Wednesday, January 15, 2014

On Monday, I walked past the National Museum of Art, but of course it was closed. (Is that an international rule?) But I had to go back to the tour place on Tuesday, so that took me past the museum again, so this time I got to go in.

It is an architecturally interesting building, with spacious galleries and multiple levels. There is space for the collection (which is mostly Central American) and also space for visiting exhibits. I suspect that the museum's strength is that it has the space to mount some substantial exhibits.

The signage is all in Spanish, which I am not complaining about, but a pamphlet or xerox in English would have been helpful. Since i can't really tell you much about what I saw, I will just let a few photos do it for me. I have to mention that this bunch of images on Flickr has been wildly popular!


 This really is a window.






Enjoy! more soon!

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

So, yesterday was Monday, and I don't work on Monday; it's a chance for me to get out of the bubble, and do some basic errands as well. We have decided to travel to Antigua, Guatemala in February, so I needed to find the travel agency and make that arrangement, and of course there were groceries and the occasional bottle of wine on the shopping list.

This part of San Salvador is the most non-grid street pattern that you could imagine! There are two concentric circular loops that are connected in some very odd ways (none of them intuitive), and to get from one loop to the other can require some very roundabout travel. That's all well and good if you are in a car, but on foot it does present a challenge. So I meandered through San Benito (our neighborhood) discovering a few connections that I had not known, and ended up at the Sheraton as planned. I also went by the Arr Museum, but being Monday, it was closed. I made the travel arrangements, but they wanted passports, so I would need to return.  I kept walking.

Since the street went downhill, I just went with the flow and after awhile ambled past some restaurants we have been too (Gourmet Burger Company)(Minh's Vietnamese/Thai) and noticed a third restaurant in that string was the Cadejo Brewing Company. But, it was only 11 in the morning, and a little early for a brewery visit. Further downhill, a bookstore, an art supply store, and huge grocery store took up some time. Then it was time to turn around and  head back up the (very long) hill down which I had been wandering.

Imagine my relief to arrive at the brewery just a bit after noon. Uphill walking is thirsty work, so of course I stopped in to see what might be available. There were several options, and the most interesting was a ginger flavored strong beer. (6.4%) it was excellent!


I got a sandwich too, a panini with beans, cheese, tomatoes and avocado. (sorry, no photo, and it needed hot sauce, but the waiter wasn't around and I was hungry). I made the beer last as long as I could!

Then I asked if I cold visit the brewery, which was just behind the restaurant; I could see that it was very sleek and stainless-steely. In a few minutes, Beto arrived to give me a tour. He apologized for his English, but of course it was much better than my Spanish. (it was fine, really) But I did tease him and say that this was a test. I need ot go back without a guide and just shoot, but here are some of the snaps:
Including Beto)




From here it was up to the grocery store and then home, and out to the hardware store for some odds and ends. Finally home, I decided I had earned a quick splash in the pool. Life is good!

Next post: The Musee del Arte

I have had some trouble getting this link, and now most of the excitement is over anyway, but who knows?
Here's a live feed for the only currently active volcano in El Salvador:

http://www.marn.gob.sv/monitoreo-chaparrastique/

Monday, January 6, 2014

No post since November! I am a bad blogger!!

The Christmas holiday in the USA was a spectacular collection of family, friends, and familiar places. 
The only thing we didn't do was get to our favorite restaurants. No Modern Diner, no Apsara Palace, and no Matunuck Oyster Bar. But there were plenty of wonderful meals. Bruce Tillinghast served up a mess o' snacks along with some mighty fine wine. Carol Fotos made pastitsio and lamb, Karen Karidoyanes (and Bill Orsi)  made a magnificent slow-cooker chicken cacciatore. Who needs restaurants?? And, of course, the Chinese Christmas dinner with Emily and Joseph will be long remembered!! Photos? Not one! You'll just have to trust me; this vacation was a moveable feast.

Our travels were blessed by the transportation gods. The one bag that didn't make it up to RI got delivered the next day. We made it out to Chicago and back over Christmas week without any delays, and we fled New England's chill on January 4 just after the snowstorm (which was over-forecast) and before Thermageddon arrives. Our trip down had a 50 minute connection in Atlanta and were 20 minutes late leaving Providence. When we got to Atlanta, we were 10 minutes early, and arrived at gate 28, concourse E. Our departure gate wasn't on Concourse C as we expected, it was gate 32 on Concourse E!! So we casually strolled down E, and boarded leisurely. I did have to gate-check my carryon (with my cameras) but everything was fine when we got home. 

Our return has been saddened by the non-reappearance of the famous Helou (aka Guapo). He went missing just before we left (went missing = ran away from home) and has not been seen by us since then. We figure he's hooked up with Los Gatos, and is now running wild in the woods with his amigos. He may still find his way back to the supper dish, but probably with tattoos...

I do have a new camera. Some results: