El Salvador, suite

there is something unmistakably fun, like kid-fun, about sitting in the trunk of a pick-up truck. when this happens on Rutas de las flores, the kid-fun morphs in awes and jaw-dropping moments. we got to the coffee finca after some real hard bumpy roads (the pick up trucks are not only for the fun part, they are also an absolute must to get where you need to go in one piece if you count on taking any other road then the highway). the finca was a very small lot (Blue Bottle had bought coffee here in the past). no chemical, hand picked coffee cheries. in opposition to guatemala, a lots of farms here grows the cherries but do not process it (depulpation, drying, un-shelving, taking out imperfect beans, and finally packaging). they send there goods to recibidos where they do exacactly this. our chaufeur then drove us to Ataco a very small but equally attractive town along rutas de las flores. the town was pleasant, and safe ! it was fun to just hang around. our hotel was a treat, a little jewel pearched on top of a small hill with views on the village. following a recommendation from a local, we went for our first pupesas at a little corner comedor called Las gemeles. didn´t expect much of these but they turned out to be much more interesting to eat. proof of this is that i ordered 2 but ate 5 all together, with a cold beer, this is A1 comfort food. at 30 cents a piece, one can does not have to be shy ordering more and filling belly. a gulp of cold beer will help you sinking one more down even when you think you´re about to explode.

on the next morning (by now i lost track of time and days), we visited a farm and a recibidos, they were doing both. it was interesting to see the different quality standard and control between a batch of coffee for america (starbucks) and coffee for europe (illy). nonsurprisingly, starbucks tolerate considerably more deffects then their european counterpart.

we went back to the village to grab a coffee in the first coffee shop we crossed that seemed to be serious about what they were doing and serving. they had an interesting, locally made roaster which they started for us, we roasted a batch from a fine farm near by. in exchange for sharing this knowlege, i offered a crash course 101 on how to work best with their grinders, machine, hygiene and then some latte art. it was a lots of fun, everyone enjoyed, and it felt nice to exchange knowlege from one end to the other (roasting to actually pouring shots and steaming milk).

we left for the beach, a long trip with a connection at Sonsonate. we got in Playa el Sunzal just in time for the sunset. i had a very decent fish with mushrooms and shrimps, and my all favorite for beaches: pina colada.

march 7. by now i know the date because tomorrow i´m turing three zero. i got a master plan for today: by 30, i´ll be able to surf. that´s right. one day to learn how to surf before i´m actually turning old. we took a one-hour lesson, in which i took 3 waves. the first one, i hate water in every hole where water could fit. the second one, i was up on my board long enough to enjoy the ride. by the third attempt, i was surfing from the wave to the coast :-)
i think by now i´m ready to turn thirty: tomorrow, i´m renting a board for the whole day.

n.b.: i can now legitimily wear my OP (ocean pacific) swimsuit without being a poser.