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Soccer in Suchitoto!
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Saying goodbye to our friends in Santa Ana was a bummer but it is very likely we'll meet up with Eduardo in Nicaragua. He is a nomad...traveling now for 7 years in Central America (14 years total in the world), working via his computer and enjoying meeting people and spending time in Central America.
We bused our way to Suchitoto, a small town about 47 km from San Salvador, the capital. On the weekends they are known for art fairs and such. We've been here for the past couple days. This city reminds us of Antigua, Guatemala in terms of it's size, the colonial buildings and cobblestone streets, central park, and colorful buildings. However, it is considerably less touristy and less manicured. We have met 3 other gringos here (that is what they call us here) and that is it. We are staying at Posada Alta Vista, sort of a mix between hostel and hotel for $15.75 a night. It is right by the central park and big church so it's a great location for being near places where we find adventure, as it has turned out for us. Our first night we went to dinner at a little restaurant near the plaza and started talking to a young guy that looked American. Long story made short, his names is Peter and he just graduated from Cornell and will be starting Stanford engineering school in month or so. Three years ago, Peter and his girlfriend came here via a connection from El Salvador, and started an eco-tourism program in a nearby town called La Mora. The plan is that it offers tourists and other nationals (many youth) a way to get outdoors while learning about the civil war that took place from 1980-1992. The profits would then go back into the community of La Mora to better it. La Mora consists of about 80 families. Peter told us about the tours and the next day we went on one. Walberto, a 31-year old native of La Mora, was our tour guide. We hiked an old volcano which now looks more like a lush mountain, and throughout the mountain are remnants from the community that once lived there but was destroyed by the war. I am certainly no historian, but the gist of the civil war was because of social injustice and the people rising against the government. The place where we were in La Mora was the sight of a lot of fighting, and we saw craters left by bombs dropped from airplanes, holes in the ground were people used to hide, and the remains of the church and a house. This history lesson was significantly more interesting and "real" because Walberto lived it. He was only 4 years old at the time that it started and his mother was killed during the war. He then became an orphan. For the first 5-6 years of the war, many women and children were killed and then it was later declared that this was not allowed. Walberto was fortunate to survive and now lives with his aunt, uncle and cousins.
After the hike we had a delicious meal at their home where we spent more time talking with Calde (Walberto's Uncle) about El Salvador, both his war experience and how the country has changed since then. He says that there have been a lot of positive changes since the war, however poverty and injustice still occurs. In Suchitoto, we hiked to another waterfall nearby (Cascada Los Tercios). It is not the impressive flow of water like those we have already seen, but the rock formation is unique. It is described as "a small waterfall that tumbles over a cliff of tightly-packed hexagonal stone spires, a geologic oddity related to volcanic activity". It looks like someone created it for an art project. The highlight of our time here in Suchitoto, however, has definitely been our soccer games 3 consecutive nights. Peter, our American friend, invited us to play with the local kids he has known the past few years. We jumped at the chance to play, of course assuming that we'd be playing on a field. Turns out our "field" was the street (the cobblestone street), in the dark of night with a bit of light from the street lamps, with storm drains and potholes, mud, curbs, and goal"posts" made of rocks. Time outs in the games came when cars had to pass by. We had so much fun. There were about 7 or 8 kids from ages 7-12. The kids were so tough...some of them playing barefoot and showing no fear of getting kicked, stepped on, or sliding across the ground. We even exchanged email addresses (they asked for ours!). When in Suchitoto we had met an American couple from Ohio that were just beginning their 2-year commitment to the Peace Corps here in Suchitoto. We convinced them to join the soccer games too!
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Latest Comments (1)
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¡Hola! (reply)
Dec 21, 2007 11:20 EST by jamberlee
Hi, I stumbled across your photos of Suchitoto and realized that you were the American couple that we met on our first night in Suchitoto. You will remember me and my husband as the Peace Corps volunteers that played soccer with you and the kids in the street. Just wanted to say hi and wish you safe travels.
amber
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