by Lori Lundin
Doug had his temporary teeth adhered to his mouth. The appointment took about an hour, again with no pain. Already, he has a million dollar smile and these are just the temporaries. He came back to the hotel, had a nice dinner and went for a massage. The hour long massage cost thirty five dollars.
The next day, our Planet Hospital guide/concierge/country manager Ricardo took us to do a little sight seeing. First stop, about 45 minutes from San Salvador...Lake Coatepeque, a crater from an erupted volcano....now one of El Salvador's most beautiful places. As we arrive, a glorious panoramic view from the top. Houses are sprinkled along the hillsides as we drive down to the lake, the road turns to dirt and we see a mixture of beautiful homes and small primitive village huts.
We arrive for lunch on the lake at a little open air restaurant with palm thatched roofs...serving fish fresh from the lake. The portions are huge and they are very accommodating to Doug who is still required to eat soft food. One thing I can say about El Salvador...the people here are incredibly kind. After lunch, we head to Joya de Ceren, a UNESCO World Heritage site and the only place in the Mayan World where you can see the ruins of Mayan homes. This is also called the Pompeii of America because it was covered by ash from the Volcano Loma Caldera approximately 1400 years ago. This was fascinating to see and we are glad to have Ricky with us to interpret as the tour guide explains. Next time, we hope to go to more historic ruins, the pyramids of San Andres.
The next day...we are taken into the mountains of Western El Salvador. We visit small towns in Western El Salvador where we see Salvadorians walking along the road with baskets on their heads...apparently carrying just picked coffee. We are in the region where coffee plantations are everywhere. We also see many volcanoes along the way. Coffee is one of the few exports coming out of this country.
Driving along the famous flower route, we have lunch in one of several interesting colonial towns..and drive back through colorful towns known for their artisan products. There are many crafts made here including woven products, paintings and furniture from coffee wood.
The next day, we decide to head to the beach for one night. Ricardo picks us up and we head to Costa Del Sol, which is supposed to be one of the nicer beaches here. Most have black sand, and apparently El Salvador is known for it's world class surfing. On the way we stop for lunch at a Papusaria. The papusa is the trademark food here. It's like a puffy tortilla made to order and filled with beans, cheese or meat. They're delicious.
The beach is hot and humid, but the pacific breeze allows us to enjoy our pina coladas with a good book and a hammock. Tomorrow, we'll head back to San Salvador for one last visit to Dr. Lorenzana. He'll remove Doug's stitches ( he has a mouthful) and we'll head to the airport.
Lori Lundin is a News Anchor/Reporter with Fox News Radio
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