nicuaraga

We were in Nicaragua out 5 years ago during a central America trip and loved it . We crossed the border from Costa Rica at Los Chiles to San Carlos on a river crossing. Very and I mean basic customs and immigration process and then went down river on the San Juan river which is world famous for tarpon fishing. The area is primitive , no roads, just river boats stopping here and there to leave and pick up local people. we were the only tourists on the boat and the 4 hour trip to El Castillo was colorful and simply amazing through the jungle. there is a wonderful nature reserve called Indio Maiz where you can go on REAL jungle tour with plentiful critters big and small too....... the people are friendly and it helps if you have a little bit of Spanish. The only way out is either by going down to the carribean side or back to san carlos. I wished we had taken the boat which is both passenger and cargo (very rough crossing ,primitive facilities and 14 hrs of stop and go but time was running out. our next stop was flying to Managua on an 8 seater prop across lake Nicaragua. Very interesting flying checklist the pilots did or did not do.... a gravel airstrip and on a wing and prayer we made it to Managua. we took a cab directly to Antigua, and price was reasonable comparable to the shuttle price for two. we enjoyed Antigua as a gringofied colonial but very charming town. the area around such as Pacaya and local villages are awesome. we were there over New years and it was a delight to witness the processions, celebrations and horse drawn carriages.
we did not bother with San Juan del Sur where it is said that it is a bit like Zihua was years ago, a typical fishing village but now well known for surfing and on a smaller scale development for expats and tourists like in La Ropa. We can have that kind of vibe home in zihua so we took an overnight bus from Managua to San Salvador with 2 border crossings with no incident and in a very comfortable coach with attendant on board, clean washrooms, food, pillow, blanket and beverages. It is still a country full of young people but an inefficient (hum) government but life goes on and the population is still hopeful and so friendly wherever we visited. Note we did not spend anytime in Managua