2014, Day 261 - Bearded

Being allowed to release baby sea turtles into the ocean was an experience I had long been waiting for and last year that dream came true on the beaches of El Salvador.  This little guy is crusted with sand while struggling to freedom in to ocean.  Only a tiny percentage will make it to adulthood which makes me sad because they are such beautiful creatures.

Canon 1D X, Canon 100/f2.8L IS
100mm, f5.6, 1/500 sec @ 100 ISO

2014, Day 151 - Journey

This was a moment of pure joy, watching hatchlings make their way to the sea.  I've always loved reptiles and have been captivated by sea turtles so witnessing this was something I had waited decades to experience.  It was only after, when I thought about it, that I started to worry for the babies.  Their struggle to reach the ocean was the first of many.  Most would not make it to adulthood but it was a privilege to be there to witness the triumph of these little turtles and wish them well on their upcoming journey.

Canon 1D X, Canon 100/f2.8L IS
100mm, f5.6, 1/320 sec @ 100 ISO

2014, Day 150 - Planning

As I contemplate my next trip and enter the early stages of planning I think back on my last trip.  This photograph was taken at the fish market on the pier in La Libertad, El Salvador.  There were so many people proudly hawking their wares and when they saw our cameras they kept bringing out more and more impressive specimens.  It was like a competition for our attention, the people were so friendly and they all knew we weren't in a position to buy a twenty pound fish but they were excited to show it to us all the same.

That's what I love about travel, meeting people, even if only briefly, who are as proud of themselves and their cultures as I am interested.  It make travel exciting and very fulfilling.  The year has been a busy one and I can say, without a doubt, that I'm earning my vacation this year!

Canon 1D X, Canon 100/f2.8L IS
100mm, f2.8, 1/160 sec @ 1250 ISO

2014, Day 17 - Fillet

This guy is remarkable.  For a quarter he will fillet your fish and we watched him work for a few minutes.  In that time he was able to butcher five for six fish with clean precise strokes.  Most of the fishermen who work this dock have been doing so for decades and they all move with a graceful competence chatting and laughing while performing sometimes complex tasks as second nature.  Our stormy morning turned out great and we had a lot of fun watching the fishermen and exploring the fish market.

Canon 1D X, Canon 100/f2.8L IS
100mm, f4, 1/125 sec @ 160 ISO

2013, Day 344 - Breaking

This was the beach just outside La Libertad, El Tunco to be exact, where we stopped to have breakfast during our trip to El Salvador.  It had been a stormy morning and we were hoping that the rain would stop so we could enjoy our day at the beach.  Things weren't looking especially promising but after I ordered my food I grabbed my tripod and wandered down to the beach for a better view.  The waves were erratic, many small but some quite big and when combined with a long exposure it gave the ocean an interesting smokey view.  Amongst the debris washed onto the black sand beach was this piece of wood worn down by the sand and water which became the foreground focal point and the iconic rock formation is the background is used to anchor the upper portion of the composition.  I can still feel the warm water washing over my feet as a light rain fell on my face.

Canon 1D X, Canon 16-35/f2.8L Mark II
30mm, f2.8, 10 sec @ 200 ISO

2013, Day 324 - Routine

Life is looking almost normal again.  Three our of the four dogs are home now and two even got baths (against their will) and my afternoon nap was more of a puppy cuddling session but it was nice.  Now it is time to get back to work so that I can keep paying my bills.

This is a fisherman we met on the pier at La Libertad.  He and the rest of the crew on this boat are all about the same age, they've probably been fishing together for thirty years.  They laughed and chatted while they worked and all of them gave us big smiles when we asked to take their pictures.  El Salvador is a beautiful country and while it may not be the most exciting destination in that part of the work the people are warm and outgoing which made it a lot of fun.  The most interesting part was that I often felt like people didn't know why tourists visit a lot of places; they understand the appeal of a surfing beach and the volcanos but they're not really sure why we want to visit the fish market or see a farm but they're happy to have us nonetheless.

Canon 1D X, Canon 100/f2.8L IS
100mm, f4, 1/160 sec @ 160 ISO

2013, Day 300 - Back to work

Today was a day pretty much devoid of photographic interested.  We got up early to go to the United State Embassy which is a little bit of a production.  At the guardhouse we had to surrender our passports and were not allowed to hold on to our phones or cameras for security reasons and were issued visitor's badges.  The only reason we were admitted at all is because Tim works for the US Treasury and he is considered a diplomat so we were his guests.

Once on the grounds we had a little breakfast in the cafeteria.  Most of the people at the embassy are Salvadoran, I would say about two thirds, and the rest are Americans.  In the span of a little more than an hour I saw more tattoos than in my week traveling around El Salvador.  Once we had eaten Tim took us on a short tour and then we stopped by the travel office to see if they could be any help with the next part of our adventure but they weren't even remotely helpful.  I wasn't holding my breath but was a little surprised how indifferent they were because we received the same help that any employee at the embassy would get.  Oh well, we like the pick your own adventure style of travel anyway.

Since the travel office was a bust we stopped by the bank on the grounds to withdraw a little cash and change some large bills for smaller ones.  That didn't take long and soon we were leaving the embassy and heading to Salvadoran ministry of finance where Tim works.  Seeing as the travel office didn't offer any assistance we thought Tim's assistant might have some ideas.  Carmen was great, she is a tiny little woman that looks like a Latina Annie Potts from Ghost Busters, but when she ran into some difficulties we didn't push her to do more.  We were trying to resolve a very small issue and I think when the time comes it will be easily managed.

We left Tim at work and Luis drove us to run some errands.  Tim needed a printer so we bought one for him and then he needed some household tools so we picked those us as well.  Proud of ourselves, Francene and I headed back to the apartment to drop off the proof of our productivity and, once there, we decided to spend a day in catching up on some work be both had to do.  Plus we had all that food we bought at the Mercado Central that needed eating because Tim probably won't once we're gone.

It was a nice way to spend the afternoon, the views from this building are amazing and we got caught up on a lot of little things.  Before we knew it Tim was walking through the door and the next item on the agenda was dinner.  It took us a while to decide where to eat and by that time another spectacular storm had hit and it was pouring rain.  So we called Luis who picked us up and shuttled us to dinner at a nice Lebanese place not far away but it did mean navigating heavy traffic.

After dinner we came back to the apartment and I have been left as the last man standing to finish my post before hitting the sack.  I think the time has come...

Below is a picture I took yesterday at La Libertad of the pier.  The half closest to the shore is a covered fish market where the fishermen sell their catch.  Beyond that the pier is crowded with boats and at the end are the cranes that lower the boats into the water.  When we arrived it was dark and stormy with a choppy sea of big waves.

Canon 1D X, Canon 24-70/f2.8L Mark II
24mm, f5.6, 6 sec @ 100 ISO

2013, Day 299 - Fraught

We awoke early this morning to some impressive rain, it was dumping.  To make matters worse we had a day trip out to the coast planned, but we're Portlanders and a little rain isn't going to scare us off.  So we got dressed and went downstairs to meet our guide Stephanie.  She was ready to whisk us away and so we set off, windshield wipers frantically trying to keep up.

By the time we reached La Libertad about half an hour later it was sprinkling heavily so we grabbed our stuff and went for a walk along the waterfront out towards the pier.  The current pier is one made of concrete but the old pier was an incredibly long affair, three times longer than what currently exists, and it had railroad tracks running the entire length to make the transportation of goods faster.  Today it is used solely for fishing and at the end of the pier they have two cranes that raise and lower fishing boats from the pier to the water and vice versa.

We wandered the length of the pier looking at the morning's catch which ranged from dorado to snapper to shrimp to calamari to sole.  Many of the fishmongers proudly showed us their wares.  When we reached the end we were treated to the lowering of a boat into the ocean which is a slightly harrowing process, especially when the wind picks up.  But the fishermen made it safely and headed out to try their luck on the choppy waters.

After exploring the area around the pier we returned to the van and headed south down the coast for a little breakfast on the beach.  We had a nice view and after placing my order I walked down to the water to take a few pictures, nice long exposures.  Soon I heard breakfast arriving so I decided to cut my shooting short to eat breakfast since we didn't have time before leaving San Salvador.

Our bellies full we headed further down the coast to a could nice viewpoints before turning around and traveling back north past the pier to up a narrow road between beachfront homes where were stopped at an anonymous alleyway.  Stephanie led out down the alley to the beach where we were greeted by a smiling gentleman who runs a turtle sanctuary.  With the support of the community and donations from visitors he buys turtle eggs from local fishermen and places them in artificial nests in a large enclosure to protect them from predators.  After forty-five days the babies hatch and he collects them to release into the ocean.  While we were looking at the enclosure one little guy managed to squeeze his way out so we named him Wilbur and followed his journey down the beach and into the ocean.

We are lucky because it is the height of turtle season and after showing us around his facility we were allowed to release about thirty babies on the beach and follow them as they made their way to the ocean.  Thirteen years ago when I was in Australia my brother and I were supposed to go out to a turtle sanctuary to help release the hatchlings but a spill at the docks meant that no one could leave so we missed that opportunity.  Now, more than a decade later, I finally got the chance to watch these amazing little creatures find freedom in the ocean.  While I know that only one in a thousand will actually make it to adulthood I hope all of our little friends beat the odds and live long happy lives.

Happy with our morning we decided to return to San Salvador.  Even though it hadn't been very long since breakfast we stopped at a roadside restaurant because they are famous for their sopa de gallina, hen soup.  Francene ordered a bowl while Tim ate a sweet Salvadoran quesadilla and I had a couple pupusas.  The soup was declared delicious and in short order we were back on the van.

Once back at the apartment we had a nice afternoon of relaxing and settling Tim in a little more.  Art was hung, furniture was moved and then moved back, laundry was finished, and it is even possible we cleaned up a little bit.  Although I don't think any of us were that hungry we did go out to dinner at a Salvadoran seafood place.  The servings were massive and what we thought would be a light dinner turned out to be a copious amount of ocean-dwelling creatures.  A huge platter of fried calamari, crab, clams, shrimp, onions, jalapeños, and potatoes started the meal followed by a grilled fish covered in garlic and grilled chicken plus a couple more gourmet pupusas.  I tried a bit of everything and ate much more than I had intended and I get the distinct impression that is a common affliction in our group.  Oh well, it was delicious.

Disgustingly full we returned to the apartment to unwind a little before getting some sleep.  I think that might come sooner rather than later.

Canon 1D X, Canon 100/f2.8L IS
100mm, f5.6, 1/640 sec @ 100 ISO