Day 30 - Tour de las Playas

This morning we were able to have some breakfast at the hotel. We had some time to kill until our laundry was finished and allowed us to have a more relaxing morning. We packed our stuff at a leisurely pace and then loaded up the car. The remainder of the morning was spent following Ruta de las Flores up to the small town of Ataco. We stopped here for a walk around the Parque Centro and the kids were able to play in the park with other local kids. Correen and I spent our time talking to Rafael a man who was interested in us and spoke enough english to continue a long conversation and stories of his life and his hopes of one day going to Canada. We even exchanged addresses; although Correen wasn't to sure it was a good idea.

Tegan played with a couple of girls in the park and then later Correen bought them some treats at the bakery before we left. We ended up retracing our journey back down the Ruta de las Flores all the way to Suchitoto and then we made our way towards the Pacific coast and Barra de Santiago. The last part of the road was all gravel and we reached the destination but Correen was not impressed. We actually only reached the town which had a single paved street with a sparse spread of shops and little else. We hadn't located a place to stay and Correen decided she wanted a little luxury at this point.

So we were now heading for El Tunco or any of the beaches around there. The drive along the coastal highway south to El Tunco was a very nice drive. There were 5 tunnels we passed through along the way and many beaches that looked to be private or securely fenced off. We arrived at El Tunco and checked out one hotel that had space for us and met the kids qualifications but not Correen's. So a walk down the street and onto the property of another hotel but we barely made it to the end of the road and we all changed our mind on that place. On the beach we walked along and I watched the surfers out on the point break while Correen and Tegan dotted into resorts looking for availability. No luck.

We headed back to the car and before heading off, we decided to have some dinner at the wok restaurant. The food was really delicious and I think everyone ate nearly everything that was prepared for them. The chef that was cooking at the wok must go through 10 liters of water in an evening, the burner he used for cooking was putting out 30cm flames and the already 35C temperature in the open air restaurant must have heated up another 20-30C more.

Back in our air conditioned car and heading south to check out more beaches. We stopped in a couple but all were booked, so we kept heading south and finally landed in Costa del Sol 1-2 hours later and well after dark. Of course this added to Correen's anxiety of driving at night, in a foreign country, on roads we don't know, with a destination unknown and 2 kids in tow. Can't understand what all that excitement was about. The first hotel we spotted in Costa del Sol was the choseb destination for the evening. They had room and a pool. The rates were reasonable, yet a little peculiar as they charged by the hour. I always thought there were only certain hotels that charged by the hour. We had a TV, air conditioning and a moderate odour in the room of overused cleaning products or perhaps a recent fumigation. We decided this would be our room for the next 2 days. Nearly as soon as the car was unloaded and our bags in the room, we were brushing our teeth and readying ourselves for some sleep.

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.

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.