Located in Central America, El Salvador borders Guatemala to the west and Honduras to the east and north. The surface area of ​​the country, with the Pacific Ocean in the south, is 21,041 km2. In other words, the country is slightly smaller than the capital Ankara, which is Turkey’s third largest city in terms of surface area. However, do not be fooled by its small size and think that you can visit it in 1-2 days. Since the country is very rugged, it is not easy to get from one place to another. The official name is the Republic of El Salvador. The word “El Salvador”, which is of Spanish origin, means “Savior”. The name of the country before the Spanish arrived was “Cuscatlan”. The history of El Salvador begins with the Kingdom of Cuscatlan during the Mayan period. With the invasion of the Spanish, the country remained under Spanish occupation for approximately 300 years, starting from 1524. The country was included in the Central American federation in 1823, but after the dissolution of the federation in 1840, it declared its independence on January 30, 1841. However, order could not be restored in the country and in 1970, right-left conflicts began. This period is popularly defined as “the period when brother was turned against brother”. After this complicated period, the junta came to power in 1979. Again, the country is not at peace. This time, Marxist guerrillas are mobilizing. To suppress this movement, the USA sent aid in 1981. Even though the USA does not seem to be at the forefront on many issues, it still has a say in the background. Even the currency is US Dollar. Between 1892 and 2001, its own currency, Colon, was used, and after 2001, they switched to the US Dollar. The country’s flag consists of two blue stripes on white. The blue color used here represents the sky, peace and ocean. If you want to go to El Salvador, you can fly from Istanbul with connections to New York or Washington. Monseñor Óscar Arnulfo Romero International Airport (Comalapa International Airport) is 50 kilometers from the capital San Salvador. There is another international airport used in the past, Ilopango. However, it has lost its importance today. If you’re taking a long trip to Central America, El Salvador will be somewhere in the middle. Therefore, you can also pass through neighboring countries by road. Let’s talk about the places to explore in El Salvador… One of the places where El Salvador’s past is best preserved is the Tazumal archaeological site in the Chalchuapa region. Tazumal, located close to the Guatemala border, is the settlement of the Mayans and Toltecs. Here, you can first visit the museum where historical artifacts unearthed during excavations are exhibited, before visiting the archaeological site. Then, you can start visiting the Tazumal archaeological site, which was discovered by archaeologist Stanley Boggs in the 1940s and 1950s. Tazumal is an ancient Mayan-Toltec settlement located at an altitude of 720 meters above sea level. Temples of both Mayans and Toltecs can be seen here. There is a practical way to distinguish temples. If the temples were built using higher and larger stone masses, they belonged to the Mayans; if they were lower and built with smaller stones, they belonged to the Toltecs. This place suffered its greatest damage due to the Ilopango Volcano, which is located close to it. Another settlement affected by the Ilopango Volcano is Santa Ana. You can clearly see the Spanish influence in Santa Ana. This is an ancient Mayan-Pokoman settlement. The Pipils named this place Sihuatehuacan. Meaning; place of female priests. After a church was built in this town in 1569 in the name of the protector Santa Ana, the name of the town was changed to Santa Ana. So, who are these Pipils? Pipils are natives of El Salvador. After the Spaniards occupied the region, they employed the indigenous people of the region, the Pipils, as slaves on their own farms. At that time, 14 Spanish families owned almost all of El Salvador. In this situation, the Pipils revolted from time to time, but since the Spanish had powerful weapons, these revolts were suppressed in a short time and harshly. In 1930, the workers in the coffee gardens revolted because the working conditions were so harsh. However, this uprising was suppressed very harshly by the army. Every Pipil citizen, anyone who spoke the Pipil language or wore the Pipil traditional costume was killed. Tens of thousands of Pipils were killed in a day or two in this incident, known as El Matanza, or massacre, in the history of El Salvador. In other words, it was written under the name of massacre. The population of the Pipils, who once formed El Salvador, has decreased greatly over time. Today, they make up only 4% of the population. 