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TRAVEL - EL SALVADOR
MARIA SCHUMACHER
FRESH ENERGY , NEW BEGINNINGS
“
Oh yes , it ’ s beautiful ! And it is safe now .”
This is hugely different from the concerned “ don ’ t go there , it ’ s dangerous ” we usually hear from locals when we tell them we are about to visit their neighbouring country . All too often they have not been there themselves and their natural fear of the unknown is intensified by the news media .
But recent reports about El Salvador have been different . President Nayib Bukele is waging a war on gangs and is arresting anyone suspected of being a criminal , thereby interrupting the crime and violence that has plagued the country in the past twenty years of civil war that ended in 1992 . As a result , many now consider El Salvador a safe country , even if it raises questions of human rights violations and there is still a lot of work to be done .
It seemed to be a country like any other in Central America , with its abundant green landscapes , pointy volcanos , and swaying coconut palms . Yet somehow it felt indescribably different as soon as we rolled across the border ; almost as if we were the first visitors to dare venture here in an exceedingly long time . We were not , of course . After all , the ISA World Surfing Games 2023 were being held in Surf City along the coast that month .
Clouds were ominously closing in above our helmets as we left the border and wound our way up the cool mountain road to Juayua ’ s street market . What better place to find our bearings in this new country than people watching at a bustling row of stalls while sampling the local cuisine . Alluring smells of marinated meats sizzling over glowing charcoal embers led us to the food section where young families , workers and tourists alike were tucking into their pork or
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