Juigalpa

Juigalpa is the capital of Chontales, ranching country of dry hills and cattle, and the reason to stop is the Museo Arqueológico Gregorio Aguilar Barea: a modest municipal building holding dozens of pre-Columbian basalt statues gathered from the surrounding countryside, tall standing figures with stylised faces and animal features, some over four metres high, of a type particular to central Nicaragua and largely unstudied. They stand in rows in a small hall, which makes the effect stranger than a formal display would. The town also has a park with views over the Amerrisque mountains and a zoo of local species that is best skipped. Cattle fairs and rodeo events fill the calendar in August.

What you actually see

• The basalt statues - rows of tall pre-Columbian figures in the museum.
• The Amerrisque view - the mountain range from the town's park.
• Ranching culture - the cattle economy of the Chontales hills.
• August fairs - the rodeo and livestock events of the patron festival.

When to go

December to April for the roads; the town is hot and dry then. The patron saint fair in August brings rodeos and crowds. The museum keeps weekday hours and closes at lunchtime.

Honest expectations

The museum is small and municipal, with minimal interpretation and no English. The statues are poorly lit and displayed. The town has little else and the zoo is in poor condition. It is a stop on the road east rather than a destination.

Nearby

El Rama lies east; Managua is northwest.