Yesterday Liz provided Christina and me with a tour of the U.S. embassy in San Salvador. You will not see pictures of this tour posted on my travel blog because visitors are prohibited from bringing any recording devises on the premises. Personally I was quite impressed with the tour. The security of the embassy is unrivaled, yet subtle. Security cameras monitored our every step; armed security guards supplemented the U.S. Marines (though I doubt they needed the help). Christina and I had a pleasant chat with Liz’s immediate supervisor. She shared stories about various duty stations she [View Full Entry]

---

---

Saturday we finally got a late start which I was grateful for. I was desperate for some sleep. Our tour guide, Caesar, picked us up for a “ruins and volcanoes tour” around noon. Caesar claims to have vast knowledge of the rich history of the Salvadoran people and Mayan culture; I also suspect that during the 1980’s he stole cars in the U.S. and sold them in El Salvador, but I'll address that in another blog. Our first stop was a visit to the Pompeii-style Mayan ruins of “Joya de Ceren”, which was buried under lava and ash after a volcanic [View Full Entry]

---

---

My wife decided to schedule our trip to Guatemala the day after our arrival to El Salvador. Supposedly there was some logical reason for this, but I suspect she’s just trying to torment me. During the course of the first 36 hours of our trip, Christina and I departed Tampa, caught a connecting flight in Atlanta, flew to San Salvador, rode a bus 4 ½ hours to Guatemala City, and then rode an additional hour to Antigua. Five locations and three countries in a day and a half… this may be the ideal time to purchase stock in Pepto-Bismol. We boarded [View Full Entry]

---

---

Two rows behind us a young mother tried to quell the persistent cries of her toddler. This had been going on for approximately one hour. The passengers of Delta Flight # 2073 to Atlanta were losing their patience. Even my cousin Christina, an elementary school teacher, could tolerate it no more. From across the aisle I observed her rolling her eyes; I mock committed suicide by running my index finger across my throat as if though it were a razor. Unlike most parents in this situation this particular mother seemed to demonstrate no remorse for her fellow passengers. Her child exhibiting [View Full Entry]

---

---