Teopan
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Teopan is an island located in Lago Coatepeque in the Coatepeque muncipality, department of Santa Ana, El Salvador.
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[edit] History
Historically, the island was a retreat for the Mayan spiritual leaders. The local Mayans would send a group of spiritual leaders to the island. Periods range from one day, to one week and even to two months. The spiritual leaders were expected to receive visions from the gods while on this island, and their purpose was to go and "speak to the gods" in order to retrieve the messages back to the locals.
[edit] Privatization
In recent years, the island was privatized and portions of acres were put for public sale. The areas that were put for sale were areas in front of the lake. Since, it has become a very desirable piece of land on the lake. There is a Ferry that transports inhabitants from the mainland to the island. The Ferry usually runs from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and is controlled by locals who also oversee the island's security.
Many prpminent individuals from El Salvador have been known to own property on the island, including former President Alfredo Cristiani Burkard.
[edit] Government intervention
Recently the Salvadoran government has seized control of the backside of the island in order to preserve its habitat. The island houses a variety of plants and animals, from bats, lizards and birds.
A road was constructed to provide transportation to the different lots that were sold to the public. The road did not go all the way around the island at first, but due to recent continued sales of the land, the road has been expanded and now circles the island in order to accommodate inhabitants and park rangers. Half of the island is now protected by the government from further building. It is now being preserved and guarded by local security and park rangers.
[edit] Mayan artifacts
Many Mayan artifacts have been found on the island, including ancient Mayan calendars and statues. A pair of Monkey statues were found in the construction of a house on the island. They were deep in the ground and were facing the Volcano of Santa Ana, which is located directly in front of the island. Lago Coatepeque itself is situated on a volcano's crater - Coatepeque Caldera.
