Rainy Season, Old Dirt Roads & President Obama

President Obama recently visited El Salvador.  What does that mean, or what did it mean?  Simple: LOCURA! (Craziness).

There are banners and posters everywhere that say, "Welcome President Obama".  There was nothing but talk of Obama for days.  Its been a week now and last night at a restaurant a band that was playing said, "We dedicate our performance to Obama".  THEY MADE A "PUPUSA" (the national food) our of dark rice and called it the "Obama" in honor of him.  It's pure insanity.  I don't get it.  I guess for the people here it was a big honor.  Considering what I have been through because of the USA (and yes, because of them not me nor my loved ones), I would have to say ... I wasn't that proud.  But I have nothing against OBAMA personally, just the USA's laws in general.  ANYWAY.......

A friend of mine who is opening a business came and we decided to traverse some old back roads.  Word of advice: NEVER TAKE THE OLD ROAD TO SUCHITOTO, take the new route.  The road is a disaster, steep 90 degree angles, impossible for anything less than an SUV to manage and even in a Ford Escape it wasn't fun.

We encountered HUGE holes in the road and finally a river.  Yes a river, no bridge.  The old style roads here are still there and not in good shape.  There was no bridge and we had to move rocks by hand to cross the river and make a path.  The result was an extra 2 hours on our trip and a whole lot of general craziness.  We also ended up paying two friendly locals $2 each to help.  (They helped free but we gave them money for their time and efforts).

The rainy season is coming and that means the dirt and gravel roads and all the roads "Antigua" aka old roads are going to become very hard to deal with.  A few raindrops here and there are ushering in the rainy season and the climate is getting hotter.  Anyone planning to visit should take this into account.  While this is a very popular tourism time and also a great time for vacation, it means everyone needs to be careful.

Roads wash out, land slides occur and bridges seem to disappear.  Roads take weeks to months to be repaired and conditions can be harsh.  If you are traveling in the country then you should travel with an experienced driver or stick to major highways.  Major roads include Autopista Comalapa, anything that starts with "Caraterra" and of course, anything marked on a map with a strong solid line (Google Maps).  Just use common sense and stay safe.

Avoid passing close to river beds or visiting villages and houses on the river, the rainy season can overflow rivers with little to know warning.