Our Journey from El Salvador
Coming to America
Salvadorans come to the U.S. for a better life. Specifically, that means they want to do better economically. They come here to work all kinds of jobs. In the U.S., most reunite with family members who have come before them. The plane ride from El Salvador costs hundreds of dollars and takes about 3 hours, with a stop in Florida. Salvadorans must wait several years to get a visa to immigrate to the U.S.
What We Left Behind
We left behind our families in El Salvador. For example, our mothers and baby sisters are still there, as are our brothers, grandmothers, and the rest of our extended families. We also left our friends. We don't really talk to them now, because we lost communication with them. We could e-mail each other, but not everyone can afford to have a computer. In fact, only about 600,000 of the nearly 7 million Salvadorans actually have access to the internet. We left behind the carefree days of our childhood when we didn't have as much responsibility as we do now.
What We Found Here
When we came here, we rediscovered part of our families. Many of our fathers had been here at least 15 years before we arrived. It was hard for us to get to know each other. We didn't know each other's likes and dislikes. In some cases, we found brand new families, with stepmothers and half siblings whom we had never met before. We also made many new friends, mostly other people from ESL class.
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