Here are some random facts about El Salvador that I hope will give you a better picture of where I'm off to.
• El Salvador has a population of about 7 million people, about 2 million Salvadorans live in the United States
• The capital city (San Salvador) has a population of about 2 million
• In 2001, El Salvador began using the U.S. dollar as their currency
• Unemployment is high- about 20%-45% depending on who you talk to and how you classify unemployment
• Over the past few decades El Salvador has tried to improve its economy through increasing trade with other countries- they are a member of the Central American Free Trade Agreement along with the U.S., Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic
• A few wealthy benefit from the increased trade, but poverty rates are still high and some argue that separation between the rich and poor is getting larger
• Spanish is the official language
• El Salvador is bordered by Guatemala to the west, Honduras to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the south
• El Salvador is about the size of Massachusetts
• There are beautiful mountains, valleys, rivers, and lakes
• El Salvador is prone to natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, and flooding
• The climate is tropical. There is a dry season (November through April) and a wet season (May through October). During the wet season it typically rains/thunderstorms in the afternoon/evening. The temperature doesn’t vary much over the year- it is pretty much hot all year long (80s-90s).
• Outside of San Salvador and the “suburbs” surrounding it, El Salvador is a very rural country
• About 50% of Salvadorans identify themselves as Catholic and 38% identify themselves as Protestant
• El Salvador has a president, a legislative assembly, and a supreme court. There are five major political parties that help shape El Salvador’s political landscape.
• The Spanish arrived in the early 1500s, El Salvador declared independence from Spain in 1821, and became an independent republic in 1838
• About 90% of the population is mestizo (a mix between Spanish and indigenous)
• There was a civil war from 1980-1992, about 75,000 people died in the civil war
If you are looking for some news updates on what is going on in El Salvador, my favorite source of info is Tim's El Salvador blog. This blog has good updates on news in El Salvador and some great commentary on current events.
• El Salvador has a population of about 7 million people, about 2 million Salvadorans live in the United States
• The capital city (San Salvador) has a population of about 2 million
• In 2001, El Salvador began using the U.S. dollar as their currency
• Unemployment is high- about 20%-45% depending on who you talk to and how you classify unemployment
• Over the past few decades El Salvador has tried to improve its economy through increasing trade with other countries- they are a member of the Central American Free Trade Agreement along with the U.S., Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic
• A few wealthy benefit from the increased trade, but poverty rates are still high and some argue that separation between the rich and poor is getting larger
• Spanish is the official language
• El Salvador is bordered by Guatemala to the west, Honduras to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the south
• El Salvador is about the size of Massachusetts
• There are beautiful mountains, valleys, rivers, and lakes
• El Salvador is prone to natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, and flooding
• The climate is tropical. There is a dry season (November through April) and a wet season (May through October). During the wet season it typically rains/thunderstorms in the afternoon/evening. The temperature doesn’t vary much over the year- it is pretty much hot all year long (80s-90s).
• Outside of San Salvador and the “suburbs” surrounding it, El Salvador is a very rural country
• About 50% of Salvadorans identify themselves as Catholic and 38% identify themselves as Protestant
• El Salvador has a president, a legislative assembly, and a supreme court. There are five major political parties that help shape El Salvador’s political landscape.
• The Spanish arrived in the early 1500s, El Salvador declared independence from Spain in 1821, and became an independent republic in 1838
• About 90% of the population is mestizo (a mix between Spanish and indigenous)
• There was a civil war from 1980-1992, about 75,000 people died in the civil war
If you are looking for some news updates on what is going on in El Salvador, my favorite source of info is Tim's El Salvador blog. This blog has good updates on news in El Salvador and some great commentary on current events.
