Hey! Who Turned the Lights Out?

So we were greeted on our arrival to Nicaragua with a surprise ... There was no electricity at the Airport!

Fortunately, it's not as far to get to Nicaragua in Central America as it is to get to Africa.  The flights were relatively short from Portland to Atlanta to Managua.

But as we were landing, things got a little rough, and there were some flashes of light outside the airplane.  It was lightning.  There was a storm, but we were able to land okay.  

Unfortunately, it knocked the power out at the National Airport. 

So as we landed, they couldn't get us off the plane, the jetway didn't work!  We finally climbed down some stairs and walked in the darkness into the terminal! 

 

They had to get us through the immigration and passport control, and of course it was dark, so they used flashlights.  It was ... interesting.   That went okay, but as we walked into the baggage control area, it was pitch black.  People were using their cell phones to see, so that you wouldn't bump into someone. 

A Nicaraguan airline representative explained that they couldn't get the bags into the terminal because the conveyor belt didn't work. So we waited.  We were able to spot our son TK and his wife Jenny, who were waiting outside, so at least they knew we were there.  

But what was the plan?  Was there even a plan?  It was rather chaotic, and we had to wait in the darkness, but finally they explained that they would bring the bags into the terminal by hand on carts and we could find our bags (hopefully) in the darkness and get going.  The lights began to come back on, and off, and on and off. 

This luggage arrangement sorta worked, but it was rowdy, with pushing and shoving and shouting ... Ha! Ha! Ha! ... actually kinda funny but confusing. Much to our surprise, we found our three bags.  

 

We made our way out to the waiting area and embraced TK and Jenny.  They were happy to see us and laughed ... welcome to Nicaragua!

As we left the airport TK asked:  "If there was no electricity - how did they land the plane?  Did they even have runway lights?"  ... good question ... not quite sure ...

A Day At the Ruins

So we set out this morning to drive to the North of Nicaragua, making our way through the crowded and lively capital city of Managua.  It took a while, but we eventually got on the highway heading north.  It is hot and humid here, but with air-con in the car it was a pleasant drive.  

 

Our destination was Leon, an historic city in the foothills.  There are a lot of volcanoes in Nicaragua, and the landscape is really interesting, with lakes and hills and such.  We decided to stop at the "ancient" ruins in Leon Viejo, or "old Leon" which was about 40 miles away from the city.  

 

Ancient might be a misnomer, but they were over 500 years old, from back in the days of Columbus.  The Spanish built a settlement that was destroyed after 85 years by an earthquake, and lost for several hundred years.  This area is very geologically active and volatile, with regular volcanic eruptions, etc.

The ruins were unearthed in the 70's and are being restored.  We walked among the ruins with the backdrop of the Momotombo Volcano, which is releasing gas and fumes into the air at the present time.  

At the end of the visit to the ruins, we made our way to the present city of Leon, which is only around 400 years old ... An eventful first 24 hours.   

We captured this photo of TK and Jenny at a sidewalk cafe where we had dinner.