Sat 0836 got a free coffee, sitting on terrace. Some guy, probably a guest was doing a half decent piano cover of a song I did recogniae and have a brief recording of on the piano.
Didn't sleep more, didn't feel praxtical.
1011 went out for money, got 300 USD fee free (I hope) on Barclaycard at an atlantida, neither chase nor starling cars would even work. Barclaycard definitely MVP of the trip though the shit with the cash limit and how hard it is to pay off to keep it working damages it. Had v quick wander onto parquet cuacatlan on way back, some genuinely mildly relaxed "sat morning in san Salvador" thoughts. Have95% packed, will have some peanuts and water here and then go.
May be more money than I need but i don't want to go back having drawn down on my USD stash and I am not too on top of it but within reason having a fair wosge of USD is helpful for future trips despite inflation concerns holding cash.
1025 it is physically cool here inside hostel and I half don't want to go. But really the sooner I get to et the sooner I can start to settle in, maybe get laundry sorted (especially important if I dont stay Monday night, and weekend may get in way hefe), etc.
For once only taking it 600ml water, my long term disposable litre bottle is empty (it is there for purification of a known litte if I need it) nd finishing the last litre of volcano trip water just now. Bag is a bit bulky due to bad packing and repacking bjt not too bad.
I do feel better for having got some cash too.
Of course I could have got less since either was fee free but far from convinced I will be able to get fee free in el tunco and in any case excpet for theft risk (fingers crossed) it is not really too much cash. And I still have four days to go.
1027 ok, let's move out.
1100 on 102a. I did politely argue the toss but the driver insisted as per sign about extra luggage that my bag pays the same 1.50 I have to pay. Despite their being luggage racks! And despite me saying I would put it on my knee. This is probably just general arsery company policy rather than him but it still feels an utter fucking rip off. It is not as if my bag is particularly large (35 litres even with the extension zone in use, as it is now, iirc). Nothing to be done obviously. I shall however do my best to keep my bag on a seat now, since it paid for one for no reason. I was carrying it and it is huatpossivle had I been wearing it this wouldn't gave happened but it provably would. It isn't a lot of money hut this feels like an utter piss take, iirc no other bus in el Salvador or nicaragua has charge me extra for my bag.
1108 excessively pissed off about this. Nothing to be done. May leave a snide review somewhere but otherwise can't be helped they clearly do it because they can. I do wonder if I might have squeaked under the pisstqke line had I not had the extension collar up but with the bad packing and no time or space to really repack and to a limited extent the bulk of the empty 1 litre water bottle and the bit of extra food left over from the volcano that wasn't feasible.
Anyway, not a big deal but I now bear the bus company ill will. Scumbags.
1133 put my bag in the rack where it fits just fine to let someone else sit down. My ire is directed at the chiseling bua company not another passenger but this does make me feel even more that the charge was a piss take.
1211 interminable delays in la libertad.not quite sure why.
1240 something is ducked. Lots of people got off. So not only have I paid double, the service is shit and I have no idea how or when I will be moving on. Still about an hours walk away!
Absolutely no fucking idea what is happening and the incrdidbly loud (but not bad) music continues to play despite me and the driver being the only people here he has just turned it down as I write this no one has told me anything, not even in misunderstood Spanish.
1245 I strongly suspect I am being shafted given everyone else got off but what can I do?
I feel more stressy than I'd expect. At a fucking push an hours sweaty walk along the doubtless extremely busy and safe beachront road is not the end of the world. I am not on a huge rush albeit this is not the nice relaxed day I was expecting and it would help if I didn't think the driver was an utter fucking C* after the double charge. There is also a bloodymindedness where I have overpaid these fuckers to take me somewhere and I fucking want taking.
It is completely unclear what is going on. Traffic is moving. The bus engine is running.
Lamento boliviano playing.
I don't know why we have to have the fucking doors open to make it warmer. Feeling decidedly edgy and almost panicky in a way which is not justified by the circumstances. I felt a bit trapped and shitty on the bus from hell yesterday when the aisle was rammed and the fucker in front reclined and it was hot and we were absolutely fucking nowhere near the destination and I knew if I got off somehow I'd end up even worse off on the next bus and time was grinding away etc etc. That was a bit (not world endingly) shit.
This is a lot more tractable in reality. The driver has not remotely tried to explain anything to me. I am not talking to the fucking bastard if I can help it at this point. But I feel OK - a bit of tightness from getting worked up in stomach, no more - and I have plenty of time and am within walking distance of the destination at a fucking push.
And to be clear despite arguing politely I paid the driver the double fucking fare and we didn't have a Barney as such. He has no justification for acting like this.
I am not sure there were any other tourists on this bus, possibly one or two but no one absolutely massively obviously so.
Another 102A just drove past fwiw.
I have literally no idea what we are waiting for.
I think I probably need to say that I will hang on til eg 1330 and then see what happens.
1253 fuck it I might ask what is happening when he gets off the fucking phone to his mum.
1410 at hostel. Fucking livid had to walk an hour. Driver said been an accident, no idea why the fuck he hadn't told me, had to wait for an inspection. I said could I get another bus he said yes I said could I use those tickets he said yea. I said did he need to make them on anyway to explain this he said no. Walked off. Much much later along baking hot thundering highway I flag sowba nother bus. Driver refuses to take the tickets even though the one he is trying to sell me has the exact same logo in. All the local on the bus find this most anusingm he keeps driving and I have to ask him to let me off as I am fucking not paying yet again. So I had to walk. There is very little I can do about the fucking cints but I will do my damndest to avoid paying them on the return route and I will at least leave a shitty but calm Google maps review, which is about all I can do about it.
I really hate the people in the hostel, I am already beog ignored by two people in the dorm as I write this and there is something of that general surfer vibe. The owner or manager woman seems nice though and we will see what we can do.
I am going to have a shower. I am at least in a lower bunk and there is aircon.
1813 I perked up a bit this afternoon (pupusas, Hombres G Te Quieto and then Frijolero played) but the hostel dorm is still fill of people sleeping and smug young things lounging around discussing surf lessons in the common area and I don't even k ow if I can take a beer in. I may try sitting there tomorrow afternoon got a shitty like 330ml (yes, not even 350ml) pilsener for 1 50 at a kiosk bar and cone down to the nicroaxopix rocky beach for sinsetm. It isn't even my bad moos, unless something tlchanfea the sunset is massive nothingburger. The sun sets behind some headland to the west, not the big rock. No real colour. They wky is pale grey blue with a very slight tongue of pink in the horizon (the photos look massively more orange). Unless something changes dramatically as it actually gets dark there is literally nothing remotely impressive.
The rock is mildly cool in itself though to me it looks more like a rwcloning human figure on stomach with a rectangular rock next to it than a pig. The head (to the left even seems to have some stylised nose, mouth and ears.
The one consolation is that despite last noghts chat not being too bad I don't really regret not staying in that hostel another night. And maybe a few beers tonight will cheer me up and there is air con in the dorm and I have all day tomorrow and maybe all day Monday if I want it, although I am going to do my damnsest not to give the fucking company that runs the 102a a single fucking penny of my money on the return journey even if I have to cut my own nose off to spite my face. I wouldn't piss on them if they were on fire right now. The journey today was a fucking triple whammy of insult added to injury - charge me double, don't deliver the provided service so I have to walk and be as rude and fucking don't give a shit as possible the whole time. Two fucking drivers were unhelpful and rude. Scumbags.
1827 there is a little of the sunset color reflecting off the water and no sinse tis really truly bad, but honestly I really feel this is nothing special. I will wait a bit before going somewhere for a drink.
I really don't want to (would be nice to see Diablo rock in san salcador ans it feels vaguely risky with an earlyish flight) but this place is maybe nearly as close to the airport as san Salvador is, and going directly from here to airport might be one way to avoid a semi-miserable last night in san salcador ans to avoid paying the 102a people to return. Not saying will so it just cos of that, had lightly toyed with rpsopect at seeing map other day before the bus fickup.
1830 some orangey pink color and it isn't bad but again I just don't see anything particularly special, nothing worth of the way it seems to be treated as "a thing" here.
The reclining human figure even seems to have a bum in the middle to go with the head/torso and legs below knees/feet sticking up.
