Everyone had a good sleep and we all got up after some TV time to grab some breakfast. The kids were able to have some pancakes and Correen had her eggs over easy. The hotel was hopping this morning with Spanish reggae and techno blasting from loudspeakers. As the day progressed more and more El Salvadorans showed up to enjoy the restaurant and beach. We figured this would have been the designation for the hourly rate discussed the last evening, but also not entirely sure of that either. The kids played in the pool first and then we made way for the beach with borrowed boogie boards.
The surf here was quite nice and the beach was huge and not inhabited by tourists. This was local territory and we enjoyed watching the fishing boats going out from the shore to check their nets out at sea. As we swam the waters we enjoyed watching the pelicans gently gliding their wingtips along the crests of the waves only tens of meters from us. The kids played on the boogie boards with my help; launching them with the propelling waves for the hopeful ride to the shore. It was heaps of fun and even Correen and I gave it go as well. We spent about 1 1/2 - 2 hours in the water and on the beach. The kids chased little crabs around the sand and even caught a couple to examine closely in their hands.
We returned to our hotel for some lunch and the kids played in the pool for much of the afternoon. Tegan even had a little friend to play with. Alexa was her name and she was a little younger than Tegan. Tegan, Elliot and Alexa all played together in and out of the pool. Alexa was interested in doing anything we were doing including joining us for a drive to the store down the street. I even fixed her knee up after a fall with a couple of bandaids. She sure did like the attention from us.
The crowd was still around until late afternoon when they all packed up and left, leaving only 2-3 couples staying the night at the hotel. Our night consisted of dinner, some more swimming in the pool, then some TV and finally bed. It was a day absorbed at a comfortable pace.
Showing posts with label El Salvador. Show all posts
Showing posts with label El Salvador. Show all posts
Friday, December 21, 2012
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Day 28 - Walking on the rim of a volcano
This morning we went for breakfast at the hotel opposite the Parque Centro. It was a pretty good breakfast as well. While I turned the car around, the night before we parked the car inside the courtyard of the hotel, Correen and the kids went upstairs to grab our bags. Our first destination of the day was El Bocqueron, but on the way we stopped off at boutique like restaurant for Lunch. The restaurant and grounds were immaculate and the view of the surrounding lands from this ridge was stunning. Also on site were a playground for the kids and a museum set up with coffee production artifacts.
At El Bocqueron, we parked the car and paid an entrance fee, then proceeded onto a short walk through the grounds ascending up to the lip of the crater. Standing on the edge of of the crater was amazing. The bottom of the crater looks to be at least 200m in depth and the diameter perhaps around 1000m. I took a bunch of photos of the crater, but they are currently stuck on my memory card. On the way out of the park we purchased a tray of strawberries and a tray of raspberries for the ride. Our next destination was Santa Ana.
In Santa Ana we parked the car near the Parque Centro and the made our way to the tourist information center for some information on hotels in the area. It was nearing 5pm and we needed a place to stay. We headed for the recommended hotel near to where we were but dealing with the gps, traffic and one way streets became too much to deal with and we decided to head to the hotel on the outskirts of town with the pool instead. Getting there proved to very difficult as well and we ended up making 4-5 u-turns before reaching the hotel at 7pm.
The first room smelled bad and there was a burnt iron shaped burn mark in the carpet. We switched rooms. The next room was just a little better, but we weren't up to switching rooms all night, so we took it instead. We decided to order Pizza Hut and have a pool party for the kids. It was actually nice to be out of the car, eating some decent pizza and the kids are always happiest swimming in a pool. Tomorrow we plan on visiting some Mayan runes and then travel down the Ruta de las Flores.
At El Bocqueron, we parked the car and paid an entrance fee, then proceeded onto a short walk through the grounds ascending up to the lip of the crater. Standing on the edge of of the crater was amazing. The bottom of the crater looks to be at least 200m in depth and the diameter perhaps around 1000m. I took a bunch of photos of the crater, but they are currently stuck on my memory card. On the way out of the park we purchased a tray of strawberries and a tray of raspberries for the ride. Our next destination was Santa Ana.
