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Five Years on the Road: Our Trans-Americas Journey “Road-a-versary” By the Numbers
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 27 February 2012
Happy Anniversary to us! Or should we say “road-a-versary” (thanks Julie)? Today is day 1,825 of our Trans-Americas Journey road trip. That’s five years of active travel on the road not counting a couple of stretches when we were unexpectedly stuck in one place for reasons beyond our control (looking at you, Chevrolet). We’re not very good at math Our initial description of the Journey predicted three years and 75,000 miles to cover North, Central and South America from the Arctic Ocean to Tierra del Fuego.
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60 Tips from Kiva Fellows
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 30 December 2011
Compiled by Kate Bennett, KF16 Peru The sixteenth class of Kiva Fellows has all but left the field- but we're by no means done talking about our experiences. We've collectively spent 422 weeks in the field (just over 8 years!) and worked an estimated 16,650 hours at Kiva field partners around the world.
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Update from the Field: Expanding the Reach of Microfinance, Downsizing Development + Why We Kiva
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 31 October 2011
Compiled by Kathrin Gerner, KF16, Rwanda This week, you have no fewer than 14 new articles to choose from on the Kiva fellows blog: Let the fellows take you along on borrower visits across the world. Learn how Kiva field partners expand the reach of microfinance in Rwanda, fill the microfinance donut hole in Sierra Leone and improve social performance in Uganda. Find out what poverty is like in urban Tajikistan and rural Burkina Faso. Get inspired by one of the creative ways to bring renewable energy to the developing world in the form of a soccer ball.
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Update from the Field: Starting Capital, Development Levels + Adventurous Borrower Visits
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 26 September 2011
Compiled by Kathrin Gerner, KF16, Rwanda This week on the Kiva fellows blog, start your journey in Indonesia and read about some early lessons of a Kiva fellow.
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I love saying ‘cachiporras’
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 20 September 2011
By Andrea Ramirez, KF16, El Salvador.
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It’s not just about the money
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 7 September 2011
By Andrea Ramirez, KF16, El Salvador In recent years the microfinance sector has been hit with harsh criticism about the real impact it has on improving the lives of the low-income clients it serves. If it is true that microfinance, including micro-credit, is not the panacea for poverty; it is also true that Microfinance Institutions (“MFIs”) don’t have an easy job. MFIs and their staff are, in my opinion, the true heroes.
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Updates from the Field: Loan Sharks, Snapshots + “the Country with a Smile”
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 29 August 2011
Each Kiva borrower enjoys his or her own borrower profile page. We've all seen these pages: they acquaint us with the borrower's story, plans for the future, country, and a photo in their business or home. Borrower profiles present us with a clear snapshot of the ebbs and flows of a borrower's life.
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Everything is sweeter in El Salvador
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 28 August 2011
By Andrea Ramirez, KF16, El Salvador Pastries in Usulutan, near one of the offices of Fundacion Campo During each of the meals I've had here in San Miguel thus far, I've noticed something fascinating: everything seems to be sweeter in El Salvador. I started noticing this during breakfast, when I tried the orange juice -- which is so sweet that could be considered dessert. I can tell it is natural orange juice, but whether or not it has sugar added is yet to be determined. I also noticed that the chocolate flavored cereal that I usually eat at home, is particularly chocolat-ier.
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Access Denied – El Salvador Border
Blog: Trans-Americas Journey - 28 July 2011
It was bound to happen. After 30 shockingly smooth border crossings into and out of six different countries we knew our luck at the border couldn’t last forever. Apparently, it couldn’t last until El Salvador. The problem actually started many, many months ago but we didn’t know that as we approached the immigration station at the El Poy border crossing into El Salvador from Honduras.
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Update from the Field: Dangerous Streets, New Vocabulary + A Senegalese Spring
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 11 July 2011
Compiled by Kathrin Gerner, KF15, Togo This week, the Kiva fellows invite you to accompany them across Africa and South and Central America: Take a walk in the streets of San Salvador. Improve your language skills by adding a few words in three of South Africa's most widely spoken languages to your vocabulary. Look poverty in the face in Cameroon. Continue by learning more about the latest riots in Senegal. Find out how money helps to provide dignity in Ecuador. And finish by learning about the importance of family unity in El Salvador.
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Prehistoric Drawings and Four Intertwined Client Visits
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 9 July 2011
An intense trip thought the rural mountains of eastern El Salvador made us think about the importance of family unity through the clay and string and flour that intertwine these 4 stories. The day began with a visit to a cave which has prehistoric drawings that date back thousands of years. Our attention was drawn to several of the figures which were of couples holding hands.
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Update from the Field: Zulu Weddings, More Country-Specific Microfinance + Fighting Crime
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 4 July 2011
Compiled by Kathrin Gerner, KF15, Togo Learn about the tradition of Zulu weddings in South Africa. Find out how Kiva's partners adapt the concept of microfinance to fit their country's specific needs: from loans targeting borrowers affected by emigration in Ecuador, over a preference for group loans in El Salvador, to lending coupled with various training programs in Rwanda. Finish off your weekly reading by learning about crime-fighting Kivans in Nicaragua.
