After leaving Monterrico, 5 chicken buses later I was in El Salvador! And I crossed the border correctly this time which should mean no bribing of border officials later. I am still a little confused though as my tourist visa says I can stay for 90 days but the border guard only wrote 30 days on my passport stamp. This is a small country and 30 days should be plenty. Once in El Salvador, I was warned on the bus to wear sunglasses. "Ojos azules atraen a mujeres y criminales" Blue eyes attract women and criminals. Hmm, now there's a dilemma.

In Santa Ana, El Salvador's 2nd largest and most pleasant and relaxed city, there are no other gringos to be found. I haven't spoken english in 2 days but the people here are the most friendly I've encountered so far. They are very concerned with my opinion of their country and go out of their way to help me find what I am looking for and to make sure I like it here. Most tourists skip El Salvador on their travels through Central America and many locals are surprised to see me. They are missing out on an amazing place and it is interesting to witness a country still recovering from their civil war. After a couple days here, I headed off to Lake Coatepeque, a volcanic crater filled with water. I finally ran into some other travelers and just hung out and swam for the day before heading off to San Salvador with two other travelers. The owner of the guest house here has a friend in San Salvador so we're are invited to stay there.