[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIrbukBkt_w]
Mariah is from Texas where the waves don’t get very good very often. She came to her first Suave Dulce retreat in Nicaragua last year, spent a lot more time surfing afterwards, and came back for another retreat in El Salvador. Her surfing had improved so much! She met some cute local kids on the beach, challenged them to a soccer game, and left them stunned after she scored a few goals. So what if they were only 13? A goal is a goal!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpqxOI61rlU]
Pupusas are delicious treats- Tortillas filled with cheese and an assortment of other fillings, fried on an outdoor grill, enjoyed by saucy amigas after surfing a long right point break in El Salvador.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUE0KgOg8nQ]
If you’ve been on a retreat then you know that waves can be cute. I started describing waves that way during surf lessons as a reaction to ladies looking at a little wave and saying, “it looks scary!” I would respond by saying, “no, it’s a cute one!” Things progressed and now any wave that looks good comes with the tag, “cute”. So, here’s me getting a really cute one in El Salvador. This is how you do it!
Video Soundtrack by Nicki Bluhm
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKAQ1J-X3-g]
Day 1 of our first retreat in El Salvador with Suave Dulce alumni. We got up early, had too much coffee, paddled out, and totally scored!Cheer for the amigas and get excited about your trip!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCmZtbnpCrk]
After a couple years of doing retreats in Northern Nicaragua, there were a list of Suave Dulce alumni who wanted to do another trip but this time see a different place. I went to Southern El Salvador for the first time in September of 2011 and had an awesome time surfing Las Flores and Punta Mango. I figured it would be a great place to bring a group of ladies who already knew how to surf, but that wanted to improve their skills on some really good waves.
Of course, one of the benefits of retreats in Nicaragua is the wide range of surfboards available. We have a huge selection of boards from little wide 5’4″ fishes to big long 9’6″ super tankers. Airlines charge ridiculous rates to travel with boards these days, so it just wasn’t feasible to bring a solid quiver by plane.
The last time I went to El Salvador in Feb 2012 I flew, and was dismayed by the long travel time to go a relatively short distance. 3 hours from Coco Loco to Managua, a couple hours spent waiting for a quick 45 min flight to San Salvador, then another 2.5 hours in the car from the airport to El Cuco. With the taxi ridess included, it ends up costing 8 hours and close to $500 per person!
By boat, it was a much more pleasant experience. Just 1.5 hours by car from Coco Loco to Potosi, then a nice lunch at a hotel while someone else does the passport paperwork, we loaded a little boat for a 2 hour ride with a gorgeous view, then another passport stamp on the other side followed by a 1 hour ride to El Cuco. Grand total: 5 hours and $350 total! Plus all the boards you can fit on a boat!
I will never fly between El Sal and Nica again!
: )