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Walking the Streets
Blog: Kiva Stories from the Field - 3 July 2011
Walking in San Salvador is the stuff nightmares are made of, but not for the reasons you might think. You have probably heard about the dangers of walking the streets in big cities in Latin America: you'll be pick-pocketed, purse-snatched, robbed at gunpoint, sequestered, murdered... Those are real threats, but I'd like to discuss a few others that don't get as much headline space.
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Looking for a Revolution
Blog: A Traveler's Library - 27 April 2011
Destination: Nicaragua and El Salvador Book: Revolution: The Year I Fell in Love and Went to Join the War (NEW February 2011) by Deb Olin Unferth In 1987, a seventeen-year-old college girl follows her adored boyfriend, George, into war–if only they could find the war–or if anybody wanted their help. I generally shy away from memoirs [...]This content is a post from: A Traveler's Library To comment on this post or search for related information, click on the link to A Traveler's Library.
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Alegria El Salvador in Song – Video Ep. 14
Blog: Two Backpackers - 14 April 2011
Alegría is the most beautiful, small town that we visited in El Salvador. Immediately upon departing our cheerfully painted bus in the main plaza, we noticed its cleanliness and detail to landscaping. The red rose bushes were in bloom and the sun flowers seemed to stand tall in pride of their home. Alegría, El Salvador [...]
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Lost in Laguna de Alegria El Salvador – Video Ep. 13
Blog: Two Backpackers - 22 March 2011
El Salvador continued to surprise us. Not with the big cities, which we weren’t impressed by, but rather the wonderful towns and villages we encountered. Between the “Food Festivals of Juayúa and the colorful flowers of Alegría, we had come to realize, El Salvador was best explored outside the big cities. In this suspenseful travel [...]
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Lost in Laguna de Alegria El Salvador – Video Ep. 13
Blog: Two Backpackers - 22 March 2011
El Salvador continued to surprise us. Not with the big cities, which we weren’t impressed by, but rather the wonderful towns and villages we encountered. Between the “Food Festivals of Juayúa and the colorful flowers of Alegría, we had come to realize, El Salvador was best explored outside the big cities. In this suspenseful travel [...]
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Juayua Food Festival El Salvador – Video Ep. 12
Blog: Two Backpackers - 4 March 2011
We had just recently finished our 7 Waterfalls Tour in Juayúa and couldn’t believe there was even more to enjoy in this small town surrounded by coffee plantations. Each weekend Juayúa celebrates with a large food festival centered in the town’s plaza, but extending to many of the side streets. 2 Backpackers indulge in delicious [...]
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7 Waterfalls Tour El Salvador – Video Ep. 11
Blog: Two Backpackers - 16 February 2011
When we decided to begin our journey in Central America, El Salvador was the country we decided to avoid. The decision was not based on any specific reason, we simply preferred a more direct route south and planned to travel from Guatemala to Honduras to Nicaragua and onwards. However, with Honduras’ political instability, which was [...]
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Photo of the Day: Elderly Woman, El Salvador
Blog: Two Backpackers - 9 February 2011
The town of Juayua, El Salvador organizes a food festival every weekend. It’s a large production and after experiencing it, we were very impressed with how much work goes into this on a weekly basis. This photos was taken while walking around the town. We noticed an elderly woman sitting on a park just people [...]
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Photo of the Day: Marching Band in Juayua, El Salvador
Blog: Two Backpackers - 7 February 2011
Bands are used to celebrate throughout all of Latin America. Nearly every type of celebration whether it be religious, patriotic or otherwise incorporates marching bands with colorful costumes and loud synchronized music. The bands include people of all ages and gender. Typically, even during celebrations, the bands compete for trophies and respect. Related posts:Photo of [...]
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15 good reasons to visit El Salvador
Blog: 501 Places - 7 February 2011
I’ve written extensively about our adventures in El Salvador over the last couple of weeks, and have enjoyed hearing from others who have ventured to this small and much over-looked country. Before I move on to the many other highlights … Continue reading →15 good reasons to visit El Salvador is a post from: 501 Places
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San Salvador: noisy, dirty and well worth a visit
Blog: 501 Places - 4 February 2011
If El Salvador has a bit of an image problem in the international community, those negative perceptions nearly always centre on its capital city San Salvador. The common perception to those who haven’t been to the city is one of … Continue reading →San Salvador: noisy, dirty and well worth a visit is a post from: 501 Places
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El Salvador: the ghosts of war on Guazapa volcano
Blog: 501 Places - 31 January 2011
The civil war in El Salvador passed me by in the 1980s. Despite lasting 12 years and costing the lives of 75,000 people it made little more than occasional news on the BBC. Maybe this is because it was so … Continue reading →El Salvador: the ghosts of war on Guazapa volcano is a post from: 501 Places
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El Salvador: La Ruta de las Flores
Blog: 501 Places - 28 January 2011
If you take a look at any of the promotional material produced by the El Salvador tourism officials, the chances are the pictures that you’ll find are going to focus heavily on La Ruta de las Flores. This small stretch … Continue reading →El Salvador: La Ruta de las Flores is a post from: 501 Places
