Granada and Big Corn Island trip report

We spent January 21-28 in Granada and Big Corn Island.
About us: we are in our early 30's. This was our first major trip since having a baby in June of 2007 and since we figured it'd be a LONG time before we get to do something like this again, we bucked up a little more cash than usual to stay in high end hotels. We've been to Belize (Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker) three times, Costa Rica twice and Panama once. It was tough leaving our son but, in all honesty, hours would pass and I wouldn't even think of him!

Granada
Sleep- We stayed at Hotel Plaza Colon. Our room was huge, as was the balcony overlooking Parque Colon. Everything was perfect- our room was clean, breakfast was good and the service was spectacular.

Eat- We tried to hit all the restaurants marked with a moon in our guidebook. Our first meal was at El Zaguan. My husband, Mark, ordered a filet mignon and I got a churrasco steak. I asked for it to be cooked medium but I swear it was still mooing when I got it. After a few more minutes on the grill, it was delicious. We ate lunch at Garden Cafe. Wonderful sandwiches and the ambiance is a pleasant break from the hustle and bustle of Granada. We tried to go to Asia Latina; according to the map it should have been catty corner (kitty corner?) from Garden Cafe but it has since changed to Imagine Bar and Grill. So we went to El Mediterraneo. I got an excellent chicken curry dish but Mark just about reenacted the deli scene from When Harry Met Sally (yes! yes! yes!) when he tasted his steak with a roquefort sauce. Beautiful setting with lots of candles and great service. We also got some fantastic pizza at Pizzeria Don Luca.

Play- we did a zip line tour with Mombotour. The 15 km ride from town was a very bumpy, white knuckles gripping the seat, hour long ride from town. We did a zip line tour in Costa Rica but for some reason this one was easier. The cables were different so it was easier to stop and since I'd done it before, I wasn't as hesitant to step off the platform. Very fun!
We did the Masaya tour with Tierra Tours. Our guide (I forgot his name) spoke excellent English and he was incredibly knowledgeable about Nicaragua. The volcano was cool but the market was just OK. After a while, every booth started to look the same. We stopped at a pottery "studio" in San Juan del Oriente and picked up four pieces of pottery for $32, total. They packed everything up so well, we could have played football with the box and still made it home with everything in one piece.

Notes- If you're bringing US dollars, make sure there are no marks or tears, no matter how tiny. I checked each bill before we left but we still had a couple that were refused. Then when we got dollars out of the ATM, we got one with a big old black mark on it so getting cordobas out of the ATM might be a better idea. You'll get some that are so dirty and as thin as tissue paper but they'll be accepted!

Big Corn Island
Sleep- we stayed at Casa Canada. This place is stunning. The grounds are just gorgeous! We had cabin #20 which was literally steps from the ocean. I was afraid we'd want to be on a beach but the grounds are so pretty and with the pool, we didn't even miss the beach.

Eat- we ate two meals at Seva's and both were wonderful. One day we noticed the dry erase board outside Sunrise Hotel (across the street from Casa Canada) advertised that it was Lobster Night so we went there for dinner. I think the sign was leftover from another day because we were just given regular menus. When we asked about lobster night, we were told we could get lobster for 250 cordobas, instead of the 315 as it was listed on the menu. Although our dinners were fantastic, I can't say I'd recommend this place. One table near us didn't get one of their meals and another table didn't get any of the side dishes they were supposed to. Our bill was 710 cordobas so we gave the waitress 800. She brought us back a 50 cord bill. I'm no math whiz but that's just not right. We figured she just tipped herself and didn't argue. We ate lunch one day at Picnic Center Beach. Prices here were the cheapest we found on the island. I had Mark order me a hamburger and imagine my surprise when I got a slice of ham on a bun. Oookay. Well, I was hungry and it hit the spot!

Play- we did a lot of relaxing. We took a long walk on the beach from Seva's back to Casa Canada. You can't walk on the beach the whole way, we turned inland after a while. We found TONS of seaglass, mixed in with the broken flip flops and plastic bottles. We went for a swim at Picnic Center Beach. Drank a lot of beer, watched some sunsets, made friends, the usual.

Notes- taxis are everywhere. We thought about renting a golfcart but with taxis so cheap and plentiful, we decided not to. One morning we decided to check out Brig Bay. I was hoping it might be like what Ambergris Caye in Belize was before the whole world arrived but I was wrong. There was trash everywhere and we saw some guy take a leak right by the side of the road. No quaint shops, very few restaurants. Kind of disappointing. Sally Peaches was gorgeous. Picnic Center Beach was beautiful too but with much calmer water for swimming.

That's all I can think of for now. I'll be happy to answer any questions!