FreakAuth_light®

We went through Guatemala with no problems. We had changed our
Guatemalan currency to Salvadorian as we left Guatemala. By the time we
got through the El Salvador border check, I did not have enough local
money left to give the guide a decent tip.

At the El Salvadorian check point, the guard wanted us to unload our
van for customs inspection. Audrey went right to work and had three
boxes off-loaded, when I got the guard and showed him my list that I had
made. After looking in the three boxes and glancing under the bed, he said,
"OK", and waved us through. So, be sure to make up your inventory list,
and have it translated into Spanish, if possible.

The road from the border to San Salvador was another high-speed
divided four-lane toll road. As we approached our first toll plaza, I realized
that we had used all of our Salvadorian currency at the border. Then we
got to the toll booth, I showed the toll-taker a $50.00 travellers check and
told him that was all I had. He shook his head, waived us through, and
said, "See you later, Joe". The next tolltaker also just waved us through.

We called it a day when we arrived in San Salvador, which was recently
so hostile to the United States. It was one country that I was concerned
about entering. Yet we left with the feeling of being not only accepted, but
quite welcome.

We had not really planned on staying here, but we were nearly half a
day behind our schedule, so we played the cards as they were dealt. As
we entered the city, there was another one of those super Texaco stations
with its most welcome Circle-K mini-market. We inquired if there was a
motel nearby, and were directed to a hotel just a block away. We parked
in front and registered, and were told to drive along the side of the hotel
and park in the basement garage.

We were able to load our luggage directly into the elevator which
would take us right to our floor and room. For all of this, our cost was $39.00.
They cashed $100.00 extra in travellers checks. We thought this amount
would last us until we reached Costa Rica.

There was a picturesque dining room where we had a delightful dinner.
After a good night's sleep, we left at 5:00 a.m., and drove to the Texaco station.
While I serviced the car, Audrey shopped for our breakfast and more
goodies for the ice chest. Then I just followed the Budget Rent-a-Car map
the hotel clerk had given to me, and we headed out of San Salvador and
south once again. As we were departing the city we had quite a surprise.
We had expected to see a war-ravaged city such as some of the cities we
had seen in Germany after World War II.

Not so! The whole downtown area was built up with brand new high-
rise buildings. Even the older part of town along "mansion row" as we
left the city, was unharmed and in beautiful shape. Was this, perhaps,
where the millions that the United States sent to help fight the war, went?