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Joshua Berman: Moises Gadea, Nicaragua’s Songwriter of the Year, to Play in Colorado for Children’s Cause

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Joshua Berman: Moises Gadea, Nicaragua’s Songwriter of the Year, to Play in Colorado for Children’s Cause

Clipped from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joshua-berman/moises-gadea_b_1803853.html?utm_source=Alert-blogger&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Email%2BNotifications


Author, ‘Maya 2012: A Guide to Celebrations in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize & Honduras’

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Moises Gadea, Nicaragua’s Songwriter of the Year, to Play in Colorado for Children’s Cause

Posted: 08/22/2012 1:19 pm

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BOULDER, COLORADO — Moises Gadea, a modern trovador, or singer/songwriter, from Managua who was once declared "Songwriter of the Year" by the Nicaraguan National Assembly, is headlining several unique cultural events during an upcoming U.S. mini-tour.

Gadea’s debut mile-high performance is Saturday, September 8, 2012, at the Nomad Theater in Boulder, at "A Night in Nicaragua" (tickets are $25 in advance or $30 at the door), a celebration of Nicaraguan culture and also a fundraiser for Empowerment International (EI), a Colorado-based non-profit organization which operates a tutoring center, photography club and other programs for schoolchildren and their families in Nicaragua.

"Each ticket sold," Director Kathy Adams says, "will enable EI to fully support, with their myriad of programs, a child in school for a month."

Gadea will perform at a second event on Saturday, September 15, at Havana Manor in Longmont — also a fundraiser for EI. At both events, in addition to live music, there will be silent auctions and raffles for high-quality, hand-crafted Nicaraguan chocolate, coffee, ceramics, hammocks, cigars and framed prints from Empowerment International’s Photography Club for children (preview and/or purchase prints here).

Moises Gadea has shared the stage with such trova legends as Silvio Rodriguez of Cuba, Alejandro Filio of Mexico, Duo Guardabarranco of Nicaragua and Daniel Viglietti of Uruguay. This is his first trip to Colorado. He will be performing songs from his latest CD, Colección, a greatest hits album that is available on iTunes. At the Nomad Theater event, Gadea will be accompanied by local musicians Sean Gaughan and Michael Mitchell, of Big Paddy, a popular Colorado-based Irish band.

I first met Moises Gadea in 1998, during a set break at an outdoor café concert in Managua. I was out with my fellow Peace Corps trainees and Moises was playing in a band called IXMANA, which mixed traditional Nicaraguan rhythms with newer, progressive songwriting.

He went on to play with half a dozen other bands, spanning traditional folklorico to hard rock with a political edge. All the while, he stayed true to his careful blend of respect for his culture and elders, and his own forward-thinking compositions.

"I’m happy to finally be playing in Colorado," Gadea said. "It is a new opportunity to play a nice venue, and to a new audience." He added, "These are special events. I am sure people will come out to support this noble cause of solidarity with Nicaragua and its children."

Gadea’s current hit, "Soy Migrante" (also called "Inmigrante") in the video below, is the title track to the documentary film, Y Me Fui, about migrant workers.

"Inmigrante" is about Central American immigration issues, about living far from one’s family while keeping one’s hopes and dreams alive — but the song speaks to a wider community at the same time. The same goes for Gadea’s other songs about social justice, or about the struggles and dreams of children in Nicaragua.

"No tengo amiguitos," sings the narrator of the song, Miguelito, "juego en las esquinas/ a capear los carros y a salvar mi vida/ Salgo en mañanita… / Vendo mi agua elada para continuar viviendo… Quiero ir a la escuela, poder aprender … ser un navegante de un barco velero/ viajar por el mundo, no tener fronteras."

I have no friends, I play in the street corners/ dodging cars to save my life/ I leave in the early morning… / I sell bags of cold water to keep living … I want to go to school, to be able to learn … to be the captain of a sailboat/ to travel around the world, without borders.

(Translation by Alison Iwaskow & Joshua Berman)

About Empowerment International

Empowerment International works with children and their families in two impoverished communities in Nicaragua: one an urban slum outside of the colonial city of Granada, the other an isolated rural farming community in the state of Masaya. Most families live on less than $2 per day and most adults have a third-grade-level education or less. For them, the need for their children to contribute to the family income outweighs the long-term benefits of education. In short, education is not a priority.

EI works to overcome this neglect of elementary education by supporting children’s education materially and, most importantly, by fostering and encouraging a new attitude among families toward education. The strategy is to build a generation of empowered community members who value education and who, in turn, will lead the next generation to achieve even higher goals. The approach is holistic as well as community-based, with locally hired staff, resources and training.

