Journey from Zipolite to Oaxaca.

 Oaxaca was a slap in the face from the slow paced beach life on the coast. My journey was a mess from the get go. Sandy, my host, had told me that I would be able to catch a taxi at 4:30 in the morning into town to catch the collectivo van to Oaxaca. So I pack  up my now small-child sized backpack, and headed out the highway in the dark. The only things awake were the darn roosters and me. I was hoping that something would happen, but when I saw a group of 8 slightly tipsy college students walking up the road towards the next town I knew there were no taxis. So I heaved on my backpack and started walking after them. Just as I was catching up a Nissan pick up truck pulled up and the students hail him to pick us up. The timing was perfect.  We all piled in, and rode Chicano style into Puerto Angel. They all jumped out, but I still needed to get 20 mins further inland to Potchutla. My luck had it that this fella was going that way anyway, and took me directly to the bus station right in time to catch the 6am bus to Oaxaca. He was so kind.
  This was my first time taking a collectivo bus, but Sandy told me it was the better way to go because it was about 3 hours shorter. It went directly over the mountains, and down into the valley where Oaxaca sits. It was a torturous bus ride. Still recovering from some bad seafood the night before I was sure those switchbacks were gonna get me.
  Apart from the twisting road the journey was beautiful. The advantage of taking such an early morning bus is seeing the sun rise over the sierras. Then as the sun came out fully seeing the hazy morning down in the valley. The road cuts directly through some of these small towns, and I am always surprised how they can build houses right into the sides of mountains. They look like one heavy rain would carry them away. However, I bet their sunrises and sunsets are worth the risk.

The Bay of Nudies and Turtles

   Monday morning I finally started the beach adventure that I had been imagining for the last month. When packing for my trip I was so concentrated on beach, and copious amounts of sunshine I only packed shorts, tank tops, and sundresses. Until monday they'd been hibertnating in the bottom of my backpack. Now they are out, and well as this is a nudist beach I don't even really need them still. :)

My first half hour in Zipolite- lounging already. 

    I am couchsurfing here as well, with a super great guy named Allan and his roommate Sandy-Bell. They are both students at the University of the Sea here in Zipolite, Oaxaca. I really don't know how they ever find time to go to class, or study when the beach is 3 minute walk from their front door. Shortly after I arrived Allan told me that he had to leave for an internship in Veracruz the next morning, but I could stay at his place with Sandy. As he was only in town for one day he insisted on showing me everything there was to do in 10 hours. (Remember, I'd spent 10 hours on the bus the night before, with the largest man in Mexico seated next to me. Shall I just say I was longing for those shaded hammocks with Corona table service.)

The view of the bay from the sunset spot in Mezunte.

Sunset with the wild dogs in Zipolite. 

  I changed into by swimsuit right away, and we headed off to the beach. First, we went over to the little cove called Playa de Amor... almost everyone was 65, and naked. The water was deliciously warm. Swimming in the ocean is fun, and reminds me of swinging as a little girl. Everytime you get so far out the current gently pulls back, and you swim back out. You can do it for ages.
   Allan wanted to show me a different cove further on. Allen is a surfer, and his adventure gene is prevalent. As we started walking over these 9,000 degree sharp as glass rocks, I wanted to return to the lazy naked beach. Allen insisted that further up there was a neat blow hole. So I continued, reluctantly. Somehow he pulled me all the way to where the blow hole wasn't, but a beautiful view was. So I suppose it was worth it.
After this, we went surfing. The waves are low this time of year. Which is good for me since I haven't surfed in two years. Surfing feels like flying to me, and I don't even care if I stand up. Its about feeling that rushing energy of the wave. As the swell lulled we left the beach, and headed up the coast to the small town of Mezunte to watch the sunset. I love the pacific, and the way the sunsets and sunrise always have a gorgeous sherbert pink and orange quality. From the point where we watched the sun fall you could see up the coastline in both directions. I was feeling especially blessed for my fortune.
  The next day I found myself enjoy a morning coffee with Sandy-Bell. She and I were on the same wavelength, and planned to spend the day out on the beach. While we were out there there were a few locals casting their nets out for fish. It took about an hour, but then they brought in 2 bucket loads at once. Sandy knew the fisherman, and asked him if we could get some fish. Before I knew it we were gutting fresh fish on the beach for dinner.

