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from next door brought biscuits and cold drinks for all and hung around to watch . A look behind the clutch revealed that we had pushed the pin through and all we had to do was to seat it back inside its ball bearing . Phew ! That was easily done . After that it was back to aligning the pin and trying to put the cover back on . After half a dozen attempts the cover finally went on . And this time the actuation arm caught resistance . I was jubilant , but Aidan reminded me that the cogs had likely not been the problem in the first place . Sure enough , after running the engine for twelve minutes , the light came on and coolant sprayed everywhere .
This time we paid attention to where it was coming from , a hole in the radiator ! Luckily , we had that powder you pour in to seal the hole in an emergency . The leak stopped , but the engine still overheated .
It seemed the hole had been a symptom , not the cause . Thermostat then . The manual said you can pull it out and ride without one in an emergency , so we did . But the bike still overheated . Now we were out of ideas and had to admit defeat .
It was time for the truck of shame . Aidan ’ s bike had never been on one , but there is a first for everything . We would transport the bike to San Salvador to the only BMW motorcycle mechanic in the country .
Felipe called around and found a friend who had a truck but had never driven it to the big city and was fearful of driving there . He finally agreed . We loaded the bikes up . Mine got a ride , too , as it would be easier to go together . The journey was an education in El Salvadorian driving , and in precarious overtaking so wild , that my bike fell over and had to be re-tied .
Except for a few extra scratches on the fairing , we made it safely to the chosen hotel by nightfall . The staff came up trumps , rallying the troops to heave the bikes off the truck and get all our gear moved into our room . Afterwards the handyman looked complainingly at his dirty hands . I showed him mine , dirty and with blackened fingernails , and we shared a proud laugh , “ The hands of someone who ’ s worked hard ”.
The next day Aidan was able to ride the bike the short distance to the mechanics before the engine light came on . They cleaned and repaired the radiator and then concluded that a thermostat was indeed necessary . Incredibly some European cars use the same thermostat and the Audi spare parts place on the other side of town had one in stock !
In the days that we stayed at the hotel ; we became remarkably familiar with the excellent cantinastyle eatery next door . It was heaving with local workers having lunch and the food was simple , cheap cuts , scrumptiously prepared . The main lady would tout her wares with a loud market voice while serving those she had already lured inside .
After a couple of days , she knew what we liked and when I turned up without Aidan the day he was at the mechanic ’ s , she immediately asked after him .
When the bike was finally running again , we were in a rush to make it to Nicaragua where Aidan ’ s brother was waiting for us . Our experience in El Salvador had been moreish and we were incredibly sad to have to leave so soon . In fact , we were talking about maybe living here someday . El Salvadorians love their country and really want visitors to enjoy it , too . They are proud to share everything their country has to offer , especially mangos , and once you have gained their trust , you couldn ’ t find more kind , helpful and generous people .
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