Joshua Berman is the author of Moon Nicaragua and is also a Spanish teacher and Denver Post columnist. His website is http://joshuaberman.net. He is helping to organize the September 8 event in Boulder.

 
 
 


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UAMglobal RT @tranquilotravel: Concert in #Boulder, via @elephantjournal: Every ticket sold will help sponsor education in #Nicaragua: http://t.co …

tranquilotravel Concert in #Boulder, via @elephantjournal: Every ticket sold will help sponsor education in #Nicaragua: http://t.co/cKSR2Kpl

tranquilotravel Moises Gadea coming to the Nomad Theater in Boulder, #Colorado, all the way from #Nicaragua! via @denverpost http://t.co/iThubR3R

TopTravelVids Video: Moises Gadea – Guerra Solo Muertos: Moises Gadea will be preforming at A NIGHT IN NICARAGUA: Benefit for … http://t.co/FO86tdR4

 

 

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Nicaragua is not Costa Rica

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Nicaragua is not Costa Rica

Clipped from: http://www.nicaraguadispatch.com/news/2012/08/nicaragua-is-not-costa-rica/4973

‘Nicaragua is not Costa Rica’

Granada offers a colonial charm not found in neighboring Costa Rica (photo/ Tim Rogers)
By Frank Gallo / guest blogger
August 22, 2012

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The following blog is based on a presentation that Frank Gallo made to the Denver-based Chamber of the Americas on Aug. 14. Gallo is an author and recent Granada homeowner and still has property in the Granada area. He formerly lived in Costa Rica for nine years and resided in Panama as a teenager.

«Nicaragua is NOT the New Costa Rica.» 

This quote by Nicaraguan Tourism Minister Mario Salinas flies in the face of an oft-repeated saying by tourists, expatriates, and other observers of Central America. I confess, I used to say the same thing a few years back. But Minister Salinas has a point, and that is what I decided to explore.

First of all, what are others saying recently about the comparison of the two countries? Travel Age West opined, «Currently Nicaragua is more like Costa Rica 20 years ago. Nicaragua may be the next best, if not the more authentic alternative to travel to Costa Rica.» A Costa Rica vacation planning site observed that, «Costa Rica does not feature a wide variety of cultural or historical attractions.» And Minister Mario Salinas pointed out «… we have a diversity of offerings – a culture and a history that Costa Rica never had.»

Yes, there are similarities, but also differences between the two countries. In looking at country comparisons, Nicaragua is the largest Central American country, with 50,193 square miles, while Costa Rica has only 40% of that size, at 19,653 square miles. Yet Costa Rica’s coastline is nearly double, at 826 miles compared to 461 miles for Nicaragua. So it is no wonder that beaches feature prominently in Costa Rica’s tourism industry.

Protected areas are about equivalent, 25% of its land for Costa Rica, 20% for Nicaragua, though various sources quote different percentages, but in the ball park. The two countries share a border of 192 miles. Nicaragua has a significantly greater population, at 5.9 million, Costa Rica with less at 4.3 million. Costa Rica enjoys a literacy rate of 95%, Nicaragua 78%.

The origins of the two countries differ. In the 1500’s, Nicaragua had an indigenous population of one million. The country was colonized by the conquistadoes. As centuries passed, a conflict grew between the Liberals of León and the Conservatives of Granada, creating a timeless political contest. On the other hand, there were few indigenous peoples in Costa Rica. The area was poor and sparsely inhabited, hardly of interest to the conquistadores. Thus, there were relatively no oppressed mestizo or indigenous classes.

Looking at current differences, using the International Living Retirement Index of 2012, Nicaragua enjoys lower living costs. The cost of living is one-third cheaper in Nicaragua. Wages, of course, are much lower in Nicaragua, thus a lower cost of services provided to tourists. For comparison, a 19-year-old worker’s minimum wage in Costa Rica is $388, but only $133 in Nicaragua. Costa Rica has the edge on infrastructure, and a definite edge on health provisions.  Climate is equally desirable in each country.

In a scan of business indicators—the Latin Business Chronicle is the source—one finds that inflation in both countries is at a reasonable pace, at 8.2% for Nicaragua in 2012, and 6.5% for Costa Rica. Inflation for both countries has been reasonably stable in the past few years. GDP growth for 2012 (estimated) for Nicaragua is 3.3%, Costa Rica 4.1 %, though again in the past few years their numbers have been very close. Looking at the most recent Globalization Index (Foreign Direct Investment, Remittances, Tourism, and Exports & Imports), Nicaragua ranks #2 of 18 Latin American countries, Costa Rica a bit behind at #4. In ease of doing business, the World Bank ranks Nicaragua 24th of 32 Latin countries, and Costa Rica 25th.

