The rebirth of El Salvador
However, under the rumble of fame dangerous and unseaworthy , El Salvador has things to say. From the Mayan ruins of Tazumal to the grandeur of the national park of The impossible , going through the Perquin Historical Museum and ending with the experience of enjoying some pupusas with the sunset in the background on the beach of The Tunco , the country excites and bewitches in equal parts.
El Salvador moves to the rhythm of its own melody… and, believe us, it's catchy.
Salvadorans have not wanted to wait for the world to listen. They have decided to take the initiative to show your country , the one they know to be true, beyond the bad news.
That's how appetizing El Tunco beach is.
Alexandra Villafuerte , a lifelong resident of San Salvador, joined Couchsurfing in hopes of giving travelers more than a place to sleep . "Not only do I open my house, but also my own country," she explains, making herself heard over the hustle and bustle that is dinner time in a pupusería. “It is a perfect opportunity to show the real El Salvador, beyond what travelers think which is because of what they've seen on the news.
And it is that El Salvador is preceded an unflattering fame . The Global Peace Index placed it at number 116 in its ranking of the safest countries in the world in 2014 , out of a total of 162 (just one place above Honduras, traditionally considered the most dangerous place in the world) . The UN echoed, naming El Salvador the fourth most insecure country on the planet last year.
Salvadorans refuse to be part of a statistic . Yes, all families have overwhelming stories about the war that devastated the country from 1980 to 1992, or about the constant threat of armed groups, the maras. But the guanacos , as Salvadorans are affectionately known, have managed to pick themselves up after such hard falls, and after decades fleeing to the United States or Europe in search of a better life, they are beginning to return, with the certainty that the next opportunity awaits them at home.
The colonial cathedral of Santa Lucia, in Suchitoto.
Not only locals come to El Salvador to stay. Let them ask if not Robert Broz Moran , Californian by birth, who traveled to the country almost twenty years ago and ended up making a home in Suchitoto, a picturesque mountain town which is well worth a visit. Their hostel El Gringo it is a combination of travel agency, information center and local meeting point, and an inexhaustible source of Salvadoran pride. “Another positive article about El Salvador is always a cause for celebration,” he says, raising his third of Pilsener in toast.
A similar experience is that of the French alex tassy . “I came to El Salvador on a trip, without much idea of how long to stay. So I stayed for four years” he says, over a cup of espresso during his last visit.
Tassy decided open a hostel in Juayúa, a golden town on the so-called Ruta de las Flores , which runs through the coffee zone of the country. Casa Mazeta is, together with the Anáhuac hostel and the acclaimed bar-café El Cadejo, one of the pillars of tourism in the area, a jewel of salvadoran tourism , offering from hiking trails between waterfalls to celebrated weekly gastronomic fairs.
Suchioto
Not all travelers decide to leave everything for El Salvador , but if the majority agree on something, it is that this is not a country of a single visit . Some even bring reinforcements, as is the case with the blogger Leif Harum , the brains behind The Runaway Guide. “I arrived in El Salvador not knowing what to expect, imagining it as an impoverished country, broken by war ", He says. “To my surprise and relief, it was not so ”. Instead of the expected endurance test, Harum found himself a fascinating country full of people willing to show it off . After several visits, he decided to give them a hand, and began to guide tours of the country.
His star destination is Balsam Coast, on the shores of the Pacific Ocean , starting with the El Tunco beach . Famous for its legendary waves during the day and its epic parties at night, El Tunco is a mandatory stop for all backpackers who pass through El Salvador.
The itinerary that Harum takes his neophytes along goes north, past the equally impressive El Sunzal and El Zonte beaches , and follow to Guatemala . In his opinion, both countries “they epitomize the best of Central America” , and the mission of showing them to the world has been self-imposed.
Don't let them tell you: El Salvador goes beyond rumors and numbers. The secret garden of Central America surprises, and hooks, at all levels.
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