Peaceful change
Posted on 11. Oct, 2010 by Kate Buggeln in 9. El Salvador, Bpeace Blog
The end of this journey’s road took us to the Salvadoran countryside. The green was a welcome break from the asphalt streets, cement shopping malls and traffic jams of busy San Salvador. Some of the team visited a women’s cooperative making the wine we had already found in Wal-Mart. Bottles at home didn’t stop an impromptu tasting on the go. . .
On Friday afternoon Steve, Gita and Kate went on a rolling green, curve hugging, volcanic vista, sugarcane sweet road trip to the western corner of the country. Led by Eduardo Cader, Bpeace’s fast driving, enthusiast and unshakable liaison for this week, we were taken on a tour of his favorite places in the stunning yet humble mountain villages of this coffee region.
Eduardo has a long family history here. His great great grandmother is buried in a local church. But today the building faces a town plaza abuzz with the sounds of marching bands and the joy of a Children’s Day parade. We grabbed a pastry at a corner shop and onward we went. We walked the cobbled streets of villages where old women in the park called out hellos at our passing, dogs wandered or dozed, their occasional sound breaking the quiet of a sunny slumbering afternoon.
As we marveled at the beauty of these towns’ fading architecture we couldn’t help but feel the nostalgia for something soon to pass. A few smart shops, creative and colorful cafe murals are emerging. San Salvadorans and tourists are beginning to discover these untouched places. Even Wal-Mart has landed here as the chain has developed a small town Salvadoran model. Change is afoot. Will it impact the poverty productively? Largely unmarked by violence, will development bring conflict?
But for today we enjoyed the view and felt peace and safety. In many ways these small villages represent what is possible here — the graciousness of a beautiful and rightfully proud country. Yes, the spirit of El Salvador has captured both our hearts and our intellect.
This is the beginning of Bpeace’s exploration, not the end. In the coming months we will need to skillfully map Bpeace’s path here, deploying equal parts of heart and mind to address the country’s opportunity gap in the Bpeace way — creating jobs, creating hope, reducing violence.
11 Comments
Biz
11. Oct, 2010
The El Salvador blogs have been inspirational and beautiful so far. I have seen the other side of the gang violence through the criminal justice system in the States, but also heard many inspiring stories of the beauty in El Salvador over the years.
It is exciting to see Bpeace observing, connecting, and building tools for us all to help fuel the positive word there. I am thrilled we chose this county. Congrats to the crew who are there now.
susan
11. Oct, 2010
A very hopeful beginning indeed, Kate and team. Thanks so much for bringing your journey home to all of us.
With admiration and appreciation,
Susan
Athena Katsaros
11. Oct, 2010
Thank you team for doing your work in El Salvador. I know that the meetings you had, the people you met, and the thinking you did will all result in an insightful and doable plan for Bpeace. Welcome home.
Diann Boehm
11. Oct, 2010
Thank you for the blogs. It is so wonderful to have a glimpse to an amazing eye opening trip. Way to go guys! Looking forward to the next step.
Diann
Jackie Bivins
11. Oct, 2010
As always, I so much admire both the courage and the perceptiveness of BPeace teams. It sounds as though El Salvador is going to be a different kind of challenge but know you are up to it. Welcome home.
Donna Fleetwood
11. Oct, 2010
The pictures are just beautiful and fascinating. A Walmart? Who knew? They are everywhere and a sure sign that the country is ready for growth. Thanks for continuing my global education. It looks like a place I would like to visit as I see it through your eyes.
Richard
12. Oct, 2010
Welcome back everyone. It looks like the pioneer trip was a great one. It brings back memories of the first trip to Rwanda. Good luck in all.
Carlos Arce
12. Oct, 2010
Marla and Gita, thanks for visiting El Salvador, a country with beautiful scenes and with great people with endless desire to work in peace and prosper. I hope you will find an opportunity in the near future to collaborate in El Salvador, specially by helping women develop business opportunities, increase sales and create jobs. Good luck and let’s keep in touch.
Teri Leavens
16. Oct, 2010
Thank you for the beautiful synopsis of your visit in El Salvador and the insights gleaned. Looking forward to the months ahead and developing a strategy and action plan for how Bpeace (and we, its members) can participate. Thank you, again!
maribel guardia
20. Jan, 2011
Good luck getting people behind this one. Though you make some VERY fascinating points, youre going to have to do more than bring up a few things that may be different than what weve already heard. What are trying to say here? What do you want us to think? It seems like you cant really get behind a unique thought. Anyway, thats just my opinion.
johnpeterbryan
03. Aug, 2011
Thanks for sharing this post, It’s very useful to me.
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