Cooking our fresh caught fish for fresh
fish tacos!

  We met up with two other couchsurfers from France who would be staying with Sandy and I, and headed back to the house to start preparing our feast. We had 10 fish, tortillas, tomatoes, and potatoes, and 4 hungry mouths. After about an hour and a half of cooking, and 3 liters of beer we sat down to feast. It was delicious in the way that simple food is better with good company and conversation. Really one of those moments that you can't imagine before you leave home.

Road side sopes made with quesillo. The
best cheese I have had in Latin America.

The kindergardeners and I with the guide. :) 

 The last two days have been dedicated to worshiping the sun, and playing with the ocean. My kindle has been my constant beach companion. I did put out a bit of energy, and made it up to Mezunte to see the turtle museum. There is nearly every North American turtle species you can imagine in all different ages. I happened to take my tour with a group of 5 year old elementry students.... Which is good cause we have the same vocabulary. Plus I like their excitment. Turtles are cool!

  One last day on the beach for me, and I plan to enjoy it to the max. That shaded hammock I was lusting after on Monday has my name all over it. Tonight I am going to eat a big plate of shrimp with tortillas! YES! Then a night travel to the capital city of Oaxaca. Back to city life and long pants, but I am still on an adventure.

Sandy Bell and Bazil enjoying a mechelada. They love chile in everything here. Ice cream and beer included. 

Cañon de Sumidero and Chiapas de Corzo

Cañon del Sumidero near Chiapas del Corzo. 

Crocodile taking a siesta in the sun in Cañon del Sumidero.

They have a Virgen de Guadalupe everywhere...
even 30 mins deep into the canyon. 

  My final days in San Cristobal de las Casas were warming up, and so I decided to take a boat trip. I took a little excursion down into the valley below S.C. to the Cañon del Sumidero. This particular canyon offers opportunites to relax on the boat, see different varieties of wildlife,like crocodiles and monkeys, and learn about one of the most important energy resources of Mexico. The canyon has a max depth around 1000m from the top of the canyon to the surface of the river.

The meat store, with is goods proudly on display.
 At least its fresh... you hope.

After the excursion we had a short time in this small town of Chiapas de Corzo. It was the city fair this week and they had all of the rides. They had teacups, farris wheel, and even the little dragon. I took a short stroll through the plaza, and went over to the market. They do this very strange thing here in mexico with the meat. They cut it up into long ropes, and then hang it out for display. I stopped to take a picture of it, and this fella asked me what I was doing. When I told him how strange this was to me he said that it was the best way to know the quality of the meat. He also explained to me a very typical way to prepare these thinly sliced strips with semi mashed beans, and the fattiest parts of the cut. This is a homestyle dish, that you won't find on a menu at a restaurant. In this market I also bought the most delicious chocolate disks. They look like small hockey pucks, and make yummy hot chocolate. Which is perfect on cold nights in S.C.

Weird fermented apple thing...
Don't recommend these if you see them. 

At the market I kept seeing big bowls of these small round balls that sort of looked like olives. So since I didn't know what it was I bought one.... They were neither olives nor delicious. Something like a fermented crab apple that had been soaked in sweet juice. Not my thing, so once out of eye sight of the lady who sold it to me I threw it away.
Sundays are so much fun here in Mexico, and S.C was lovely. I did a little souviner shopping, and spent two days budget in about 3 hours... oops. But the textiles in Chiapas are unbelievbly intricate and detailed, and I couldn't pass them up. While I was walking through the plaza this group of 5 men started to wave at me. I waved a backed, and then they said hey can we please take a picture with you. I felt really silly, but it was a fun story so I did it. They were from the larger city of Tuxcla in the valley, and had riden to S.C. for a Sunday afternoon.

Me and a motorcycle gang in S.C. plaza- I can
hear my mother gasping from 800miles away. :) 

The Cathedral off the main plaza in S.C. 

Journaling in the sunshine at the Rossco's Backpackers,
with the snuggliest kitty in Chiapas. 

Artisan tacos made with black corn tortillas, and the spiciest salsa I have tried yet!

This lady is the cook at the market restaurant where I ate. She speak Tzotil- the native language, so we could only speak to eachother through other people. I asked to take a photo with her because she was such a great cook. She was flattered, but so shy. It was a great moment. 

San Cristobal : de las Casas de Salsa y Mole

Sunset over San Cristobal from the Church of Guadalupe.