1844 just seen a moderately large hermit crab on beach sunset continues to be nothing special and I am going to see if I can find a bar. Have this horrible "Saturday night, tomorrow will be dead, choice matters make or break" vibe but tbh I will probably ly accept overpriced shitty 330ml bottles and maybe bar hop a bit without hopefully being too drunk unless I an having a good time.
1919 been wandering, all shit. Lost the plastic washed fixe on one of my flipflopa and it keeps coming loose. Having an expensive but nice suegra ipa at guitar. But I am unlikely to stay. All the other bars look like of shitty especially solo. I feel sticky and shit.
Walked past the broken bit of walkway along beach but that area is dead as fuck, monkey lala seemed deserted. Bar which isn't a bar looks vaguely interesting but despite being nominally open and a woman sitting inside doing paperwork it has a red rope over the doorm
Sitting at bar here but it isn't likely to do any good. The bar is guitar body shaped, which is a
Mildly cool gimmick.
I don't feel chirpy, I feel like a sad old loser. But not even that. I dunno. I dunno if it's just the aftermath of the bus fuckers.
A basic pilsener is the cheapest beer here at 2.50.
1925 nice enough beer but this clear isn't the place for me tonight let us wander and lose our flip flop every few metres. The washer doubtless got kicked offagaonst a stone or something in the dark and I'd don't twig at first.
1947 i'm actually losing it a bit. I wandered back to the hostel because I was just passing and I thought I'd go ahead and wash my hands because they felt all sticky and while I was there I put my slightly dirty socks on from today and my shoes because it's quite not that hot at night, well it is hot to be honest, but anyway. With the thing coming loose and losing the washer there's no real benefit from wearing them tonight and there's quite a lot of young people hanging around the hostel maybe for all I know waiting to go out later, anyway I've come back out. I think I went into El Baca, what's it, near the corner of the beach, went upstairs, there's a live band on but nearly all the tables are reserved and I don't think it's sort of a place they want some guy occupying a table of four having a beer and I left, it doesn't really feel that great anyway. So I went into the hostel and there was no one in the dorm, it was nice and cool even though the aircom wasn't, I must have been on recently. So I washed my hands and I had a piss and I left my bag and my cap there and I had some water. There is actually a cold water dispenser with a bottle in the dorm which is kind of nice I suppose. And I've come back out and I went into me trailer of a sort of pirate bar and there was one guy upstairs watching some wrestling and I think his girlfriend turned up a minute later. It's like maybe but it wasn't even cool up there physically, wandering a bit more, it's like I think I've come to monkey lala which wasn't where I thought it was but Jesus it still doesn't seem appealing. Honestly, it's like there's nowhere that I even particularly like to look off, it's not even the pricing. The whole thing is just, I mean maybe I'm just in a bad mood but I don't think I'm that blatantly in a bad mood. I'm just going to keep wondering but for fuck's sake, I mean maybe it gets livelier later, maybe I am just in a bad mood but I find it really kind of hard to imagine that if you're in your twenties and you're coming with a group of friends, this is like party fucking central. It's like sure you can get pissed anywhere you want but I just cannot see what about the atmosphere here would make this like oh my god, yeah piss up here, this is the fucking bee's knees, I really just can't see it for fuck's sake. Anyway, but never mind 20 year olds, I'm not feeling it and I don't even think it's because I'm in a bad mood. Anyway, let's keep wondering if I can find somewhere half decent for a beer, a couple more might twist my mood around or I can always try again tomorrow but anyway I just thought I would write this since I'm not missing much by standing outside of the street voice typing this.
2014 at Morelia which is quiet but not empty and sort of nice getting a five dollar cadejo mera belga. This place even advertises itself as a "quiet place". Not likely to be remotely social but still, somewhere to go and an interesting beer.
2032 the mb is ok, perhaps trying to be a blue moon or hoegaarden but it is a bit warm and ok and worth trying but not setting my taste buds on fire.
I may go for a wander after this. There is a not super promising bar which has karaoke at 9. I don't know what I expect or want. It just feels like even if I felt annoyed or bitter or jealous or alone or old, I expected it to be lively as fuck here - maybe a bit like pio nono in Santiago - and it isn't. Maybe it all kicks off later but I am far from sure anywhere stays open past 1 anyway.
But wth, let us see what happens. And tomorrow I can hang around in hostel with a full day on hand and maybe feel less stroppy after the bus thing recedes and maybe message hostelworld geoip to see if anyone wants a beer or maybe some chat will happen in hostel. Unless I am missing some performance in centro historico main square like one near start of trip or a lang exchange, I am probably no worse off than being in san Salvador there may have been limited social potential at the SS hostel but I am not crying into my expensive craft beer about the lost opportunity.
Incidentally luke hired a car not a bike at ricks. His dad used to do motocross and basically told him not to fucking hire a bike with no leathers etc. And as he says, you see so many tourists who have fallen off and hurt themselves. Since he is youngish and I think a mechanic and not particularly timid seeming this made me feel oddly better to hear.
Place might be mopelia.
Will leave shortly. May come back another night or day. Monday here is not ruled out by any means but not deciding anything tonight.
La Bocana is the place with live music where I didn't feel I could really get a table.
2042 anyway lets go.
2337 been dosn barba blanca bar and karaoke (didnt sing tho tempted) and it has been good, maube it is more me than othera bit to be jonest the night ferls like it is fallong aparte and isnt so fun and the crowd not so ibited singong a long and so con and i may go home shortlym was worried eafliwr about gettijg un bit i managed to whatsapp and got trassuredm the shtlit typing is not drinkenness bit jist bashong thoa out con onnscreen keyboard because life sucks, bit i thonk it OS clear rven if utterlu illitetate. Yo be fair o was accidentally typing in Spanish predictive mode after sending those eMessages about whether I could get into dorm or not.
Bit slight falling apart now (the bar doesn't really seem to be closing) this has been a fun I'd technically still BNM night singing along even if not talking to anyone except staff a bit and I have practiced my spanish and learned some new songs and words to songs I had heard before. Not absolutely fucking amazing but not bad and way better than it seemed. Bit of a shame the way it feels now but not a huge deal
Knocked scab off right wrist on belt earlier which is a ficker but it seems to be mostly ok
The mural on the wall reminds me of alva majo ambidextro artwork.
Ot feels less spanish now and more international and american and canadiqn vibe and perhaps that spoils it for me a bit. Earlier quite a lot of English singing but it was locals. Not that the other gringos are singing much but overheardlong their chat etc feels a bit less spanish and "exotic" and like I am somewhere spanishy.
We have also had several Spanish songs repeated for the second time over the last hour which also feels a bit crap.
I am provably going to fuck off in 10-15 mins unless I really start having more fin. I am relatively sober and haven't had a beer in a while paying two dollars as I go so can leave whenever. In the unliekl] event anywhere appeals on way
Home I may try it, I am not sober but by no means pissed.
I can't even see the words reliably for the fucking tall Canadians standing right in front of me.
Well they are fucking off but if they even turned up this late I don't think that says much for the rest of the nightlofe, they are yoing.
There is also a raucous group of English spewker just to my left after some - yay el Sol no regresa, I had considered singing this - sllocals left, one from san francisco and that feels shit. Let me song along.
Yeah, she sang pretty well and a few people singing along but I think it is objectively not like it was earlielr.
Me brightside Now. Again will sing along but as soon as we get a shit song I am off it isn't what it was
2355 ok, there is a sort of vibe going but it isn't what it was. I am not absolutely milking it now but it really isn't the same.
I am not drunk. I feel pretty sober. This is ok but a group of not bad but drunkish young Americans are keen to sing and as I say it just doesn't feel the same I. There is a lovely black cat here intermittently which did let me stroke it, just seen it again. I honestly don't even want to scrape acquaintance wothbanyone
Someone knocked a beer bottle off bqlcony I think during el Sol no regresa and it was a bit of a shock down here
It is still plenty busy and I am as I say (honestly) not pissed but it just isn't fun any more. I can get pissed any time I want and no point forcing it. And perfectly decent Spanish song trampa is now on for the second time. Ok, changed but fuck it. This isn't fun now and I don't want to try to make it fun by scraping acquaintance or getting drunk. I am gonna walk home be open to unlikely chance of something en route and bed otherwise.