In Santa Ana we parked the car near the Parque Centro and the made our way to the tourist information center for some information on hotels in the area. It was nearing 5pm and we needed a place to stay. We headed for the recommended hotel near to where we were but dealing with the gps, traffic and one way streets became too much to deal with and we decided to head to the hotel on the outskirts of town with the pool instead. Getting there proved to very difficult as well and we ended up making 4-5 u-turns before reaching the hotel at 7pm.
The first room smelled bad and there was a burnt iron shaped burn mark in the carpet. We switched rooms. The next room was just a little better, but we weren't up to switching rooms all night, so we took it instead. We decided to order Pizza Hut and have a pool party for the kids. It was actually nice to be out of the car, eating some decent pizza and the kids are always happiest swimming in a pool. Tomorrow we plan on visiting some Mayan runes and then travel down the Ruta de las Flores.
Monday, December 17, 2012
Day 27 - Suchitoto: The Gem of El Salvador
Sleep-in, Elliot did not.
Hungry, Elliot is.
Awake, I am.
So Elliot and I went downstairs for some breakfast at the restaurant. It was sort of a buffet, but Elliot only wanted cereal and I was only feeling like toast and jam. After breakfast Elliot and I went up to the room to wait out the rise of Mom and Sis. Eventually the woke up and Tegan and Elliot got into their swimsuits so they could go for a swim after Tegan and Mom had breakfast. Elliot tagged along with Mom and Tegan while I went to the business center to do some work on the blog.
After a few minutes in the pool the kids decided it was too cold for them and they were out. We all reconvened in the room before lunch and started to pack up. We had to go to the Sheraton and pickup our rental car from Budget. When we got there, not only was there nobody at the Budget counter, but there was no car either. Contacting Budget revealed how incompetent they really are. There was only 1 car in all of San Salvador and it was the one we reserved, only it was being looked at by a mechanic and wouldn't be ready until 3pm. The concierge of the hotel helped us out by hooking us up with a local lady that rents cars out.
So we ended up getting a 2007 Volvo and it was delivered to us in under an hour. We had lunch while we waited for the car to arrive. A quick signing of papers and some money paid for the rental period and we were off to enjoy our El Salvador vacation finally. We headed immediately for Suchitoto a small town that is a recommended visit. After some crazy buses and a police checkpoint we made Suchitoto. It immediately had a feel to it uniquely it's own. We parked the car and walked to the Parque Centro where a huge celebration was happen for the children. There was a ferris wheel and a carousel as well as street performers. I went in search of a hotel on foot while Correen and the kids enjoyed the festivities. I found a spot just down from the Parque and said I would be back in a few minutes with the family.
The room was basic, yet it worked for us. I asked for good restaurant nearby and was given directions. We followed the directions and they led us to a pupuseria. Correen couldn't believe this was the place recommended to us so we had to go looking for a better place to eat. We ended up walking a little over a km on our walk and ended up returning to the pupuseria. They weren't impressed when we first walked away and dealing with us ordering, what is their national dish, didn't impress them either. The reality was that I was ordering a couple of pupusas for a fussy boy, an uncomfortable wife and Tegan didn't seem to care much what she had. So thinking Correen didn't want cheese and the kids did, I ordered a frijole and a queso. Turns out Correen only wanted a cheese, Elliot didn't eat much of anything and Tegan ate the cheese pupusa with Mom. I had to eat the frijole version to save my reputation in Suchitoto. What a complicated meal. We paid out $3.50 for our meal and went back to the Parque Centro to check it out.
The festivities were still running perhaps a little subdue now that the rides had stopped and were packed away. Elliot got a plate of fries and Tegan went and played with a group of kids by the carousel. Tegan was the center of attention for a group of 5-6 girls. I think Tegan was the first girl their age to have visited Suchitoto at least it felt that way. They were interested in learning the English word for things and where she was from and how old they were. I asked for their names and one of the girls gave her Christian name that consisted of 5 or more names rolling together, the other girls stopped her and told her to say only her first name. I said my name and Mucho Gusto which made them smile.
