On October of 2010, my parents told my sister and me that we are going back to El Salvador during the Spring Break of April 2011 after 12 years. The last time I have been to El Salvador was when I was only 4 years old, meaning that I don’t remember a lot since then. I never knew my mom’s side of the family 12 years ago and because of that I have missed out on knowing who they really are. After realizing this, my parents finally granted my wish.
On April 15, 2011 at 3:00 am, we were already on our way to El Salvador. I remember my sister and me being so excited after lifting off and saying good bye to New York. After that I don’t really remember what happened after that because I fell asleep though out the whole flight. Once we arrived, we immediately felt the temperature change. Since the airport was near the beach, it felt like 90 degrees. We got picked up by my dad’s mother, brother and our cousins. Right away we got something to eat at the most famous fast food place in El Salvador called Pollo Campero. It’s like KFC or McDonalds for El Salvador. After that we got dropped off at our nice hotel called the Courtyard Marriott in La Grand Via, San Salvador. After we checked in, we went to the town called Quezaltepeque where most of my relatives are and where my parents grew up. As we are driving into the town, the smell and the place brings back memories of the last time I was there, I couldn’t help but smile the whole time.
That afternoon we decided to go to the volcano called El Boqueron that was next to Quezaltepeque. My uncle drove us to the volcano and the road to get to the top was not straight but with a lot of curves. As we got higher and higher my ears popped and my sister was getting nauseas from the car making so many turns. We had to climb to get to the crater and it was so breathe taking up there. The crater was very deep but of course not active. As we were walking along the crater, there was one area where it felt really warm. This surprised me because that is the only area with that temperature, which made me curious to where it was coming from. That evening we ate at a restaurant that was located in the middle of the volcano called Café Miranda. The food was not that great but they had an awesome view of the cities at the bottom. Not the same lights you see here in New York City at night but it was enough to look at. The next day, I finally met my mother’s dad side of the family. I met my cousins who were not that much older than me and others who were younger than me and I felt like I knew them my whole life. I absolutely love them and fro that day on I never wanted to separate from them because they are my favorite cousins. My absolute favorites are named Valeria whose 19 and Osvaldo whose 21. Few days later my dad’s family took us to the beach and the pool for the whole day. I never been to the pacific ocean before and I think those waves are crazier than the Atlantic Oceans’.
The farthest we could’ve gone was up to knee lengths because I think if you go deeper you can get caught in the rush and lost in the flow. The water was warm and not cold like water here in New York. The waves throw you back almost every time you come in contact with it and that was the fun part we had with my cousins. I was so tired from those waves, but when we got back from the hotel my sister and I looked in the mirror and we were so red from the sun. We never been that burned in our lives. Well after being in the sun all day I can see why. Few days later my family and some of my cousins went back to the volcano El Boqueron to go zip lining. This was my first experience to be in such a high place because I am usually afraid of heights. However I wanted to do this because it looked very fun to participate. As going down the line, I wasn’t very scared as I thought it would be. I felt safe and very excited that I was doing something very challenging. My sister, cousins and I had so much fun on the zip line down the volcano. The last of the twelve days of my trip I was beginning to feel that El Salvador was my home. I had family here who loves me more than my friends and to be honest I didn’t miss New York. I didn’t want to leave because being with my relatives meant more to me than living in New York where not a lot of people are as loving as my cousins. My cousin, Osvaldo, told me he never expected me to be so loving, funny and can speak Spanish well. He thought I was a prideful girl who talked Spanish like the Americans who tries to speak Spanish.
That says a lot about the teenagers here in New York. I’m hoping to return again soon back to my family, where I am welcomed with open arms. Going back to El Salvador and getting closer to my cousins was an amazing experience, because we are more than we are, we are one.
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