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I've only hung around near the airport and Mercado Mayoreo. Neither seemed very desirable.
Does anyone know what inner Managua is really like? I hear it's hard to love but know none of its redeemables. Apparently it's been so levelled by seismic activity that they have just given up on the concept of street names.
I don't know the city very well but Managua is extremely hot! Its not as modern as other Central America cities, but it is safer then all of them. One thing I like about Managua is the streets are wide, Its doesn't feel as crowded as other Central American cities and there are alot of trees. It has potential if the economy ever picks up. Mercado oriental is an interesing place. I want to go back soon to explore Nicaragua more.
I saw a Globe Trekker program where part of it was filmed in Managua. I am not sure how old the program was but it did looks like there was good & cheap public transportation there.
Managua has a weird sprawling feel to it, much of it feels very low density as well. The city was destroyed by an earthquake in the early 70s which totalled the older quarter of the city. Of all the major cities I've been to in Latin America it's one of the only ones that doesn't really have a traditional old area with a plaza and cathedral near the center. What's left of the old area has sort of an empty feeling to it, there's an old cathedral that is closed off and government buildings. It's very decentralized in some ways--a lot of what there is to do is in sort of suburban neighborhoods. There some somewhat interesting markets in places, but those are going to be found most places in the region.
Nicaragua is a cool country, but Leon and Granada are much more enjoyable for a visitor. As far a big Central American capitals go, Managaua isn't really my favorite of the ones I've been to, Panama City is much more worth a visit.
Yes I've visited Managua every year for 2 decades my immediate family lives there.
The city is old world, fairly crime free what I would think you would find in sleepy Italian Towns. Kinda European but definitely not American influenced.
People sell food door to door in the mornings. Everything kind of shuts down after 10.
You rarely see foreigners unless they are traveling mormons and Christians trying to convert the locals. They took great pride in their little mall and for a capital city in Latin America, its distinctly still innocent.
Their are a couple Mickey ds, burger kings, a few fast food chicken places but outside of that the American influence is very missing!
People hang out in parks, on there porch and the old people still sit around and shoot the gossip like you would expect a small town to do.
Managua is not el Salvador, Guatemala, I think those countries changed when deported gang members brought American style crime. They don't have gangs out there that kill people.
I saw a Globe Trekker program where part of it was filmed in Managua. I am not sure how old the program was but it did looks like there was good & cheap public transportation there.
$6 a gallon of gas last time i was there 2 years ago? You could get most places in Managua by taxi for 20 cordobas, $1.30 cents. food runs about $1.75 per person per meal. A good hotel $60/night. Renting a decent housein decent neighborhood $ 300_500/mo.
Thanks for the pic's! One of the cursing of earthquakes in Central/South America is the destruction of the colonial buildings, and one of the blessings of earthquakes in that region is the free demolition, which gives that city a chance to rebuild, hopefully, a more interesting city. Doesn't always work out that way, unfortunately, as there's the quest to rebuild with speed. Guatemala City is an example of that. Yes, I love the more modern area of Guatemala City, but the downtown area is crying out for better architecture. It really surprises me that neighboring colonial-intact Antigua survived so well!
Being a desert rat, fearing collisions with both heat & humidity, when I ventured down into Nicaragua, I took it baby steps: Leon (which I feared would be too humid for me but turned out otherwise) and up in the coolest area around Matagalpa. I was so tempted to go on to Managua & Granada, but I was fearing the worst, crashing to the sidewalk from all the humidity.
Thanks for the pic's! One of the cursing of earthquakes in Central/South America is the destruction of the colonial buildings, and one of the blessings of earthquakes in that region is the free demolition, which gives that city a chance to rebuild, hopefully, a more interesting city. Doesn't always work out that way, unfortunately, as there's the quest to rebuild with speed. Guatemala City is an example of that. Yes, I love the more modern area of Guatemala City, but the downtown area is crying out for better architecture. It really surprises me that neighboring colonial-intact Antigua survived so well!.
True, Antigua is well kept but the old historic centre of Guatemala city is such a disaster. I mean, it is still pretty interesting place, but your right they should take more pride in restoring their old buildings, make sure they are painted. And they need to replace those metal roofs with something else or atleast used colored ones so it doenst look so terrible when they rust. In Guatemala city you don't see roof tiles any more, they replaced them with those metal sheets and it looks terrible. The place has potential, they just need to clean it up.
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