0002 left. Whether it was me or the bar, it stopped being fun, so no point in staying. I can drink another night, I can do somewhere else, I can do something another night, drink when I get home, I can have fun lots of times. It wasn't a bad night, overall, all things considered, especially considering how things were going earlier. And I'm wandering the streets now and doing the voice typing, and it's not like places seem super lively. I do suspect most places shut at one, and I honestly don't think this is the mega party place it's made out, even if you're 20 and you've got a lot of friends with you. Anyway, whatever, it's not a bad night, overall. Just a slight shame, it ended like that, but it's not like I had a row with anything, the tone just changed. I'm walking the streets, an old woman just trying to beg something off me, I feel a bit guilty for not giving her something, but there's lots of drunk idiots about. It's, it's, the streets are still certainly busy, but I'm really not getting this vibe of massive ongoing party with everyone else. It's like, I mean, you know, there is music in some places, but I don't know, maybe everywhere's open till five. I don't know, but I'm not sure I'm in the mood, even as the places are, and to my mind it feels more like people are still the nights winding down with an hour to go, it's totally plausible. Anyway, I'm just rambling now as I walk home, I should probably stop, probably look a bit weird, but to be fair, talking to your mobile these days is hardly strange, is it? No one can hear what I'm saying, but anyway.
Yeah, I mean I just can't tell if I'm projecting, like there are a lot of people in the street who snapped a couple of photos to try and get the atmosphere. It's pretty busy but at the same time everyone's heading against the flow, against my flow, right, it's me as I wander back towards the hostel. It feels like people are maybe streaming away from the beach and the beach places towards bed. I mean as I say there could be some massive after party I don't know about and I'm just projecting all this but it's like lots of people are still out. I'm sure there's things going on for an hour or so but it also does not feel like there is some absolute mad fucking party happening. You know, it's whatever, I mean maybe there's something behind closed doors somewhere but yeah, these are just my observations, it's fine. I'm reasonably satisfied I had a fairly good night, it was technically Billy No Mate because I didn't really speak to anyone but it was still nice to be at the karaoke bar and there always feels a nice atmosphere. Didn't like the way the tone would change, it wasn't bad, it just wasn't fun and stupid to milk it as I keep saying and yeah.
Sun 0010 so I've got into the hostel I had to slide the door around a bit, but I got in as expected no one around Maybe they're all out partying or maybe they're all in bed. I don't know what dorms gonna be like Anyway, it's fine. Honestly, I I'm just repeating myself, but I'm not I'm not even lying There's a woman walking home with her head torched on the other side of the river from looking for the balcony The view is quite nice, but it's a weird river sort of ends at the beach with a bit of a sandbank, but So, yeah, I don't know but someone's just coming up now.
Was a yoifgish woman I prob just looked dlie I was on phone. Said goodnight and cone into dorm. Which is empty as it was earlier. But I had no expectation of joing any epic party and I still continue to doubt there is anything amazingly epic going on on general grounds. I am yawning too, be it age or ongoing shit or beer I an gonna do teeth and go to bed and will be interested to see when people come on if that wakes me
0022 fuck it just had epic, whiny hunt for my toothbrush and toothpaste in the bag, I was going to come out and have some peanuts, which I am now out doing. I feel oddly pissed off that no one else seems to be back, but I am pretty fucking sure that there's nothing major going on. And I wasn't invited and I haven't met anyone, and it's fine and I'm not on a bad night. I'm just oddly pissed off. But anyway, what I'm really pissed off about is a hunt around for the toothbrush and toothpaste, which I couldn't find because they were buried at the bottom of the bag. Because of all the recent repacking and unpacking and strange packing and the bags not packed like it normally would be with the toothbrush and the toothpaste in the bathroom, net bag. Anyway, I've come back out onto the balcony now and I'm going to have some peanuts because I was vaguely tempted by some street food on the way back, but I didn't because I wasn't that tempted anyway. So I'm going to have these nuts now and then I'm going to go to do my teeth and go to bed. And I do feel a bit bad and weird that no one else seems to be home except that young woman who was coming up the stairs when I was talking earlier, but fuck it.
0029 finsished nuts slightly cool sitting out on bqlxony outside room in near dark and peace. But teeth and bed. Tomorrow is another day and a full one here and I may well stay Monday too but no rush to decide. Tonorrow at least features iced coffee and ice cream and pupusas and no fucking buses at all under any circumstances, so cannot be all bad.
0042 in bed, still got the dorm to myself, I'm going to turn the light out, don't worry if someone turns it on when they come in, but they probably won't. Maybe people are out all night, but it doesn't matter, that wasn't for me tonight, for multiple reasons. Erm, air comes quite nice, I don't know what the bed's like really, but it'll be fine, at least I've got a socket by the bed so I can charge in the night. I'll probably set an alarm for like 10 o'clock as I kind of fall back, maybe 11, but I'll probably be up before that, but anyway, I think that's it for tonight.
0922 awake in bed. Been semi awake for a while. Someone has left dorm door open and semi nice green view through it. Aircon is also on which seems wasteful but not my problem.
Didn't sleep super well - bit cold and sheet not quite big enough due to being tucked in at bottom - but also not too bad. Istr people did come in maybe 0130ish. Did feel a bit thirsty etc in night and had some water and had a piss (floor by toilet is perpetually wet btw, I suspect a leak not piss but still annoying) but not massively drunk or hungover or sick. Usual waking up and going back to sleep and drifting off and turning phone on to read book and finding I am on the same page as I keep falling asleep before I read it etc.
I may get up in a minute, it is nice to have a day with nothing really to do and not to have to get up but equally no point overdoing it.
Shoulders and arms and hands a bit "numb" from lying on them at funny angles.
Don't really regret last night. Yes something more directly social might have been nice but I can't make it materialise out of nowhere and I didn't want to miss out on a potentially good sunset or whatever by desperately hanging round the hostel hoping for chat last night. Today I will naturally I think hang round a bit more (eg I might get a bottle of coke and drink it), I plan to take the day pretty easily, and I just may put a message on hostelworld for the town asking if anyone fancies a beer.
1004 just had shower and getting dressed. Going to go outside (room, maybe hostel) with A06 for a bit. Will leave p7 in lkcker.
1457 got laundry back, 3 USD as told (1 per pound half what some other places charge), all ok, three tops, 1 trouser, 4 pairs underwear. So I am now set for rest of trip. I already had one clean top and if necessary can probably also swueezed some more use out of the red SS Tshirt especially forel evening wear and if I give it a water only wash.
1932 okay, I'm always typing this a bit surreptitiously and weirdly at Pu-chi-ca, yeah I'm gonna stay here another two nights, I've been dithering but let's just recap the day briefly. So I got off, I wandered down to the beach and I had a look at people in the surface and it's kind of interesting, felt some kind of vague wish I'd done it but you know, now is not the time, with two days left and I'm feeling a bit tired, I want to do it cleanly if I do do it plus I was doing kitsurfing.
It was low tide and you could actually get all the way out to the El Tonco Rock. I did go near it I didn't start scrambling around on it, but one guy sort of did. Although he was wearing shoes rather than broken flip-flops I think I then went and had scrambled eggs for breakfast here at Puccicar again. I went and had a lado frappe fitting a Neveira and I took the container back home with me, washed it out in the hospital sink. They were actually using scissors. So I've made two big plastic washers, which are hopefully going to help keep the flip-flops on. Seems to be working so far more or less.