Tourists are very concerned about safety, so it is necessary to look at crime statistics. The homicide rate per 100,000 inhabitants in Nicaragua was 12 in 2005, 13 in 2011, an increase of 8%. The homicide rate in Costa Rica in 2005 was 7.8, with a 32% increase in 2011 to 10.3.  

In 2010, the Central American average homicide rate was 25, the U.S. rate was 4.8. Using statistics for 2008, the crime victimization rate (the percentage of the population that reported victimization of crimes in the past 12 months) for Nicaragua was 19.2%, close to the 19% of Costa Rica. Armed robberies were 5.6% for Nicaragua, slightly higher than 5.3% in Costa Rica.  Burglaries were reported at 4.6% in Nicaragua, higher at 5.4% in Costa Rica. This latter category would be the one most likely to affect tourists directly, which might translate to a higher crime rate against tourists in Costa Rica.

Tourism has increased dramatically in both countries. In the year 2000, Nicaragua recorded 486,000 tourists. By 2011 there were 1.05 million tourist arrivals, an increase of 116%. For Costa Rica, in 2000 there were 1.08 million tourist arrivals, and that number grew to 2.2 million by 2011, an increase of 102%. When looking at the Costa Rica’s tourism numbers, one must keep in mind that the population of Costa Rica is only 4.3 million.

Tourism destinations are quite different in the two countries, though of course there are also similarities. Costa Rican tourism destinations favor the Pacific and Caribbean beaches for snorkeling, scuba diving, deep-sea fishing, and even sailing. National parks and nature preserves such as Toruguero on the Caribbean, Monteverde, Manuel Antonio, Rincon de la Vieja, and the Arenal area, are all popular destinations. The Central Valley offers San José museums (Jade, Gold museums) as well as the traditional towns such as Sarchí and Grecia. Other activities include whitewater rafting, lodging at the ever-growing number of 5 star resorts (about 14) and all inclusive resorts (about 18).

In Nicaragua, colonial towns, especially Granada, are the number one tourist destination. In essence, Costa Rica does not have colonial towns of the same magnitude nor architecture as Nicaragua, nor even close. Granada, León, Masaya, and the «white towns» offer tourists the true colonial feel of history and architecture. Out of the ordinary, unlike anything found in Costa Rica, is Ometepe Island in Lake Nicaragua. The lake itself is the tenth largest fresh water lake in the world, and the second largest in Latin America. Ometepe holds the distinction of being the largest island in a fresh water lake in the world. It is also full of pre-Columbian history, statuary, and other relics, plus two magnificent volcanoes. Getting there on one of the ferries is half the adventure.

The Corn Islands, located about 50 miles off the Caribbean Coast, offer another unique experience, not only for devout adventure tourists, but for others who seek the unusual destinations of the world. The Pacific beaches of Nicaragua, including the popular beach town of San Juan del Sur, offer the sun and sand crowd that many tourists are looking for, but in a charming small town way, without the mega-resorts of Costa Rica. Pre-Columbian history tours, again unique to Nicaragua in relation to its southern neighbor, explore Zapatera Island, Ometepe, and even the museum at Convento San Francisco, which houses immense pre-Columbian statuary. Other destinations are Mombacho Volcano, the Granada Isletas, Apoyo Laguna, and Matagalpa and the coffee-growing region in the highlands. The Rio San Juan is opening up for a different type of tourism experience. Unlike Costa Rica, Nicaragua has only two five-star hotels, and two significant all-inclusive resorts.

Minister Salinas says Nicaragua needs to differentiate itself as a tourist destination. The factors to do just that are certainly there. Instead of massive increases in tourist arrivals, he would like to see longer stays and more tourist dollars spent per day. Longer stays have increased slightly, but tourist dollars per stay are around $43, with a small increase in the last couple of years but one-half of what is spent by Costa Rica tourists. Efforts are underway to develop Ometepe and the Rio San Juan as tourist destinations, increase the number of in-country airports, and cooperate with projects for marinas.

Costa Rica is a maturing tourist destination. The trend has been to all-inclusive resorts and mega five-star hotels. For the most part, true adventure tourism in this tourist-friendly country is a thing of the past. More emphasis will be placed on more airlines, rural tourism, cultural tourism, medical tourism, and convention tourism.

