#83 EL SALVADOR

El Salvador is the smallest and most densely populated country in Central America. I came here with my dad, mostly to give him a break from his solitary life in New Mexico and soak up some sun on the beach. We flew into San Salvador but headed straight to the Pacific coast, to a sleepy little town on the scenic Costa del Sol.

Of course, as I was traveling with my elderly dad, who has limited mobility, I wanted someplace easily accessible where he could walk from his room straight to the beach and not worry about tripping on stairs or noisy traffic. I think I was pretty lucky to find the Izalco Beach Resort because it ticked all the boxes, plus it had two pools -- one for swimming, one for lounging -- and a decent restaurant, a nice bar, and ample shade lounges right on the beach.

My daily routine here was to wake up early, do some exercise (I'd just started a new HIIT routine), and lounge by the pool till my dad woke up. Then we'd hit breakfast, chill by the beach for a while, and catch up on our reading until lunch. Invariably, we'd have a shrimp or conch cebiche for lunch and then head back to the beach for a nap and dinner. It wasn't eventful or exciting, but it did recharge my batteries and send me home with delightful memories of a lovely country with friendly people, a tumultuous past, and hopefully a bright future.