Leon to Granada

A different guide took us on for our time in Granada, on the edge of Lake Niguragua.
The countryside of Nicuragua is very interesting, very rich volcanuc soils which dry out during the dry season. So now, it is very green as it is the rainy season and looks a lot like Uganda. Sticks used to create fences grow into bushes and trees. The vegetation close to Granada consists of acacias, mostly calbash trees. This land is mostly used for grazing cattle.
A stop was made to look at the ancient and original Leon. A very uninspiring and uninterested local guide took us around the UNESCO World Heritage site. Her main intention was to send as many text messages as possible on her phone. This was very unfortunate, because the site was really interesting, but we were rushed from one exhibit to the next. It would have been interesting to have been able to read the Spanish account of what happened. In the end our own guide became more of a help than the local museum gude allocated to us.

This is the view of Lake Niguragua from the old fortress.
We arrived in Granada after finding a natural medicine pharmacy. This was a very interesting experience. Alex, our guide acted a translator. We had struggled to get what we needed in Leon with our poor Spanish skills.
The driver, Manuel, found the pharmacy in a small town between Managua and Granada. This pharmacy had the most extensive range of herbal and natural medications you could find. Peter wanted fish oil. I wanted to get a local product to dry up the many scratches I had received from falling into the pandanas, especially the one on my neck; Betadine had not worked. After much discussion, I was given the local solution against infection, a bright blue product that leaves a long term stain on your skin. So now with deep blue marks on various parts of my body, everything is healing quickly and well.