Santa Ana and the volcano

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July 29 - I woke up at 6am again today. There seems to be no way around it. I skyped with Jeroen and called my grandma. I repacked, which didn't take long. I really spread out more when I have a private room. I tried to get a bus to the station like yesterday, but there weren't many buses coming on a Sunday morning. So different from yesterday. I decided to just get a cab to the station instead, though it hurts to pay $3 instead of 25 cents. From there I found the 201 bus to Santa Ana. I sat on it for 15 minutes or so before we left, but I think we only got 5-10 minutes away before the bus broke down. They roared the engine a bit and looked around and then got us on a different bus. The ride was about 90 minutes and I thought it would end at the station on the map, but it ended up a bit farther away than expected. I had to get a different bus back to the city center and had the driver look at the map and show me where to get off. From there, it was not too long to walk to get to Casa Verde, where I wanted to stay.

At the guesthouse, I decided on a private room, of course. Too many people in the dorm for my taste. And of course I have wifi and tv. I settled in a bit and then went for walk. I thought the town would be somewhat more attractive, but you can't have everything. I got another torta at a little stand outside and ate quite close to a homeless guy sleeping on the sidewalk. Then when I was finishing my coke, a woman walked by and held up her cup. I thought she wanted money but she wanted the rest of my coke. So I poured it in. Then I walked around the main square, the cathedral and got a raspberry sorbet. Yum. I met a guy who grew up in the states but is from El Salvador originally. He has been deported several times, and is trying to go back illegally in a couple weeks. I feel bad for him. His whole life is there, and the only way to go back to what he ever knew is illegal. What a mess. Then I bought some groceries and headed back to the hostel. I washed out some of my clothes and hung them up to dry. Another good reason to have my own room. They dried in a few hours which was quick. I had some cereal for dinner and stayed downstairs to talk to a bunch of people, which was nice. Normal for me and what I have been missing. Tomorrow I will go for a hike up a volcano that should be beautiful, and I'll be going with Michele, a French woman, and Mary (Irish) and Spencer (British) who are teachers in the UK.

Monday - This was the best normal travel day so far on this trip. It started quite early. I couldn't quite sleep again after I woke up at 4am, which was too bad. But after breakfast, I met with Michele, Mary and Spencer and we walked over to the bus station. The bus took two hours, and for part of it we could see Coatepeque lake, a crater lake on the way the volcanoes. Really pretty. Once we arrived at the park we had to pay a dollar to get in. Then we asked about the climb up to Santa Ana volcano and were told that there was a school group there going up the other volcano, Izalco, and that we would have to go with them. We begged and pleaded and I told them we were teachers who were on vacation from students and that we really wanted to go up Santa Ana. The guide said to ask again before the trip left at 11am. In the meantime we went for a 45 minute walk through the forest there, with one of the guides who showed us around. It was really pretty, and the air was clean and fresh and cool. Such a difference from the city. When we came back, we were told it was possible to go to Santa Ana, because we were teachers, but that we would go with two policemen and no guide, since the guides were needed for the student group. That was perfect. There were also two American guys, three Puerto Ricans and two Germans who would be walking with us. For some reason, we had to squish into a minivan with the Americans to get to the start of the hike. I was in the back and there was literally no leg room – the seat in front touched my seat. I also think the guy stripped his gears driving there, and we could have walked faster than his van could drive. Strange.

We had to pay another dollar to cross private property and then 6 dollars to do the trail. Once the hike began, the group separated farther and farther apart. I was in the first (faster) group amazingly. It took almost two hours to get to the top, with a few breaks. Eventually I was the last person in this first group, walking alone, which felt less stressful. My friends were quite slow and strolling, so they got to the top much later. One of the Puerto Ricans didn't make it but everyone else did. The hike was hard but worth it. There is a crater lake that formed on top of the volcano after it erupted in 2005 and it was beautiful. A crazy green color. And from the top ridge I also had a perfect view of the Lake Coatepeque. It was much cooler, even cold, at the top with a lot of wind. I was up there for maybe 20-30 minutes before we turned around. The other group, with my friends from the hostel, had only been there about 5 minutes when I left. I made it down in an hour or so, moving really fast with the Americans. It was great. Until I realized that my friends were much much slower. It took them an extra hour to come down. They had lunch at the top, took more photos, etc. I should maybe have stayed with them. But after the Germans and Americans left, I sat with the police, first one and then the other, and practiced my Spanish. It was good but my Spanish is still bad. They made it back just in time to catch the 3pm bus back to Santa Ana and it was going by. Fortunately. Otherwise we would have to take two buses to get back and it would take longer. I slept on the ride back and had to be woken up by my friends to get off when we arrived. I felt so out of it and had had to pee for hours but decided to go first to the grocery store before walking back to the hostel since it was right next to the bus station. And there was a bathroom there – score! I love walking through the stores here. I find myself singing along with the music they play, usually 80s love songs. I decided to make tuna and noodles with some avocado for dinner, and it was good. I showered first and then Claudia, a German girl from the night before, and I ate together. I also met Kati, from Romania but living in Ireland. There was a big rainstorm which was nice. The others made dinner a little later and we all sat around talking until 10pm. This is how traveling normally is. You meet and chat with other travelers and just have a nice time. This is what I have been missing. This hostel is great too. Nice rooms, big kitchen with lots of utensils. Carlos, the owner, also made popcorn for us, which was great. It's just a nice place. Tomorrow I will either go the lake with Mary and Spencer if they go and seem willing to have company, or just hang around here and relax. Why not? It's my vacation.

Tuesday - Today I didn't do much. I actually slept until 7:30 and got out of bed at 8am. I had a quick skype call with Jeroen, as he was waiting to board his plane home from Vienna. I had breakfast and helped Claudia with an English email she needed to send. Then I just relaxed a bit, or as much relaxing as I could manage. I saw Mary and Spencer having breakfast around 11am and then I had lunch at 12:30pm. They told me they were leaving for the lake at 1:30pm and I almost went, but a three hour round trip ride and only an hour or so there didn't really work for me, so I passed. Instead I walked around town with Michele, got some sorbet, took a few more pictures and got some groceries. Same dinner as last night with a chocolate soymilk for dessert. Kati came back from her volcano hike and I chatted with her a bit, and with Michele and Mary and Spencer when they came back. I retired to the privacy of my room a little earlier than last night, around 8:45pm. It's raining again, but only at nights, so that has been great. Tomorrow a leisurely bus back to San Salvador.

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