Safety Tips in El Salvador

Unfortunately there are young men who belong to gangs and they are sometimes dangerous so it is not a good idea to wear jewelry when you come to visit my country, you can recognise them because the are tattooed with the number 13 or 18, I also recommend not to have much cash you´d better not forget your diner or visa card.

I sometimes buy something to eat on the street but I am careful about the products because I have to check if the one who is handling the food has clean hands and if the product it´s cover because there are a lot of flies that contaminate and transmit sicknesses.

Do not bring expensive gifts to give out to beggars or street children... This sets up false expectations for other families and travelers when they come to visit in the area. Many of the people you visit will be extremely poor, but the best thing to do is not to give them money, ESPECIALLY STREET CHILDREN WHO ARE WAITING IN TRAFFIC LIGHTS if you wish to donate, arrange to do so quietly with your native guide. village leader, aid worker or priest. Please do not offer anyone false promises of visas or work in the United States, etc... Always respect local culture and customs, never become argumentative nor critical and always have your native guide smooth out any disputes that arise.. keep a low profile and use Common Sense in El Salvador.

Fear not El Salvador is not as bad as people make out it to be. Sure San Salvador can be dangerous as can any Latin American city. but during my time there I found the people to be extremely friendly and welcoming. Don't mention politics; the history of US sponsored repression (el mozote etc) is still quite fresh in people's minds and had brutal consequences. (some 25,000 died between 1980-1982). The public buses I found to be fine and the food amazing. Its quite well developed compared to neighbouring Honduras although poverty is a big issue. You'll need a better command of Spanish than other Central American countries but the friendliness of the people means that they'll go to many lengths to help you. When I was there this guy insisted on driving me to Morazan, even though I told him I was getting a bus. I wouldn't worry any more than you would for any other resort.

Dont drink their water!!!!!!! You will get so sick, that you wont be able to stop the diahrrea, vomiting, chills, fever and constant farting no matter what you do. As soon as I did when I got to the states is went straight to the doctors. Well actually take a shower and then went to the doctors.
Yes, its that bad!

In my visit to El Salvador's villages and rural communities I came across many stray dogs wandering the streets. None of them was aggressive or bothered me indeed, but many of them looked quite unhealthy. Be careful.

This mural warns that “when the last fish has been fished; when the last river has been sucked dry; when the last tree has been cut; then you will understand.” It is very unfortunate that this mural no longer exists, itself a victim of “progress” and the construction of a larger house, because El Salvador desperately needs to heed its message. The country’s environmental devastation is so complete that even spotting a squirrel is a rare event. As such, nature lovers should expect to be disappointed, if not outright depressed, by a visit to El Salvador. The country has much to offer, but flora and fauna are down at the bottom of the list of attractions.

If the contraption pictured above doesn’t look familiar, then you certainly haven’t spent much (if any) time traveling through Latin America on the cheap. This tip is for you. With a few exceptions (like the top of the line hotels in the capital), “hot water” does not mean the same thing in El Salvador as it does in the “developed” world. If you want to take a hot shower, chances are you’ll have to figure out how to work the electric shower without electrocuting yourself. Actually, it’s not as dangerous as it looks. Then again, nothing could be as dangerous as the electric shower looks. If you’re brave enough to give it a try, and if (like me) you’re much taller than the average Salvadoran, be careful not to bump your noggin into the shower head while you lather, rinse, and repeat. Believe me, it’s not a pleasant way to begin your day.

“After that initial humiliation, we sat down in the rain and DARK. Yes dark, because the stadium's lighting was not fully functioning. Just minutes before the Canadian referee assigned to the match was going to abandon it for darkness, God (or at least some electrician) said, "let there be light," and all was well. All except for the cold rain that continued to pour on the roughly 14,000 spectators who'd gathered to cheer for ‘la selecta.’ The match kicked off around 8:15.

“El Salvador set up to defend and counter-attack, despite the fact that they were playing at home against a country that doesn't even particularly like soccer. Their cowardice was rewarded in the 7th minute, when one of their defenders managed to get his head onto the end of a free kick and put the ball past the Panamanian keeper to give El Salvador a 1-0 lead. After much relatively ineffective attacking, Panama pulled even around 35'. A pair of minutes later, El Salvador went down to 10 men when one of their midfielders picked up his second yellow card. Nonetheless, El Salvador went ahead 2-1 from the penalty spot on the stroke of half time.

“It was a bit before half time, however, when Liam and I began to understand the consequences of the combination of three distinct facts: (1) beer is sold in soccer stadiums by the plastic cup, (2) there are no time-outs or other artificial stoppages in soccer, and (3) Salvadoran men do not hesitate to urinate in public. Yes, it was a sad moment when we both noticed that the cold cups of beer that had earlier been pouring down upon us were being replaced by warm cups of p*ss. For some odd reason, a fellow who was sitting one row in front of us, and a tad to the right, seemed to be a principal target for seemingly the entire stadium. We suffered from Salvadorans' collective bad aim. You haven't been to a WC qualifier in Central America until you've been doused by p*ss for over an hour!”

Generally speaking, Salvadoran fútbol fans are a peaceful, fun-loving bunch who arrive at the stadium to cheer on the local team, jeer the refs, and enjoy what is for many of them the only day in the week when they don’t have to work (like this group of my La Laguna friends and neighbors who made the trip to San Salvador to watch C. D. Chalatenango defeat Aspirante 2-1 to win the second division championship in 2003). As such, I assumed that watching the Salvadoran national team take on Panama in a World Cup qualifier would be fun, so I talked my friend Liam into going to the stadium with me. The following excerpts from an email message that I sent to a friend a few days after the game best capture the experience...

“Last Wednesday I went to the Estadio Jorge "Mágico" González in San Salvador with my pal Liam to watch El Salvador take on Panama in their first match of the semi-final stage of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying. We arrived around 6:45, about 45 minutes before the scheduled kick-off and about an hour after a decent rain storm had begun. My first mistake was not putting my El Salvador national team jersey on over the red t-shirt I was wearing BEFORE we entered the stadium. We hadn't walked 10 feet before I was showered with multiple cups of beer, many insults, and chants to take off my shirt (I hadn't even stopped to think that the Panamanian national team's away jersey might be red, as it indeed is). I did redeem myself by pulling my blue El Salvador jersey out of its plastic bag and over the offending red t-shirt. Even drew a standing applause for my performance. … [CONTINUED]