I also bought a one-and-a-half litre bottle of Pepsi on the way back at a small shop, which had a very fierce air-com, which was very nice. And I had that in the hostel while I, after I'd mended, made the washers and mended the flip-flops, and I was chatting with some LLMs and looking for stuff online, trying to decide what to do. So I had the Coke, Pepsi, sorry, then I went and picked the laundry up and went back. What did I do then? I mean, it's been kind of quiet quite a day. I think I wandered round a bit and I had a coffee. And, yeah, I just wandered round. I'd been feeling a bit low, but basically, I think, speaking to LLMs, it was also kind of what I was going to do. Staying Monday night was already strongly on the cards. Not, honestly, not particularly to avoid these bloody bus people. It is actually almost basically as close to the airport here as San Salvador. Yes, it would be nice to see Puerta del Diablo, but it can wait for another trip. What I'm kind of thinking is just before I came out, I spoke to the woman just before I went out for sunset to ask, and she said, yeah, $15, which is cheaper than the hostel was. And just as I came out now, I paid $30 to get another two nights, also just jumping all over the place. When I left at sunset, I'd been discussing transport with LLMs, and I'd already found out that Uber wanted about $30 to the airport from here. And the woman, as I'm leaving, she tells me about the two changes, three bus route on the public buses to the airport, which is probably doable, but I don't really want to get sweaty and stressed with the midday flight and the nine-hour layover and the long, long, long flight. She said, oh, well, you can do a taxi for $30. I said, is it trustworthy? She said, oh, it's my husband. So basically, although I haven't booked that yet, I think probably Wednesday morning from here, I can get a taxi about 8 in the morning. It'll be $30. Presumably, it's trustworthy. If that falls through, I can get an Uber. So I can be at the airport three hours before my flight with a bit of a buffer from here, no rushing back to San Salvador and doing things in a hurry. That means I have tonight and tomorrow night with absolutely no worries, no pressure. I can get up late. I have all day tomorrow and Tuesday to do what I want, which will be very little. But, you know, that's kind of fine. It's not like I do a lot in San Salvador. Also, when I was in the dorm just now, about 1847, I was about to start writing this up, and then I heard someone come in, and it was a couple that I'd seen them check in earlier and said hi to them. And I made a bit of an effort, and I had quite a nice chat with them, and then the volunteer woman came in, and we were all talking in the dorm. So, yeah, that's quite promising. I think they might do movie night, and I might therefore do it about 7.30. The family dinner is going to be spaghetti bolognese because the volunteer said, so I said, oh, I'm not big on bolognese, and I'm going to leave soon, so I need to have as many purposes as I can. So I'm going to go back about 9.30. A bit dubious at movie night, but if it's a bust, it's a bust, and it might be social. I'm going to say just that conversation with those guys. They're from Bristol. She's a nurse, and so gets to work a lot, and then have a long time off, and he's a freelance carpenter. So they're on a two to three month trip. Really nice chat with them. So, yeah, that alone is a bit of a win, and that's where we are roughly, the ultra-condensed version. I bloody hope this transcribes okay.
Okay, so I also forgot to say that I came to this restaurant for two rice papusas mid-afternoon. Couldn't really tell the difference, to be honest, but they were perfectly nice. And I'm back here for another two now, so I've eaten a decent amount. I also went down to sunset at the beach. I got a litre of pills in there at the same little shop I did it yesterday. The beer kiosky thing, bar without a seating. Not quite a litre, because I talked to her, I said, do you have any cans? And she said, don't just bottle rice, you can't take it to the beach. She said, no, but she gave me a plastic glass. But she didn't pour the entire bottle in. I did wait a bit to see if she was going to let the foam subside and pour the last bit of the bottle in. She didn't, and I didn't really want to argue. But it's still $3 for nearly a litre. It's still better than paying $1.50 for $3.30 mil or whatever. So I took that down to the beach. The sunset, again, was not bad, to be honest. Purple, orange, but nothing amazingly dramatic, but there was a bit of a party atmosphere. There was a band playing, a lot of people minnowing around. A lot of the locals also, you know, they don't have that smug, 20-something vibe that the locals, national tourists, whatever, that the foreign backpackers do. And I'm exaggerating with that, to be fair. So I did that, and then I went back to the hospital, which was when I met that couple just now, properly. And I was mulling over things on the beach, and it's like, yeah, Monday was always on the cards. Absolute worst case, I decided I really want to be in San Salvador Tuesday night, which I probably won't, and I write off the $15 for Tuesday night that I've paid here. And I don't think I will want to. It's fine. Up above, it says, cheaper than the hostel. It should have been cheaper than Hostel World. I did put a message on Hostel World earlier asking if anyone wanted to meet for a drink this afternoon. I played up the old Git line, but nothing happened. Didn't really expect it would. I'm not sure many people of any age get much out of these things, but it is where it is. So that's roughly speaking everything, I think.
To be clear I'm not expecting that this British couple are going to be best buds or anything like that it's more that just having that conversation for 10-15 minutes with them and then the volunteer that's like a social win you know it's good I'm not craving attention or anything but you know it's just like yeah a little bit of the kind of traveler tourist vibe going there some prospect of further chat along the same lines I was already planning on staying anyway regardless of what happens I didn't see much point change into another hostel this one's quite nice the owner seems nice enough Going somewhere else would just be resetting things, at least I'm starting to get known and if those guys are going to be there and bear up for a casual chat for five minutes as I see them around or something, that's cool. So yeah, as I say, that's more or less where we are and I'm just rambling now.
Oh yeah, when I was here for breakfast, there was actually quite nice American guy at the next table, a bit old, maybe a bit older than me, and he was struggling to find the words for Black Pepper, so I thought, oh, I'll dive in and help him out. I ended up chatting to him a bit. It turns out he's a conspiracy theorist kind of guy. I do think I know his conspiracy theory name, which even has the word conspiracies in. I won't put it on the blog, I've made a note of it in my little Dropbox note style. Actually, I mean, to me, to be honest, what he was saying was just nonsense, but... going to him either trump is dying or we're having a tsunami within the next three days i don't think he was a massively political guy in that sense but anyway but he actually seemed like a genuinely nice guy but obviously not the politics just the he says oh i tried to convince them but of course i couldn't because they're they're on fluoride you know from the water nice enough chap though really actually quite a nice guy but i just sort of went along with it and he was very pleasant really anyway just to know that was a little bit of colour and that also came from me sticking my neck out slightly and chipping my oar in to tell him what black pepper was in spanish
1954 although I'm not livid anymore, I'm still annoyed enough about the bloody buses yesterday that I left a bad Google review for them. Hey, it's not much, but I tried to strike a factual tone so it doesn't look like I've just been on a rant, and hopefully it does them a tiny bit of justified harm. Maybe that's not a very enlightened attitude, but anyway. I also, for example, partly just to make it look like my account, which is new, doesn't just create it, but then I left a good review for the laundry place, and I'll probably leave a good review for a couple of other businesses. Now I've started doing those reviews on that Google account, which is the account I made for the AO6, because, you know, it doesn't do any harm, and it adds a bit of colour. No, this guy isn't incredibly negative, that company was just shit.
2007 just to follow on from what I was saying earlier, it's like the nice thing about staying here is although it's maybe not the ideal place for me it's kind of not that bad and I've basically been on the move every day or two ever since I left on my tepi. It's like I had two nights in the arm One night in Lorneon, one night on the top of the volcano, one night in San Salvador So it's good to get some time where I can just sort of relax a bit and not have to worry about being up in the morning Finished dinner. That was fine. I might I'm not quite sure what to do because I don't want to be pissed Before the film or anything, but I also don't want to overhang around We'll see what happens. I guess I might get a beer somewhere and just take it easy or I might go to the beach or Whatever.
2059 went and had a shower and even a shave. Sitting on terrace and everyone is having dinner but it is more than the people who aren't having sinner aren't here, there are only about 8 for dinner, it just feels a bit oddly BNM as I am here hanging around and no other non diner is. I could pip out and have a beer or something but it seems a bit silly.
May go lie in a hammock.
2249 someone unexpectedly gave me a slice of pineapples as I was in hammock. The film appeared to start without me but not actually offended as such as it likely flowed from the dinner. I popped back up to dorm to wash hands after pineapple and guy from earlier was there, brief pip pip.
I did briefly toy with goingout for a beer bit frankly I didn't want to go out or have a beer. Last night I actually did even if there was a slightly loserish edge with being solo and it was fun in the end. I was feeling a bit tired (not on a bad way as such) in hammock and I just yawned as I wrote this.
I did force myself to come watch the film and it is quietly companionable and actually oddly pleasantly cool on terrace and the biggish screen is quite nice and the film is dead poets society which I think I have seen micro fragments of before and which feels oddly apposite (seize the moment, they are all feeding daffodils scene) and is also a curious mix of inspiration and what seems like rather pretentious wankery. (The boys react well because it is scripted. No one thinks it is stupid or feels awkward about it. The fun and doubtless satisfying youthful cive of the dead poets society is presented as more fundamentally deep than it is, and the whole thing is copied slavishly from a past idea they find which feels rather artifical. Etc) The lack of obvious bullying in this kind of school film is also curiously refreshing.
But tbh I also don't really want to watch the whole thing.
2313 some girls (who I guess I was supposed to recognize but didn't) turned up at the dps cave and I felt that was a good point to bow out. I dont feel too bad but not in the mood for just about anything likely to happen in such a scene.
I do feel broadly ok. But also tired. And fuck it, I am going to bed. And only setting a backstop alarm at about 10. And although I just may take a solo daytrip to el zonte tonorrow I may also not.
