El Salvador buses

It's about an hour/ hour and a half from Santa Ana to Lago de
Coatepeque, and costs a whopping 45cents per person. I bought a bag of
water (it's how they roll in central America!) for 15cents, so since I
packed a lunch, it should be a cheap day at the lake! It's wild
here... All around central america on these smaller or 'chicken
buses', people are constantly hopping on and off selling their wares,
foods or drinks. I admit it's really handy when you spend a whole day
traveling or even on short trips, and they're usually cheaper than
store bought items. One dude just finished up selling when the bus
pulled off, so he just opened the back emergency exit and hopped out
onto the road with his food and condiments as we were hitting a good
speed.

Operation El Salvador

I'm on the bus in El Salvador typing this while we dodge potholes on the pavement and the driver sits on a modified seat; the frame of its former self strung to be like a lawn chair. The front door never closes and there are still stickers from its days as an American school bus. I started the morning in Nicaragua, crossed into Honduras and finally into El Salvador.

No one here has a lot by western standards, the roads are often out of shape, and the comfort levels and personal space levels are constantly dived past and rules seem to almost be expected to be bent. I see shotguns ALL the time (aside from Nicaragua so far at least), and things are much more eclectic and worn in than our cultures in the west would approve of. The personal space and comfort levels being challenged mean that intercity buses can be as cheap as $1. Can't wait to see whats in store for me in this country.

Here are a few shots from Nicaragua!

In Transit

I've left Vancouver, and my train bound for Seattle is just about to pull into our terminus station. Next, it's off to the airport and after a 2 hour lay over in Texas, I'm off to Honduras.
I'm mostly excited, ready to roll, but a wee bit nervous as is normal when flinging yourself off on an adventure alone. I speak no spanish, and no nearly nothing about central or south america; two things I hope are drastically altered by the time my feet leaves their soil.

sleeping all over

I've just slept for two nights in the same place for the first time this week. I've had a king size bed and a room to myself, shared a fouton in a living room with a 4 year old, slept on a couch, and am now sleeping on a floating house! It's my last few days in town before I leave for Honduras - I've been in Vancouver now for about 5 weeks, living without a home, and hopping from place to place to both not overstay my welcome anywhere, and to also get some hang time in with some great people while also working insane amounts of hours at work.
That, and it's (somewhat) helping to save money. I spend a lot more on food out than I ever have before, but for the most part I'm at least trying to be spending those times with friends as well so I can at least in my mind justify the cost.
It's now Sunday and I leave on Wednesday for Honduras.
Time's are getting crazy; but I can't wait to get down there and have everything here all taken care of and done. I've been doing my best to find somewhere to couch surf, but so far no takers.
Wish me luck!