It appears Minister Salinas was right on target. Of course the two neighboring countries have many similarities—beaches, volcanoes, highlands. Nicaragua tourism is emerging, the country is being «discovered.» It is able to offer a diverse tourism experience with its colonial towns, pre-Columbian history, and unique geography, which all offer the tourist a unique and diverse experience from that of Costa Rica.

 

Frank Gallo is a retired Air Force pilot and current private pilot who has both lived and flown in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. Frank’s published work includes articles in multinational publications on the topics of aviation, Central American living and technology. His recent historically-based novel, The Comandante’s Gift, was published in March 2012. It details many of the true events that took place during the uprising against the dictator Somoza and the subsequent conflict that took place between the FSLN communist regime and the U.S.-supported Contras.

 

 

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"Rundown soup’s" on in Nicaragua – The Denver Post

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"Rundown soup’s" on in Nicaragua – The Denver Post

Clipped from: http://www.denverpost.com/food/ci_19905892

A Moveable Feast | John Henderson

"Rundown soup’s" on in Nicaragua

Posted:   02/08/2012 01:00:00 AM MST

By John Henderson
The Denver Post

Lobsters in garlic sauce from Mari’s restaurant.

LITTLE CORN ISLAND, Nicaragua — The batch of soup in the giant black pot looked like a witch’s brew, which probably isn’t a good association to make in Nicaragua. Politics in this country have been so dangerous you needed a scorecard to keep track of the good guys and bad guys, their switching allegiances and the foreign interests that supported them.

But Nicaragua, the second-poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, has come out of the cold age of revolution to open up a whole new world of travel for those tired of Central America’s usual gallo pinto trail (the standard beans-and-rice dish of the region).

This is why I was on Little Corn Island, a gorgeous speck of an isle in the Caribbean, staring into the murky depths of a soup of unknown origin. The pot of soup looked like a murder scene. Bones and long, round objects stuck up from a yellowish broth like mangled limbs in a brackish swamp.

Chunks of fresh kingfish caught that day surfaced as I explored with a spoon.

In Nicaragua, this is called rundown soup, named for how anything they have lying around is "run down" into a stew. Served in bowls big enough to train scuba divers, rundown soup will fill you up until your next vacation.

Mixed with coconut milk, margarine, plantains and onion, it’s a tasty, hearty stew if you can ignore the long hunks of a vile plant called cassava, the taste of which was never explained by Latin American explorers from the past or by Latin Americans in the present.

Considering the setting, I got the impression Robinson Crusoe may have had the same meal. My dining experience came in an open-air bamboo shelter with a sandy floor just 60 feet from the warm, gentle surf of the Caribbean.

The Corn Islands are where rustic paradise meets modern convenience. You have to look hard to find Mari’s restaurant on Big Corn Island, Little Corn’s big brother to the south.

The crude sign on her stately white wood house looks like something a hitchhiker would hold. But many Nicaraguans on the Caribbean sell meals out of their homes. It’s the island way, mon. After all, here they consider themselves Caribbean more than Nicaraguan. English, not Spanish, is their first language.

That’s why I sat and conversed on Mari’s front porch surrounded by bougainvilleas, azaleas and hibiscuses with the Caribbean Sea just across the street.

As the sun set and the shadows stretched across the sand, Mari’s daughter brought me two 4-ounce lobsters smothered in garlic sauce. Good luck finding a better atmosphere at a five-star restaurant on Martinique. And if you find one that serves lobster in garlic sauce for the $10 I paid, you’re probably a relative.

One habit I always keep when I eat on the road (it doesn’t matter if it’s Nicaragua or Nebraska): Ask the locals where they eat. A cab driver and my hotel clerk on Big Corn led me to Fisher’s Cave, a two-story restaurant overlooking the small harbor where fishing boats bob up and down on the sea.

On a postcard-perfect 80-degree evening in the middle of January, I sat near a local family of four speaking in an odd patois of Caribbean pidgin English and a local guide with long, beaded hair.

I ordered a fried fish filet that nearly covered my plate. Lightly breaded, it came with a pink sauce of mayonnaise and what the young waitress curiously called "something red." For about $6.50, the light yellowtail was priced about half of what it tasted like.

You don’t necessarily come to Nicaragua for the seafood, however. The street food is terrific if, occasionally, dangerous.

Managua is now considered one of the safer capitals in Central America, which is like being one of the safer cities in Afghanistan.