The church in the barrio de Guadalupe

 Arriving in San Cris after a torturous bus ride, I took a taxi through town to my hostel. Driving past brightly painted churches, with courtyards decorated by flagging in the colors of Mexico I instantly knew why everyone likes it here so much. This little city is charming, relaxed, and surrounded by natural beauty. Quite the change from the much larger city of Merida.... the cars don't try to run you over here.

Manuel,Jorge, and Diana giving us a rundown
of the best Mexican/ Argentinian music

   As I mentioned in my last post, the hostel I am staying at is fabulous! Its remarkably cold here in S.C at 2,000m elevation, and the hostel has a bonfire every evening. This is great for enjoying the stories of your fellow travelers. My first 2 nights the other guests were amazing. There was Diana and Jorge, from Tijuana, that I mentioned in my last post. Then Manuel, from Rosario, Argentina. Manuel was a musician, with a positive attitude about everything. He even tried to teach me to play one of his favorite songs from Uruguay. (I am working on it Manuel.) We spent the evening sharing how we passed the day, and playing music. All of this accompanied by lots of laughter, and a generous amount of Indio and Sol beers.
   Towards the end of the evening we all went out to dance. I feel a little embarrassed and confused about every hour that I am awake in this country. I don't know how to speak spanish all that well. Sometime I just point at things on the menu, and hope for the best. But the culmination of my embarrassment, was on the dance floor with Jorge. Jorge, a super smooth dancer, put out his best effort to get me to move my feet in the right direction, but no matter how many time he said "dos pasos" ( two steps) I just couldn't get it! I just kept laughing.... uncomfortably. Salsa is about being super sexy, and enticing, and there I was a laughing bafoon. I loved it!

No mono culture farms in this area. The farms here are maintained
by the villagers.

My horses name was brandy, and I was
only her guest for a few hours. 

Just a leisurely paseo on the horses.
Katherine in the background.

  The next day I met another solo traveler Katherine. She and I got along really well right off, so we decided to go on a horseback ride together to a little indigenous village. San Cristobal is surrounded by indigenous communities, and sometimes the residents don't even speak Spanish. The village we visited speaks tuxcla, and they wear these super funny skirts made from goat hide! The horse ride was lovely. We rode past loads of organic gardens where they grow all the fresh squash, cilantro, radish, cabbage, and lettuce you can find in the market. Yummy! What I didn't count on was how uncomfortable riding a horse is! I know, I am from Wyoming, where practically everyone has some basic experience with horses... but let me just say I have some major respect for those cowboys now.

The landscape around San Cristo. 

  I don't know if chicken mole is a specialty of San Cristobal, but holy wow is it delicious here! After riding horses all day I walked over to the market area to find dinner. The market is lined with stalls, like we have at the fairgrounds in the US. Inside of some of these stalls are little restaurants. Now, they don't look like much. In fact, they are so small I kind of thought to myself there is no way they can make a meal here. Well, I stand corrected!
   I asked for a menu, and the mother looked at me like I had a third eye. So... I just ordered one of the few things I understood come out of her mouth. Pollo en mole. YUM!! They usually use the thigh or leg of the chicken. You know the chicken is fresh because the lady selling chickens is 1 block up. They cover the chicken in this dark red chili and chocolate sauce, and serve it with rice and tortillas. Actually, everything is served with tortillas here. San Cristobal is bursting with tourists, and lots of fancy restaurants to feed them. But for me these little economic kitchens are where the real magic happens! Plus, I like to see them laughing when a tall gringa tells them how wonderful their cooking is!

Palenque Mayan Ruins

This is the Temple of Pakal. Archaeologist discovered King Pakal's tomb, and his intricately carved tomb cover. 

Night buses are not really fun. However, it is totally worth waking up in the morning in a new location, and a new adventure. I arrived in Palenque at 6:30am, just as the sun was rising over the mountains and the city was beginning to wake up. I grabbed a quick caffeine burst from the little convenience store, and stretched my legs on a stroll around town in search of a panaderia. The zocolo, or central plaza, is full of the normal fair or artisans and lunch vendors who make a good profit from tourist's visiting the ruins of Palenque, and gorgeous waterfalls nearby.
  I took a collectivo bus the ten minutes out of town to the entrance of the archaeological ruins. I was one of the first handful of visitors into the park, and that made it even more special. Without the excess of people crowding around you can start to let you imagination wander. I felt like I was really discovering something special, as you walk out of the jungle canopy and into the main courtyard of the Mayan king Pakal. They say that during the Classic Period of the Maya Palenque was the biggest city.

