Culture & History

Across Latin America Semana Santa (or Holy Week), the remembrance of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ, marks the most important religious holiday of the year. In Nicaragua Holy Week is a time of varied and fascinating festivals that blend ancient Spanish Catholic traditions with indigenous rituals, creating unique festivals. Nicaragua’s Holy Week strives to remind people of the story of Christ’s sacrifice and as often as possible adhere as close as possible to its historical reality.

Named after legendary rebel general Augusto Sandino, the Sandinistas are back in power in Nicaragua, thanks to Daniel Ortega’s election victories in 2006, 2011 & 2. With the FSLN (Sandinista political party and once underground rebel group) in power, Nicaragua has come full circle since the upheavals of the Sandinista-led insurrection against Somoza in 1978-79 and the controversial Contra War of the 1980’s. Ortega’s current FSLN resembles very little the government that ruled Nicaragua in the 1980’s.

Whereas many are aware of Nicaragua’s great natural beauty, few foreigners on a first visit to Nicaragua realize how good Nicaragua’s food is or its importance in the world of Spanish language poetry. Nicaragua has many historic colonial structures and a charming rural architecture and way of life. This is a survey of numerous such Nicaraguan cultural subtleties. Home to numerous colonial period churches, including Central America’s largest cathedral and Nicaragua’s greatest passion, poetry, León is also the cradle of Nicaragua’s 20th century revolutionary movement.

When the Spanish explorer Gil González Dávila met and embraced the mighty Nicaraguas prince Niqueragua, on the warm shores of Lake Cocibolca, the fate of a people was sealed. Were the Nicaraguas on the verge of becoming a great civilization? Or simply groups of businessmen, setting up trading posts in Nicaragua, positioning themselves in the center of a massive commercial route that stretched from Peru to Mexico? What was life like for the Nicaraguas – before their society was suddenly turned upside down by the Europeans?

Few countries can boast such a striking contrast of essential societal identities as Nicaragua. The cliché of the “poet-warrior” is very much a truth in Nicaragua’s distant and not too distant history. Revolutionary Nicaragua is a political history tour that examines the beautiful and tragic history of Nicaragua with visits to numerous off the beaten path parts of the country, many of which few outsiders have been privilege too. This in-depth look at Nicaragua’s politics includes firsthand accounts of the country’s troubled years.