Managua

What a day.I walked around Managua despite the frequent warnings ..perigroso..ladrones...I started around 9am and walked up Loma de Tiscapa ..an old volcanic hill in the central part of the city from which you can see all around with Lago Managua to the north and the city spread all around.It used to be the site where the  former dictatorial Somoza family resided before earthquakes and revolutions destroyed it years ago.There is a picturess circular lake hundreds of feet down in the crater below a little smaller than Laguna Chicibal outside of Xela that I went to weeks ago.I stayed up there for over an hour viewing the city below when at noon hour the city exploded with fireworks.In every direction below the sky erupted in fire and smoke .It was like a war going on.There is some sort of fiesta happening and much to my chagrin I discovered later that all the museums were closed.
Not to be deterred I walked down and north to the lake where as I expected,according to the Lonely Planet guide book,to see the ruins of the former city destroyed by a major earthquake 40 of so,mas o menus anos pasada.years ago.It was quite eerie.A gigantic old cathedral stood gutted in the old central square like it was part of an old science fiction futuristic movie set.They decided not to rebuild in the central part due to the many fault lies that transect it.There are still many statues of former heroes and the old government palace Now the museum) but east west and south are either cleared and and housing families in small tickie tackie concrete brick houses or the home of squatters living in the still standing derelict buildings.As I was walking about at least on three occasions I was stopped by either security people or concerned families warning about the dangers of robbers.There were certainly many groups of men lingering about but I figured it was a holiday so no worry.Also there were streams of families cruising the streets and heading for the lake shore .Anyway...close to a park and squatter building there was a section dedicated to the end of all the fighting which although only 30 or so years old was virtually deserted and starting to be overgrown.Some Mexican artists had reconfigured the area into some type of art expression .In one part...where the government had ceremoniously buried thousands of weapons to symbolize the end of the war you could actually see old rifle buts and barrels sticking out of the dirt and rock alongside a rusting overgrown tank.It was kind of spooky and since there were squatters residing all around I got out quick.
The lake front has numerous bars and discos blaring out music and offering litres of bear for 30 cents but being alone and on the wagon I avoided temptation.In any case the music was really loud and I would have been out of place as it appeared only young Nicaraguan couples were imbibing.Also..the lake front is really under developed and all you could see were choppy waves and distant mountains.Again I didn't see any westerner types as I figure they have all gone to Granada ..the old colonial city on Lagos Nicaraua where there are beautiful volcanic islands and numerous expats living.I might go there tomorrow.
I tried to find a small museum where apparently are housed footprints of a group of people walking 6,000 years ago.They were apparently preserved in ash from a volcanic eruption  that has been dated to that time.Anyway..even though I figured it would be closed I set out to find it anyway but got diverted by following a guy on his bicycle and a young boy with a machete herding 20 or more goats through the streets southwest of the lake.It was quite amusing to see how they navigated the goats through traffic and away from fronts yard bits of grass.I eventually gave up the search when a family warned me of robbers .
It is interesting to see horse drawn carts going along with the traffic .Horses are still a big part of transportation here.
OK ..I'm hungry and should find a restaurant nearby.I'm sending this EMAIL from the hotel .They have an Internet station in the courtyard with a spot to lounge about.As I write the family is nearby watching some sort of action movie on TV.Fireworks are continuing to erupt all about.Another thing about Nicaragua ..actually in Central America in total...is the high level of security.The hotel gate is locked all the time.Someone always seems to be there to answer ones call to be let in.As you walk down the street all the windows are barred and doors heavily gated.Lots of army types and security people milling about as well.I also noticed more people asking for money here than in Guatemala .