The main palace. Directly across from Pakals tomb. 

   I once took a class on ancient Mayan civilization when I was going to school in California. My teacher rarely came to class with a curriculum prepared, but he always had the best stories to share. This is one of the most important characteristics about Mayan culture today. Oral tradition, story telling, and festivals are the few ways that remnants of the Maya history survive. My Mayan civ teacher had this silly notion that in 14 weeks his students would be able to read Mayan scripted tablets. Lets just say I was not translating for anyone yesterday.

Temple of the sun. 

Pretty sure this was the courtyard of Pikal's son. 

Artifacts from the ruins on display in the museum

   The intricacy of their scripts, carvings, and masks astounds me. At the base of the ruins is a museum where they have many of the artifacts on display, taken from the tomb of Pakal and the temples surrounding. The images are carved in stone, but detail of the facial features and textures on the clothing looks like it was done by machine! During my spanish class last semester we studied a little of Mayan civilizations, and my professor pointed out they didn't have netflix or facebook back then. Less distractions, and more time to look at the stars and carve hieroglyphs.

A tablet of Mayan  script.

    There were plenty of ways to keep myself busy, and stay in Palenque. However, I was anxious to get to San Cristobal de Las Casas, and took the afternoon bus. I had this idea that the topography of Mexico was mostly dessert with some jungle thrown in on the eastern side. HA!!! The bus ride between Palenque and San Cris felt like I was on a Six Flags roller coaster ride. We climbed up and down and up and down mountains on a 2 lane "highway", with speed bumps every 100m for 6 hours. Not sure why the driver felt like he was at the Indy 500 in a 50 passenger bus. There were a few occasions where I really was unsure if we would make the hairpin turns!
  i am staying at the Rossco Backpacker Hostel in San Cristo... really great spot. The are plenty of dogs to give it a homey feel, and an asshole cat that tried to eat my cereal this morning. (we're working things out!) Last night around the fire pit I met two people from Tijuana! They are awesome, and told me all sorts of things I didn't know about Tijuana! For example because its such a big place for people to move to trying to cross the boarder you can find any sort of food you want there! Me and food. Aye. Aye. Aye.

The waterfalls of the bats... Not sure why they are called that. They are located where the ruins finish. 

Flamgos of Celestun

    I use walking as a way to burn off my excessive taco and pan dulce  calorie consumption. It is very rare that I will get a taxi anywhere, even if I don't know where I am going. Merida is a pretty big city with 3 bus stations, and yesterday I needed to find one of them. I left the house early in the morning to catch a bus to the coastal town of Celestun, where there are huge populations of flamingos, frigates, herons, and pelicans that take refuge in the slough. As I am walking in the direction that my internal compass say is towards the bus, I stop 2 men and ask directions. ATTENTION!! When asking directions of locals NEVER ask a leading question. They will just agree with you!  Anyway... they give me some directions, but I still get lost. For 2 hours.
   During my little wayward walkabout I found the market, which was positive. Mexican markets are gorgeous. There are giant mountains of oranges, towers of bananas, rolling hills of red tomatoes. A girl could spend her day eating her way through the market, but this girl was on a mission. As I was charging head down, full throttle through the walkway, all of a sudden this black furry animal drops from the ceiling into my arms. The market is already a sensory overload, without things falling from the ceiling. It startled me a bit, and I noticed that it was a fake rat. I hear the laughter of two young booth owners, at my expense. I gave them a good you-got-me gesture, and headed on my way.

Celestun flamigo reserve. 

   When I arrived in Celestun I happened to get grouped with a family of 4 visiting Merida from Mexico City. This was such great luck for me, because not  only were they so much fun to spend the day with, you also have to split the cost of the boat rental tour into the estuary. The tour is about $100 US, and leaves from the bridge of the Ria.

Pelican Island. 

Frigate birds chillin in the breezy Ria.

A little tunnel through the mangroves.

