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“Why Granada?” I had been traveling in Nicaragua for a week, with David and Lydia Dell, scouting out a site for our new International Living office. That morning, we had  decided that Granada would be the place. Thus the question, posed by the gentleman having lunch with us, an American who moved to Managua from Pittsburgh four years ago. We’ve chosen Granada as the location for our new office, I explained, because Granada is the most agreeable city in this country. A city with history and charm and a large central plaza surrounded by old Spanish colonial buildings. A city with little streets for meandering, neighborhoods for exploring, and style. The people dress better here than in Managua or elsewhere. The buildings are painted bright blues and greens and reds. The women walk proudly to and from the market balancing baskets on their heads, smiling, and holding hands with each other. The children ride bicycles in the main square.

This article is reprinted from a recent editon of the International Living Magazine. If you intend to move overseas and restart your life abroad we can think of no magazine that is more suited to your needs.  As Kathleen says, "Granada is a place where you can settle in...on one of the long, breezy porches running along the main square. Settle into a white wicker rocking chair and soak up the scenery." This kind of information, geared to improve your international lifestyle, are the de regor in each issue of International Living - If you haven't subscribed we recommend that you do.  SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION

Rocking chair reveries

Granada is a place where you can settle in...on one of the long, breezy porches running along the main square. Settle into a white wicker rocking chair and soak up the scenery.

It’s 6 a.m. as I write this. I’m sitting on one of those long porches in one of those rocking chairs. Beside me, two gentlemen are doing the same thing. They’re Americans. Texans from their accents. 

They’re talking about the e-mails they received last night. Talking business…as they rock slowly and watch the square wake up.

Already young women in pretty skirts are crossing the square on their way to work. The tiled porch where I’m sitting is being mopped. The streets and the square are being cleaned. (The square was filled with people, even young children, until at least midnight when I finally went to bed.) They sweep up every morning, I understand. 

As we drove in, I saw that some of these grand old buildings are covered with scaffolding. They’re being renovated and painted. This sleepy, once-grand city is regenerating itself. I hope it doesn’t move too quickly.

Right now, Granada is still a good place for escape. This time of year, there’s nary a tourist in sight. The only ones I’ve seen are the gentlemen rocking beside me.

Yesterday was market day. Vendors at makeshift wooden stalls offered everything from watermelon to papaya...from ladies lingerie to children’s toys. One of the gentlemen next to me is boasting to his buddy about the leather belt he bought for $4 and the red polo shirt he got for $12.

A new point on the world map?

Word on the street is that Granada is on its way...a major international destination in the making.
I’ve heard this before. Mostly from real estate agents in beach towns where they were trying hard to sell beachfront property. Here, the claim is more credible because it’s not coming from the guys hustling property (at least not only from them). 

You hear this from everyone you speak with…the Granadians, the tourists from Costa Rica and Guatemala, and the expatriates who’ve already made Nicaragua their home. They’ve been watching the transformation for the past few years. They say the changes are noticeable month by month.

Granada by horse-drawn carriage One evening in Granada we asked one of the carriage drivers to give us a tour of the city. For two hours, his team of well-underfed horses pulled us from sight to sight. We saw the old fort outside town (built in 1754 and restored in 1996). We climbed to the top of one of the lookouts for a grand view of the city behind us. We saw the development along the lake. Playgrounds, picnic areas, bike trails, and kiosks line one long stretch that serves as the local beach. Dozens of people were swimming as we trod by. The driver waited for us as we stopped to inquire at houses with se vende signs on their doors. One little house, several streets off the square, is advertising “Se Vende $15,000.” Our driver also waited while we looked around in an appliance store. (Refrigerators sell for $600, stoves for $200 to $300, and a double bed for $200.) And he took us to see all three of the Streets of the Millionaires. Our customized tour cost $25.

Granada is unique in this country. It’s the only city of any size where you could live and be comfortable. Managua is bigger, of course, and offers more amenities and infrastructure. But it’s not a place most people would want to live. It’s dirty and crowded and otherwise nondescript. The residents of Granada look down their noses at Managua.  Their city offers good restaurants, good hotels, a movie theater, four internet cafés, and decent shopping (there’s a big computer supply store, for example).  Managua has these things, in greater abundance (and many Granadians make monthly trips to the capital to stock up on things they can’t buy locally). But what Granada has that Managua doesn’t is something that’s hard to pin down and impossible to manufacture. Granada has character.

Granada feels like a small town…friendly and safe. And, yes, like it’s on its way to becoming a point of distinction on the world map. Some say it’ll become Nicaragua’s San Miguel de Allende, the artists’ community in Mexico.