I am going to force myself to send this and then go to bed.
Didn't sleep more, didn't feel praxtical.
1011 went out for money, got 300 USD fee free (I hope) on Barclaycard at an atlantida, neither chase nor starling cars would even work. Barclaycard definitely MVP of the trip though the shit with the cash limit and how hard it is to pay off to keep it working damages it. Had v quick wander onto parquet cuacatlan on way back, some genuinely mildly relaxed "sat morning in san Salvador" thoughts. Have95% packed, will have some peanuts and water here and then go.
May be more money than I need but i don't want to go back having drawn down on my USD stash and I am not too on top of it but within reason having a fair wosge of USD is helpful for future trips despite inflation concerns holding cash.
1025 it is physically cool here inside hostel and I half don't want to go. But really the sooner I get to et the sooner I can start to settle in, maybe get laundry sorted (especially important if I dont stay Monday night, and weekend may get in way hefe), etc.
For once only taking it 600ml water, my long term disposable litre bottle is empty (it is there for purification of a known litte if I need it) nd finishing the last litre of volcano trip water just now. Bag is a bit bulky due to bad packing and repacking bjt not too bad.
I do feel better for having got some cash too.
Of course I could have got less since either was fee free but far from convinced I will be able to get fee free in el tunco and in any case excpet for theft risk (fingers crossed) it is not really too much cash. And I still have four days to go.
1027 ok, let's move out.
1100 on 102a. I did politely argue the toss but the driver insisted as per sign about extra luggage that my bag pays the same 1.50 I have to pay. Despite their being luggage racks! And despite me saying I would put it on my knee. This is probably just general arsery company policy rather than him but it still feels an utter fucking rip off. It is not as if my bag is particularly large (35 litres even with the extension zone in use, as it is now, iirc). Nothing to be done obviously. I shall however do my best to keep my bag on a seat now, since it paid for one for no reason. I was carrying it and it is huatpossivle had I been wearing it this wouldn't gave happened but it provably would. It isn't a lot of money hut this feels like an utter piss take, iirc no other bus in el Salvador or nicaragua has charge me extra for my bag.
1108 excessively pissed off about this. Nothing to be done. May leave a snide review somewhere but otherwise can't be helped they clearly do it because they can. I do wonder if I might have squeaked under the pisstqke line had I not had the extension collar up but with the bad packing and no time or space to really repack and to a limited extent the bulk of the empty 1 litre water bottle and the bit of extra food left over from the volcano that wasn't feasible.
Anyway, not a big deal but I now bear the bus company ill will. Scumbags.
1133 put my bag in the rack where it fits just fine to let someone else sit down. My ire is directed at the chiseling bua company not another passenger but this does make me feel even more that the charge was a piss take.
1211 interminable delays in la libertad.not quite sure why.
1240 something is ducked. Lots of people got off. So not only have I paid double, the service is shit and I have no idea how or when I will be moving on. Still about an hours walk away!
Absolutely no fucking idea what is happening and the incrdidbly loud (but not bad) music continues to play despite me and the driver being the only people here he has just turned it down as I write this no one has told me anything, not even in misunderstood Spanish.
1245 I strongly suspect I am being shafted given everyone else got off but what can I do?
I feel more stressy than I'd expect. At a fucking push an hours sweaty walk along the doubtless extremely busy and safe beachront road is not the end of the world. I am not on a huge rush albeit this is not the nice relaxed day I was expecting and it would help if I didn't think the driver was an utter fucking C* after the double charge. There is also a bloodymindedness where I have overpaid these fuckers to take me somewhere and I fucking want taking.
It is completely unclear what is going on. Traffic is moving. The bus engine is running.
Lamento boliviano playing.
I don't know why we have to have the fucking doors open to make it warmer. Feeling decidedly edgy and almost panicky in a way which is not justified by the circumstances. I felt a bit trapped and shitty on the bus from hell yesterday when the aisle was rammed and the fucker in front reclined and it was hot and we were absolutely fucking nowhere near the destination and I knew if I got off somehow I'd end up even worse off on the next bus and time was grinding away etc etc. That was a bit (not world endingly) shit.
This is a lot more tractable in reality. The driver has not remotely tried to explain anything to me. I am not talking to the fucking bastard if I can help it at this point. But I feel OK - a bit of tightness from getting worked up in stomach, no more - and I have plenty of time and am within walking distance of the destination at a fucking push.
And to be clear despite arguing politely I paid the driver the double fucking fare and we didn't have a Barney as such. He has no justification for acting like this.
I am not sure there were any other tourists on this bus, possibly one or two but no one absolutely massively obviously so.
Another 102A just drove past fwiw.
I have literally no idea what we are waiting for.
I think I probably need to say that I will hang on til eg 1330 and then see what happens.
1253 fuck it I might ask what is happening when he gets off the fucking phone to his mum.
1410 at hostel. Fucking livid had to walk an hour. Driver said been an accident, no idea why the fuck he hadn't told me, had to wait for an inspection. I said could I get another bus he said yes I said could I use those tickets he said yea. I said did he need to make them on anyway to explain this he said no. Walked off. Much much later along baking hot thundering highway I flag sowba nother bus. Driver refuses to take the tickets even though the one he is trying to sell me has the exact same logo in. All the local on the bus find this most anusingm he keeps driving and I have to ask him to let me off as I am fucking not paying yet again. So I had to walk. There is very little I can do about the fucking cints but I will do my damndest to avoid paying them on the return route and I will at least leave a shitty but calm Google maps review, which is about all I can do about it.
I really hate the people in the hostel, I am already beog ignored by two people in the dorm as I write this and there is something of that general surfer vibe. The owner or manager woman seems nice though and we will see what we can do.
I am going to have a shower. I am at least in a lower bunk and there is aircon.
1813 I perked up a bit this afternoon (pupusas, Hombres G Te Quieto and then Frijolero played) but the hostel dorm is still fill of people sleeping and smug young things lounging around discussing surf lessons in the common area and I don't even k ow if I can take a beer in. I may try sitting there tomorrow afternoon got a shitty like 330ml (yes, not even 350ml) pilsener for 1 50 at a kiosk bar and cone down to the nicroaxopix rocky beach for sinsetm. It isn't even my bad moos, unless something tlchanfea the sunset is massive nothingburger. The sun sets behind some headland to the west, not the big rock. No real colour. They wky is pale grey blue with a very slight tongue of pink in the horizon (the photos look massively more orange). Unless something changes dramatically as it actually gets dark there is literally nothing remotely impressive.
The rock is mildly cool in itself though to me it looks more like a rwcloning human figure on stomach with a rectangular rock next to it than a pig. The head (to the left even seems to have some stylised nose, mouth and ears.
The one consolation is that despite last noghts chat not being too bad I don't really regret not staying in that hostel another night. And maybe a few beers tonight will cheer me up and there is air con in the dorm and I have all day tomorrow and maybe all day Monday if I want it, although I am going to do my damnsest not to give the fucking company that runs the 102a a single fucking penny of my money on the return journey even if I have to cut my own nose off to spite my face. I wouldn't piss on them if they were on fire right now. The journey today was a fucking triple whammy of insult added to injury - charge me double, don't deliver the provided service so I have to walk and be as rude and fucking don't give a shit as possible the whole time. Two fucking drivers were unhelpful and rude. Scumbags.
1827 there is a little of the sunset color reflecting off the water and no sinse tis really truly bad, but honestly I really feel this is nothing special. I will wait a bit before going somewhere for a drink.
I really don't want to (would be nice to see Diablo rock in san salcador ans it feels vaguely risky with an earlyish flight) but this place is maybe nearly as close to the airport as san Salvador is, and going directly from here to airport might be one way to avoid a semi-miserable last night in san salcador ans to avoid paying the 102a people to return. Not saying will so it just cos of that, had lightly toyed with rpsopect at seeing map other day before the bus fickup.
1830 some orangey pink color and it isn't bad but again I just don't see anything particularly special, nothing worth of the way it seems to be treated as "a thing" here.
The reclining human figure even seems to have a bum in the middle to go with the head/torso and legs below knees/feet sticking up.
1844 just seen a moderately large hermit crab on beach sunset continues to be nothing special and I am going to see if I can find a bar. Have this horrible "Saturday night, tomorrow will be dead, choice matters make or break" vibe but tbh I will probably ly accept overpriced shitty 330ml bottles and maybe bar hop a bit without hopefully being too drunk unless I an having a good time.
