Off the Beaten Path - Santa Ana

Santa Ana may not seem like an "off the beaten path" kind of place, and truthfully, the center of town is probably a pretty well-known tourist destination. With Mayan archeological sites nearby, a traditional colonial town lay-out and early 1900's architecture, Santa Ana has a lot to see and discover. During the boom time, coffee profits helped to bring prosperity to the city, but life has been a little more difficult here in recent times.

Two German friends and I were invited to tour the town with a friend who lives in Santa Ana. We walked through the cathedral, strolled through the town square, and then went into the courtyard of the government buildings, where we sat and enjoyed the flowers. After chatting with a few guys from the mayor's office, we headed over to the theater. When he was young, our friend used to see movies in the 100-year-old theater, which was abandoned for a while and is now being restored to its more historic form. At the end of our tour our friend bought us each an out-dated calendar, so that we could remember the beautiful town through the calendar's photos.

I think so often we spend time working or helping or dealing with crises with our brothers and sisters in El Salvador, that there isn't time enough for our Salvadoran hosts to share with us their favorite vacation spots, the historic sites, the places in which they smile with pride. Typically, we North Americans like to go off with our delegations to see the historic sites on our own or with one or two Salvadoran guides who are "used" to us. I think it is so much more fun to go to places with local families, so that they can share their stories and we can experience and learn things together.

So, besides touring the historic sites of Santa Ana, we also got to go a little bit off the beaten path to meet the kids in the neighborhoods, to meet our friend's mom, and to learn a little bit about some projects which were started by non-Salvadoran NGO's but not completed. We had time for conversation about sustainability, time to laugh and learn together, time to smell the flowers, and time to receive a thoughtful gift that reminds us to take time.

Comments

  1. UnknownAugust 31, 2013 at 8:57 PM

    I read your blog! brough back memories! as a 6 year old salvadorian who never went back after emigrating to canada...to read you sat not far from my childhood home brough tears to me...maybe one day ill go back! and set foot on the land i was born too! be safe! Eduardo Marroquin Menendez flores!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Plant that Came from Nowhere and Grows Everywhere

Image
I am a plant person - a plant person without a garden or a yard or a farm. We have porches.  Porch Pot (©Linda Muth, 2023) It's pretty amazing to see what will grow on a porch.  I like to experiment with what might be considered garbage from things I get at the grocery store. Most Salvadoran produce is not hybrid, so saved seeds will germinate. Herbs are sold with the roots, so it sometimes works to cut off most of the herbs and stick the roots into a pot. I am currently experimenting with some little chunks of ginger that were no longer edible.  After a couple of weeks in the soil, the roots are sprouting nice little stalks and leaves. Ginger sprouting (©Linda Muth, 2023) Frequent travel makes porch gardening extra challenging. One option is to grow for a while and then give plants away.  One time, I left a bucket of basil, rosemary and other herbs with Pastor Santiago's mom, and it produced abundantly until Santiago cut off too much. (He told me he was grateful for...
Read more

The Morro Tree

Image
Cihuatán is an archeological site which lies just north of Aguilares. Amidst the Mayan ruins, which are definitely worth seeing, you will also find some of the local flora and fauna of the area. This area north of Guazapa has become cattle country, and, according to the locals, some of the wealthy cattle producers have their eye on this property. The security guards and barbed wire fences do a pretty good job of keeping cows off of the site, but nothing can keep the goats from enjoying a good run in the field. The wide variety of bird calls, the tinkling of the goat bells, and the low moos in the distance create a peaceful atmosphere in which to enjoy the ruins and have a relaxing, yet very hot, walk with friends. Surrounding the large hill which was constructed to support the main temple, there is a broad, grassy field, dotted with trees. Pablo, our driver and friend, said that during the war, there was a lot of looting of this site. People drove big trucks in to take the rocks ...
Read more

The Legend of the Priest with no Head

Image
Tales of mysterious encounters with a headless priest in the dark of night are not uncommonly told among the Salvadoran people.  After the time of the Spanish invasion, when conquerors wielding swords or carrying Bibles established their power, there emerged a legend of an imaginary priest who wanders in the streets and pathways as a lost soul. He appears to those who are out walking in the evening. He is searching for his head.  He, or perhaps his head, lets out screams into the night. Those who see him feel cold and are sometimes paralyzed with fear and cannot speak for days. The story of the Priest with no Head is well-known and frequently told in Tonacatepeque.  Some say the ghost of El Padre sin Cabeza (the headless priest) is real. Some say the story was invented by the church in order to scare indigenous people into becoming Christians. Some who study traditional, Salvadoran tales say this legend was created by enemies of the church.   A painting of ...
Read more