Americas

[Visited: December 2022]

Traveling from Masaya to León requires a transfer in Managua which turns out to be seamless. One of the pleasures of travelling in Nicaragua is that distances are often short, and within two hours we pull into the station of this colonial town in the north of the country. Instead of taking a taxi, we decide to ask a tricycle rickshaw to take us to our hotel. The guy proudly tells us about all the different nationalities of passengers he has taken through the streets of León. It doesn't take long before we realise that this city has a different vibe - and we love it. It is lively, it is colourful, people seem cheerful, and there are plenty of things to see and do. After we drop off our stuff at the attractive hotel with its beautiful courtyard, we set off to see the city, with our cameras ready to shoot.
We stop several times on our way south to take pictures. We see colourful colonial houses, beautiful doors, men driving horse-carts through the streets (some of which are cobble stones), and surprising details of architecture. We see small shops and restaurants on our way towards the city centre. The Iglesia de la Merced is the first big building we see. One of the many churches of León, it is a whitewashed building flanked by a square. It seems a little odd that the entrance is on a side street and not facing the square. Just around the corner, we find the Parque Central, or central square, of León. At its eastern side, we see the majestic cathedral: the biggest church of Central America. After having seen so many churches in Nicaragua already, it is clear that this is a unique one, if only for its architecture. We walk in to marvel at the altar, pulpit, sculptures and see the tomb of famous poet Rubén Darío, which is guarded by a lion. We will be back later for a walk on the roof.
And then, we see so much more. We have a light lunch in a grand courtyard, we see the San Francisco and Recolección churches (and especially love the latter), and see a couple getting married in the Calvario church at the end of Rubén Darío church. We have an early dinner in a vegan place, in a garden with pool, and see puppets that will be burnt during New Year's Eve a few days later. We try to always take a different street to discover yet new things. Then, on the last afternoon in León, we decide to make it up the roof of the cathedral. We need to wait in line to buy a ticket around the corner, and then walk back to the entrance of the church again. At the top, we take off our shoes as requested, and then walk past the many small white domes until we reach the big dome. The views are spectacular. Not only do we see the many streets, houses, churches and people below, we now also clearly see the string of volcanoes that lie east of León. What a great city.

Around the World in 80 Clicks

Personal travel impressions both in words and images from León (Nicaragua). Clicking on the pictures enlarges them and enables you to send the picture as a free e-card or download it for personal use, for instance, on your weblog. Or click on the map above to visit more places close to León.
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León > Nicaragua > Americas

[Visited: December 2022]

Around the World in 80 Clicks

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