Astronomical Gastronomical

Coffee Country Again

We arrived in Juayua, El Salvador on the 14th after riding several chicken buses, at one point while waiting for the next bus to arrive, Valentin played a little music for the locals who were very helpful and friendly. We left Playa el Zonte because the beach isn´t good for much other than surfing and the swell was too large for us beginners, so instead we headed for the cool air of coffee country again. It seems that the mountain towns are usually a little more relaxed, time moves a little slower up here, and the people have more time to sit and chat. Most people weve talked to from El Salvador so far, have family in the states who they have visited and many actually lived there themselves. It is quiter here than in Nicaragua, where there was always some celebration or festival occuring with loud regatone booming and firecrakers exploding from dusk till dawn. In the last city we visited in Nicaragua, it was national post office day and they were giving out cookies and soda and dancing away to Pitbull on the stereo. We have heard that Guatemala has a similar enthusiasim for fireworks and music and we look forward to that.

The Seven Cascades

Yesterday, the 16th we went on a hike with two local guides, Mario and Guilian. The hike was a quick walk from town down a dirt path, through shade grown coffee that locals pick for one dollar a 25 kilogram sack, and up and down hills criscrossing snake paths. The snakes grow to 6 feet long and 8 inches in diameter and can eat a man, but they are eaten by El Salvadorians. We kept a close eye out. We saw five waterfalls total because the last two are pretty tough to climb to. The highlight was a 50 foot cascade that we decended down with nothing more than nylon rope to hang onto and a lot of luck. The guides climbs up and down these cascades in flipflops as if they are walking on flat ground instead of slick wet rock. It was amazing. The waterfalls were beautiful, crystal clear, and refreshing. At the end of about a 4 or 5 hour hike we swam in a man made pool created under a huge waterfall that the locals call Sprinkles of Love, similar to a lovers lane. After that we bought a bottle of rum with the whole hostel and had a party with two English ladies, two Canadians. an American, and one of our guides. Today is the towns weekly Gastronomical Fest, the perfect cure for a hangover we hope.

Jolly Rogers OUT!!

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