1919 been wandering, all shit. Lost the plastic washed fixe on one of my flipflopa and it keeps coming loose. Having an expensive but nice suegra ipa at guitar. But I am unlikely to stay. All the other bars look like of shitty especially solo. I feel sticky and shit.
Walked past the broken bit of walkway along beach but that area is dead as fuck, monkey lala seemed deserted. Bar which isn't a bar looks vaguely interesting but despite being nominally open and a woman sitting inside doing paperwork it has a red rope over the doorm
Sitting at bar here but it isn't likely to do any good. The bar is guitar body shaped, which is a
Mildly cool gimmick.
I don't feel chirpy, I feel like a sad old loser. But not even that. I dunno. I dunno if it's just the aftermath of the bus fuckers.
A basic pilsener is the cheapest beer here at 2.50.
1925 nice enough beer but this clear isn't the place for me tonight let us wander and lose our flip flop every few metres. The washer doubtless got kicked offagaonst a stone or something in the dark and I'd don't twig at first.
1947 i'm actually losing it a bit. I wandered back to the hostel because I was just passing and I thought I'd go ahead and wash my hands because they felt all sticky and while I was there I put my slightly dirty socks on from today and my shoes because it's quite not that hot at night, well it is hot to be honest, but anyway. With the thing coming loose and losing the washer there's no real benefit from wearing them tonight and there's quite a lot of young people hanging around the hostel maybe for all I know waiting to go out later, anyway I've come back out. I think I went into El Baca, what's it, near the corner of the beach, went upstairs, there's a live band on but nearly all the tables are reserved and I don't think it's sort of a place they want some guy occupying a table of four having a beer and I left, it doesn't really feel that great anyway. So I went into the hostel and there was no one in the dorm, it was nice and cool even though the aircom wasn't, I must have been on recently. So I washed my hands and I had a piss and I left my bag and my cap there and I had some water. There is actually a cold water dispenser with a bottle in the dorm which is kind of nice I suppose. And I've come back out and I went into me trailer of a sort of pirate bar and there was one guy upstairs watching some wrestling and I think his girlfriend turned up a minute later. It's like maybe but it wasn't even cool up there physically, wandering a bit more, it's like I think I've come to monkey lala which wasn't where I thought it was but Jesus it still doesn't seem appealing. Honestly, it's like there's nowhere that I even particularly like to look off, it's not even the pricing. The whole thing is just, I mean maybe I'm just in a bad mood but I don't think I'm that blatantly in a bad mood. I'm just going to keep wondering but for fuck's sake, I mean maybe it gets livelier later, maybe I am just in a bad mood but I find it really kind of hard to imagine that if you're in your twenties and you're coming with a group of friends, this is like party fucking central. It's like sure you can get pissed anywhere you want but I just cannot see what about the atmosphere here would make this like oh my god, yeah piss up here, this is the fucking bee's knees, I really just can't see it for fuck's sake. Anyway, but never mind 20 year olds, I'm not feeling it and I don't even think it's because I'm in a bad mood. Anyway, let's keep wondering if I can find somewhere half decent for a beer, a couple more might twist my mood around or I can always try again tomorrow but anyway I just thought I would write this since I'm not missing much by standing outside of the street voice typing this.
2014 at Morelia which is quiet but not empty and sort of nice getting a five dollar cadejo mera belga. This place even advertises itself as a "quiet place". Not likely to be remotely social but still, somewhere to go and an interesting beer.
2032 the mb is ok, perhaps trying to be a blue moon or hoegaarden but it is a bit warm and ok and worth trying but not setting my taste buds on fire.
I may go for a wander after this. There is a not super promising bar which has karaoke at 9. I don't know what I expect or want. It just feels like even if I felt annoyed or bitter or jealous or alone or old, I expected it to be lively as fuck here - maybe a bit like pio nono in Santiago - and it isn't. Maybe it all kicks off later but I am far from sure anywhere stays open past 1 anyway.
But wth, let us see what happens. And tomorrow I can hang around in hostel with a full day on hand and maybe feel less stroppy after the bus thing recedes and maybe message hostelworld geoip to see if anyone wants a beer or maybe some chat will happen in hostel. Unless I am missing some performance in centro historico main square like one near start of trip or a lang exchange, I am probably no worse off than being in san Salvador there may have been limited social potential at the SS hostel but I am not crying into my expensive craft beer about the lost opportunity.
Incidentally luke hired a car not a bike at ricks. His dad used to do motocross and basically told him not to fucking hire a bike with no leathers etc. And as he says, you see so many tourists who have fallen off and hurt themselves. Since he is youngish and I think a mechanic and not particularly timid seeming this made me feel oddly better to hear.
Place might be mopelia.
Will leave shortly. May come back another night or day. Monday here is not ruled out by any means but not deciding anything tonight.
La Bocana is the place with live music where I didn't feel I could really get a table.
2042 anyway lets go.
2337 been dosn barba blanca bar and karaoke (didnt sing tho tempted) and it has been good, maube it is more me than othera bit to be jonest the night ferls like it is fallong aparte and isnt so fun and the crowd not so ibited singong a long and so con and i may go home shortlym was worried eafliwr about gettijg un bit i managed to whatsapp and got trassuredm the shtlit typing is not drinkenness bit jist bashong thoa out con onnscreen keyboard because life sucks, bit i thonk it OS clear rven if utterlu illitetate. Yo be fair o was accidentally typing in Spanish predictive mode after sending those eMessages about whether I could get into dorm or not.
Bit slight falling apart now (the bar doesn't really seem to be closing) this has been a fun I'd technically still BNM night singing along even if not talking to anyone except staff a bit and I have practiced my spanish and learned some new songs and words to songs I had heard before. Not absolutely fucking amazing but not bad and way better than it seemed. Bit of a shame the way it feels now but not a huge deal
Knocked scab off right wrist on belt earlier which is a ficker but it seems to be mostly ok
The mural on the wall reminds me of alva majo ambidextro artwork.
Ot feels less spanish now and more international and american and canadiqn vibe and perhaps that spoils it for me a bit. Earlier quite a lot of English singing but it was locals. Not that the other gringos are singing much but overheardlong their chat etc feels a bit less spanish and "exotic" and like I am somewhere spanishy.
We have also had several Spanish songs repeated for the second time over the last hour which also feels a bit crap.
I am provably going to fuck off in 10-15 mins unless I really start having more fin. I am relatively sober and haven't had a beer in a while paying two dollars as I go so can leave whenever. In the unliekl] event anywhere appeals on way
Home I may try it, I am not sober but by no means pissed.
I can't even see the words reliably for the fucking tall Canadians standing right in front of me.
Well they are fucking off but if they even turned up this late I don't think that says much for the rest of the nightlofe, they are yoing.
There is also a raucous group of English spewker just to my left after some - yay el Sol no regresa, I had considered singing this - sllocals left, one from san francisco and that feels shit. Let me song along.
Yeah, she sang pretty well and a few people singing along but I think it is objectively not like it was earlielr.
Me brightside Now. Again will sing along but as soon as we get a shit song I am off it isn't what it was
2355 ok, there is a sort of vibe going but it isn't what it was. I am not absolutely milking it now but it really isn't the same.
I am not drunk. I feel pretty sober. This is ok but a group of not bad but drunkish young Americans are keen to sing and as I say it just doesn't feel the same I. There is a lovely black cat here intermittently which did let me stroke it, just seen it again. I honestly don't even want to scrape acquaintance wothbanyone
Someone knocked a beer bottle off bqlcony I think during el Sol no regresa and it was a bit of a shock down here
It is still plenty busy and I am as I say (honestly) not pissed but it just isn't fun any more. I can get pissed any time I want and no point forcing it. And perfectly decent Spanish song trampa is now on for the second time. Ok, changed but fuck it. This isn't fun now and I don't want to try to make it fun by scraping acquaintance or getting drunk. I am gonna walk home be open to unlikely chance of something en route and bed otherwise.
