July 1, Day 9: San Miguel and Playa el Cuco

 As it may have been rightly speculated due to the lapse of time since my last entry, I have been extremely busy as of late. Gerardo's dad, being the important man that he is, was asked to assist a hospital in San Miguel for a few days and he decided to take us along for the ride. It was conveniently located right across from our hotel, so he didn't even need to drive or take a bus to work!

According to Gerardo, San Miguel is the second largest city in El Salvador, surpassed only by the capital San Salvador. When I look around the web, it was identified as the third most populated city, directly behind Santa Ana. It was slightly more tame in San Miguel than in San Salvador, but still wild and crazy for someone accustomed to rural America. Fortunately, Ernesto didn't have to work for an exceedingly long time and we were able to make several enjoyable outings together.

The night that we arrived (June 28), we dropped our stuff in our hotel rooms and immediately went out to eat. The restaurant is called "La Tarteleta" (lit. "The Tart") and it has a surprisingly classy atmosphere. During a sequential trip, we would even see the mayor of San Miguel there! On Gabriel's suggestion, I ordered a Neapolitan marguerite pizza (and I pray I am not butchering the name of this amazing pizza). Pizza is one of my favorite foods. I have eaten pizza in Italy. I know what it should taste like. This was, THE most delicious pizza I have had to date, and you can quote me on that. Remember, if you are in El Salvador for some reason, try to visit "La Tartaleta" in San Miguel and order their pizza. It is right across from the hotel Villa de San Miguel and the sign on the building says Café & Bistro. You won't regret it. Their desserts are nothing to scoff at either...Here's a link with some information, including the address and phone number, if anyone decides to check it out one day. La Tartaleta

On June 29, after Ernesto got off work, we ate lunch at "La Tartaleta" (I couldn't resist getting the pizza again) and headed for Playa el Cuco. It was perhaps an hour away from our hotel and the first beach I have been to since Belice last summer (which had been my first time at a beach since I was a lil squirt). Waiting to go swimming was almost unbearable. I LOVE the ocean. Freshwater is only good for drinking; the sea is an absolute must for swimming in my opinion. In a less advanced time, I definitely would have been a sailor or fisherman. Surfing and swimming sounds more fun nowadays...

Lamentably, as El Salvador is closer to the equator, it is much more dangerous to be running around in nothing but shorts, even for a gringo lathered in sunscreen. Swimming would have to be pushed back for a few hours. Fortunately, those few hours passed by very quickly in the face of the delicious...err...second lunch (?) we had. They just went out and caught me a fish after I ordered. I'm an incredibly picky eater so I didn't really have high hopes when I agreed to join Gerardo for the summer, but the food in El Salvador has pleased me to no end. Delicious, cheaper, more natural, less saturated in grease. Why can't the US have food like this??

Gah, distracted thinking about food. Maybe that should have been the sole focus of this blog, but there are still many other things that I do not wish to forget about. After we ate, some time passed before we decided to go swimming anyway. I would still keep the sea waiting as Andrea and Gabriel were more eager to swim in Tropiclub's swimming pool. I can't say I blame them; the waterslide was bogus. It was undoubtedly a safety hazard when Gerardo and I were going down; our size granted us greater speed that nearly caused us to slide up and out of the slide on more than one occasion! Not to mention the bruised knees and elbows...worth it. We did that for a long time, taking pictures at Ernesto's request and circulating back around until Carla and Ernesto joined us in the pool. Then we spent another hour or so volleying a ball around until finally, it was time to swim in the sea.


I truly pity anyone that has never gone swimming in the sea before. This next bit might sound a little bit poetic, so feel free to skip over it if sentimental feelings make you nauseous. I won't blame you, but I feel obligated to myself not to forget how it feels; I had nearly forgotten for the decade and something odd years that I was away from one.

When you first know that you will be swimming in the ocean, your first reaction is to run your toes through the moist sand. To really experience it, however disgusting it may appear. As you look around, you realize with a hint of obvious delight that there are seashells, crabs, and all manner of crustaceous ocean life that has been brought to shore by the tide. You curiously begin to survey the area, ignoring the water for a moment to search for any treasures she may have brought in. Pocketing a few items of no monetary worth, you finally feel the tide brush against your feet. You wade in deeper until finally, a wave pushes you back slightly. Excited, you quickly trot further out until you are a little over waist-deep. At this point, the waves are potentially knocking you down. You crash into the waves head on, equalizing the balance that would otherwise be taken away from you. You fall back on them, allowing the waves to absorb the impact and even push you back up. You try to swim into them, only for the current to prove overwhelmingly superior. You try sitting in the water and get pleasantly pushed over each and every time, regardless of the wave's size. As the sun sets, it gets a little more dangerous and you know that you need to leave, but you can hardly fathom it, and that makes you want to leave even less. The waves, so powerful, so glorious...the most powerful being in the world is a mere ant to the might of nature that could only be justly attributed to a higher being that I define as YHWH.

Again, personal feelings that I don't wish to forget, so sorry if that was a little off topic. Swimming in the ocean is by far the main part of the trip that stands out in my mind, though it was by no means all that happened. June 30 was our final full day that we spent in San Miguel. We went shopping for clothes since I was currently limited. After picking out some nice clothes that I definitely would have a difficult time finding in Arkansas, we went to the movies. My first movie in Spanish without subtitles ended up being...Monsters University! Despite not having seen Monsters Inc. since it first came out, I was truly amazed how much of it I was able to understand. I understood the story completely and was even in on a few jokes, though I definitely missed my fair share. Regardless, it was awesome. I'm not cocky enough to believe that I can understand most of what people say in Spanish at this point, but I can honestly say that I am able to easily comprehend the "intent" of what is being said. It might sound insignificant, but it is vitally important to my growth. At least, that's what I believe.

After we left the mall, the trip wrapped up relatively peacefully. I went swimming at the hotel's pool for a little while after I played three games of chess with Ernesto. He's some kind of chess Jedi...I have never in my life had as much trouble with a player as I have had with him. That said, I was able to get one game down to nothing but our Kings and Pawns before he crowned a pawn, blocked off my remaining pawns, and pincer attacked my king into a corner with his king and queen. I'll beat him before I leave El Salvador...for sure!

Anyway, that's my story up until now. I had a great weekend with some great people and now I'm facing forward once again. I will try to ensure that updates are frequent, but no telling when the next adventure will sweep me off my feet.

One.