El Salvador!
The bugs are eating us alive and there is not a minute of the day that goes by that we are not drenched it sweat but that has not deterred us from exploring the culture and beauty of El Salvador. We arrived in El Salvador at Barillas Marina about two weeks ago, after six days at sea. Our crossing of the Tehuantepec went as smoothly as Enrique, the manager of Marina Chauahe in Hualtuco promised it would. A few hours before we untied from the dock and headed out to perfect sailing he told us the weather theory that the locals live by when preparing to cross the Tehuantepec. His story was told much more eloquently than I am about to translate. It is believed by the local fisherman that when the sea gets mad and the waves get big and start crashing on the rocks of the beaches it is the sea‘s way of asking the sky for water. If the sky then responds and rains the sea will once again be content and the two will be at peace, making for a nice crossing across the Tehuantepec. As luck would have it that is exactly the phenomenon that occurred the day before we left. The waves increased and Hualtuco got its first rain shower of the rainy season making it perfect time for us to head across. So we left on our planned departure date after saying our goodbyes to Attu. We left with four other boats following a few hours behind. We had perfect sailing as soon as we left that lasted all through our first night. The next five days we were not so lucky. WE ended up motoring pretty much non stop for the rest of the journey except for the occasional squall that would pass by and bring us 10-15 knots in the afternoons. We were a little disappointed that we did not get more wind but their were no complaints since we got across the Tehuantepec safely. We found the sail to be almost easier than the one or two day trips because our body was able to get into a routine allowing us to actually get used to the three hours on three hours off in the middle of the night. The days were incredibly calm with no wind and sweltering heat. This was accented by squalls and fierce lightning and thunder storms at night. Every night we ended up playing a game of chase with mother nature as we used our radar to dodge the squalls that brought huge lightning bolts all the way down to the ocean. One night they were a safe distance off and we were in no danger so we sat for hours and watched these amazing bolts of lightning light the entire sky pink and purple.
On our last night out we were showering on the foredeck when we were greeted by about one thousand Spinner Dolphins. We had not encountered this breed of Dolphins before but they were the most hipper fun creatures I have ever seen. For about half an hour they were jumping all the way out of the water and twisting three hundred and sixty degrees before belly flopping back into the water.. They were so talkative squeaking under our boat as they glided along with us. It was so amazing to see these creatures happy and free. Between the lightning and the sea life Mother Nature provided us to with some amazing shows to entertain us on our crossing!
We just barely made it into Barillas Marina, El Salvador on our sixth day. The marina is located across a sand bar and up a river about ten miles so they send a panga out to guide you in. We got the last panga ride in at four o ‘clock and by seven o’ clock after being tossed back and forth over the sand bar we were tied up to our mooring. Being a Sunday night we figured we would check into immigration and the marina in the morning. To our surprise the panga came out with the owner of the marina, Herbierto, and the Policia to inspect our boat. We were then guided into shore where we checked into the marina and then to immigration. Needless to say they were not as lackadaisical as Mexico, where they could really care less when you checked in. It was late and we were hot, exhausted and not to enthusiastic about going in to wait for immigration to go through our paper work. Our moods quickly changed from hot and grumpy to intrigued and touched when Herbierto starting explaining in detail the history of El Salvador and the meaning of their countries flag. It was absolutely beautiful how he described each of the symbols on their flag and described how proud they are to now be part of CAFTA( Central America Free Trade Agreement). He continued to tell us how happy they are that the war is over and how hard the country is working to get out of the poverty it has fallen into. They are very fond of America and are thankful for the help they have supplied El Salvador with. We were glad to hear that they were fond of Americans but a little skeptical as to why! Checking in ended up being a great experience that reminded us to keep perspective of where we are and how lucky we are to be doing this trip no matter how hot or tired we may be.
We spent one day swimming in the pool and drinking mango smoothies at the marina before deciding we were long over due for some inland travels. So we hopped on the van that goes from the marina into the nearest town and started our trip of inland El Salvador. The first day we spent traveling from one bus to another trying to get to La Libertad, a famous surf spot. The first bus took us from Usulután to the capital, San Salvador. From their we took a taxi to another bus terminal where we were scammed into taking another taxi to another bus stop. We finally made it on our last bus to La Libertad. The buses which they have nick named “chicken buses” are old school buses which they back to the brim with as many people as they can. It is so hot and claustrophobic! Being our first time experiencing the “chicken buses” we were not as annoyed as we were interested. Every stop we had ladies getting on and selling everything from water to candy to pupusas, the local meal. Practically anything you want to eat was cycled through the bus at some time during the two hour excursion.
