« The Waterfalls in Juayua | Main | Wal-Mart in Teotihuacán »
September 15, 2005
Chaotic San Salvador
After breakfast at El Mirador, we checked out of our hotel and caught a bit of the independence day parade in the town square where nuns were barbequeing in front of the church, vendors were selling vegetables, and people were enjoying their plaza. A bit reluctant to leave, we caught a bus and were off to San Salvador. We changed buses in Somoto, where we were joined by a bunch of university students who were on their way to the capital to watch the university team from Somoto compete in the Central American Championships (tonight we found out they won the game 5-2).
Entering the capital city it looked relatively prosperous. There were lots of franchises, everything ranging from Goodyear to fast-food. Once at the bus station we caught a cab with a friendly driver to our hotel near the center of the city. We checked in and decided to immediately get out and explore the center of the city and get a bit to eat.
Heading towards the cathedral in the center of the city it became apparent that San Salvador had one of the largest and most centrally located informal markets we have seen in our travels. Music was blaring from every corner and one plaza, just a block from the cathedral, was completely covered with small informal restaurants. Everything from nail polish to Converse shoes to pineapples to video games was for sale, and it seemed as though the market was slowly swallowing up the streets and sidewalks and surrounding buildings. It was a bit overwhelming.
We found a great little restaurant where we were served up with huge portions of all types of food (cafeteria style) for about $4 a plate. Afterwards we looked without luck for an ATM but all the banks were closed. We made our way back to the hotel and after a stop at a bar where I had some excellent chorizo and a beer we decided to call it a night. Tomorrow we’re taking a tour of the city which we hope will be interesting.
Posted by Peter Mork at September 15, 2005 12:07 AM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.economicswithaface.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/263/[What is Peter Mork's first name?]
(Please add the answer to the question to the end of the link in order to trackback this entry.)
Comments
Email Comments Here