"Life is a beach or make my day"

What can I say? I had every intention of going into the studio to work........
but........
four lovely ladies from around the globe invited me to the beach

So.... instead of working I took a day off, did a whole lot of nothing and got horribly sunburned.
the following day I continued work on a new piece the following day that you can see shot in time lapse here.

https://youtu.be/SzTomC0gtWQ

Here are some additional shots from the beach that day.

The beach caves near El Tunco

My pal Lupe has been raving about her favourite spot and she has been wanting to visit it in years. We are finally here, and our chance to see it for ourselves….the sea carved caves at the end of the beach near El Tunco.

It is not a far walk down the beach and you get to pass all sorts of hostels, cacti and even another small settlement around another river that seeps out into the ocean like the one that we can see from the cabana at the place we are staying at.

As we get closer the caves seem to open up. There are men wading in the water nearby casting nets into the waves. I have no idea what they are trying to catch. I'm walking in the same waves and nothing seems to be hitting my shins so I really can't say how successful they are. They are there for hours, I'm not sure if they are catching anything.

The first time we go the tide is up a ways, making going into the cave more dangerous as the waves smash in and the back flow can trip you up. I have valuables and my iPhone so I am not going to risk it on this occasion.

Rosco brought his lunch and waded out to a rock to enjoy his food and the magnificent view.

The tide was rising as the sun began setting. We would have to come back another day to enjoy the sea caves more. Ray and I managed to go when the tide was out and the sun was rising the morning before we had to leave.

This is inside the same cave but this time the tide is way out and you can get thru the many caverns in the rock.

 The shapes that open out to the ocean are inspiring windows to the edge of the world.

It was hot and we sat outside on the cave on the furthest point of the outer rock and watched waves roll in. This is super natural inspiration!

Above the caves are fences and a building. I bet the view from up there is phenomenal.

 There is a long staircase that comes down to a pool carved out in the rock. During high tide we couldn't reach this point.

 Looking up form the cave are these softened sedimentary formations.

Here is the view looking back as we depart the beach caves at El Tunco and head for the rock! You really have to go there to see this amazing place in person!

El Tunco

We made our way to our new spot after a 3hr. tour. Us boys had a blast in our van. Quiet and silent looking out the window for the first hour and once the beers and rum began being passed around it got to be real fun. No beers, no talking. Beers and the boys get rowdy. The girls bus was the opposite, they started with talking and rested the last bit of the way.

Jess Lupe the pics are awesome! however, truth be told, us girls talked about sex stories and weird fetishes for half of our ride to el tunco.... if only you were a fly on that wall…

In many ways I do wish I could have heard the silly stories and giggling. Alas, I would never impose. Regardless, we arrive at El Tunco with enough time to settle in and visit the beach.

We arrived at the El Tunco however the rock is not what we saw first, first we got into our sweet pad booked on air b n b. The owner frank waited for us outside the private gated community. Our vans arrived and we opened the tall gate. For security the top of the gates have broken pieces of glass cemented to the top so no body tries to jump over. Should I be worried?

Lupe found us a pad for 12 and I paid for all of us on my visa. Peeps paid me back which is how I bought US currency for the remainder of the trip. The main house was great with kitchen and appliances, even a TV, though we weren't going to be watching any. Walking thru the house to the back to see the ice cold pool and cabana. The boys got in first so we waited patiently for the girls to allow them to have first pick of rooms. We are gentlemen, after all.

Our first night was spent in the Cabana circled around good eats and drinks overlooking where the river meets the ocean.

Okay so the river didn't really meet the ocean and I think there is a good chance they do their laundry upstream and dump their sewage. There were plenty of people down there swimming and fishing and it seemed to be teeming with life and people during the day.

I got to share this detached bunk house with an outdoor as well as an indoor bathroom with shower. It was luxury on this trip. Hot as hell inside though, an the fan didn't work and made a death metal noise.

Here is the view that I saw when I left the dark hot room. Not bad.

And here is the backyard full of coconut trees, though there weren't any coconuts for us to pilfer. Jacob High Tower hung his awesome hammock between these tall trees and Josh put up a slack line too.

Outside there were enough tables to push together so we can all share meals with each other which is what I love most about this group of travellers, we work together and share everything, well almost everything. lol.

Having our own pad made me feel a bit like I was at a beach house in Hollywood with my celebrity friends. We sat around the swim up bar one night trading embarrassing sex stories. I ran away as to not kiss and tell. My room mate has the best ones, no contest!

Mr. Dingles in his natural habitat. No matter where I've been with my boy always finds the best outdoor pee spot. Lucky dog and he does it with style!

Walking out from our gated abode there is a cool hostel on the corner where we got an amazing thai feast for 13 one night. Steps away are the crashing waves and wicked surfing swells at the beach. Accommodations are awesome and we are within walking distance of a nearby little town. This final week in El Salvador should be relaxing and an adventure!

Accommodations at La Tortuga Verde, El Cuco, El Salvador

LA TORTUGA VERDE EL CUCO

You can check it out here at Hostelworld

The sweet spot Harry carved out for us to visit is right on the beach. It has all the relaxing amenities one could hope for in a vacation spot. You don't have to carry a dime as the staff keeps perfect lists of meals, beers and ice cream, boat rides etc. and tally's it up at the end of your stay. I kept track of everything myself and they were incredibly accurate with the bill.

