16km of tarmac. We have no idea if it was quicker or not but it was nice and quiet.
There was a handily placed bus stop in the shade, next to a shop at the point where the dirt rejoined the tarmac. We chatted to a bloke who was waiting for the bus with his son. We got talking about families and told him about our two sons. He replied telling us he had two sons and, with a roll of his eyes, confided that the one he was with was 'el ultimo'. Parenthood presents challenges all around the world.
Our final pause of the day was in Telica. We were impressed by the colonial influence of the central plaza which had lots of trees for shade and benches to rest on. Everything was painted in a really pleasing pastel pink/green combination.
There was a bakery beside the square selling these awesome treats that were filled with cheese.
Yet another amazing encounter while we were sitting and eating. Everyone is super friendly and always ready to spark up a conversion with total strangers. As earlier we shared details of our family and this mum seemed a little jealous that our two boys were no longer dependent on us.
Our first rest day in León focused on visits to two cultural landmarks.
We learnt about the history of revolutionary struggle to gain self determination dating back to the 1920s and culminating in the overthrow of the Somoza regime in July 1979 by the FSLN. León was the first city in the country to be controlled by the Sandinistas which explains the significance of the museum.
Before visiting the , my only source is information about the political history of Nicaragua was this song by Chumbawamaba (lyrics). It was amazing to learn so much more about this turbulent but pivotal moment in the country's history.
The museum is housed in a delapidated building with grand architecture. We got to climb into the roof for panoramic views of the city including locations that were pivotal in the revolution. The roof was in terrible repair and, in order not to worry my mum, I'll not add any photos of us standing on it 😁
Second was a visit to Fundación Ortiz Gurdián.
This was amazing for two reasons. Firstly the building it is housed in. A labyrinthine collection of courtyards and corridors dating back to colonial times. The courtyards were cleverly designed to allow light in but to offer shade and regulate the temperature.
The other reason was the extensive collection of art it housed. This included European and American world but lots of Central American work as well. Photos of art don't really capture the impact of them so I'll simply include this one that tickled us given that we are heading towards Panama. It is titled "no en un barco en el canal" (it is not a boat in the canal).
Google photos https://photos.app.goo.gl/p8J9ERd7iN2bGiZy9
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