FACTS ABOUT NICARAGUA

AMAZING FACTS ABOUT NICARAGUA

1.                 Managua is the capital city of Nicaragua.

2.                 The total population of Nicaragua is 5,966,798.

3.                 The natives of Nicaragua are called Nicaraguans.

4.                 The Cordoba (NIO) is the official currency of Nicaragua.

5.                 Nicaragua shares a border with Costa Rica and Honduras.

6.                 Nicaragua consists of three definite geographical regions:  the Atlantic Lowlands, the North-Central Highlands and the Pacific Lowlands, and the latter are the most populous region of the country.

7.                 Central America’s largest lake is Lake Nicaragua, which provides the water supply for much of Nicaragua and is the country’s largest tourist attraction. This lake is enormous and contains the largest lake island in the world.

8.                 Nicaragua’s famous Dual Volcano is the only one in the world that is fed by two separate flows of magma. This makes it possible for it to erupt from two types of magma channels.

9.                 There are around 430 volcanic islands in vast Lake Nicaragua. Nicaragua uses the intense steam from deep inside its volcanoes for geothermal energy.

10.            The country is susceptible to earthquakes and volcanic activity as well as being extremely susceptible to hurricanes.

11.            Nicaragua has declared 70 areas as protected regions of water and land in order to protect their endangered species. These include different species of monkeys, boa constrictors, jaguars, sloths, green turtles and sea turtles.

12.            Nicaragua’s wettest months are usually from June to October and its driest season from December through May. The most popular time to come visit is usually November.

13.            The eastern, or “Mosquito coast” of Nicaragua receives the most rainfall in the country.

14.            Almost all the tiny islands in the Atlantic off the coast of Granada, Nicaragua are for sale. Most prices range in the millions of dollars.

15.            The higher elevations of the country have somewhat cooler weather than the tropical climates.

16.            The earliest people are assumed to have been related to Mexico’s Aztec and Mayan people of Mexico. The Nicarao was one of the largest groups of early natives.

17.            When the colonial Spanish came to the country under de Cordoba in the 1500s, they named it after these Nicarao Indians plus all the vast amounts of water the country had (agua is the Spanish word for water).

18.            The Ruins of Leon Viejo in Nicaragua is the oldest city in all of Central America. It is over 1500 years old and is still occupied today. It was founded by the early Spanish settlers.

19.            Britain came to the Caribbean coast from Jamaica and some other islands in the early 1800s and settled on the eastern coast but gradually ceded control back to Nicaragua during the following decades.

20.            After the successful Mexican Revolution from Spain on September 15, 1821, Nicaragua then won its independence from Spain as well. September 15 is their national Independence Day holiday in Nicaragua.

21.            Did you know Nicaragua had an American president? In 1856 William Walker from Tennessee seized control and declared himself to be Nicaragua’s President. He wanted to turn it into a slave state for the United States. The following year the Nicaraguan people kicked him out, aided by Cornelius Vanderbilt.

22.            When the U. S. Marines occupied the country in the 1920s and 30s, August Cesar Sandino led their Nicaraguan resistance. Today he is one of their national heroes and the Sandinista political party is named for him.

23.            Nicaragua elected the first democratic woman president of any democracy in the world in 1990. She was the first female president of any Central American country and served until 1997.

24.            Former Sandinista President Daniel Ortega lost three consecutive elections before finally being elected President in 2006 and reelected four years later. He is Nicaragua’s current President.

25.            Almost three quarters of the Nicaraguan people live on only $2 per day and nearly half live in poverty.

26.            You will pay an entry tax of $10 payable in US dollars or Córdobas (cash only). Be prepared to pay a 15 percent sales tax on all your purchases when you shop.

27.            The country has the lowest crime rate of any Central American country and is considered to be its safest country in which to travel.