0002 left. Whether it was me or the bar, it stopped being fun, so no point in staying. I can drink another night, I can do somewhere else, I can do something another night, drink when I get home, I can have fun lots of times. It wasn't a bad night, overall, all things considered, especially considering how things were going earlier. And I'm wandering the streets now and doing the voice typing, and it's not like places seem super lively. I do suspect most places shut at one, and I honestly don't think this is the mega party place it's made out, even if you're 20 and you've got a lot of friends with you. Anyway, whatever, it's not a bad night, overall. Just a slight shame, it ended like that, but it's not like I had a row with anything, the tone just changed. I'm walking the streets, an old woman just trying to beg something off me, I feel a bit guilty for not giving her something, but there's lots of drunk idiots about. It's, it's, the streets are still certainly busy, but I'm really not getting this vibe of massive ongoing party with everyone else. It's like, I mean, you know, there is music in some places, but I don't know, maybe everywhere's open till five. I don't know, but I'm not sure I'm in the mood, even as the places are, and to my mind it feels more like people are still the nights winding down with an hour to go, it's totally plausible. Anyway, I'm just rambling now as I walk home, I should probably stop, probably look a bit weird, but to be fair, talking to your mobile these days is hardly strange, is it? No one can hear what I'm saying, but anyway.
Yeah, I mean I just can't tell if I'm projecting, like there are a lot of people in the street who snapped a couple of photos to try and get the atmosphere. It's pretty busy but at the same time everyone's heading against the flow, against my flow, right, it's me as I wander back towards the hostel. It feels like people are maybe streaming away from the beach and the beach places towards bed. I mean as I say there could be some massive after party I don't know about and I'm just projecting all this but it's like lots of people are still out. I'm sure there's things going on for an hour or so but it also does not feel like there is some absolute mad fucking party happening. You know, it's whatever, I mean maybe there's something behind closed doors somewhere but yeah, these are just my observations, it's fine. I'm reasonably satisfied I had a fairly good night, it was technically Billy No Mate because I didn't really speak to anyone but it was still nice to be at the karaoke bar and there always feels a nice atmosphere. Didn't like the way the tone would change, it wasn't bad, it just wasn't fun and stupid to milk it as I keep saying and yeah.
Sun 0010 so I've got into the hostel I had to slide the door around a bit, but I got in as expected no one around Maybe they're all out partying or maybe they're all in bed. I don't know what dorms gonna be like Anyway, it's fine. Honestly, I I'm just repeating myself, but I'm not I'm not even lying There's a woman walking home with her head torched on the other side of the river from looking for the balcony The view is quite nice, but it's a weird river sort of ends at the beach with a bit of a sandbank, but So, yeah, I don't know but someone's just coming up now.
Was a yoifgish woman I prob just looked dlie I was on phone. Said goodnight and cone into dorm. Which is empty as it was earlier. But I had no expectation of joing any epic party and I still continue to doubt there is anything amazingly epic going on on general grounds. I am yawning too, be it age or ongoing shit or beer I an gonna do teeth and go to bed and will be interested to see when people come on if that wakes me
0022 fuck it just had epic, whiny hunt for my toothbrush and toothpaste in the bag, I was going to come out and have some peanuts, which I am now out doing. I feel oddly pissed off that no one else seems to be back, but I am pretty fucking sure that there's nothing major going on. And I wasn't invited and I haven't met anyone, and it's fine and I'm not on a bad night. I'm just oddly pissed off. But anyway, what I'm really pissed off about is a hunt around for the toothbrush and toothpaste, which I couldn't find because they were buried at the bottom of the bag. Because of all the recent repacking and unpacking and strange packing and the bags not packed like it normally would be with the toothbrush and the toothpaste in the bathroom, net bag. Anyway, I've come back out onto the balcony now and I'm going to have some peanuts because I was vaguely tempted by some street food on the way back, but I didn't because I wasn't that tempted anyway. So I'm going to have these nuts now and then I'm going to go to do my teeth and go to bed. And I do feel a bit bad and weird that no one else seems to be home except that young woman who was coming up the stairs when I was talking earlier, but fuck it.
0029 finsished nuts slightly cool sitting out on bqlxony outside room in near dark and peace. But teeth and bed. Tomorrow is another day and a full one here and I may well stay Monday too but no rush to decide. Tonorrow at least features iced coffee and ice cream and pupusas and no fucking buses at all under any circumstances, so cannot be all bad.
0042 in bed, still got the dorm to myself, I'm going to turn the light out, don't worry if someone turns it on when they come in, but they probably won't. Maybe people are out all night, but it doesn't matter, that wasn't for me tonight, for multiple reasons. Erm, air comes quite nice, I don't know what the bed's like really, but it'll be fine, at least I've got a socket by the bed so I can charge in the night. I'll probably set an alarm for like 10 o'clock as I kind of fall back, maybe 11, but I'll probably be up before that, but anyway, I think that's it for tonight.
0922 awake in bed. Been semi awake for a while. Someone has left dorm door open and semi nice green view through it. Aircon is also on which seems wasteful but not my problem.
Didn't sleep super well - bit cold and sheet not quite big enough due to being tucked in at bottom - but also not too bad. Istr people did come in maybe 0130ish. Did feel a bit thirsty etc in night and had some water and had a piss (floor by toilet is perpetually wet btw, I suspect a leak not piss but still annoying) but not massively drunk or hungover or sick. Usual waking up and going back to sleep and drifting off and turning phone on to read book and finding I am on the same page as I keep falling asleep before I read it etc.
I may get up in a minute, it is nice to have a day with nothing really to do and not to have to get up but equally no point overdoing it.
Shoulders and arms and hands a bit "numb" from lying on them at funny angles.
Don't really regret last night. Yes something more directly social might have been nice but I can't make it materialise out of nowhere and I didn't want to miss out on a potentially good sunset or whatever by desperately hanging round the hostel hoping for chat last night. Today I will naturally I think hang round a bit more (eg I might get a bottle of coke and drink it), I plan to take the day pretty easily, and I just may put a message on hostelworld for the town asking if anyone fancies a beer.
1004 just had shower and getting dressed. Going to go outside (room, maybe hostel) with A06 for a bit. Will leave p7 in lkcker.
1457 got laundry back, 3 USD as told (1 per pound half what some other places charge), all ok, three tops, 1 trouser, 4 pairs underwear. So I am now set for rest of trip. I already had one clean top and if necessary can probably also swueezed some more use out of the red SS Tshirt especially forel evening wear and if I give it a water only wash.
1932 okay, I'm always typing this a bit surreptitiously and weirdly at Pu-chi-ca, yeah I'm gonna stay here another two nights, I've been dithering but let's just recap the day briefly. So I got off, I wandered down to the beach and I had a look at people in the surface and it's kind of interesting, felt some kind of vague wish I'd done it but you know, now is not the time, with two days left and I'm feeling a bit tired, I want to do it cleanly if I do do it plus I was doing kitsurfing.
It was low tide and you could actually get all the way out to the El Tonco Rock. I did go near it I didn't start scrambling around on it, but one guy sort of did. Although he was wearing shoes rather than broken flip-flops I think I then went and had scrambled eggs for breakfast here at Puccicar again. I went and had a lado frappe fitting a Neveira and I took the container back home with me, washed it out in the hospital sink. They were actually using scissors. So I've made two big plastic washers, which are hopefully going to help keep the flip-flops on. Seems to be working so far more or less.