We stopped off for an ice cream treat from the tienda and then went back to our room for bed.
Hungry, Elliot is.
Awake, I am.
So Elliot and I went downstairs for some breakfast at the restaurant. It was sort of a buffet, but Elliot only wanted cereal and I was only feeling like toast and jam. After breakfast Elliot and I went up to the room to wait out the rise of Mom and Sis. Eventually the woke up and Tegan and Elliot got into their swimsuits so they could go for a swim after Tegan and Mom had breakfast. Elliot tagged along with Mom and Tegan while I went to the business center to do some work on the blog.
After a few minutes in the pool the kids decided it was too cold for them and they were out. We all reconvened in the room before lunch and started to pack up. We had to go to the Sheraton and pickup our rental car from Budget. When we got there, not only was there nobody at the Budget counter, but there was no car either. Contacting Budget revealed how incompetent they really are. There was only 1 car in all of San Salvador and it was the one we reserved, only it was being looked at by a mechanic and wouldn't be ready until 3pm. The concierge of the hotel helped us out by hooking us up with a local lady that rents cars out.
So we ended up getting a 2007 Volvo and it was delivered to us in under an hour. We had lunch while we waited for the car to arrive. A quick signing of papers and some money paid for the rental period and we were off to enjoy our El Salvador vacation finally. We headed immediately for Suchitoto a small town that is a recommended visit. After some crazy buses and a police checkpoint we made Suchitoto. It immediately had a feel to it uniquely it's own. We parked the car and walked to the Parque Centro where a huge celebration was happen for the children. There was a ferris wheel and a carousel as well as street performers. I went in search of a hotel on foot while Correen and the kids enjoyed the festivities. I found a spot just down from the Parque and said I would be back in a few minutes with the family.
The room was basic, yet it worked for us. I asked for good restaurant nearby and was given directions. We followed the directions and they led us to a pupuseria. Correen couldn't believe this was the place recommended to us so we had to go looking for a better place to eat. We ended up walking a little over a km on our walk and ended up returning to the pupuseria. They weren't impressed when we first walked away and dealing with us ordering, what is their national dish, didn't impress them either. The reality was that I was ordering a couple of pupusas for a fussy boy, an uncomfortable wife and Tegan didn't seem to care much what she had. So thinking Correen didn't want cheese and the kids did, I ordered a frijole and a queso. Turns out Correen only wanted a cheese, Elliot didn't eat much of anything and Tegan ate the cheese pupusa with Mom. I had to eat the frijole version to save my reputation in Suchitoto. What a complicated meal. We paid out $3.50 for our meal and went back to the Parque Centro to check it out.
The festivities were still running perhaps a little subdue now that the rides had stopped and were packed away. Elliot got a plate of fries and Tegan went and played with a group of kids by the carousel. Tegan was the center of attention for a group of 5-6 girls. I think Tegan was the first girl their age to have visited Suchitoto at least it felt that way. They were interested in learning the English word for things and where she was from and how old they were. I asked for their names and one of the girls gave her Christian name that consisted of 5 or more names rolling together, the other girls stopped her and told her to say only her first name. I said my name and Mucho Gusto which made them smile.
We stopped off for an ice cream treat from the tienda and then went back to our room for bed.
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Day 26 - 13 Hours of Bus Joy
Correen was none to happy about getting up at 3am to catch this bus to El Salvador. The news that it is an 11 hour bus trip didn't make her smile either. Frankly, the kids and I weren't thrilled about it, it is just one of the sacrifices that go along with traveling between Central American countries. Lucky for us we were mostly packed and ready to go. The taxi ride was only 10 minutes to the Tica bus station. Nothing much was happening when we arrived at 4am. Correen and the kids went and got some breakfast for themselves. Eventually we started making lines to drop off our bags and get the documents needed for crossing the borders. Today we would be exiting Nicaragua for a short ride through Honduras and eventually arriving at the El Salvador border later in the day.
I sat next to Elliot and Tegan sat next to Mom in the seats across the aisle. All of us slept for the first 2-3 hours on the bus. Elliot was keen to play games which he did while the rest of us still slept. We reached the Honduras border around 11am and left our passports with the Tica bus representative to process us through the border. There was an $8 each exit fee associated with this crossing too. We were able to get off the bus here, stretch our legs and grab a treat from the local vendors selling their food stuff at the border. We then had to board the bus and travel to the Honduras side, where we went through a similar process but this one included a baggage check.
Once this was completed we boarded the bus for our passage through Honduras. A few hours later we reached the El Salvador border, but this time we didn't get off the bus. Instead we waited there in the highly air conditioned bus while our documents were checked over. The a quick cross of a river to go through another document check. Then we were off... to the narcotics department down the road escorted by the police. One person was asked off the bus and he and his bags were given a work over by the dogs. Nothing was found on him, so back on the bus and bound for San Salvador. At this time it was just after 2pm and given we were 200 kms away from San Salvador we should make our 4pm'ish arrival. Or so I thought!
Also we were near starvation as there was no stop for food at the border. It was another hour before we stopped and the crazed hungry people from the bus marched into the gas station to get food from the comida inside. We grabbed some fried chicken, fries and a sandwich for Tegan and I to share. The food was far from delicious, but it did the trick.
We arrived at the first bus stop at 6pm and since it was closest to our hotel we were out of the bus, gathering our bags and hailing a cab for the ride to our hotel. The Holiday Inn was really nice and Jorge the concierge was very nice and helpful. Our room was perfect and we had a pretty good view from our 6th floor room. We decided to go across the road to a plaza that had many different restaurants and settled for some sushi. The sushi was a little different and Correen and the kids had some of the safer choices from the menu. I thought I might be able to handle some beef soba noddles but the sauce they used was too strong and I couldn't eat much of it.
After we walked down to an ice cream shop, Tegan and I shared a banana split, Elliot had a cone and Correen ran into McDonald's for an apple pie. Back to our room to watch some TV and finally sleep and look forward to a sleep-in the next morning.
I sat next to Elliot and Tegan sat next to Mom in the seats across the aisle. All of us slept for the first 2-3 hours on the bus. Elliot was keen to play games which he did while the rest of us still slept. We reached the Honduras border around 11am and left our passports with the Tica bus representative to process us through the border. There was an $8 each exit fee associated with this crossing too. We were able to get off the bus here, stretch our legs and grab a treat from the local vendors selling their food stuff at the border. We then had to board the bus and travel to the Honduras side, where we went through a similar process but this one included a baggage check.
Once this was completed we boarded the bus for our passage through Honduras. A few hours later we reached the El Salvador border, but this time we didn't get off the bus. Instead we waited there in the highly air conditioned bus while our documents were checked over. The a quick cross of a river to go through another document check. Then we were off... to the narcotics department down the road escorted by the police. One person was asked off the bus and he and his bags were given a work over by the dogs. Nothing was found on him, so back on the bus and bound for San Salvador. At this time it was just after 2pm and given we were 200 kms away from San Salvador we should make our 4pm'ish arrival. Or so I thought!
Also we were near starvation as there was no stop for food at the border. It was another hour before we stopped and the crazed hungry people from the bus marched into the gas station to get food from the comida inside. We grabbed some fried chicken, fries and a sandwich for Tegan and I to share. The food was far from delicious, but it did the trick.
We arrived at the first bus stop at 6pm and since it was closest to our hotel we were out of the bus, gathering our bags and hailing a cab for the ride to our hotel. The Holiday Inn was really nice and Jorge the concierge was very nice and helpful. Our room was perfect and we had a pretty good view from our 6th floor room. We decided to go across the road to a plaza that had many different restaurants and settled for some sushi. The sushi was a little different and Correen and the kids had some of the safer choices from the menu. I thought I might be able to handle some beef soba noddles but the sauce they used was too strong and I couldn't eat much of it.
After we walked down to an ice cream shop, Tegan and I shared a banana split, Elliot had a cone and Correen ran into McDonald's for an apple pie. Back to our room to watch some TV and finally sleep and look forward to a sleep-in the next morning.
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