San Miquel, El Salvador

Some 135km from San Salvador, the bustling, hot and flat city of SAN MIGUEL is the country's main trade centre. Initially the least important of the Spanish cities, it grew wealthy, firstly through the profits of gold, and then on the coffee, cotton and henequén grown on the surrounding fertile land, leading to the nickname "The Pearl of the East". More recently it was a centre of arms trading during the civil war, though today the city's flat streets hum and rattle with more mundane forms of commerce and travellers will easily find the sort of facilities offered in the capital. But despite being the birthplace of several national heroes, the city is surprisingly short on sights and attractions, and the best time to visit is during the November carnival, supposedly the biggest in Central America. In any case it is the pivot of the east: a base for the beaches to the south or a stopover on journeys to Perquín and the Honduran border.