Well we just returned home from El Salvador for the first Annual YES Meeting of the Minds. It was a rad trip to say the least. It was 50% surf, 25% meetings, 25% drinking. Our meeting took place at El Dorado Surf Resort, which is located right at Playa El Zonte in La Libertad. The resort is owned by a group of French Canadians, and if you know any French Canadians, you have come to know them for amazing hospitality, good personalities, and their penchant for knowing how to have a good time.
Our trip started in Seattle on June 6th, our originating flight was supposed to leave at 6pm, well it ended up delayed for 4 hours, so we decided to hang out at Anthony's and get some drinks, easy. We arrived in Houston for our connector and had Josh's mom come pick us up, so we could get an hour of sleep. Josh, classicly, left a gift for his mom on the plane.....classic. We arrived at Josh's mom's, I laid down for 45 minutes. We then went to Ihop in Humble, TX and met my younger brother there for breakfast prior to our departure. So we got to see our fams for like 2 seconds, but we had a mission - surf.....let's get to the plane
We met up with our mid atlantic rep, Chris Cooper, who is one of the funniest people you could possibly meet, he is a force and has a penchant for being able to say his mind and hold his ground, all the while being funny. We verified our passports, boarded flight CO 826 en route to San Salvador.
We arrived on time, no hiccups, straight through customs where we met our driver, Walter, a "No Hable Ingles" local, but he had a collection of some incredible techno dance tunes, at that point we knew it was on!
I was hot as a mother, a humidity that permeates right through you, sometimes just stifling in the sun. El Salvador is a country where the division between the poor and rich are clearly drawn lines etched on the sides of the roads all the way up the hills. The backdrop is a mixed bag of shanty homes, traditional adobe/terra cotta homes and new rich gated communities.
One thing I can say is that the Salvadorians are a proud people, everyone supports one another, and work together to build a better future for the country's future. Even with the poverty, all the natives are very happy and approachable. Sure the country has it's share of problems and it is pretty cowboy, but that was the allure of being there.
We arrive at El Dorado, and we meet up with JP, DCP, Romain, Tadashi, and Socal rep Andrew Walford. The surf was huge, which meant, I was not paddling out into double head high crushers. Thankfully the resort has a poured mini overlooking the surf. Immediately we dropped our gear, hit the bar and got our skate and surf on.
Pretty much each day was typical, wake up, have breakfast, skate, swim, surf, have meetings, eat lunch, drink, eat dinner, drink, dodge the night time rain storms, drink, then sleep.
It was a classic trip, we had a ton of fun and managed to get a lot done. Be on the look out for a lot of "YES" happenings through out the world this season and next.
We arrive at El Dorado, and we meet up with JP, DCP, Romain, Tadashi, and Socal rep Andrew Walford. The surf was huge, which meant, I was not paddling out into double head high crushers. Thankfully the resort has a poured mini overlooking the surf. Immediately we dropped our gear, hit the bar and got our skate and surf on.
Pretty much each day was typical, wake up, have breakfast, skate, swim, surf, have meetings, eat lunch, drink, eat dinner, drink, dodge the night time rain storms, drink, then sleep.
It was a classic trip, we had a ton of fun and managed to get a lot done. Be on the look out for a lot of "YES" happenings through out the world this season and next.