Wandering the neighborhoods, passing the houses with their balconies and ornate ironwork, you begin to believe these prophecies. There’s already an art school and a small art gallery. Last night at our hotel I met an American artist from Los Angeles. He’s thinking he’d like to spend time here painting the old buildings and the park. He’s traveling with a friend, another artist, an American now living in Costa Rica where he has started an artists’ colony. Maybe, they explain, they’ll try the same thing in Granada.

Of course, there’s a long road from here to there. Right now, this is a Third-World city. In some areas, sewage still runs through the gutters. 

A taste for free markets

There’s worry that next year’s election may interfere with the country’s (and this city’s) progress. Right now, there’s a lot of posturing, especially by the current president who is very unhappy he can’t run for another term. However, everyone we’ve spoken with agrees that the Nicaraguans won’t tolerate any serious troubles. The current battles being waged in the press are one thing. Real battles that might interrupt the flow of revenues or aid…these won’t be allowed. Nicaraguans (and Granadians) have gotten a taste of what capitalism can mean. And they seem to like the flavor.

The concern over the approaching election could work to your advantage as a would-be investor. Prices are holding steady right now. But the (reasonable) expectation is that after the election, assuming all goes peacefully, prices will jump and then continue to appreciate. Right now could be the time to buy. We’ve invested ourselves, as you know. About four years ago, we purchased, with friends and colleagues, a tract of land along the southern Pacific coast. Now we’re opening an office here in Granada. We’re committed to Nicaragua. We think with good reason.

City of las madres Granada is a city run by its women. Its past two mayors have been women, and its next mayor will be a woman again. (Both primary candidates are female.) When you buy or rent property, you’ll deal with the woman of the house. She’ll take your money. In the center of the plaza is a statue of La Madre. The city was largely spared any fighting during the war, because all the country’s important women, the mothers and the grandmothers, were hidden away here and protected.

Colonial mansions from $80,000

One more thing: If the old Spanish colonial structures in Granada appeal to you as much as they appeal to me…you can buy one for $80,000 to $100,000 (it’ll need a lot of work)…or you can spend as much as $200,000. A few years ago, these places sold for $40,000 or $50,000, or less. The trouble is there aren’t many of them. The city burned in 1856 and was rebuilt according to the same plan. Most of the colonial-style houses are 150 years old. You can count on your fingers those that date back more than 400 years.

Next time I visit I’m going to travel to the little towns just outside Granada. These are built according to the same plan as Granada, with a central plaza surrounded by colonial buildings with long, open porches. And in these towns, I’m told, you can buy these grand old houses for $50,000 or less. I’m interested to know more. 

Una casa for rent?

The Dells and I came to Granada with the intention of finding a place to rent for the new IL office. Westarted by visiting the real-estate agents in town. One of them stood us up. Another had only his own house available for rent.

We had much better luck asking around in the local restaurants and hotels. In each case, someone knew someone who might know of a house for rent. Most rentals are never advertised as such and certainly never make it to the real estate agents’ books. The Nicaraguans are proud and private. Typically, if they want to rent or to sell a property, they tell a handful of people and rely on word-of-mouth to find a renter or a buyer.
To give yourself a chance to get to know the neighborhoods it’s advisable to rent before you buy. Three hundred dollars a month is a typical rent in the center of town. The locals may quote higher rents to you, a gringo. 

The nicest streets in Granada, outside the central downtown area, are Calle Calzada, Calle Atraezada, and Calle Galdeva, known as “The Streets of the Millionaires.” These days, though, there aren’t any millionaires living along these broad, tree-lined avenues. The once-grand houses still standing are nearly dilapidated. 

At points, near-shacks have been erected in between. Still, the prices can be right. We saw one colonial-style house with a gated entrance, a large front veranda, and some nice features inside, available for $400 a month. This place, though, like the others, needs serious renovation.
To rent in Nicaragua you need a standard rental agreement drawn up and notarized by an attorney and then filed with the proper government agency. Our attorney in Managua can help with this. Contact Dr. Modesto Emilio Barrios at barrios@ibw.com.ni - 

The easiest, safest way to rent, though, is with the help of David and Lydia Dell. They are packing as I write this, preparing for their move, and will be in residence in Granada by the end of September. They’re there on your behalf. 

Let them help. Visit them at 140 Arsenal, Granada, Nicaragua. Or send them an 
e-mail at Nicaragua@InternationalLiving.com - 

Where to stay…where to eat
 

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