However, the street stalls around the corner from my $15-a-night hotel in Managua’s ghetto were safe. At about 11 p.m. an old woman in even older glasses and a leopard-skin blouse stood behind glass cases holding local dishes in various forms.

Black rice cakes that looked just like hockey pucks were piled next to big triangle enchiladas fried to a golden brown. I bit into a piping-hot mixture of rice and chicken that probably wouldn’t make Gordon Ramsay swoon but tasted perfect after a long night sampling Nicaragua’s exquisite Flora de Cana rum.

No one here talks of revolution anymore. In Nicaragua, soup is on.

John Henderson: 303-954-1299, jhenderson@denverpost.com, twitter.com/johnhendersonDP

LaRepublica.net – Nicaragua: Ventaja fronteriza

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LaRepublica.net – Nicaragua: Ventaja fronteriza

Clipped from: http://www.larepublica.net/app/cms/www/index.php?pk_articulo=5330023

Inversiones en turismo, industria e infraestructura son realidad

Nicaragua:Ventaja fronteriza

Del lado tico faltan empleo y servicios


Nicaragua ha tomado ventaja sobre Costa Rica en desarrollar su frontera a lo largo del río San Juan, con inversiones públicas y privadas que en los últimos años suman ya $218 millones.

Mientras tanto, del lado costarricense los proyectos se han limitado a algunas inversiones que no pasan de los $60 millones, sobre todo en la construcción de la trocha, de la cual varias partes ya están colapsando.

Para Nicaragua, la promoción turística es uno de los principales objetivos, pero también hay nuevos desarrollos industriales.

Para ello, ha realizado fuertes inversiones en infraestructura, especialmente en nuevos muelles, puestos fronterizos, pistas de aterrizaje y carreteras de acceso.

Las obras se han hecho a lo largo de la frontera con Costa Rica, especialmente en los accesos al río San Juan, ubicados en su nacimiento en San Carlos de Nicaragua, y en su desembocadura frente a Isla Calero.

El último proyecto fue la inauguración hace un par de meses de un nuevo aeropuerto en la antigua comunidad de Greytown, hoy conocida como San Juan del Norte.

En este pequeño poblado costero —ubicado a unos 3 kilómetros de Calero— se invirtieron unos $13 millones en una moderna y cómoda pista de aterrizaje, para aprovechar el turismo futuro.

De esta forma, proyectos turísticos como el recién inaugurado Hotel Indio Lodge, en la Reserva de Indio Maíz, con una inversión de $4 millones, cercanos al pueblo, tendrían una conexión directa con el turista foráneo.

Todos los proyectos se promocionan mediante las campañas Ruta de Agua, de $15 millones, financiada por el Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo, y «Yo Conozco el San Juan, ¿y vos?», de $10 millones.

En cuanto a la industria, la comunidad celebró la reciente llegada de la firma japonesa Trope, dedicada al ensamblaje de vehículos.

Además el gobierno nicaragüense inició negociaciones con una empresa de metalmecánica que invertiría otros $50 millones.

Otro importante proyecto en la zona consiste en una nueva plantación de palma africana, tras una inversión multimillonaria de un grupo empresarial centroamericano, sobre todo guatemalteco.

Pero mientras Nicaragua mueve todos estos recursos para desarrollar la zona, del lado costarricense la preocupación ha sido solo la de mejorar las condiciones de seguridad de la policía de fronteras y construir la ruta paralela al río.

En lo primero el gobierno había aprobado apenas $3,5 millones, así como otros rubros menores en colocar cámaras y llevar electricidad a algunas zonas que no la poseían.

El segundo gran proyecto —la trocha— se ha topado con el escándalo por el supuesto manejo irregular de los fondos, así como el aparente colapso de varias secciones del camino.

Mientras tanto las condiciones de los costarricenses del lado sur del río son precarias.

En poblados como Tambor deben vivir con constantes inundaciones durante la época lluviosa, sin acceso a teléfonos públicos y mucho menos señal celular.

En otros poblados cercanos, entre Boca San Carlos, Tiricias y Boca del Sarapiquí, la electricidad apenas llegó hace algunos meses, mientras las opciones de educación para los niños se encuentran a varias horas a pie.

Las opciones de empleo son limitadas, pues no hay empresas que desarrollen servicios o requieran mano de obra, y el gobierno no ha tenido una respuesta clara.

«Lamento mucho los atrasos, pero son una muestra de la realidad actual, existen muchos trámites burocráticos que atrasan las obras», dijo Francisco Chacón, ministro de Comunicación.



Luis Valverde

lvalverde@larepublica.net

Colaboró la periodista Marycarmen Rojas