I also bought a one-and-a-half litre bottle of Pepsi on the way back at a small shop, which had a very fierce air-com, which was very nice. And I had that in the hostel while I, after I'd mended, made the washers and mended the flip-flops, and I was chatting with some LLMs and looking for stuff online, trying to decide what to do. So I had the Coke, Pepsi, sorry, then I went and picked the laundry up and went back. What did I do then? I mean, it's been kind of quiet quite a day. I think I wandered round a bit and I had a coffee. And, yeah, I just wandered round. I'd been feeling a bit low, but basically, I think, speaking to LLMs, it was also kind of what I was going to do. Staying Monday night was already strongly on the cards. Not, honestly, not particularly to avoid these bloody bus people. It is actually almost basically as close to the airport here as San Salvador. Yes, it would be nice to see Puerta del Diablo, but it can wait for another trip. What I'm kind of thinking is just before I came out, I spoke to the woman just before I went out for sunset to ask, and she said, yeah, $15, which is cheaper than the hostel was. And just as I came out now, I paid $30 to get another two nights, also just jumping all over the place. When I left at sunset, I'd been discussing transport with LLMs, and I'd already found out that Uber wanted about $30 to the airport from here. And the woman, as I'm leaving, she tells me about the two changes, three bus route on the public buses to the airport, which is probably doable, but I don't really want to get sweaty and stressed with the midday flight and the nine-hour layover and the long, long, long flight. She said, oh, well, you can do a taxi for $30. I said, is it trustworthy? She said, oh, it's my husband. So basically, although I haven't booked that yet, I think probably Wednesday morning from here, I can get a taxi about 8 in the morning. It'll be $30. Presumably, it's trustworthy. If that falls through, I can get an Uber. So I can be at the airport three hours before my flight with a bit of a buffer from here, no rushing back to San Salvador and doing things in a hurry. That means I have tonight and tomorrow night with absolutely no worries, no pressure. I can get up late. I have all day tomorrow and Tuesday to do what I want, which will be very little. But, you know, that's kind of fine. It's not like I do a lot in San Salvador. Also, when I was in the dorm just now, about 1847, I was about to start writing this up, and then I heard someone come in, and it was a couple that I'd seen them check in earlier and said hi to them. And I made a bit of an effort, and I had quite a nice chat with them, and then the volunteer woman came in, and we were all talking in the dorm. So, yeah, that's quite promising. I think they might do movie night, and I might therefore do it about 7.30. The family dinner is going to be spaghetti bolognese because the volunteer said, so I said, oh, I'm not big on bolognese, and I'm going to leave soon, so I need to have as many purposes as I can. So I'm going to go back about 9.30. A bit dubious at movie night, but if it's a bust, it's a bust, and it might be social. I'm going to say just that conversation with those guys. They're from Bristol. She's a nurse, and so gets to work a lot, and then have a long time off, and he's a freelance carpenter. So they're on a two to three month trip. Really nice chat with them. So, yeah, that alone is a bit of a win, and that's where we are roughly, the ultra-condensed version. I bloody hope this transcribes okay.
Okay, so I also forgot to say that I came to this restaurant for two rice papusas mid-afternoon. Couldn't really tell the difference, to be honest, but they were perfectly nice. And I'm back here for another two now, so I've eaten a decent amount. I also went down to sunset at the beach. I got a litre of pills in there at the same little shop I did it yesterday. The beer kiosky thing, bar without a seating. Not quite a litre, because I talked to her, I said, do you have any cans? And she said, don't just bottle rice, you can't take it to the beach. She said, no, but she gave me a plastic glass. But she didn't pour the entire bottle in. I did wait a bit to see if she was going to let the foam subside and pour the last bit of the bottle in. She didn't, and I didn't really want to argue. But it's still $3 for nearly a litre. It's still better than paying $1.50 for $3.30 mil or whatever. So I took that down to the beach. The sunset, again, was not bad, to be honest. Purple, orange, but nothing amazingly dramatic, but there was a bit of a party atmosphere. There was a band playing, a lot of people minnowing around. A lot of the locals also, you know, they don't have that smug, 20-something vibe that the locals, national tourists, whatever, that the foreign backpackers do. And I'm exaggerating with that, to be fair. So I did that, and then I went back to the hospital, which was when I met that couple just now, properly. And I was mulling over things on the beach, and it's like, yeah, Monday was always on the cards. Absolute worst case, I decided I really want to be in San Salvador Tuesday night, which I probably won't, and I write off the $15 for Tuesday night that I've paid here. And I don't think I will want to. It's fine. Up above, it says, cheaper than the hostel. It should have been cheaper than Hostel World. I did put a message on Hostel World earlier asking if anyone wanted to meet for a drink this afternoon. I played up the old Git line, but nothing happened. Didn't really expect it would. I'm not sure many people of any age get much out of these things, but it is where it is. So that's roughly speaking everything, I think.
To be clear I'm not expecting that this British couple are going to be best buds or anything like that it's more that just having that conversation for 10-15 minutes with them and then the volunteer that's like a social win you know it's good I'm not craving attention or anything but you know it's just like yeah a little bit of the kind of traveler tourist vibe going there some prospect of further chat along the same lines I was already planning on staying anyway regardless of what happens I didn't see much point change into another hostel this one's quite nice the owner seems nice enough Going somewhere else would just be resetting things, at least I'm starting to get known and if those guys are going to be there and bear up for a casual chat for five minutes as I see them around or something, that's cool. So yeah, as I say, that's more or less where we are and I'm just rambling now.
Oh yeah, when I was here for breakfast, there was actually quite nice American guy at the next table, a bit old, maybe a bit older than me, and he was struggling to find the words for Black Pepper, so I thought, oh, I'll dive in and help him out. I ended up chatting to him a bit. It turns out he's a conspiracy theorist kind of guy. I do think I know his conspiracy theory name, which even has the word conspiracies in. I won't put it on the blog, I've made a note of it in my little Dropbox note style. Actually, I mean, to me, to be honest, what he was saying was just nonsense, but... going to him either trump is dying or we're having a tsunami within the next three days i don't think he was a massively political guy in that sense but anyway but he actually seemed like a genuinely nice guy but obviously not the politics just the he says oh i tried to convince them but of course i couldn't because they're they're on fluoride you know from the water nice enough chap though really actually quite a nice guy but i just sort of went along with it and he was very pleasant really anyway just to know that was a little bit of colour and that also came from me sticking my neck out slightly and chipping my oar in to tell him what black pepper was in spanish
1954 although I'm not livid anymore, I'm still annoyed enough about the bloody buses yesterday that I left a bad Google review for them. Hey, it's not much, but I tried to strike a factual tone so it doesn't look like I've just been on a rant, and hopefully it does them a tiny bit of justified harm. Maybe that's not a very enlightened attitude, but anyway. I also, for example, partly just to make it look like my account, which is new, doesn't just create it, but then I left a good review for the laundry place, and I'll probably leave a good review for a couple of other businesses. Now I've started doing those reviews on that Google account, which is the account I made for the AO6, because, you know, it doesn't do any harm, and it adds a bit of colour. No, this guy isn't incredibly negative, that company was just shit.
2007 just to follow on from what I was saying earlier, it's like the nice thing about staying here is although it's maybe not the ideal place for me it's kind of not that bad and I've basically been on the move every day or two ever since I left on my tepi. It's like I had two nights in the arm One night in Lorneon, one night on the top of the volcano, one night in San Salvador So it's good to get some time where I can just sort of relax a bit and not have to worry about being up in the morning Finished dinner. That was fine. I might I'm not quite sure what to do because I don't want to be pissed Before the film or anything, but I also don't want to overhang around We'll see what happens. I guess I might get a beer somewhere and just take it easy or I might go to the beach or Whatever.
2059 went and had a shower and even a shave. Sitting on terrace and everyone is having dinner but it is more than the people who aren't having sinner aren't here, there are only about 8 for dinner, it just feels a bit oddly BNM as I am here hanging around and no other non diner is. I could pip out and have a beer or something but it seems a bit silly.
May go lie in a hammock.
2249 someone unexpectedly gave me a slice of pineapples as I was in hammock. The film appeared to start without me but not actually offended as such as it likely flowed from the dinner. I popped back up to dorm to wash hands after pineapple and guy from earlier was there, brief pip pip.
I did briefly toy with goingout for a beer bit frankly I didn't want to go out or have a beer. Last night I actually did even if there was a slightly loserish edge with being solo and it was fun in the end. I was feeling a bit tired (not on a bad way as such) in hammock and I just yawned as I wrote this.
I did force myself to come watch the film and it is quietly companionable and actually oddly pleasantly cool on terrace and the biggish screen is quite nice and the film is dead poets society which I think I have seen micro fragments of before and which feels oddly apposite (seize the moment, they are all feeding daffodils scene) and is also a curious mix of inspiration and what seems like rather pretentious wankery. (The boys react well because it is scripted. No one thinks it is stupid or feels awkward about it. The fun and doubtless satisfying youthful cive of the dead poets society is presented as more fundamentally deep than it is, and the whole thing is copied slavishly from a past idea they find which feels rather artifical. Etc) The lack of obvious bullying in this kind of school film is also curiously refreshing.
But tbh I also don't really want to watch the whole thing.
2313 some girls (who I guess I was supposed to recognize but didn't) turned up at the dps cave and I felt that was a good point to bow out. I dont feel too bad but not in the mood for just about anything likely to happen in such a scene.
I do feel broadly ok. But also tired. And fuck it, I am going to bed. And only setting a backstop alarm at about 10. And although I just may take a solo daytrip to el zonte tonorrow I may also not.
I am going to force myself to send this and then go to bed.
