Nuevo Gualcho

The brutal civil war drove many Salvadoreans – particularly rural farmers or ‘campesinos’ – out of El Salvador into the refugee camps of Honduras. In the year 1990, when violence was gradually decreasing, Nuevo Gualcho’s founding residents returned to El Salvador in search of a new home. A number of refugees had previously lived in the region and were aware of the rich soil and access to the Río Lempa. Some were survivors of massacres in rural villages and towns, and others had simply fled El Salvador to escape the civil war violence, and decided to seek an entirely new home. Travelling on foot, the first to arrive reached Nuevo Gualcho on 5 March 1990 and promptly began creating a new community. As such, the modern Nuevo Gualcho has been built almost entirely from scratch by this first generation to resettle, who lived communally within the Hacienda whilst constructing their homes. Today the majority of inhabitants work in agriculture in the local area.

Recent efforts have been made to create an Eco Tourism route, which includes: the Mirador – a viewpoint from which one can see the Chaparrastique volcano and surrounding lakes and scenery, the Artisan centre – an Eco-construction where crafts workshops are held, the Hacienda site, the local church with both internal and surrounding murals, and the Poza – a natural pool lined by trees and complete with a swinging vine.

After noticing the tourism potential of Nuevo Gualcho, a British NGO invested a volunteer scheme in the area together with a Salvadorean counterpart NGO to help develop and prepare the community for an Eco Tourism route. Over 12 months the scheme has selected local youth and British volunteers to work on this initiative. Using Bio-Construction techniques a recycling centre, artisan workshop and a bench at the Mirador viewpoint have been built from recycled and natural materials. Stairs were built for access to the Poza, to cater for its many visitors, and local tours have been set up through a community initiative, with Nuevo Gualcho residents as guides to share their extensive local knowledge.