El Salvador

• Population - 6,052,064 (July 2010 est.)• Independence - 15 September 1821 (from

Spain)• Geographically the smallest country in Central

America. • Capital City - San Salvador

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/es.html

Government: Republic

• President Mauricio Funes Cartagena

•His full name is Carlos Mauricio Funes Cartagena.•He was born Oct. 18, 1959, San Salvador, El Sal.•He was formerly a television journalist.

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1525333/Mauricio-Funes

La gente

• About half the population lives below the national poverty line. They are able to buy food but not clothing and medicine.

• Over half of these families live in a situation of extreme poverty. Forty-seven percent of the population does not have access to clean water.

Food• Corn is the staple of the diet and is most often

made into thick tortillas that are eaten at every meal and also are served as tamales.

• It is also made into a thick corn drink called atol.

Religion: Roman Catholic, Protestant• Mary, Our Lady of Peace

• Tradition has it that some time in 1682 some merchants found an abandoned box on the shore of

Salvador's "Mar del Sur." • They were unable to open the box. As it was tightly

closed and sealed, they surmised that it contained something of value, and decided to take it to the city of San Miguel where they would find out how to open it. • They tied the box on a donkey's back and undertook

the long and dangerous journey to the city where they arrived on November 21, meaning to inform the local

authorities of their find.

But when they went by the parish church, now a cathedral, the donkey lay down on the ground. They

were then able to open the box and were surprised to find that it contained a lovely image of Our Lady holding

the Child.

• The origin of this image is still a mystery as it never was known for whom the box was intended, or how it came to reach the beaches of El Salvador.

• It is said that a hard and bloody struggle was going on between the inhabitants of the region, but when they heard of the marvelous discovery in the abandoned box, they put down their weapons and immediately ceased fighting.

• It is also related that during the 1833 fratricidal struggles, when everyone expected a blood bath, the victorious side - instead of taking reprisals - had the blessed image placed in the atrium of the parish church. At the feet our Our Lady, a solemn vow was made to keep no grudges and to erase all hatred from the hearts so that peace would bring about brotherhood and reconciliation.

• This is why the image was given the beautiful title of Our Lady of Peace, whose liturgical celebration is held on November 21 in memory of its arrival at San Miguel.

• The statute is a dressed wood carving; with the national shield of El Salvador embroidered on the front of the image's white robe.

• The image holds a gold palm leaf in memory of the eruption of the "Chaparrastique" volcano, which threatened to destroy the city with burning lava.

• The frightened dwellers of San Miguel brought out the statute of Our Lady of Peace to the principal door of the cathedral, and at that precise moment the force of the lava changed direction, moving away from the city.

• In the exact place where the lava changed direction there's a town called "Milagro de la Paz (Miracle of Peace)."

• On the day this happened, September 21, 1787, everyone saw in the sky, formed by the clouds, a white palm leaf that seemed to sprout from the crater of the volcano.

• Considering that this was a sign of the Virgin's protection, her faithful decided to place in her hand a gold palm like the one they had seen in the sky.

• Benedict XV authorized the crowning of the image which took place on November 21, 1921.

• The goldsmith who made the Virgin's crown used 650 grams of gold and many precious stones, among which was a huge emerald surrounded by diamonds.

• The new shrine dedicated to Our Lady of Peace was completed in 1953.

http://campus.udayton.edu/mary/resources/engfour.html

Language: Spanish

• Very few Salvadorans now speak the indigenous language, which virtually disappeared after 1932, when General Maximilio Hernández Martínez suppressed rural resistance by massacring 30,000 mostly Indian rural peasants.

Economics: Salvadoran colón - U.S. dollar

• El Salvador is one of the poorest countries in the region.

• In 2001, violent earthquakes killed many people and shattered the economy.

Art• The town of Ilobasco is known for its ceramics.

Especially Sorpresas.• Sorpresas were made famous by artist

Dominga Herrera. Sorpreses are miniatures of everyday life. Usually a round object such as a fruit or animal hides a mini scene when the lid is lifted. They are amazing and make great gifts to bring back home because they are so tiny.

while San Sebastián is known for its textile art.

Nicaragua

Capital: Managua

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sN-sJam9sMQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sN-sJam9sMQ

La gente

• For many generations it was not easy for the people of Nicaragua to improve their social or economic status.

Government- Republic of Nicaragua• President Daniel Ortega Saavedra

Religion

• Officially Nicaragua is a secular state.• However, 58.5% of the population is Roman

Catholic.• 21.6% Evangelical

Economy: $1 = 22.10 córdobas

• Nicaragua, the poorest country in Central America and the second poorest in the Hemisphere, has widespread underemployment and poverty.

• The US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) has been in effect since April 2006 and has expanded export opportunities for many agricultural and manufactured goods.

• Nicaragua relies on international economic assistance to meet internal- and external-debt financing obligations. Nicaragua is gradually recovering from the global economic crisis as increased exports drove positive growth in 2010.

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nu.html

Language: Spanish-official, English Creole, Miskito

• English (Français) Miskito• One (Un) Kum• Two (Deux) Wol• Three (Trois) Yumpa• Four (Quatre) Wol Wol• Five (Cinq) Matsip

Food• Gallo Pinto is a very popular dish.• It means spotted rooster and is typically eaten for

breakfast. • Ingredients– Oil -- 2-3 tablespoons – Onion, finely chopped -- 1 – Bell pepper, finely chopped -- 1 – Garlic, minced -- 2-3 cloves – Cooked red (kidney) beans, drained, liquid reserved -- 2

cups – Salt and pepper -- to taste – Hot cooked rice -- 2 cups

http://www.whats4eats.com/grains/gallo-pinto-recipe http://www.everyculture.com/Ma-Ni/Nicaragua.html

Art• Folkloric dance is one of Nicaragua's enduring pre-Colonial art forms.

Traditional dances are performed at festivals and fiestas, and children study this aspect of their heritage in after-school programs.

• The marimba, a kind of xylophone, is also part of Nicaragua's rich musical tradition. The city of Masaga is the primary performing arts center in the country.

• Dances such as Las Inditas, Los Diabilitos, and Las Negras all involve masked characters.

• Another traditional dance theme is the re-enactment of the Spanish Conquest, parodying the conquerors by depicting them in pink masks with grotesque facial features.

• The farcical dance portrays the Spaniards and their conquest as clumsy, but inevitably triumphant.

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVk7UexENgU

• Read more: Culture of Nicaragua - traditional, history, people, women, beliefs, food, customs, family, social http://www.everyculture.com/Ma-Ni/Nicaragua.html#ixzz1GFsLsDWs