Advertisement
Published: July 20th 2006
Edit Blog Post
Update
The map we've posted detailing our route through El Salvador isn't 100%!c(MISSING)orrect. Like I always said, our plans are "subject to change." Since we spent an extra night in Guatemala, we more/less decided to make a B-line for San Salvador and then head north (bypassing some of Western Guatemala). So, the route line is correct... we just didn't stop (or make that funny circle) in Western El Salvador. Anyways... I suppose I am being a bit too detail oriented. Enjoy the blog entry!
Bienvenido a El Salvador
The landscape remains the most turbulent aspect of El Salvador. Volcanoes arise from flat valleys and lakes fill ancient craters. The Pacific Ocean slams the coast and mixes with the fresh waters of the many rivers slithering through the country. Despite deforestation and high population density, El Salvador has rich forests and craggy mountains that make for great hiking. The highlands in the west and northeast are nice and cool most of the year.
But the people of El Salvador are surely its richest resource, and the best reason to come. Direct, friendly and unjaded by mass tourism, most Salvadorans are genuinely happy to help you out if you are lost. You'll need a better command of Spanish here than in other Central American countries, but it's well rewarded.
Intro to San Salvador
Under Construction!
Our Experience
We got a bit of a late start out of Panajachel for Guatemala City after we found a great place to have breakfast (mmm waffles). We caught an 11AM bus that took us directly to Guatemala City via Antigua, and we arrived around 3PM. Our arrival, however, was not exactly smooth. In the middle of the city, the bus cut off and pulled over for no reason. I was thinking it broke down after the driver got out and nothing was happening. The locals on the bus starting getting out and walking towards the nearest local bus stop. After a minute or
two, we walked off the bus, and sure enough there was the driver with the engine compartment open above a huge puddle of lord knows what type of engine fluids. Needless to say, we grabbed our stuff and hailed a cab; we had to get to the international bus station by 4PM to catch the last bus to San Salvador.
Fortunately for us, the bus had made it all the way to the city before eating it. We arrived via cab at the international bus station around 3:20PM, bought tickets, grabbed some questionable yet tasty food from a vendor outside, and sat down for a bit. The bus ended up boarding a bit after 4PM, and they made us put ALL of our bags down below (not just our big bags like we're used to). We collected all of our essentials and hopped on. The bus actually had TVs and played movies; we hadn't seen that since Mexico. In fact, the movies that it aired were recent. Very recent. Actually, too recent. We suspected piracy at first, but then we were sure of it when the new Superman movie came on. So the next time you see a movie
poster claiming the new Superman movie it only in theatres, I'm thinking it should read "only in theatres and on Guatemalan buses." Let's hear it for buying movies on the street.
Going through immigration was more or less painless. There weren't any fees this time around, and we didn't experience delays exiting Guatemala or entering El Salvador. We were, however, accosted by the usual money changers at the border. I might add that it was rather entertaining seeing them all waving US money around (El Salvador has been officially using the US Dollar as their currency since 2001 when their old currency was simply pegged directly to ours).
We originally wanted to get off the bus at Santa Ana, but it got dark rather quickly, and we couldn't really see any street signs. So by the time we thought we should be near it, we asked and found out that we had already passed it. Oh well, not that big of a deal except for that it was getting fairly late. Fortunately for us, however, we gained an hour when we crossed the border. So far we've had to change our times by an hour one way or
the other at every border crossing. Good old daylight savings time.
We finally arrived in San Salvador, grabbed a cab, and Lila was able to explain to the driver where we needed to go with her impressive Spanish and a map. He got us right to the door (quite a relief considering it was dark and raining). Added bonus: our room was reasonably priced and had A/C. We finally passed out after a long day of travelling.
In the morning, we discussed how to tackle El Salvador, and we decided to stay and see the city for the day. I was very impressed with the city itself. The areas surrounding the city center were very clean and welcoming although once we hit the center it got considerably more gritty. We were able to walk through a couple cathedrals during Sunday service, saw the old national palace (it didn't look like it was in great shape), and took a taxi over to the anthropology museum. By the time we were done seeing the portions of the city we were interested in, it was time for a late lunch/early dinner. We then found a Pizza Hut. Mmm... Pizza Hut. It
was a nice change from typical Central American food.
We ended up staying in the restaurant for a while because it started pouring, but once it let up, we grabbed a taxi to a shopping center near our hostel and found an internet cafe. Actually, it was an internet cafe/tattoo parlor. No that's not a typo. We could use the internet while picking out a tattoo from the options on the wall. It was an interesting combination to say the least.
By the time we were all done with the internet, the weather had only gotten worse. We decided to call it a day rather early since the rain didn't look like it was going to let up any time soon. We managed to get back to our hostel and relax until it was time for bed. The next morning we got up, the lady at the hostel called a taxi for us, and we were on our way to the bus port for Suchitoto.
Up Next...
Northern El Salvador... the colonial town of Suchitoto and La Palma.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.086s; Tpl: 0.01s; cc: 9; qc: 47; dbt: 0.0479s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb