About Nicaragua's North Atlantic Coast

Geography

This region of Nicaragua is called the RAAN the acronym for Region Autonoma Atlantico Norte or North Atlantic Autonomous Region.

This is a good detailed map of the region: http://209.15.138.224/inmonica/m_rannx.htm.

This link is a good geographic directory of the cities and towns in the region at http://www.fallingrain.com/

Some of the prinicipal towns most often mentioned in damage assessment reports include:

• Puerto Cabezas (now called Bilwi) - map


• Tuapi (located north of Puerto Cabezas) - a pre-hurricane video "Paseo a Tuapi"


• An article about Krukira from the International Federation of Red Cross Societies
• Dukura


• Miskito Keys (or Miskito Cays) - photo


• Sandy Bay [or Big Sandy Bay] (located north of Tuapi) - here's a YouTube video


• Siuna - in the mining area


• Waspam (on the Rio Coco on the border with Honduras) -- here's another link with a lot of pictures

The photo is of the pastor of the Moravian Church in Krukira -- families sought refuge in the church building as the eye of the hurricane passed directly overhead.

Culture, Autonomous Government

Native Languages' site has several links for Miskito language and culture.

Cultural Survival has several articles on the indigenous people of the Atlantic Coast. Here's an interesting one about higher education for the multicultural communities served by the University of the Autonomous Regions of the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua.

The Inter-American Development Bank has a good 2001 article about governance systems in the RAAN entitled, "The Search for a New Kind of Government."