28.            The Nicaraguan economy is based mostly on agriculture, tourism, mining, and manufacturing.

29.            You can get 27 Nicaraguan Cordobas, their national currency, for one American dollar.

30.            Managua lies on a geological fault line that seismologists predict will cause the city to experience a severe earthquake every 50 years or less.

31.            A 1972 earthquake killed more than 19,120 Managuans and destroyed 90 percent of the city’s downtown area.

32.            The eleven year long Contra war of the 1980s further wrecked the city. Reconstruction began in earnest after the 1990 presidential election.

33.            Category Five Hurricane Mitch struck in 1998, killing over 3,000 and displacing over two million people. Learn more about hurricanes with National Hurricane Center.

34.            Managua replaced Leon as the capital in 1858 because Leon and Granada couldn’t stop bickering viciously about which of their cities should be the country’s capital. Neutral Managua was chosen instead.

35.            Tap water in Managua is considered safe to drink. Outside of the capital, bottled water is advised.

36.            The city is served by Managua International Airport. The country has three other airports as well.

37.            Taxis are readily available but be sure to get one with red license plates with legible numbers.

38.            Los Angeles and Miami are international sister cities of Managua.

39.            Nicaraguans refer to themselves as Nicas.

40.            The official language of Nicaragua is Spanish but the native dialects and English Creole are also spoken.

41.            Nicaragua celebrates religious freedom by adopting no national religion; it is a secular state. However, 85 percent of the population is Roman Catholic.

42.            The Nicaraguan culture has been influenced from its Spanish, British, African and Caribbean roots.

43.            Though it is the largest country in Central American, Nicaragua has the lowest density of population.

44.            The Nicaraguan people are fairly young: 36 percent of the population is under 14 years of age. Their median age is twenty one.

45.            Most people are mestizos(Spanish and natives combined). The British brought African slaves to Nicaragua to work on plantations in the 1600s. Many Nicaraguans are their descendants as well.

46.            The Nicaraguans are a strong and resilient people who place great value on family and family life. They have shown a great deal of perseverance through times of great adversity and have tremendous national pride.

47.            The national dish of Nicaragua is “Gallo pinto” (spotted rooster): a combination of white rice and small cooked red beans, often eaten for breakfast.

48.            Corn is the Nicaraguan’s staple food. Nacatamales are corn flour dumplings filled with veggies and cooked wrapped inside plantain leaves. Corn is also used to make many different traditional drinks.

49.            Nicaragua is the birthplace of Ruben Dario, a notable poet who was extremely influential in the 1900s Latin America poetry community and is world renown.

50.            Bianca Jagger, Rolling Stone singer Mick Jagger’s ex-wife, is a Nicaraguan native who is an environmental and social activist and represents Amnesty International.

51.            Nicaragua is famous for folk dances, especially its “Palo de Mayo”. Music combines guitar and wooden marimba or flutes and drums. Dancing is a part of all holidays.

52.            Traditional arts include ceramics and earthenware still made in pre-Colombian designs, silver working and gold filigree, wood carving and embroidery.

53.            Independence Day is celebrated throughout the month of September and not just for a day. The Festival of Santa Domingo is in August and the Alegria por la Vida (Happiness for Life) Festival takes place in March.

54.            The Bosawas Biosphere Reserves protects 12 different kinds of venomous snakes in its cloud forest.

55.            Baseball is the national sport and many professional baseball leagues exists. They enjoy both playing and watching baseball. Soccer (football) comes in second.

56.            The Managuans don’t name their streets. How do they deliver mail? Your address is given by whatever major landmarks you happen to live near (such as three blocks north of the Flower Corner). Sometimes the names of the landmarks change, so it can get very confusing.

57.            The country of Nicaragua is about the same size as the state of New York.

58.            Nicaragua Exports: coffee, beef, gold, sugar, peanuts, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, cigars, automobile wiring harnesses, textiles, apparel and cotton.

59.            Nicaragua Imports: consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials and petroleum products.

60.            The internet country code for Nicaragua is .ni.