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El Salvador here I come!! Waking up this morning without an early bus commitment was a nice change and I was able to do my exercises, cook some breakfast and surf the Internet before making my way to the small bus station in Copan. I boarded a small collectivo with literally 20 local farmers - all with their cowboy hats and machetes - feeling like I am already in Mexico. My bag was taken from me and tossed up on the roof and before I could complain we were off to El Florida (Guatemala border). The driver of the collectivo was very kind and directed me where to go at the boarder. This boarder crossing turned out to be one of the easiest I have ever done: I was only person in Honduras immigration and was given my exit stamp in 1 minute and then to the Guatemala side I have them $1.50 and they stamped my passport and I was through. Within minutes of being in Guatemala I was met by very friendly people and got chatting with the collectivo driver - who would drive me to Chiquimula (Guatemalan transportation hub). So here I am in a new country; Guatemala and things are looking good; nice people, very Mexican and by the look of things cheap. The drive to Chiquimula took nearly 2 hours because we stopped every 5 minutes to pick people up - but the drive was pleasant. The driver joked with me the whole way which was a nice change compared to some other countries in Central America. Arriving in Chiquimula I was dropped smack-bang in the middle of a huge market and couldn't help checking out all the snacks which included; corn biscuits, cakes, candies, popcorn balls and every other sweet you can imagine. After asking a few people I was given directions to where I could find a small bus going to Anguitu (El Salvador boarder). I boarded the bus and was told we would leave in 10 minutes which Ofcourse turned into nearly an hour of crawling around the city trying to fill the bus with people. The bus journey was very uncomfortable and to make matters worse we were crammed into the tiny bus like sardines in a can. After 2 hours we arrived at the boarder town of Anguitu and once again there was no people and I got my passport exit stamp and then my entry stamp into El Salvador. The immigration guy was very kind and went and found a map of El Salvador for me and wished me a good trip. As I walked up the road to try and find a bus this car came flying towards me in reverse; hitting the brakes at the last minute a little head popped out and told me the bus had just left but to run up ahead and he would chase bus down and get it to stop for me. Running up the hill I found the bus waiting for me - what a kind gesture by the random guy in the car and this makes me very hopeful for my visit to one of the most dangerous counties in the world. The bus was going to Metapan and from there I could take another bus to my destination; Santa Ana. The driver was also very kind to me and when we arrived in Metapan he actually had to come wake me up and told me I had to be very careful with my things and try not to fall asleep on the bus - good advice and a nice reminder. El Salvador is like a mini Mexico and there are 100s of people making small business selling snacks and food - within one bus ride its common to have around 30 people board the bus selling everything from roast chicken and juice to chocolates and popcorn - the best thing is that it is all very cheap and the worst thing it makes you hungry all the time. The final bus ride to Santa Ana was a LNG one and we had a painful 30 minute delay due to roadworks and as the buses definitely don't have aircon they turn into sweat boxes. The bus arrived into Santa Ana and first impression is a rough looking city but with colorful buildings, markets and lots of character. Unfortunately the bus didn't drop me at the Mall where I am meeting my Couchsurfing host Rene so I had to walk and ask a few people for directions. It was only a 30 minute walk to the mall and i got to pass some bery interesting neighborhoods, i couldnt help but notice all the security, armed guards/civilians and barbed wire surrounding houses - a sign that crime is rampant here. The mall was a complete contrast to the city but a refreshing change from the humidity and chaos outside. Rene my CS Host came and met me at a coffee shop and from the word go I could tell I was going to have a good visit here in Santa Ana. We stopped at the supermarket which was very interesting for me and decided to splurge and buy a whole cooked chicken as I havnt been eating so much meat of late. Arriving at Rene's place was a real nice suprise; big, very clean house in a nice quiet neibourhood. After some dinner we chatted a bit before I had to call it a night as I could barely keep my eyes open.
OBSERVATIONS:
- New country: Guatemala (transit on bus)
- New country: El Salvador
- Arrive Santa Ana - Couchsurf with Rene
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