We finally arrived at La Libertad, found a hotel and went out to wash off the daily grime in the surf. It was really nice to surf without having the worry of our boat at anchor in the back of our head. The surf was pretty small but it felt amazing to get in after the dirty buses and city. That night we shard stories over dinner with a guy we met when we were checking in. Patrick turned out to be from the San Luis Obispo area and is friends with a lot of our friends back at home. He was really nice and had lived in Puntarenas, Costa Rica for a while so gave us some good tips on where to surf and stay when we get their. We also hung out with the owner of the restaurant, Oscar that night and learned a few more bits and pieces about the history and current state of El Salvador. He told us that there are six million people living in the country and two million El Salvadorians living in the United States. The two million people living in the states currently account for 70% of the countries income. That is one of the main reason that they have recently switched their currency from the colon to the U.S. dollar. He also explained to us how El Salvador is repaying its debt to the U.S. for the billions of dollars that they poured into the country ( in the form of armed weapons)during the war by sending El Salvadorian troops to Iraq for free. It seemed like another corrupt situation initiated by the United States but we decided not to get into it or we would probably never stop. It was so nice to meet another local El Salvadorian who spoke English so we could get some more insight into the history and current issues of the country .
We were planning to bus back to San Salvador the next day to rent a car so we could go explore but we got lucky and Oscar rented us his range rover and we no longer had to enter into the dirty crazy city of San Salvador. Or so we thought! We left early in the morning and drove the coast before heading into the mountains to stay in a little town by the main Coffee plantations of El Salvador. It was a little scary driving through the small random towns. The majority of the towns are very poor and we seemed to find ourselves continuously getting lost and driving through open market places where we could go no faster than a snail. Driving through we would get stuck behind women and children with push carts full of fruits and vegetables that they were selling. The markets were really amazing and colorful but at times we felt a little nervous to be two white kids in a range rover driving through the center of them. We ended up making it to the town we were looking for with no problems and found a place to stay where we had our own cottage with a view of the mountains. We were walking around the town after we checked in and ran into a Crazy Woman. She was from El Salvador but had spent a lot of time in the states in the sixties so she spoke English. She went on to tell us about her LSD trips and asked us how the rock and roll scene was in San Francisco. She also tried to convince us that the Mexican government owed her half a million dollars and she was waiting in El Salvador until they paid her. Needless to say she was totally Looney!. She kept following us around until we finally got rid of her after not giving her any money. Besides meeting her the town was really quaint and we had fun meeting the local kids playing soccer in the streets. We drank a lot of great coffee for free and enjoyed being away form the ocean and in the mountains. The next day we went on a hike through little local villages back in the mountains and then drove for ever after getting lost in San Salvador before making it to the highest mountain range in El Salvador, El Pital. This tiny village not effected by tourism tucked back in the mountains was such a relief to find after getting lost in the harsh outskirts of San Salvador. Their were local girls selling baskets at our hotel that we met as soon as we arrived. Their was a girl with them who was from New York and has been working with the Peace core and living in El Salvador for the last three years. Once again we had someone who spoke English to give us some information about the area and describe the art work of the local girls. They made beautiful woven bowls out of pine needles. It was one of the first times they had gone out of their community to sell the bowls and they were so excited when we bought two of them. They are absolutely beautiful and it is so great to bring a little piece of the area and history home with us. Than afternoon we went on a breathtaking hike that resembled a mix between India and Switzerland and stayed in another little cottage with amazing views and amazing people. The mountain villages were incredibly poor but beautiful and full culture. We also got to experience the process that the women go through to make their local dish Pupusa. There is one or two mills in this town where all the women go to take turns milling their corn mill with water. They then carry these huge bowls of cornmeal on their heads back to their homes where they make Pupusas and tortillas. The tortillas are much different here then they were in Mexico. They are smaller and not made with lard. We think they are much better! The hardest part for us was watching the children filling up water from wells on the side of the street into old anti-freeze containers. Not only is the water probably incredibly polluted but then they put it in toxic containers!
After three nights out we realized that financially this was getting to be a little more than expected so we decided to head back to La Libertad drop off the car and stay for one more day of surf. We surfed and had one more great night of beers and Pupusa’s with Patrick and a few other Americans. Our inland travels ended up helping with our Spanish immensely. After just a few days we were able to carry on conversations in Spanish with the local surfers. Sailing we are mainly only surrounded by gringos so you never get any practice speaking Spanish. In Mexico we could get by with our broken Spanish but in El Salvador very few people spoke English so we were really pushed to formulate coherent sentences and it was amazing how quickly we picked up the language when we had to. Patrick spoke fluent Spanish so he was able to help us out and throw us a word or sometimes a sentence when we got stuck.
The next day we hopped on the dreaded “chicken bus” back to Usulután where we got a Taxi back to Barillas. It was really nice to get back to the Marina. We hadn’t realized how secure the marina was until we tried to get enter in a taxi. We went through multiple security guards and realized that Barillas is enclosed by an electric fence and is patrolled twenty four hours a day by security guards. After calling Herbierto and realizing we were from Gaviota we were granted access. After seeing how poor the country was and how many civilians carry guns throughout the streets it was very reassuring to know that our boat and home was waiting for us behind these protected gates. We really enjoyed our inland travels of El Salvador. Reflecting on the people we met and the towns we saw we realize how sad the country still feels. It is a really harsh place to live still but the people are so nice and the countryside is so beautiful!
