Welcome to Managua, the capital and largest city of Nicaragua, on the shores of Lake Managua. Before it became the national capital in 1852 it was a small fishing village, yet it grew rapidly to become one of the most developed cities in Central America. Earthquakes have shaped its story, above all those of 1931 and 1972, and the city has been rebuilt several times. Today it is home to about a million people and is a major economic hub for the whole region. Let's start in the old heart of the city.
Old Cathedral of Managua
Photo: Viktor Pinchuk / Виктор Пинчук · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsBefore you stands the Old Cathedral of Managua, the Cathedral of Saint James, designed by Belgian architects in a neoclassical style said to be inspired by the church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris. Building began in 1928 and lasted until 1938, and the iron for its core was shipped all the way from Belgium. Here is the irony: the cathedral survived the 1931 earthquake because only that iron frame stood at the time. Four decades later, the 1972 earthquake damaged it heavily, and it was condemned, though never demolished. Its old tower clock now lives in the National Palace of Culture.
National Palace of Culture
Photo: No machine-readable author provided. LaNicoya~commonswiki assumed (based on copy · Public domain · Wikimedia CommonsNext door is the National Palace of Culture, one of the oldest buildings in Managua. It was commissioned in 1935 and built by Pablo Dambach, the same man who oversaw the Old Cathedral, and for more than 50 years it housed the National Congress. Remarkably, it was one of the few buildings to survive the 1972 earthquake. Today it holds the National Archive, the National Library and the National Museum, with pre-Columbian statues and ceramics and works by artists such as Armando Morales.
Tiscapa Lagoon Natural Reserve
Photo: Luis Sáenz from Managua, Nicaragua · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia CommonsIn the middle of the city lies Tiscapa Lagoon, formed by volcanic activity more than 10,000 years ago and protected as a nature reserve since 1991. The lagoon has its own ecosystem, and many pre-Columbian artefacts have been found in and around it. Canopy rides here give a sweeping view over the old downtown, where only a few buildings survived the 1972 earthquake, which destroyed 90 per cent of the capital.
Rubén Darío National Theatre
Photo: Jorge Mejía Peralta · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia CommonsHere is the Rubén Darío National Theatre, the national theatre of Nicaragua, named after one of the country's most celebrated poets, the father of Modernismo. It was built to mark 100 years since his birth, with Hope Portocarrero, the future first lady, raising money and overseeing construction. Designed by José Francisco Terán Callejas, it opened in 1969 and has been called a landmark of modern architecture in Central America. The main hall seats up to 1,200 people, and the Crystal Room, with three chandeliers donated by Spain, looks out over Lake Managua.
Ancient footprints of Acahualinca
Photo: Dr d12 at English Wikipedia ( Original text: Dr d12 ) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia CommonsNear the southern shore of Lake Managua, look down at something truly ancient: human footprints pressed into volcanic ash and mud that hardened about 2,000 years ago. A group of up to 15 people passed this way shortly before the ground set. It is sometimes said they were running from an eruption, but the spacing of the prints shows they were walking. Animal tracks are preserved too, yet they cross the human prints, which tells us the animals were not travelling with the people.
Masaya Volcano
Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Tabla assumed (based on copyright claims). · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia CommonsOur final stop is 20 kilometres south of Managua at Masaya, known by its old Nawat name Popogatepe. It is Nicaragua's first and largest national park, a complex volcano made of calderas and craters nested one inside another. Its main caldera was formed 2,500 years ago by a great basaltic eruption, and new cones have grown within it since. Peer towards the active Santiago crater, which continually releases large amounts of sulphur dioxide gas, studied by volcanologists to understand how the volcano behaves.
Lomakuume
