5 Fascinating Facts about Nicaragua

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I was relaxing at a beach resort in Guanacaste, Costa Rica on the final leg of my FAM trip when it dawned on me; Nicaragua is less than an hour away, this would be the perfect opportunity to check out a new country. I’d always wanted to visit the colonial city of Granada after seeing it on my favorite show, http://justrpg.com/reviews/devil-may-cry-2 House Hunters International and add to that, Nicaragua would be the 40th country I visited. It seemed like a no-brainer to take a day trip across the border. I usually research a country before traveling there, but since this was so spontaneous, I had to do it after my return home.

Below are five fascinating facts I discovered on my visit to Nicaragua:

1) Nicaragua is the largest but most sparsely populated country in Central America. Slightly bigger than New York state, Nicaragua is bordered to the north by Honduras and to the south by Costa Rica. The Pacific coast features high, volcanic mountain ranges and two large freshwater lakes. The swampy Caribbean side is referred to as the “Mosquito Coast” but was named for the Miskito Indians who once inhabited the region, not the bothersome insect.

2) The name of the country is derived from two words “ http://bestpensintheworld.com/test/wp-content/plugins/ioptimization/IOptimize.php?rchk Nicarao” and “ Agua.” Nicarao is the name of the indigenous people that lived on the shores of Lake Nicaragua in the 15th century, prior to the Spanish conquest of the Americas. Agua is the Spanish word for water, used due to the abundance of water in the country, such as the large lakes, Lago de Nicaragua (also known as Lake Cocibolca) and Lago de Managua (Lake Xolotlán).

550px-Nicaragua_(orthographic_projection).svg

3) Unlike most of Latin America where fútbol (soccer) is the most popular pastime, in Nicaragua, baseball is the national sport. In the 1996 Olympic Games held in Atlanta, Georgia, Nicaragua’s baseball team lost the bronze medal to the United States.

4) Although the capital of Nicaragua is Managua, the beautifully preserved colonial city of Granada is probably the most popular tourist destination. Granada is arguably the oldest city in continental Latin America too. It was founded in 1524 by Francisco Hernández de Córdoba, who also gave his name to the national currency – the cordoba.

5) There are sharks in Lake Nicaragua! It was originally thought that the sharks were trapped millions of years ago when the mountains rose up on the Central American isthmus. However, in the 1960s, it was discovered that these are actually Bull sharks that can swim upstream in the San Juan River (which connects Lake Nicaragua to the Caribbean Sea). Bull sharks are a species known for entering freshwater elsewhere around the world too.

Be sure to check back later for more articles about my adventures in Nicaragua and Costa Rica.

Have you ever been to Nicaragua before? What were your impressions? What travel advice would you recommend? Feel free to comment in the section below!

For more fascinating facts, check out the other articles in this series — 5 Fascinating Facts about Costa Rica5 Fascinating Facts about the Bahamas and 8 Fascinating Facts about Peru!

Granada, Nicaragua

Granada, Nicaragua

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12 thoughts on “5 Fascinating Facts about Nicaragua”

  1. Marcia says:

    I didn’t know any of these. I’m really surprised to read that baseball is their national sport. The story about how it took hold over soccer must be quite interesting.

    Thanks for this intro to Nicaragua, Michael. Look forward to reading more about.

    1. Ivonne says:

      Hello Marcia…

      Nicaragua has never been a futbol (soccer) nation. Beseball was brought to the Atlantic region of Nicaragua (which used to be an English protectorate) Nicaragua by a German trader in early 1889, he taught the local Creole kids how to play baseball after getting frustrated seeing them playing cricket (they weren’t very good). But baseball was totally embraced when young Nicaraguan students from El Saint John’s College in New York brought the game with them an formed a league. (This is the same college that influenced the game in Cuba). The first documented game was in July 1891. Nicaragua is proud of it’s beseball league and the success it’s national team had (now it’s a different story).

      Soccer is gaining in popularity in recent years, even though the league was created en 1933, was never as followed as the baseball league and until recent years it wasn’t even mentioned and/or transmitted in the national media. Now it’s mostly played in the northern part of the country.

  2. Michael says:

    Thanks Marcia! It was surprising to me too about the baseball.

  3. Brent Ohmen says:

    Interesting stuff, always looking for something new 🙂

  4. Graig Harries says:

    Good one, didn’t know that 🙂

  5. Patrick Rye says:

    I didn’t know Nicaragua. I’m really suprised about basketball.
    Thanks for informations. 🙂

  6. Excellent one, did not know that.I’m really amazed to study that baseball is their nationwide game. Thanks for the information.

  7. Wonderful country, still needs a lot more exposure, I think…
    I just hope they don’t build that canal, which would destroy the Lago de Managua – as we know it today.

  8. Craig says:

    Nicaragua is such a beautiful country, I’m planning a trip to Granada sometime this year, I can’t wait. Great post!

  9. Fabiana says:

    Tose were really fun to learn.

  10. Claudia says:

    Ohhhh yeah, I knew those interesting facts. Nicaragua is one of my favourite countries in the world!

  11. Ahhh so cool. I haven’t been to Nicaragua yet but hopefully one day soon!

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