A giant moth a big as big as my hand was on the wall in my room in Nicaragua
Nicaragua’s Jewish history has been pretty scanty. At its peak, after 1929, the Jewish population hit 250, but with the rise of the Sand
inista government, the majority of them fled the country. The Sandinista government cruelly persecuted the remaining Jews and took possession of the Jewish school, turning it into a secular school, although the B’nai Brith Center and Women’s International Zionist Organization remained intact.
In 1990, when the Sandinista government was overthrown, many Jewish families returned to Nicaragua. Nevertheless, the Jewish population remains small, with about 50 members. The community is growing stronger and steadily rebuilding itself.
Jewish visitors to Nicaragua today should not expect to find sources of kosher food and should come prepared. The capital city of Managua does have a
synagogue and Jewish cemetary, which recently received a new Torah scroll.
One cool place I went to was Ometepe. It’s largest volcanic island inside a fresh water lake in the world. Certainly worth a visit.
