San Francisco de Cuapa
San Francisco de Cuapa is one of the youngest municipalities in Chontales. It obtained this status in 1997.
It is a population immersed in a tranquil environment that remains attached to a rural way of life and feeling.
Cuapa is connected by a modern highway to the mining district of La Libertad and Santo Domingo. From here, you can access towns such as Juigalpa, Comalapa, and municipalities in the department of Boaco.
Cuapa's economic activity revolves primarily around livestock farming. Some of its farms are dedicated to the production of herds with high genetic quality and Central American recognition.
Being integrated into a modern and highly productive route, this municipality contributes greatly to the departmental economic dynamism.
San Francisco de Cuapa is the Chontales municipality with a busy religious tourism, since here there is a National Sanctuary built on one of the sites where the Virgin Mary appeared to a peasant carrying a message of peace.
Nature and Landscape
San Francisco de Cuapa is located in the north of the department of Chontales. The territory is broken to undulating, with the following important elevations: Matayagual (958 m), Monte Cristo (920 m), La Victoria (891 m), Buena Vista (872 m), Las Cuchillas (865 m), Matayagual (858 m), Tumbé (818 m) and Oluma (760 m), all of them included in the category of Natural Reserve.
Monoliths of Cuapa
These mountain peaks tend to separate the dry southwest from the humid northeast of the municipality. In the eastern part, the El Silencio and La Abundancia waterfalls stand out. The Murra and Quilile rivers also flow through this area. The Tablazón waterfall is another resource that adds to this wealth of water.
Las Depths, near the community of El Pintor, is a rare site of geological interest. They are deep natural cracks that extend for hundreds of meters under a dense dry tropical forest. It is probable that this system is related to the Llano Grande caves.
Alongside Oluma Hill runs the La Mica ravine, an ancient indigenous sanctuary as evidenced by the numerous indigenous engravings found there. In past decades, it was also the site of mining exploration.
If visitors enjoy adventure and nature tourism, the Cuapa Rock should definitely be on their itinerary. Climbing its high summit to contemplate the Chontales landscape and learn about its picturesque legends is a delightful combination at this imposing 100-meter-high monolith.
Exploring the surroundings of its high mountains, including its refreshing waterfalls, allows the visitor to discover a climatic convergence zone overlooking the beginning of the Caribbean plateau.
Culture
The groups found by the Spanish conquerors are related to the ancient Chontals. Due to the isolation of the territory, the Spanish colonization arrived late at the current municipality of San Francisco de Cuapa.
The word Cuapa has been interpreted using the Nahuatl language: “coatl”, snake, and “pan”, on top. Which suggests as a translation: "On top of the snake."
From the 60s onward, Don Lorenzo Marín Álvarez was one of Cuapa's main promoters of development and instrumental in achieving municipality status. He donated part of his property for drinking water services, schools, and health clinics. The Cuapa Valley was officially declared a municipality in 1997, under the name of San Francisco de Cuapa.
In Llano Grande there is one of the few expressions of pottery in Chontales. Comales, jars, pitchers, tiles and crafts are made by some families in this rural town.
The San Jacinto archaeological site, located on the estate of the same name, is the largest of its kind in the area. Dozens of mounds and other indigenous structures can be seen 1 km west of the town center.
The Cueva de los Duendes, in the remote community of El Tule, preserves cave paintings, a rare indigenous art in Chontales.
Architecture
The construction of adobe houses is popular in El Despoblado and Llano Grande, a technique that is slowly giving way to the advance of modernity.
The Sanctuary of the Apparitions of the Virgin of Cuapa was declared as such in 2013 and was built on the site where the Virgin Mary appeared to the farmer Bernardo Martínez in 1980.
The old chapel is a structure built in 1906, with colonial influences. Inside, the image of Our Lady of Cuapa is preserved, along with the phrases the Virgin spoke to Bernardo during her apparitions. Information about the apparitions and their messages is also displayed. Bernardo Martínez, who became a priest and a devout follower of the Virgin Mary, is buried in the center of the chapel.
The new church is the Catholic church currently in use. Its construction is modern and it was erected in 1990.
The Raúl Ruiz baseball stadium and the municipal barrier are two busy public spaces in this municipality.
Religious Festivals
Every May 8th, the Sanctuary of the Virgin of Cuapa receives thousands of pilgrims from all over Nicaragua.
The patron saint festivities are celebrated in June and are dedicated to Saint John the Baptist.
In the community of Llano Grande they celebrate their festivities in honor of Saint Peter (June 29).
Feast of Saint Francis. The celebration is a family tradition that has been passed down for over 100 years. It is celebrated on April 2nd with a food distribution and a religious service.
Gastronomy
In this municipality, their donuts and baked goods are famous. Nougats or "nillo" balls, sweetened with cane candy, are common because its climate allows this variety of Creole sorghum to be grown.
During religious celebrations, nacatamales are shared with tamales, chicha, roasted pork, and fried pork. Pebre is a traditional dish that uses pig's head to prepare a kind of stew with boiled corn dough. It is served with tortillas, tamales, or boiled green plantains.
Corn chicha, horchata or jícaro seed and pinol warm are traditional drinks.
Dairy products are constant in the diet of this people.
