El Salvador and Guatemala
Of all the countries in Central America, it was El Salvador that most stole my heart. Easily the least backpacked of the countries in the region, the people there are among the most open and friendly I've come across in my travels anywhere. Almost from the moment I arrived (when I asked the bus driver where a certain hotel was, and he told me to stay on the bus and he´d drive it there for me once the other passengers had gotten off), I was treated more like I was a visitor in someone else´s home rather than just a traveller passing through.

Other folks I met travelling there agreed with me that there´s a genunine-ness and amicableness about the way Salvadorenos treat us and interact with us that is a cut above, and we seemed to be getting to know the locals we met just that little bit more. Also, in the three and half weeks I was there wasn't a SINGLE incident of anyone standing on a street corner insisting on trying to sell me some sort of day-tour somewhere, or insisting that they know a better hotel than the one I'm going to, or trying to rip me over something else - which made for a refreshing change.

Guatemala was also big on charms, although it has suffered a little by becoming the darling of the Central American back-packing circuit, and the travel scene often feels like it's there for it's own sake and a little removed from the country it's in. Away from the "traveller scene" though, Guatemala boasts probably the prettiest highland scenery in Central America, and can also probably lay claim to being the most diverse country in the region. I know it's a bit of a cliche to harp on about the diversities of a country, but during my six weeks there I was steadily amazed at just how many differences Guatemala packs in to one little country- I hit many different locations within Guatemala, with the language, culture, nature and vibe of one place sometimes having almost nothing in common with the previous place I was at.