been in nicaragua over 9 months now...i am putting a cap on my time here after 1 year and no long term stay for me again in the future.....I moved months ago from the cool mountain towns in north nicaragua..Now im in managua and just about handling the heat better than i thought......I havent had any horrific food experiences here....If you eat cheap of the roadside grills it can be cold,taste like lighterfluid and the plastic bag burning with the coals it carried into the fire to cook the food,and the meat is most often under cooked...That was the description of the cheapest places to eat.....i dont eat there any more.....so on to nice restuarants by nicaraguan standards,twice the price 5 to 10 dollars US just about any where in managua and they can get more expensive as they get fancy.......i remeber up north a bit cheaper in nice restuarants but not that many,maby one or 2 in jinotega and a few more than that in matagalpa and even more in esteli...i always dreaded the days that i would be surprised by bouts of 2 to 3 hour malaise after eating any where in town in jinotegs,this was weekly around the town wide fumugation and it would taint the food supply every where for the whole week,and then the fumigation would return the next week........managua has been better with less fumigation and no in house fumigation where i have stayed..its house to house in jinotega small town...in managua it would use too much money to be that thorough and so i am glad....I have more choices to eat in managua but have had to cut places out as i discover which places leave me feeling malaise for few hours after eating....i dont like the common greasy fatty foods at the USA fast foods counters here at the malls,but i go now every night to eat at the mall and go to the local foods counter which serves the same street side grill foods but done without lighter fluid and no plastic bags in the fire while the meat cooks.....i go to the market for fruits for breakfast and i dont have problems because i wash and prepare it all myself and choose the better produce......I live by a LA Union grocery here owned by Wal-Mart as i hear,and they do carry best value label as in USA but only select few with prices that beat even nicaraguan proccessed food prices....i bought some canned tuna at the very modern grocery as it was on sale,i got 4 flavours of it as they do here in central america...i whipped up some spinach,potato,tuna stew with herbs and spices....i got hours malaise right down to the last can of TUNA...i dont buy any more canned foods made i central america...some may be fine but i dont want to even find out which ones -the hard way........I buy imported olive oil and the first brand was not that malaise free,the second brand was basically much more expesive and i am much better feeling with it now......the mall food courts have proven to make food that dont have side effects on me.........i read about stories of farm worker families suffering in chinandega area of nicaragua,thats suffering due to working years or lifetime in the tainted agriculture fields here with the misuse of pesticides and what else,people in general here have very little concern or make little effort to avert contamination (throw a bag of coals with the plastic bag still on)into the grill fire to grill the customers meats every night almost every where...no one speaks about it,it can be tatsed,i spoke to one grill lady who made friends with me and she looked at me as if i had to learn how do do things right as in her way,and that was it,no change and no more conversation of it........i am able to eat here an enjoy foods,but the reality is that i have had to map a tight corridor of options where i maneuver so as not to waste precious time wallowing in malaise...long term stay here in the future is out of the question because i understand the plight of the chinandega farmers who are suffering bad illness due to lifetime of exposure of shoddy toxic practices,and i know they are mostly being unheard and the practices probably go uncompromised to save production and jobs.........To good health and making a living to live ,and not to die ill from making a living........I have to admit that i am more sensitive to what comes in my body than many people i know but i am not mistaken about it when i feel it going wrong......years ago before i started traveling constantly,i was sitting at a beach and packed up to leave as soon as i got there,my friend asked me what was up as he smoked, isaid the volcano smoke was coming,and he looked up and said no there is none..i told him i could feel it (a bit dizzy and weak) as i walked away,i stopped to chat with another friend and when we were 5 minutes later done,i looked up and the haze of the volcano smoke had filled the air and was obvious......i was in philippines for 2 years before central america and it was really bad for me there,every day of it and every place i ate or stayed.....its much better in nicaragua than philippines for me,but i have been to costa rica and panama and going later to peru and ecuador to keep up traveling and i know in USA i can by the cheapest generic product with shady reputation and not feel as malaised as i do in nicaragua with too many products............thansk for letting me post my story and hope it informs someone interested
Nicaragua
Living in Nicaragua Guide
Nicaragua Forum
Contribute
Best Places to Live in Nicaragua
Healthcare in Nicaragua
Moving to Nicaragua Guide
Pros & Cons of Living in Nicaragua
10 Tips for Living in Nicaragua