For the last 7 weeks we have been living and working in El Salvador and realised that a major part of the lifestyle is made up of the food that people eat and sell, and the music that people listen to.
Food
The traditional dish of El Salvador is the Pupusa, which can be found everywhere, being made in homes and sold in cafes, restaurants, by street vendors and in the Pupusarias.
Pupusas are a Salvadorian dish made like a tortilla but with melty cheese goodness trapped inside with no way out, until you bite into one. Pupusas are also very accommodating. You can fill them with chillies, cheese (queso), beans (frijoles), loroco (a green flower blossom), shrimp (camarones), pork (chicharron), chicken (pollo), and fish (pescado).
The recipe for the Salvadorian Pupusa can be found by clicking here.
Music
In El Salvador you can always hear attractive Spanish music wherever you are, coming from cars passing by, speakers in the local market or pouring from an open window.
Salsa is a Spanish based genre but is said to have splashes of pop, jazz, rock and R&B. Salsa is the primary music played in Latin dance clubs and goes hand in hand with one of the most known dances in the world of the same name.
Cumbia is a genre of music that is popular all over Latin America and has an extremely authentic feeling to it, originating on the Caribbean coast of Colombia. The genre over the years has developed a dance to go with it that none of us volunteers have had the privilege of learning as of yet...
Raggaeton is a genre of music that has spread like wildfire across Latin America over the last 7 years, it incorporates the feel of salsa, R&B and rap and has Spanish singing or rapping as the main feature with a beat that will guarantee enjoyment.
Click here for a website that will allow you to listen to these genres and many more that branch out from Latin American origins.
I hope you enjoy Salvadorianising as much as I have!
By Grant Richardson, ICS volunteer in El Salvador.
Photo: ICS volunteer Ingrid eating pupusas (photo taken by ICS volunteer Afraa Ali).