95% of the total 6.9 million people are mixed race. The white population that has a say in the governance of the country is 1%. Since the Santa Ana region has a very fertile climate and soil for growing cocoa and coffee, the Spanish first settled in this region in El Salvador in 1555. Many businessmen in the coffee business still live here. The church, theater building, government building and main square in Santa Ana are the must-see spots. Then you can visit Joya de Ceren, known as the Pompeii of El Salvador. This is BC. It was founded around 1200 as a farming settlement. However, after the eruption of the Ilopango Volcano in 200, this settlement was abandoned. It was not settled here again until the year 400. Around 590, as a result of the eruption of the Loma Caldera Volcano, it was buried in 14 layers of ash. Years later, personal belongings were found in this settlement, but no skeletons were found. This shows that people left this region in time. From here you can go to El Boqueron National Park, which has one of the most beautiful views in El Salvador. El Boqueron is on the San Salvador volcano, 1,800 meters above sea level. The most important element of the park is the crater with a diameter of 5 kilometers and a depth of 558 meters. You can also watch a video film explaining what a volcanic eruption is like at the entrance of this park area. The best place to start your trip in the capital, San Salvador, is the main square where the city cathedral is located. This square is also the scene of constant protests. Its name is protest square. During the civil war, the group protesting against the government was attacked and 22 people were murdered. The funeral ceremony of the 22 murdered people was also held in this square, and 48 of the relatives and friends of the deceased who came to the funeral were killed by the marksmen placed around. That’s why this square has been known as a protest square for years. Built in the shape of a cross, the cathedral is quite simple and unpretentious. One of the most important features of the cathedral is that it also hosts the tomb of Father Romero, who was commissioned by the Vatican at the time. When the father stated that the people lived in very difficult conditions during his time, the administration tried to assassinate him on the grounds that he encouraged the people to revolt. The mausoleum at the bottom of the cathedral belongs to this father. Another place to see in the capital is the military museum. At the entrance of the military museum, you can first see the three-dimensional map of El Salvador. In the museum, weapons, tanks, helicopters and police cars used during the civil war are exhibited. So, how and why did the civil war start? When the Pupils, overwhelmed by the pressure of the Spanish, revolted against the intense working conditions, the government began to kill the Pupils, and even tens of thousands of Pupils were killed in a day or two. When the government’s hostile attitude towards the Pupils continued, the Pupils fled to surrounding countries, especially Honduras. However, since Honduras did not want such intense immigration, there was a war that lasted 100 hours in 1966, also called football wars. The EU intervened and allowed the Salvadorans to return to their country. However, there was such an intense return that this time unemployment in the country reached peak levels. When the state could not find a solution to unemployment, theft and chaos broke out. Between 1970 and 1980, gangs formed and a civil war broke out with the administration. There were violent clashes between 1981-93. During this period, 70 thousand people were killed. This museum displays the traces of this war. One of the most important pieces in the museum is the car in which the Pope came here to meet with Priest Rumoro. Then you can visit the area called Devil’s Gate. It is enjoyable to watch the bird’s eye view of San Salvador here. The region called Zona Roza is an area where the rich are concentrated in El Salvador. From here you can go swimming on the Pacific coast. One of the most ideal beaches is Playa San Blas. You can see that luxury houses as well as huts are lined up along the straight beach. The fishing town called La Libertad, which means “Freedom”, 5-10 minutes away from here, is also worth seeing. Here, there is a large pier extending towards the sea and there are fishermen left and right on the pier. If you proceed to the end of the pier, you can also see how the small fishing boats are lifted into and out of the ocean from the pier using a crane. This town is one of the ideal places to try seafood. There are a wide variety of restaurants along the beach. San Miguel is the third largest city in El Salvador. Among the places that can be seen here are the main square, the cathedral and the administration building. El Salvador has the distinction of being the place with the most murders in the world relative to population. Especially mob murder. San Miguel is the place where this ratio peaks. For this reason, you will see that even the hotel staff in San Miguel are armed. Mavimore Turizm is a travel agency registered with TÜRSAB. Document number: A-8307