Destination

Artisan Villages

Nicaragua's culture can be experienced in many ways. One of the best opportunities is in the rural areas by visiting the homes that double as workshops for the artisan handicraft makers of Nicaragua in Masaya and its surrounding colonial villages known as Los Pueblos de la Meseta or in the northern mountains.

Masaya City - this overgrown village is considered the cradle of folklore in Nicaragua and for good reason. Masaya good be the richest crafts center in Central America. Famous for its restored 19th century open air artisan market, every street in Masaya's indigenous Monimbó neighborhood is home to at least one artisan workshop. The town's residents are best known for their hammocks, but handmade leather, wood and fabric products are also prevalent. The visitor will often by amused to find the artisans of Monimbó making crafts that carry the name Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama and even Guatemala. The reason is simple, much of the "native" crafts of those countries are made in Masaya by the artisans of Monimbó. Masaya can be visited from Managua or Granada hotels just 30 minutes away.

Catarina - this little colonial period village is a quiet town perched on the lip of the Apoyo Crater Lake is best known for its nurseries which overflow onto the streets with potted plants and flowers. The visitor will also encounter bamboo basket weavers and wood workers. Catarina can be visited from Managua (one hour) or Granada (30 minutes) hotels.

San Juan de Oriente - the most famous ceramic village in Central America that sports a restored 16th century church. The populace of this indigenous village has been making ceramics for more than 2,000 years and 85% of its population is working today in pottery production. The town's beautiful earthenware is now known around the world and a visit to one of the humble workshops is a rewarding experience for lovers of ceramics or visitors interested in cultural interaction. San Juan de Oriente is next to Catarina.

Masatepe - every visitor to Nicaragua marvels at its handmade wooden rocking chairs, standard equipment in homes countrywide. Most of these wood and wicker rockers as well as many other fine furniture pieces are made in the cool highland village of Masatepe. A visit to a workshop reveals how such fine work is made with basic tools and the unselfish nature of the Nicaraguan artisan who shares his knowledge (and tools) with family, friends and neighbors. Masatepe is located just 15 minutes from Catarina and San Juan de Oriente and can be visited from the fine hotels in Managua and Granada.

Condega - set in a broad highland valley of the northern mountains, this sleepy village is home to some of Nicaragua's most beautiful red-clay pottery. The production of the ceramics is what gives Condega its name, indigenous for "land of pottery". The most beautiful of the earthenware is produced by a woman's cooperative in a tiny settlement of red clay homes near the village proper. The village can be visited via hotels in Matagalpa (2 hours), Managua (3 hours) or León (3 hours).

Jinotega - the peaceful coffee town surrounded by mountain peaks with a gorgeous whitewashed Cathedral is also one of two sources of Nicaragua's indigenous black ceramics. Outside of Jinotega on the highway to San Rafael del Norte is a tiny settlement that time has forgotten, where the work of black pottery specialists can be seen as the spin clay in a local cooperative. Jinotega is 3 hours north of Managua and has a good hotel. The cooperative is 30 minutes from Jinotega.

Matagalpa - the capitol of coffee production in Nicaragua also hides some interesting crafts in its labyrinth of hilly streets. There are both black ceramic and textile cooperatives that can be visited in and around the city. The natives of Matagalpa once were prolific in cotton textile production and this tradition. This custom was lost during the Pacific basin cotton boom years, but is slowly returning. Matagalpa is 2 hours north of Managua.

Camoapa - set deep in the cattle and cowboy region of Boaco, this seldom visited corner of Nicaragua makes a Nicaragua version of Panama hats. Although the tightness of the weave is not as refined as the famed hat makers of the northern Andes of Ecuador, Camoapa hat weavers are very accessible and friendly and happy to explain their unique talents to visitors. Camoapa is located 2 hours east of Managua.