Nicaragua's Pasttime

We went to a baseball game in Sahsa, the second I've seen in Nicaragua. Interestingly enough, the leader of the local health center, Sergio, is also the starting pitcher for the Sahsa baseball team. Baseball is one of the most important events around town, as evidenced by the fact that the baseball jerseys were completely spotless and clean before the game. Players walk around town in their jerseys sometimes, even when there isn't a game (or at least one that I know of). On this particular day, Sahsa was engaged in a heated battle against Kukalaya, a nearby village.

Boys of Summer:


Boys in Blue, keeping the peace.


Actually, while we were there, one guy got into a fracas with the police. I'm not exactly sure what happened, but the guilty party basically got embarrassed in front of most of the town. Then as the police walked away, the guy grabbed a log and started chasing after the police. The towns people shouted to the police, who turned around and re-disciplined him. There are 6 police officers in Sahsa, all of whom are voluntary.

Safety is probably a bigger issue out here than back in Leon. I wouldn't have felt particularly comfortable walking around alone at night around Sahsa. Even while we were in Rosita, I didn't feel completely safe. I was never threatened or anything, but I did see a street fight on the main drag there during my brief stay.

Playoff Baseball Guide

I thought it might be interesting to see how the teams are spelled in the local papers here:
Los Yanquis - The Yankees
Los Indios - The Indians
Los Medias Rojas - The Red Sox
Los Angelinos - The Angels
Los Cachorros - The Cubs
Los Rockies - The Rockies
Los Diamondbacks - The Diamondbacks
Los Filis - The Philies

Baseball video!

Here is a little clip I took with my camera of the championship baseball game. Unfortunately, there is no sound. I think that at this point in the game, Leon was losing and things had calmed down a bit.

Jonrón = Homerun in Spanish

On September 20th (I think), I went to the Nicaraguan Baseball Championship Game 7 between Leon and Granada. It turns out baseball is by far the most popular sport in Nicaragua. It was the most intense, over-crowed sports event I've ever been to, including a UNC-Duke basketball game. I think admission to this game cost about $1.66. They don't sell "seats." They just sell as many tickets as possible, meaning that it's completely packed. At any given moment, I was usually sharing at least a part of my seat/seating area with 1-2 other people.
I arrived an hour early, and the covered seating section (actually, it was really a standing section) was already full. People were already screaming enthusiastically and completely drowning out the loudspeaker.
One popular activity at the game was to buy these bags of drinkable water, but rather than drink them, rip a little hole in one end and then squeeze it, waving it around above your head. This is actually fairly refreshing and enjoyable. The camera men on the field with expensive equipment didn't appreciate it, but everyone else liked the break from the Nicaraguan heat. If someone doesn't have a water bag, they sometimes just throw whatever drink they do have into someone near by. By the end of it, I had been bathed in water, beer, and one sugary drink was practically poured on my head, but at least it tasted okay.
I was in the section right next to the Granada fan section. The section for Granada was lined with police officers to help keep things orderly. There is a lot of swearing, gesturing, and booing between the different fan sections. Additionally, a lot of people are drinking. After Granada scored a run or two, someone tossed a bottle at a fan, and the next thing we knew, there was an all out bottle battle between the sections. I ducked but was still hit by various liquids swirling out of the bottles. Police were eventually able to calm things down.
Unfortunately, Leon had a less than stellar game and lost 15-0 . Ouch. Some people had waited 5 hours in the stands prior to the game. They were pretty disappointed. Hopefully, next year will be more successful.