Showing posts with label San Juan del Sur. Show all posts
Showing posts with label San Juan del Sur. Show all posts
Monday, June 21, 2010
TV's Survivor Being Filmed in San Juan del Sur
The current issue of the Nica/Tico Times also has a letter to the editor about the filming of the television hit Survivor at Nicaragua's surfing mecca of San Juan del Sur. I guess this means that pleasant little town has "arrived" on the world stage.
But when I read that I also more or less decided to give it a miss this time and start heading back north tomorrow.
I've had a relaxing few days in Granada, taking advantage of a surprisingly decent $12 room with a very nice local family; I've had a chance to enjoy several World Cup matches over the past few days;
I've got the Costa Rica/Tortuguero leg of my trip satisfactorily postponed; I have my laundry freshly done and packed; and I have a strong desire to get back to higher country and visit remote Perquin, El Salvador.
But when I read that I also more or less decided to give it a miss this time and start heading back north tomorrow.
I've had a relaxing few days in Granada, taking advantage of a surprisingly decent $12 room with a very nice local family; I've had a chance to enjoy several World Cup matches over the past few days;
I've got the Costa Rica/Tortuguero leg of my trip satisfactorily postponed; I have my laundry freshly done and packed; and I have a strong desire to get back to higher country and visit remote Perquin, El Salvador.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
This Morning in Las Peñitas
The Barco de Oro is located inside a small, shallow lagoon in Las Peñitas and therefore is sheltered from the big surfer's waves that constantly crash ashore in these parts. Even at high tide you can walk out very far and the water still only comes up to your knees.
At low tide some fish get caught in the wet sand that spreads for a quarter of a mile from the terrace of the hotel's restaurant out to the sandbar in the distance. This morning, the villagers caught at least three or four stingrays in this manner.
Other fish trapped at low tide quickly become carrion for black garbage-picking birds as the many ravens that flew high above attest. Neighborhood dogs also attempt to get their share.
Every now & then a local fishing boat returns from sea, and the villagers--men, women, and children--walk out into the lagoon to get first dibs on the freshest of the morning's catch. Little toddlers "help" their mothers by carrying back a fish half their size, but back ashore their fish becomes a toy to play with in the dwindling pool of salt water.
It's very quiet and peaceful here; I'm not surprised this place sticks for me. Unlike San Juan del Sur, it still remains largely undeveloped in terms of infrastructure for rich foreigners and not-so-rich backpackers like me. As the scene this morning seems to indicate, the original character and ambiance of the village remains for the casual visitor to enjoy.
Major changes have already happened here, and surely there are more big changes to come. Hopefully it won't be as quick and as jarring as in other places such as Koh Samui, Thailand which was turned upside down and shaken to its foundation in less than five years.
At low tide some fish get caught in the wet sand that spreads for a quarter of a mile from the terrace of the hotel's restaurant out to the sandbar in the distance. This morning, the villagers caught at least three or four stingrays in this manner.
Other fish trapped at low tide quickly become carrion for black garbage-picking birds as the many ravens that flew high above attest. Neighborhood dogs also attempt to get their share.
Every now & then a local fishing boat returns from sea, and the villagers--men, women, and children--walk out into the lagoon to get first dibs on the freshest of the morning's catch. Little toddlers "help" their mothers by carrying back a fish half their size, but back ashore their fish becomes a toy to play with in the dwindling pool of salt water.
It's very quiet and peaceful here; I'm not surprised this place sticks for me. Unlike San Juan del Sur, it still remains largely undeveloped in terms of infrastructure for rich foreigners and not-so-rich backpackers like me. As the scene this morning seems to indicate, the original character and ambiance of the village remains for the casual visitor to enjoy.
Major changes have already happened here, and surely there are more big changes to come. Hopefully it won't be as quick and as jarring as in other places such as Koh Samui, Thailand which was turned upside down and shaken to its foundation in less than five years.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Hard Travel on a Rugged Coast
It didn't take long yesterday to get to the coast from the Salvadorean coffee highlands, but once I was there I discovered a largely undeveloped but beautiful region of high forested cliffs, rocky coves and small isolated beaches with big waves(but possibly dangerous undertows).
This is the back way, or the slow route, from Sonsonate to La Libertad. What I thought might be a simple day trip from the quiet fishing village of Los Cobanos (The Coves) to El Zonte beach turned out to be a half day's hard travel on local buses. In fact, I didn't even reach my destination. After a 90 minute trip the bus went down the coast only so far as La Perla where I would've had to change for another bus, but by the time I arrived in La Perla it was getting late already--I needed to be back "home" well before dark.
By the end of a very hot day (93 degrees Farenheit) I'd decided to give the rest of this coastal area a miss but only because there are almost no hotels to choose from. The dubious room I ended up with in Los Cobanos was perhaps the worst value I've encountered thus far: an overpriced $15 for a hot (and not so clean), mosquito-infested hovel with no windows, AC, TV or any other amenity. The only things this place has going for it is it's right on the beach and the attached restaurant serves an excellent $7 fish dinner.
So I made straight for the capital city San Salvador early this morning to grab what turned out to be the best value so far in a very clean $20 room at the Hotel Villa Florencia (Centro branch). This room is terrifically graced with windows, AC, TV & the other amenities! I'll be here for two days, then it's on to San Miguel in eastern El Salvador, then on to Honduras & Nicaragua.
Since I need to start making miles, I'm seriously considering booking a seat on a Tica bus--the first class airconditioned option--to go, if not to Panama City in one fell swoop, then maybe as far as Managua. I'd like to revisit the grand colonial city of Granada & the quiet little paradise of San Juan del Sur before crossing into Costa Rica.
This is the back way, or the slow route, from Sonsonate to La Libertad. What I thought might be a simple day trip from the quiet fishing village of Los Cobanos (The Coves) to El Zonte beach turned out to be a half day's hard travel on local buses. In fact, I didn't even reach my destination. After a 90 minute trip the bus went down the coast only so far as La Perla where I would've had to change for another bus, but by the time I arrived in La Perla it was getting late already--I needed to be back "home" well before dark.
By the end of a very hot day (93 degrees Farenheit) I'd decided to give the rest of this coastal area a miss but only because there are almost no hotels to choose from. The dubious room I ended up with in Los Cobanos was perhaps the worst value I've encountered thus far: an overpriced $15 for a hot (and not so clean), mosquito-infested hovel with no windows, AC, TV or any other amenity. The only things this place has going for it is it's right on the beach and the attached restaurant serves an excellent $7 fish dinner.
So I made straight for the capital city San Salvador early this morning to grab what turned out to be the best value so far in a very clean $20 room at the Hotel Villa Florencia (Centro branch). This room is terrifically graced with windows, AC, TV & the other amenities! I'll be here for two days, then it's on to San Miguel in eastern El Salvador, then on to Honduras & Nicaragua.
Since I need to start making miles, I'm seriously considering booking a seat on a Tica bus--the first class airconditioned option--to go, if not to Panama City in one fell swoop, then maybe as far as Managua. I'd like to revisit the grand colonial city of Granada & the quiet little paradise of San Juan del Sur before crossing into Costa Rica.
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