Day 2, by Sheryl

It was an amazing day. We packed in a lot starting with a visit to the church where Father Romero was assassinated. This was followed by an amazing discussion with Jeanne Rikkers, an expert in gang violence.  She told us about her personal experience with the negotiations between gangs and how the government has mishandled them and missed opportunities to make changes for the better. But she stays hopeful. I'm in awe of how someone who has seen so many setbacks and such misery can keep going. From this discussion we went to a meeting with the vice minister of education. It was uninspiring, just a lot of rhetoric about their vision. He is not the most inspiring speaker. From there we went to lunch and it was off to el Puerta del Diablo.  As if all that wasn't enough we had a great pupusa dining experience and finally, a few quiet moments looking at the city lights. 

Reflections: I feel like I've been here for weeks instead of only a little more than 24 hours. I've taken in so much information in such a short time. Certain themes, or words just keep coming up: martyrs, massacres, la puebla, la pobre and always, always Father Romero. Father Romero is El Salvador, and El Salvador is Father Romero.

Day 3, by Lindsey

Today we visited the Universidad Centroamericana and learned about the massacre there which ended up being the beginning of the end of the civil war.

We learned about a lot of martyrs at the Romero Center on campus. Our guide was a round exuberant storyteller.

Then we had a meeting with 3 leaders of teachers union who painted us the picture of the condition of the broken school system in El Salvador.

Finally we headed into the centro of San Salvador to see the National Cathedral and Oscar Romero's tomb. We also stopped by the Palacio Nacional. (photos below are a view from the Palacio and also inside the Palacio.)

Our last stop was the Museum of Images and Words which had some interesting exhibits on the role of women in the civil war, Prudencia Ayala (who ran for pres in 1930, first woman to do so and a suffragette), Radio Venceremos, as well as the indigenous uprising in 1932. (photo below is of a video editing machine that was used by the FMLN during the war.)

Now we have pack and we're off to Morazan tomorrow.

Orientacion historica

Day 1

After about 10 hours of travel, we finally arrived in El Salvador! There, we were greeted by our hosts from Voces en la Frontera: Jose, Eboni, and Jaime. At the guesthouse, after getting situated, our group was greeted by Miguel Ventura. Miguel is well known for his involvement in the political and social sphere of Morazan. As both a former priest who lived with the guerrillas and former governor of Morazan, he has been on the front lines of the changes that El Salvador has experienced since the late 20th century. He had the challenging task of providing us with the historical context of present day El Salvador and the various issues and challenges that the country continues to face.

The history of El Salvador's current problems can be traced back to the original conquest of the Americas and colonialism. Miguel argued that in many ways, the extermination of people has continued to be the most prominent way of maintaining power in the country, even to this day. Due to its oligarchical power structure, the government has managed to put down uprisings and suppress the spirit of the people to destroy the concept of "ser humano". Common themes throughout history include using violence as a form of control, exterminating people en masse, and maintaining a vertical hierarchy of rule.

It is hard to say what left us both overwhelmed and wanting more by the end of our first day. It could have been Miguel's personal stories of his time with the guerrillas and nearly becoming the third Jesuit priest to be assassinated while serving his community. Alternatively, it could have been that a painful and bloody history was summarized in a quick 2 hour lecture. Then again, we were also only operating on 3 hours of sleep.

"Los suenos" called us to bed early to give us more time to reflect on all that we learned in just 1 day.

~ Marina, on behalf of our group

Nos vamos!!

Welcome to the Traveling Teachers Blog 2015!! We all made it to the airport and are feeling good! Just missing my friend Carolyn from Kansas, also a teacher, who is meeting us in San Salvador. We are ready to learn more about the country where most of our student population is from, including a people's history, women-and youth-specific issues, natural beauty, and much more. Our host is the organization Voices on the Border. They've arranged an exciting, busy, and intriguing itinerary for us.

Check back in with us over the next ten days to find out what we're learning about El Salvador, how we can better reach our students, and all our adventures. We're already taking bets on how many of our  students we'll encounter. Last year's trip met a student in the San Salvador airport! Of course!

Michael and I are hoping for coffee in the morning (it is a coffee producing country after all) and we can't wait to climb a volcano. Sheryl hopes her stomach cooperates with her and looks forward to practicing her Spanish. Caitlin is pumped to learn about mental health approaches. Marina and Laurel are intrigued about what our homestays will be like (dirt floors? Outhouses?).

Leave a comment with any questions for us. What would you like to know about El Salvador?

Touring Teachers Plus 2 Former Students

We ran into former Carlos Rosario students repeatedly during our journey. Here we are with our trusty driver, Samuel, and his wife Lillian. Both former Rosario students. Becky was Lillian's teacher! Samuel studied with Hugh Beshers, Raslan Moutraji, Cassandra Chen, and Michael Ellis. He remembers them all fondly.

Bienvenidos a San Salvador!

Before we even arrived in El Salvador, Carol ran into one of her former students in the Houston airport! 

This is a view of the siesta spot at our Guesthouse.  The owner, Sonia, is a super nice lady that makes us delicious meals!

Yesterday we visited one school and two different community organizations that worked to stop gang violence and provide education to the people here.  

This is a mural at the organization Equipo Maiz.  Equipo Maiz is an organization that provides nonformal education to community leaders and organizations.  

At the end of the evening, we had dinner and listened to a great overview of Salvadoran history from a woman named Rosy who used to be the country director for Voices on the Border.  And we found out that she is from the town right next to where Becky grew up!

After that we had a nice reflection on the day.  One thing we all said....we are very surprised at just how pervasive the gang problem is here.  We all knew it existed and it was a problem but I don't think anyone realized just how bad it was.  In fact our translator Tommie (an American from Ohio) told us just the other day someone knocked on her door and told her that she had to give money to help pay for the funeral of a local gang member that was killed.  And yesterday throughout the day we kept hearing the statistic "11 people are murdered in El Salvador everyday" which is mind blowing especially considering the size of the country.

Today we are going to Bajo Lempa and for the next three days will be staying with local families in the countryside (no internet access so you'll have to wait a few days for the next post!). We will be visiting schools, community organizations, Itzalco Vocano, and Bajo Lempa Mangrove Forrest.  I'm sure these next few days will bring adventure and some great stories, including outhouse humor so stay tuned!

Meet the Teachers

Name: Leann
Position: Teacher (Adult ESOL)

Tell us about your travel experience  Have you visited El Salvador before?
I have traveled quite a bit.  I studied abroad in France in college and spent two one-year stays in Russia.  I spent a summer in Alexandria, Egypt and a month in Jordan.  I've traveled in Europe as well but I have never been to Central America.
What are you most looking forward to about this trip?
I am really looking forward to seeing the country that so many of my students come from.  I'm so curious about everything, the history, culture, everyday life, food, music.  I want to see it all and my students always wistfully tell me how beautiful the beaches are.
What are you nervous about?
The heat!  :-)  I'm worried about not knowing the language.
What do you hope to gain from this experience?
I also hope it will help me relate to our students and school community.  I want to know more about the issues and challenges that impact my students' lives. Our trip includes many learning opportunities to talk about various topics such as women's issues, remittances, gang violence.  I also hope to get more insights on the issue of unaccompanied children leaving Central America right now.