 The whole point of Tortuga is to help protect the beach and save the turtles whose population has been depleted due to humans eating their eggs. We were lucky enough to help birth batch of turtle eggs and aid them in their journey to the ocean.  If I were to choose one, I would definitely choose the runt of the litter, I like a good underdog. These guys can live to a hundred years and will return to the exact same beach from which they were born in order to hatch new offspring.

 The spot was at one time a coconut plantation, which is awesome if you love young coconut water as much as me, everyday I drank a few fresh ones and learned how they use a machete to release the juice for myself.

 They recently built this bar with a hidden gem, a rooftop bed. Wendy, the bartender created delicious fruit drinks called "tropicalle".  They also served hummus and Bruscetta for a late night snack.

 Here is a view from the bar roof down to the yoga room and conference centre. I did a fantastic class as the sun set, it kicked my ass in a good way. You can also take surf lessons and Spanish lessons. There is tons to do here, but mostly you'll want to hit the water or lounge in a hammock on the beach.

Here is a little friend I made, Doggy. We hung out on the beach and I gave him a rub down and Reiki and picked a few ticks out of his fur- Eeeewwwwwwe gross. Doggie waited for at the end of the road  when we were leaving to say goodbye in his doggie way.

Get a huge group of friends together and book some vans, then try to organize an exodus. We managed to cram all the people and luggage into two of these little Toyota diesels. It naturally separated into Stinky and sweet, Guys and girls respectively. I can say from being in the Guys van that is was a hell of a fun trip to our next destination - El Tunco.

El Salvador adventure

I have been off grid, literally. Took two weeks in El Salvador, which is why I haven't posted, no internet. 3 hours from the airport and 45 min. down a dirt road, passing skinny street dogs and fortified walls, finally to arrive, late night at the gate of La Tortuga Verde. But before we get to the sunshine and   sea, I needed to brave the cold of Calgary and get to the airport.

The day I left Calgary.
It was a crazy night of packing. I had just moved out of my studio and still had two days of work before I had a few moments of free time to pack before getting on the airplane. Luckily, I have good friends who offered to drive and pick us up from the airport and to help me out and grab things in a mad rush, all I left with was what I think I needed and a toque for when I come home. I wouldn't miss all this snow and gloom.

The first sunset as seen from the beach.
I really didn't know what I was in for, severely unprepared but ready for adventure. No habla espagnol and yet somehow we got to the edge of the world. People here on average earn $10 per day. They use US funds and don't expect much in the way of tips. Our accommodations are simple and you can't flush the toilet paper in Central America. Instead, you need to put it in the trash bin beside. We sure are privileged in the north.  The view is stunning, facing south, a perfect surf spot, the ocean is not more than 100 meters from my door. It is hot as hell for someone acclimatized to the snow.

Here is the second bird they found on the beach that needed saving.
The hostel that we stayed at has a mission to help save the turtles and other wild life. At La Tortuga Verde their eccentric owner, Tom, has the biggest heart. He is willing to leap out of a boat to help nurse a suffering pelican who may die without assistance. Sometimes the birds knck themselves out when they dive down to catch fish. This surly pelican was starving an unwilling to eat. Its neighbour in the baths they have for turtles and other creatures needing assistance was a pretty messed up seagull. By the end they were grooming themselves and heathy enough to be released back into the wild.

Prepping the boat for adventure.
We had arranged a boat and captain to explore a nearby island near to Honduras and Nicaragua. This group takes a while to get anything done, big numbers usually do, So by the time we were ready we had to drag the boat along palms to get the boat out to where the tide had dropped. We went out on the ocean and even made spit stoop to a local fishing town on the way who had a guarded navy port and very friendly locals. It was quite the leap for me to see how people live in this part of the world, mind blown!

Weighing fish for sale by these fishermen.
On the open sea we pulled up to a few boats to see if the fishermen had any catch for sale. Eventually we got to these guys. If you can believe it, all these fish only cost $10. When we arrive at our deserted island destination we will build a fire and cook these bad boys up.

The gorgeous island destination for lunch time.
We arrived at the island and I began to explore. There is so much garbage washed ashore everywhere I go in El Salvador, the priorities are different here. The landscape is beautiful regardless. I saw many species of bird and some quick scurrying crabs.

They make theses tracks and hide in these burrows along the beach.

Here is one of the beach crabs.
It took a bit but I managed to chase one down and was able to snap a shot. This little dude also went into attack posture which was intimidating irregardless of the massive size difference between us.

Here he is after being run down and caught.

There were all sorts of rocks and shells, and lava formations, birds, trees and cacti on this beach.

Here is the boating party after a large meal of grilled fish and too many Pilsners. 
You can tell who the travellers are and who just came from Canada. This is a lot of people to cram onto such a small boat.

A beautiful view of what turned into a deadly storm.
The ride back was one of the most brutal and terrifying boat rides I could have imagined. Even the local captain didn't think we would make it. The boat lurched in huge swells nearly capsizing. I have no pictures because we were being pelted with cold salty water all the way back. I faced my imminent death as I know if the boat turned over I would not survive. This put a cold calm over me, anticipating my final moments, not such a bad way to go I guess and we certainly came to close too many times to count. Harry was in the back beside a water blinded captain madly bailing out the water filling up the back of the boat. We we lucky all that water didn't stall the engine 'cause that would have been the end. Ray was nearly flung out front eh front as the front of the boat rose and dropped 20 or more feet between swells. I never felt so happy to get home and get out of the boat onto the sandy beach, what a way to spend the day!