Photo of the day...Suchitoto, El Salvador

A small colonial city in central El Salvador, Suchitoto was the little surprise you hope for as a traveler. in all honesty, El Salvador was the greatest surprise of my trip. i wanted to like it, i wanted to prove all those people wrong who told me to avoid it because of danger and history and poverty. what i saw, what i experienced was something very different and i didn't have to work to like it. the country and the people welcomed me and i would have had to work really hard to dislike it, and even then i don't think that would have been possible.

In Suchitoto i found a hostel that overlooked Lake Suchitoto and was run by a friendly local family. ok so the hostel was small and the sleeping area cramped, but the location was great and the owners genuinely want travelers to get to know their city and their country. this sentiment, the hope that foreigners will come and get to know the country and culture beyond the negativity and violence which is presented in the media, was prevalent in almost everyone i met in El Salvador. in Suchitoto, people recommended local artists, a visit to the church, local food, a boat ride on the lake, and a hike to the waterfall.

Ah the waterfall, a natural geometric masterpiece. the basalt blocks are in fact hexagonal and during the rainy season (the time of my visit) water rushed and fell with astounding speed. my pictures do not capture the beauty or power; as was the case throughout my trip, somethings could never be captured by a camera and must be held in my memory alone. as a friend and i walked through the outskirts of the town to get here, we were welcomed and directed by locals proud to help us to see 'Los Tercios'. imagine my happiness at discovering that this waterfall was on the land of a local farmer who welcomed us to walk down to the falls and then walk beyond to a marvelous view of the valley and the lake.

the above photo is from one of the streets off of the main plaza near the hostel, you can see the lake in the distance. this street is typical for this town and there were many others that were nearly identical, they even had horses grazing!