Friday 19 November 2010

El Salvador... yanks and expectations

"So Brit, where you going next? Honduras? Copán? Bay Islands?"
"Er..."
"Cos you so gotta get your (diving) paddy in the Bay Islands... so cheap bra".
"Er...surfing, in El Salvador... bra?"
"That place is sooo nasty, you not heard of MS-13? Dude, I´d go to Costa Rica if I were you"
"Er...?"
"Trust me man, I know".

Yeah right. El Salvador, the most populous country of Central America, yet another country heavily directed (or miss-directed) by US-influence and unsurprisingly as a result of said influence, its another Latin American country with a history of civil war and gang violence. Enough to put many people off. Clearly they need to visit Newport, Wales for a bit of perspective, El Salvador is busy, but safe as anywhere else.

My reasons for going to El Salvador are the same as many; point breaks, lots and lots of point breaks. As a country that is by no means new on the surfing map, it is slowly becoming the alternative to Costa Rica for the masses of Americans needing to get their warm water surf. Many small hamlets have exploded into surfer-villages and the words paradise lost are not with out relevance. 

It´s pointless me not naming the location as it´s in every guide book and on every map. But none the less El Tunco, whilst a peaceful surfer village with plenty of bars, hammocks and hostels is a place I would think twice about surfing at, if I returned. 

Due to it´s mellow vibe and access to waves, it´s a busy place even if the town seems half asleep every day except Saturday. The point break and the river mouth are all in walking distance but make for a hostile environment if you´re determined to catch a lot of waves. If however, you´re able to take up the manaña attitude and take it easy, take a handful of waves and lose the pushy attitude and make friends out in the line-up you can have a great trip and who knows even come back one day.

I guess the answer to all this is, is expectations. Out in the water I see more gringos than locals, I catch fewer waves than at Croyde on busy day and at 6am, thinking I´m on the early shift, I paddle out, only to see the dawn patrol already on their way in for breakfast. 

But what did I expect? El Salvador is famous for point breaks that´s no secret. It´s famous for a laid back lifestyle that suits surfers down to the ground. Maybe I didn´t expect quite so many people though, I definitely didn´t expect quite so many Americans, but El Tunco for me is the perfect place to slow things down, catch some waves, get some hammock time and ease the pace of my 100mph travels.

Sure I didn´t catch a million waves, but the few I got were spectacular. Surfing resets the clock, erases the stress and tops up the wanderlust. 

Whilst spending time between surfing, eating, reading and sleeping (a hard life), I do manage to awaken my upset stomach and so I do a little more of the reading and sleeping for a few days. Finally realising that Imodium is not my friend I make a trip to the local free clinic. Not the carnage and blood splattered walls I was expecting, but after negotiating my registration and taking a seat, I´m quickly weighed and checked for fever before waiting 6 hours for the doc. Thankfully having not forgotten all my Spanish lessons I´m able to go home with enough drugs to fill even the largest piñata. Two days later and I´m tip top.

Despite the crowds, the upset stomach and food which isn´t the greatest, I´d say this was a great place to visit and one I´m not going to regret over all those other places in Honduras, that I "apparently" should have visited. Good waves, good people and good fun. Couldn´t ask for much else.

Oh and one more thing. El Salvador like most places, has a lot of coastline. Hopefully it shouldn´t turn into Costa Rica just yet.

photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/richsmith/sets/72157625426347966/

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