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Cerro Verde?Green Hill. Today?s destination. A roughly forty-five minute drive led us to the green mountain. We rode quickly through the fog with peeks at the largest lake in El Salvador through thick rows of corn. Today was the first time I have seen pine trees in this country. The air was cool and dense with fog, unusual for even the winter in El Salvador which is during our summer and is very rainy.
The volcano can be seen from a national park which rests on a nearby dormant volcano. It was there that we caught a glimpse of the active volcano from an old hotel that had been turned into a garden with plants from around the world.
The highlight of the trip, however, was the chance to spend some time with the sponsored children who came with us to the mountain. We were able to sit down and talk. Many of the children enjoyed playing soccer, drawing and swinging on a set of swings.
Today was a day were language was not a barrier. Many simply enjoyed a shared meal of Burger King. Others spoke with the help of a translator. Leaving the mountain we came back to reality and the heat. We had a cinema set up for us at the house when we arrived (with popcorn!). We watched a movie that exposed the horrors of the civil war which this country suffered through for ten long years. It showed the difficult choice forced upon boys as young as twelve to be recruited for the army or to join the gorilla forces. Following a boy of twelve it helped us to understand how frighteningly common the fighting was. It also explained the American presence during the war, training the young recruits to shoot and kill. We were able to understand the situation a little better after today. El Salvador has not changed greatly since the war though nearly thirteen years have passed. Today, though, Americans have come to be a symbol of hope.
By: Katie Olsen
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