Playa El Tunco

There wasn't much to report last week. Leah and I worked on our report and we discovered that our office, which was formerly a storage space, is filled with noxious dust, so we're working from home more. And then we went to the beach with some new Salvadoran friends!

Playa El Tunco is El Salvador's most popular surfing town. It's a small town strung along a stretch of black sand on the Pacific. It has a laid-back, surfer-chic kind of style with wall-less, thatched roof restaurants and funky clothing stores. There were so many gringos that I could just fade into the crowd (except for that time when I found myself surrounded by ripped, tanned surfers with '80s hair. I definitely didn't fit in with them). The food and lodging are reasonably priced, so it's not just gringos. Lots of Salvadorans come here to surf. El Tunco also has vicious rip currents, jagged rocks, and an amazing right point break. A right point break means that you surf to your right when you catch a wave. Remember that, it'll come up again later.

We got there on Saturday afternoon and went straight to the beach. Saturday night we consumed a responsible and moderate amount of alcohol and went to a chaperoned square dance (hi, Mom). And on Sunday we surfed. I have surfed many times over the years. I have surfed in Tofino, Australia, Ghana, and now El Salvador. And every time, on every continent, it has been a disaster.

I got sick from drinking too much seawater in Ghana, I nearly lost a contact lens in Australia, and I've come close to losing extremities due to hypothermia in Tofino. And I can't - for the life of me - stand up on one of those clunky beginner boards. Point of pride: I did stand up on a surfboard in Australia for like, 5 seconds, but it was a small board we'd borrowed off the neighbours who were semi-pro surfers. If only that meant I was semi-pro and not that I have no upper body strength and can't maneuver the giant beginner boards...

Anyways, this time I outdid myself. I managed to paddle out to the point break without too much trouble, but it's tiring work and when I got there I took a break while our friend Paco, who was teaching me, went to catch a wave. I got seasick while waiting for him. I know what you're going to say, and shut up. I have exquisitely sensitive inner ears, okay? I can feel a cruise ship tilting slightly as it turns starboard at dinner time. But never have I ever gotten seasick ON A SURFBOARD. When you're that close to the wave you should be immune.

So there I was, bobbing in the waves on my giant beginner board and getting greener by the minute. It was a relief when Paco came back and told me it was time to catch a wave. I paddled out and got ready. The wave came. I caught it. And I broke LEFT. You have to understand that on one of the best right point breaks in the world, it takes some serious talent to break left. I had no idea that I was doing something special. I tried to stand up, couldn't, and decided to lie there and enjoy the rest of the ride to shore. Except that the left side of playa El Tunco is covered with jagged, barnacle covered rocks that extend a fair ways under the surf. The fishermen stared at the drenched gringa struggling with a 9 foot board barefoot on jagged rocks, but none moved to help me. One of them finally gave me a push and I made my way to shore. I'm pretty impressed with how little I got cut. I ended up with a small amount of barnacle burn on one shin and a cut on my foot, and that's it. Still, I thought it wise to spend the rest of the day tanning. Better to quit while you're ahead...