El Salvador

I have tall, sleepy mountains that look like cones. Sometimes they puff smoke into the bright blue sky. My edges are washed by the warm, splashy Pacific Ocean. I smell like sweet flowers and juicy mangoes. My heart is very big and warm. I am El Salvador, a small country in the middle of the Americas.

My story started a very, very long time ago. Around the year 1500 BCE, clever people called the Maya and the Pipil lived on my lands. They built amazing stone pyramids that looked like my mountains. They also grew yummy corn to eat. Much, much later, in the 1520s, big ships arrived from a faraway place called Spain. A man named Pedro de Alvarado came to my shores. After many years, I wanted to be my own country. On a very special day, September 15th, 1821, I celebrated becoming independent. It was like my very own birthday, and I was so happy.

Today, my heart beats with happy music and friendly laughter. Families fly colorful kites in the wind. Farmers grow the best coffee beans on my green hills. Kids love to surf on the ocean waves that tickle my beaches. I am a land of bright colors and even brighter smiles. I love to share my sunshine and my yummy food, like pupusas, with everyone who visits. My story is still being written, and I hope you can be a part of it one day.