Downtown As Promised.

Markets!

I love the patterns and colors of the merchants' stalls as they display their wares. Shirts, underwear,  potatoes, tomatoes, dried fish and are all proudly and colorfully displayed. Sadly, you cannot hear them, because they are quite energetic in their exhortations to purchase. Luckily you can't smell them because, well, never mind...

From Pawtucket to Bangkok, street markets have been a vital destination for me. They all have the common elements of color and texture, sun and shadow, sounds and smells. But each has its own unique personality.

The Hope Street Organic Market in Pawtucket, RI is a distinctly yuppie place.
Outside the Spice Market in Istanbul is a raucous, aggressive Turkish place.
Ulus street market (also Istanbul) is a little quieter and more workaday.
Chatachuk Market in Bangkok is filled with riotous colors, intriguing artifacts and asian treasures, and lots of quiet, respectful shoppers and merchants.
Aleppo souk, sadly, is gone now.
The Sunday market in Nice, France,  was the first market I truly loved. Rich with produce, flowers, treasures and treats, I've never been able to buy any of the 5' x 7' vintage travel posters.

Downtown San Salvador is my most recent market. Blocks and blocks of downtown, surrounding the central square and government building are given over to selling all forms of necessities. Clothing, hardware, vegetables, medical herbs, books, watch repair, appliances and chicken feet are all available.

This is the Men's and Women's Clothing Department:

Groceries:

There is more downtown than the street markets. This is the Iglesia de Rosario, a significant architectural landmark of modern architecture designed by sculptor Ruben Martinez in the late 1960's.

Weather!

When I was teaching Third Grade at Bancroft School, in Worcester, Massachusetts, we usually did a unit on keeping a journal. Not so much a diary, which is personal, but a record of events in their lives. Our models were the journals kept by the New England farmers that we studied as part of our Central Subject. When kids were stuck with what to write about, I would remind them that those old farmers often wrote about what was most important to them, the weather. So, look out the window and write about what you see! In New England, if you don't like the weather, wait a minute. (Mark Twain?)

Here in El Salvador, the weather has a different pattern. First, it's summery all the time; second, it rains half the year, and is dry the other half. There are transition periods in between the two seasons, of course, when it might rain on any given day, or maybe not.   We are in that shift now, headed for rainy days after Easter (Semana Santa, the whole week is a celebration).  In addition, locals all have some weather lore about November being windy or April being extra hot; those patterns are still a mystery to me. But no one expected what happened last night and what has continued all day.

As I was going to bed I noticed that it was getting a little breezy. The cats were getting a little skittish about all the noises outside, and an unstopped door nearly chopped off a tail. When I was finally settled in to bed, another voice joined the chorus. A large metal gate in the backyard had not been secured, so of course it added an unpredictable base note as it whacked against the frame. Cursing whoever had left it open (not me), I got dressed and padded downstairs to lock it. When I opened the front door, I was greeted with a sharp blast of, dare I say it, cool air! As the winds had risen, the temperature had dropped.

Since it had been in the mid 90's at the pool when we went for a swim after school, this coolishness
was a pleasant surprise! We were in no danger of frostbite, though; it was probably between 60 to 65.
With the gate secured, I went back to bed, but noticed that the trees were raging wildly as the wind continued. With all of the background noises, it was not  a restful night of sleep. In the morning, which was a very early one, since we wake up in time to hear Emily's radio program on WHPK (5AM), a flashing clock indicated that we had lost power for at least a few minutes. I guess I did get some sleep, because I never noticed that the overhead fan had stopped.

The real surprise came when we headed down to school. The air was clear and shining with light. The sun was warm, but the lack of humidity was refreshing. The wind had moderated a bit, but gusts were frequent and strong. Throughout the day, the wind has continued, it's been warm, but the humidity has not returned. The locals are all scratching their heads. This is Autumn weather, not Spring. I missed October in New England, so I'll take whatever Fall I can get!!

I've had some adventures in downtown San Salvador, and many photos are ready to post.