A Grand Time in Granada

So! Here we are in Granada - six nights in one place - yippee! This beautiful little city sounded like it would keep us busy for nearly a week, with plenty to see and do around town, two volcanoes to scale nearby and an archipelago of islands to explore in Lake Nicaragua. 

Our first couple of days and we're sightseeing again. Back to some indigenous history:

Oddly calm face

More peaceful courtyards:

This time with palm trees

 And of course churches! These Latin Americans sure are a religious bunch...

Tiles and columns

Arches

Day-glo stained glass

Good Friday is coming

The Virgin Mary

 The numerous churches don't account for all of the impressive architecture, but do dominate the landscape.

The sultry central square

One of the bell towers in the Cathedral

Grandiose houses (and volcanoes!)

Clouds and shapes

Admiring the view

Matt quite fancied nabbing this bike for a quick spin

 Alongside the colonial architecture, slightly more recent additions include a fort:

Lookout tower

 And an abandoned hospital - very spooky!

We thought there might have
been a few ghosts inside

Beautiful yet crumbling

And even an old train station, including disused engines. Suffice to say, there is no rail service in Nicaragua these days.

Final destination

The end of the line?

 And of course time spent exploring wouldn't be complete without some food and drink!

We went to the chocolate cafe and
Matt had a 'real' chocolate drink.
Turns out it was cacoa mixed
with maize and milk. Not so tasty...

This was tasty-as though - mashed yukka,
coleslaw and pork rinds - YUM!

Next up, the volcanoes and islands...