September 29, 2007

The highway from La Libertad north to the Guatemalan border at La Hachadura/Ciudad Pedro de Alvarado hugs coastal cliffs, as it rolls up and down through sparsely populated villages.

It offers many great vistas of beautiful ocean. Alongside the road, on the straighter patches, farmers were busy raking the corn they had spread out road’s shoulder to dry. Quintessential Central America moments.

It took two hours to drive from La Libertad to the border.

Just like it had been when we entered the country, the El Salvador side of the border was officious and the process was easy to understand:

1) get your passports stamped;

2) give them a photocopy of the van’s registration, so they can enter the information into the computer; and

3) take the original of the form they fill out, while they keep a copy.

We then maneuvered the van forward, around the idling trucks and teams of tired looking oxen, and crossed the bridge into Guatemala.

It wasn’t mayhem here, but it also wasn’t as straightforward as the El Salvador side.

Adrienne first got our passports stamped at the first hut and then I took over to deal with customs and the van.

(We had learned several borders back that we both don’t need to stand in the lines - including when we get our passports stamped - so now one of us waits in the van while the other does the work. It is far less stressful!l).

To take care of the customs business, I first had to line up and get a form, then take it next door to the bank to pay the fee.

Next, I returned to the first wicket, where I waited in line for 40 minutes for the form to be processed, long enough to strike up a conversation with an El Salvadoran who had lived in New York, who now lives in Mexico City and who was driving back to his adopted city with his family (in a very nice SUV).

The whole time I was in line I was under the very watchful eye of several heavily armed members of the military, and I sensed that even the "local" I was talking to felt a bit uneasy.

In total, it took us 90 minutes to cross the border and cost only $5.

Key Facts & Figures:

-Guatemala Customs: $2.50 person