We docked at 8:00 in an industrial port that prohibited any pedestrian traffic. However, if you were traveling independently, they did provide two different shuttles that would either take you to a resort for a beach day or to a town for shopping, etc. Since we had a HAL tour today, we didn’t have a need for either of the shuttles. We did have a need for packing our rain jackets as the forecast said 100% chance of rain – oh, yay!
We had another room service breakfast delivered at 6:30 this morning. We made our way to the World Stage at 8:15 only to be greeted by a long line of people waiting to get into the room. Apparently, the buses for the 8:00 tours hadn’t arrived and people, like us, who had 8:30 tours had to wait.
After about 20 minutes, we were finally in the World Stage room and had gotten our tour stickers. We waited another 30 minutes for our tour to be called. I knew that El Salvador just recently became a HAL port stop but so far I did not have a good feeling. The feeling didn’t get any better when we went outside to the buses and found it very difficult to find ours. Several buses were going to the same place and we just got herded onto one of them. Oh well, I hoped I was going to see what I signed up for but who knew?
Our HAL tour today: Mayan El Salvador: Joya de Ceren & San Andres
ABOUT THE EXCURSION: Discover the fascinating Mayan civilization with a visit to the Joya de Cerén archaeological site — a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993. Dubbed the Pompeii of America, Joya de Cerén is a pre-Columbian Maya farming village preserved remarkably intact under layers of volcanic. The village was buried by a volcanic eruption around AD 600.
Next, explore the archaeological site of San Andrés — an important ceremonial and political center with several structures remaining that were used by Mayan governors. Check out the remains of an Indigo Mill buried by the eruption of El Playon in 1658 before you head back to the port.
Notes: Wear comfortable walking shoes. Shade is limited; to avoid sunburn, wear light, long clothing suitable for use as a cover-up. Bring a hat and sunglasses; wear biodegradable sunscreen. Bring bottled water.
I thought I was having deja vu when the guide was counting heads in preparation for leaving and one of the guests said – “our friends aren’t here yet.” Not again – it better not be that same husband and wife. I was glad he told them we can only give them 5 more minutes as the port authority says we have to leave the lot so more buses can come. She got on her cell and told him that they were in sight of the bus. They did make it, but they were breathless.
The guide’s English was wonderful, and he spoke at a pace that I could understand. The bus was comfortable, but the air conditioning was straining. Again, I was glad for our cooling cloths.
He gave us a lot of information about El Salvador, the Mayans, and the archeological sites we were going to see. He was very proud that El Salvador grew the best coffee anywhere because of all the rich volcanic soil. (Wait, didn’t we hear that Costa Rica had the best coffee anywhere?)
We had a chance for a bathroom break before our guide started our tour of the outside ruins. Not as elaborate as others I’ve seen but interesting.
Once we finished, we had time to purchase refreshments. We got a coconut. The water was so good. It was very hot and humid outside.
Then it was a short drive to the archeological site. We started in the museum to see the items that were salvaged from the ash.
Next, we went to the dig site. It is an ongoing project. I thought it was intriguing that they have not yet found any human remains but they have found animal remains. The guide said there were several theories but the most popular one was that the villagers must have realized that the volcano was going to erupt and fled in a panic leaving everything including the animals.
It took a long time to walk around the entire site. The guide would stop periodically to tell us about what we were seeing. It was very interesting.
The guide got very animated when a bird landed on a wire in the building. He said it was a Turquoise-browed motmot – the national bird of El Salvador. It was pretty small and far away so my camera didn’t do it justice, but you can see some blue on its brow.
I did catch a bird in flight as we were walking back to the bus area. I think it was another great white egret.
On the ride back to the pier, he told some personal stories of growing up in El Salvador. He said the violence that has been associated with El Salvador was true – gangs, corrupt police, ineffective military.
One time, his school bus was stopped by a gang. They came on the bus. Nobody made eye contact. The gang was looking for anyone who might have gang colors or symbols of a rival gang. They zeroed in on his friend and made him strip completely naked. His friend had no colors or symbols, so they didn’t beat him up or worse, but they took all his clothes. They also grabbed our guide’s new hat and shoes but didn’t make him strip.
He said when a new government was finally brought in, they gave the military more power and were able to weed out the corrupt police and break up the gangs. He was very proud that El Salvador has become a tourist location now.
He also gave us a snack that he said was very popular. We enjoyed it.
All the buses arrived on time and ship sailed away promptly at 8:00 that night. (BTW – it never rained)
Up Next: Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala