Thu 29th 2235 I thought I heard the owner come in and speak in English to people in other room, so maybe they aren't local and the Spanish voice I heard having an emotional sounding phone call was on TV or from another nearby flat. My door was shut and I didn't go out but I did pop out just now and he has put the washing machine (a top loader) on and my bag of clothes has moved so he seems to be doing that which is good and nice of him. I asked him not to machine dry mine and checked the wash would be cold water given all the synthetics, fingers crossed.
2240 have uploaded some more photos to home server, touch wood my current system of doing this and copying stuff to usb stick is working well and not proving too difficult to keep up with.
Will probably do Duolingo and go to bed.
2251 ffs, bed.
0622 slept really badly. FWIW owner came round about midnight and told me my clothes were in the washer (he had presumably taken the others out) and I thanked him and hung then up.
I don't j ow why I slept badly given how semi comfortable and half dozing and "maybe I should just go to bed" I was reading on the bed earlier. Not super excited about event tbh, but then it is early and the logistics of eating and shaving and getting an uber and doing whatever queueing up chores are required to get in are depressing.
Sun 1136 Just pulling out on tudo bus but 1.60 not 2 so may be slow from terminal occidente in SS. Have a bed at same hostel in SA tonight and going to ask them about conditions at volcano etc and if things sound OK and I can get a bed tomorrow night as well I will probably try to do the volcano tomorrow, otherwise push straight on to rural de las flores.
Yesterday at lunch - and I can't really blame anyone for this - I was scuttling across road and my left shoe toe caught in a sort of crevice of some kind. I didn't get hurt but the thinner leather near the toe cap tore. Pretty annoyed esp so early in trip. It didn't get worse during the day and last night I managed to stitch it up badly. I don't think it is load bearing so fingers crossed it will be ok. It looks a tiny bit tasty but not that bad. I really don't want to have to toss these nearly new shoes and buy another pair if I can help it. I don't really blame the shoes either, I think it was a very unlucky acrape type contact on a surface which would rarely get it.
Woke up 7ish but was sort of lazing around in private room a lot and left more or less bang on checkout time at 11. Left keys on table as discussed. I had a (cold of course) shower this morning and an wearing same clothes inc uw as yesterday.
Walked over to terminal. Last two days have been Uber-tastic but back to normal now I hope.
1310 Grinding through centre of SA, much quicker trip than I expected. Aircon is so good I am a bit cold.
1313 fuck. Bus didn't really stop in town and seemed to be about to head out to the tudo terminal right outside but I plucked up courage and asked the driver to let me off. So I should really have done that earlier but I was just assuming there would be a stop or two in town. Maybe I half slept through some. Anyway, I am slightly further from hostel than would strictly be necessary but not by much.
1344 just checking in. Can only get an upper bunk but not end of world. Volcano peak is closed today due to high winds, Douglas advised to try again in about a week rather than tomorrow, so I have just booked for the one night here and will start on ruta de las Flores tomorrow. This is both a shame and a minor relief, although I suspect the volcano is not an amazingly strenuous hike (we are not talking that one in panama in 2024 etc) but it does still involve early morning buses and vague concerns about getting there on time and whether or not I can get a place on a guides tour or whatever you need etc.
I am half wondering tbh if I should have just pushed on from here today. But I have no clue about ruta de las Flores at this point and I need to so some minimal research and probably ask here for more advice etc and I can hang around here and eat something in town and do that minimal planning etc. And modulo the upper bunk, this is a nice enough hostel and I am not in a mega rush. I may also manage to have a quiet chat with people tonight if lucky etc.
I had been thinking I would swim at sihuatehuacan today but I realised while walking over to terminal it is a sunday and this potentially very busy. That might be semi nice/fun but given I have to just leave my bag sitting around loose unless (and this isn't a free place so who knows) I can ask a stall owner to guard it, it feels like the quieter the better in terms of this risk. And obviously since my primary goal is to swim lengths of some sort not just splash around, the fewer people the better there too.
If my beers are still in the fridge I may drink them later, given not staying to do volcano tonight.
1413 not great, top bunk in six? Bed dorm off another 6 bed dorm and no power socket really accessible by bed, not even really due to anyone else obviously hogging sockets. I will just use my power bank, not a huge seal. And it is upstairs so at least I have seen up there now.
And my beers are still in the fridge...
Down on terrace. Let's do a bit of poking at ruta.
1455 OK. Frankly a bit confused but have booked a double with shared or maybe private bathroom for two nights in concepcion de atajo for tomorrow. I am not sure there were any formal options on booking. I may well do two nights in juayua in a dorm but we will see. Juayua feels a bit more activiryish and tbh even though I sort of haven't done much lately I perhaps feel atajo is the best start. Anyway, it is booked. Let us go out and see about food or snacks or something. There is a slim chance I will go swim at 8am but tbh if I am getting up early it just might be better to use the time in atajo, albeit I am far from clear I could drop my bag off early (checkin at 3). But let's just go out for food etc.
1705 had a wander round, has some fried chicken and chips in street from a Pinulito to top up the pupusas. Back at hostel. Got powerbank from bed and am topping up p7 as I sit in courtyard. Vague bnm and adjacent thoughts been plaguing me somewhat but not necessarily meaning anything.
FWIW went back to embassy meetup last night (and met Marcel and another German guy and ended up going back to event to meet them) and was talking with Juan P and he had been heavily involved in the founding of Casa Satoshi back in 2022? and it was apparently really btcish at the time and that faded, in large part because with change of govt a few years later a different cartel affiliated got into power and started shaking people down and so a lot of the smaller BTC accepting businesses closed down. And he said that sticker all over the place which iirc I was told was an annoying guest was actually just some guys who had had stickers made up of themselves and stuck them all over the place and that stories had just grown up around it. I dont think even Juan had ever met the guy whose face was still all over Satoshi even as late as last year, he said people called the guy on the stickers Pepito or something (I am not likely remembering the actual name correctly).
1714 ok just asked Douglas and there Is no direct bus to Ataco (rome2rio suggests there is but nothing else has said this) and I need to go to terminal Francisco Lara Pena which on looking is basically the terminal I have been thinking of as terminal occidente (but it seems from Google maps the "back" bit of the station has a separate name, unless I am confused - but at least it is the station I thought it was)
Druing my walk I came across what looked like a square on the map opposite casa del niño (which I had gone to see on a whim after it was listed as a notable building on sign in main square - I did pop into the cathedral earlier btw) but which actually seems to be a sort of weird pseudo-shantytown of corrugated metal and lots of exceedingly local and slightly intinidating bars and a few food stalls. I walked through and as this is ES I didn't overly worry about it but I didn't think about staying to eat to drink, not that iirx I particularly wanted to do either at this point anyway.
1857 wearing fleece outside. Feeling a bit bnm though TBF it isn't obvious moat other people are chatting to people they don't already know. Mitch turned up earlier and we chatted a bit, and I got the photos of me and him on that green car the night out with Stefano.
Having second beer. Time hangs just a smudge heavy, albeit not in a terrible way. Push comes to absolute shove I could go to bed 9ish.
I think other people including a guy who might be one of the owners are going round saying it is cold. Not like home cold, but not super comfortable to be outside in a thin top cold. So it isn't just me coming down with something.
Accuweathee says it is 19c and feels 17c. Maybe I have acclimatised, it feels colder than 19 but maybe that isnt so implausible. It also says it will be 15c by 2200.
I am half tempted to go for a walk but I dunno. I have eaten more than amply if not necessarily healthily.
Everyone incl me of course is fiddling with their phones. I am yawning a bit FWIW. I didn't get insane amount of sleep last night but I also hardly forced myself up early despite a relatively early pseudo-awakening.
I have a mildly mad urge to go and have a beer in some random local bar, e.g. the very slightly odd one across the road, but I am really not in the mood at the same time, I don't feel craving for chat etc despite vague bnm feeling even if I might get it, and while tomorrow does not have to be an early start (I am not swimming, it would probably be a bitbsucky in terms of getting up in dorm and having wet swimming stuff for onwwrd trip etc, but also if it is relatively cold at night I suspect the water might be pretty damn chilly tomorrow).
I should probably try to put phone sway just in case anyone takes that as sifnal to openness for a casual chat but tbh it doesn't feel like anyone else is really chatting with strangers anyway. Odd in some ways as the hostel may actually be full, there was some minor difficulty in finding me a bed.
Mon 0950 i did go over to taverna el chino and it was fine, not v friendly but I put a message on hostel wa group and a french Canadian woman (alexandra) came over and we had a chat and subsequently joined a small group (owner kuki (sp) and two of his friends Alex and aargh it's gone) and went to nearly deserted chicken bus (Alex gave me a keyring) and went with another guy over to downtown bar where we met Alexey. Not a bad night if a bit weird at points. Kuki and Alexandra and me left together the not sure at what time, maybe 2ish?
Slept ok if not great. It was pretty chilly outdoors last night but fine in bed. I have had a shower and put "second use" clothes on - I think the ones from first day of event - and tbh I should probably be moving out as checkout is 11 anyway and even if I cannot check into new accom early or drop bag off I can still see the town a bit with my bag and it allows more time for problems etc. Mitch wasnt out last night and not seen him today, did say hi to Alexandra this morning but we haven't chatted. She gave me some good tips about hostel at coatepeque incidentally.
I am going to post this now I think to try to avoid entries getting long and multi day.
FWIW I did if didn't already note exchange the odd "bathroom is free" chat with a probably local and definitely spanish speaking guy one night in san Salvador flat. Maybe there were different guests in other room during my stay.
2240 have uploaded some more photos to home server, touch wood my current system of doing this and copying stuff to usb stick is working well and not proving too difficult to keep up with.
Will probably do Duolingo and go to bed.
2251 ffs, bed.
0622 slept really badly. FWIW owner came round about midnight and told me my clothes were in the washer (he had presumably taken the others out) and I thanked him and hung then up.
I don't j ow why I slept badly given how semi comfortable and half dozing and "maybe I should just go to bed" I was reading on the bed earlier. Not super excited about event tbh, but then it is early and the logistics of eating and shaving and getting an uber and doing whatever queueing up chores are required to get in are depressing.
Sun 1136 Just pulling out on tudo bus but 1.60 not 2 so may be slow from terminal occidente in SS. Have a bed at same hostel in SA tonight and going to ask them about conditions at volcano etc and if things sound OK and I can get a bed tomorrow night as well I will probably try to do the volcano tomorrow, otherwise push straight on to rural de las flores.
Yesterday at lunch - and I can't really blame anyone for this - I was scuttling across road and my left shoe toe caught in a sort of crevice of some kind. I didn't get hurt but the thinner leather near the toe cap tore. Pretty annoyed esp so early in trip. It didn't get worse during the day and last night I managed to stitch it up badly. I don't think it is load bearing so fingers crossed it will be ok. It looks a tiny bit tasty but not that bad. I really don't want to have to toss these nearly new shoes and buy another pair if I can help it. I don't really blame the shoes either, I think it was a very unlucky acrape type contact on a surface which would rarely get it.
Woke up 7ish but was sort of lazing around in private room a lot and left more or less bang on checkout time at 11. Left keys on table as discussed. I had a (cold of course) shower this morning and an wearing same clothes inc uw as yesterday.
Walked over to terminal. Last two days have been Uber-tastic but back to normal now I hope.
1310 Grinding through centre of SA, much quicker trip than I expected. Aircon is so good I am a bit cold.
1313 fuck. Bus didn't really stop in town and seemed to be about to head out to the tudo terminal right outside but I plucked up courage and asked the driver to let me off. So I should really have done that earlier but I was just assuming there would be a stop or two in town. Maybe I half slept through some. Anyway, I am slightly further from hostel than would strictly be necessary but not by much.
1344 just checking in. Can only get an upper bunk but not end of world. Volcano peak is closed today due to high winds, Douglas advised to try again in about a week rather than tomorrow, so I have just booked for the one night here and will start on ruta de las Flores tomorrow. This is both a shame and a minor relief, although I suspect the volcano is not an amazingly strenuous hike (we are not talking that one in panama in 2024 etc) but it does still involve early morning buses and vague concerns about getting there on time and whether or not I can get a place on a guides tour or whatever you need etc.
I am half wondering tbh if I should have just pushed on from here today. But I have no clue about ruta de las Flores at this point and I need to so some minimal research and probably ask here for more advice etc and I can hang around here and eat something in town and do that minimal planning etc. And modulo the upper bunk, this is a nice enough hostel and I am not in a mega rush. I may also manage to have a quiet chat with people tonight if lucky etc.
I had been thinking I would swim at sihuatehuacan today but I realised while walking over to terminal it is a sunday and this potentially very busy. That might be semi nice/fun but given I have to just leave my bag sitting around loose unless (and this isn't a free place so who knows) I can ask a stall owner to guard it, it feels like the quieter the better in terms of this risk. And obviously since my primary goal is to swim lengths of some sort not just splash around, the fewer people the better there too.
If my beers are still in the fridge I may drink them later, given not staying to do volcano tonight.
1413 not great, top bunk in six? Bed dorm off another 6 bed dorm and no power socket really accessible by bed, not even really due to anyone else obviously hogging sockets. I will just use my power bank, not a huge seal. And it is upstairs so at least I have seen up there now.
And my beers are still in the fridge...
Down on terrace. Let's do a bit of poking at ruta.
1455 OK. Frankly a bit confused but have booked a double with shared or maybe private bathroom for two nights in concepcion de atajo for tomorrow. I am not sure there were any formal options on booking. I may well do two nights in juayua in a dorm but we will see. Juayua feels a bit more activiryish and tbh even though I sort of haven't done much lately I perhaps feel atajo is the best start. Anyway, it is booked. Let us go out and see about food or snacks or something. There is a slim chance I will go swim at 8am but tbh if I am getting up early it just might be better to use the time in atajo, albeit I am far from clear I could drop my bag off early (checkin at 3). But let's just go out for food etc.
1705 had a wander round, has some fried chicken and chips in street from a Pinulito to top up the pupusas. Back at hostel. Got powerbank from bed and am topping up p7 as I sit in courtyard. Vague bnm and adjacent thoughts been plaguing me somewhat but not necessarily meaning anything.
FWIW went back to embassy meetup last night (and met Marcel and another German guy and ended up going back to event to meet them) and was talking with Juan P and he had been heavily involved in the founding of Casa Satoshi back in 2022? and it was apparently really btcish at the time and that faded, in large part because with change of govt a few years later a different cartel affiliated got into power and started shaking people down and so a lot of the smaller BTC accepting businesses closed down. And he said that sticker all over the place which iirc I was told was an annoying guest was actually just some guys who had had stickers made up of themselves and stuck them all over the place and that stories had just grown up around it. I dont think even Juan had ever met the guy whose face was still all over Satoshi even as late as last year, he said people called the guy on the stickers Pepito or something (I am not likely remembering the actual name correctly).
1714 ok just asked Douglas and there Is no direct bus to Ataco (rome2rio suggests there is but nothing else has said this) and I need to go to terminal Francisco Lara Pena which on looking is basically the terminal I have been thinking of as terminal occidente (but it seems from Google maps the "back" bit of the station has a separate name, unless I am confused - but at least it is the station I thought it was)
Druing my walk I came across what looked like a square on the map opposite casa del niño (which I had gone to see on a whim after it was listed as a notable building on sign in main square - I did pop into the cathedral earlier btw) but which actually seems to be a sort of weird pseudo-shantytown of corrugated metal and lots of exceedingly local and slightly intinidating bars and a few food stalls. I walked through and as this is ES I didn't overly worry about it but I didn't think about staying to eat to drink, not that iirx I particularly wanted to do either at this point anyway.
1857 wearing fleece outside. Feeling a bit bnm though TBF it isn't obvious moat other people are chatting to people they don't already know. Mitch turned up earlier and we chatted a bit, and I got the photos of me and him on that green car the night out with Stefano.
Having second beer. Time hangs just a smudge heavy, albeit not in a terrible way. Push comes to absolute shove I could go to bed 9ish.
I think other people including a guy who might be one of the owners are going round saying it is cold. Not like home cold, but not super comfortable to be outside in a thin top cold. So it isn't just me coming down with something.
Accuweathee says it is 19c and feels 17c. Maybe I have acclimatised, it feels colder than 19 but maybe that isnt so implausible. It also says it will be 15c by 2200.
I am half tempted to go for a walk but I dunno. I have eaten more than amply if not necessarily healthily.
Everyone incl me of course is fiddling with their phones. I am yawning a bit FWIW. I didn't get insane amount of sleep last night but I also hardly forced myself up early despite a relatively early pseudo-awakening.
I have a mildly mad urge to go and have a beer in some random local bar, e.g. the very slightly odd one across the road, but I am really not in the mood at the same time, I don't feel craving for chat etc despite vague bnm feeling even if I might get it, and while tomorrow does not have to be an early start (I am not swimming, it would probably be a bitbsucky in terms of getting up in dorm and having wet swimming stuff for onwwrd trip etc, but also if it is relatively cold at night I suspect the water might be pretty damn chilly tomorrow).
I should probably try to put phone sway just in case anyone takes that as sifnal to openness for a casual chat but tbh it doesn't feel like anyone else is really chatting with strangers anyway. Odd in some ways as the hostel may actually be full, there was some minor difficulty in finding me a bed.
Mon 0950 i did go over to taverna el chino and it was fine, not v friendly but I put a message on hostel wa group and a french Canadian woman (alexandra) came over and we had a chat and subsequently joined a small group (owner kuki (sp) and two of his friends Alex and aargh it's gone) and went to nearly deserted chicken bus (Alex gave me a keyring) and went with another guy over to downtown bar where we met Alexey. Not a bad night if a bit weird at points. Kuki and Alexandra and me left together the not sure at what time, maybe 2ish?
Slept ok if not great. It was pretty chilly outdoors last night but fine in bed. I have had a shower and put "second use" clothes on - I think the ones from first day of event - and tbh I should probably be moving out as checkout is 11 anyway and even if I cannot check into new accom early or drop bag off I can still see the town a bit with my bag and it allows more time for problems etc. Mitch wasnt out last night and not seen him today, did say hi to Alexandra this morning but we haven't chatted. She gave me some good tips about hostel at coatepeque incidentally.
I am going to post this now I think to try to avoid entries getting long and multi day.
FWIW I did if didn't already note exchange the odd "bathroom is free" chat with a probably local and definitely spanish speaking guy one night in san Salvador flat. Maybe there were different guests in other room during my stay.