   Flamingo's congregate in big clusters, and create gorgeous pink pods. They are pretty ridiculous when they fly. Their skinny little bodies can't support their long legs.  The estuary also has a pelican island, where the pelicans relax in clusters. At the front of the island hoards of frigate birds hover on the winds above. The mangroves on the edges of the estuary are very important as a source of shelter and breeding ground for many varieties of birds and fish.
 

 After the tour I returned to Merida with my new friends. On the bus ride home Diana, Hiraam, and I chatted the whole 2 1/2 hours. Diana speaks wonderful english, and Hiraam is learning quickly. A good portion of our conversation was about different types of food in Mexico. Naturally, when the bus arrived  we all went to dinner together. Last night I discovered the most delicious dish they have here in the Yucatan- Cochinta Pibil. It is pork that is marinated in a anchiote sauce, then wrapped in a banana leaf and baked in the oven. This makes some juicy mouth watering pork tacos!  I can't wait for lunch today!

    Today I tried to go to the Museo de Mundo Maya, but it was closed. It looked pretty awesome by the head statues outside!  Tonight I take my first night bus, and I'll arrive in the  morning at the Mayan ruins of Palenque!

The family I spent my nature day with. They are visititng from D.F.

Museo de Mundo Maya- from the outside.

Rosca De Reyes

When the weather turned bad in Holbox, I decided to get on the bus and head to a sunnier horizon. Boy did I find it. I am here in Merida, where it is a good 85 degrees. I had to use sunscreen for the first time in Mexico. Yipee!!

Not my CS house- but the style of home very typical in the area.

  I am staying at a couch surfing friends house. His name Rodrigo, and is he a salt water fly fisherman. If only those Montana boys could see the size of the flies he uses. They are real monsters! He uses them to catch tarpons I believe. Rodrigo lives in the colonial center of town in an antique colonial house. It has giant 20-30 ft ceilings, enormous doorways, and big courtyards that allow the air to move freely. It is really a gem! Rodrigo's house is also located in the fancy part of town, next to all the bank houses and expat homes. There is a Walmart, Starbucks, and Hennesy's two blocks away. He was telling me that Merida has become a popular place for Americans to retire, because they can purchase these giant old homes for very cheap. However, this causes the prices of rent to increase to a point that is unaffordable for locals.

The Rosca de Reyes. It was impossible for me to take a photo of the whole thing.

The 3 kings

   After I met Rodrigo, and chatted a bit about the New Year and Christmas I went out for a stroll. Tomorrow, January 6, is Three Kings Day. Three Kings day is somewhat similar to Christmas, but instead of a Santa you have have three kings that bring you gifts. Another tradition on Three Kings Day is that you eat a circle "fruit" cake. It is not really a cake and there is not really fruit on it.... so why am I calling it a fruit cake? It is more like a delicious sweet bread that has dried fruit on top. In celebration of Three Kings Day the hotel district hosted a bit of a party. They created a circular cake that was the length of an entire city block. When I started walking past I was thinking to myself how many people do they plan on feeding here! For 30 pesos  ( about $2.50) you received a piece of cake and a soda. You always chose your own piece of cake. This is really important because there is a little baby inside the cake somewhere, and whoever it is that gets it has to make a meal for everyone on Feb 2. It was such a fun family activity.

Rodrigo is so gracious and lets me take silly photos with him... even at the taco stand. :)

Merida's Loncheria. Yummy Mango smoothies. I'm addicted. 

 Later that evening Rodrigo took me to the most delicious taco stand. Here I found out there is a special technique for eating tacos that are super full of pig and cow fat. Rodirgo informed me that you have to support the tortilla from the bottom or all the stuffing falls out, and your tortilla breaks.

I love these neat S chairs they have in the city! Rodrigo and I
sat here and chatted in the shade for a while in the morning. 

The folklore dancers in Merida's Central Plaza.

 Rodrigo speaks perfect English, but is being very patient and letting me speak with him in Spanish entirely. I told him that for every taco I eat my Spanish improves 10 times. He laughed and said by the time I leave Mexico I'll be fluent in that case. I can't wait.
   Sunday's are a big day for catching up with the family in Latin America. They know how to do it right here in Merida. I went out for a run this morning on the main avenue, and realized that they had closed off about a mile or more of the road for runners and cyclist to use! It was so nice seeing families out riding bikes together, or just strolling down the street. The biking path ended at the Grand Plaza in front of the big Catholic church. Sunday is a market day, and the plaza was filled with food vendors, artisans, and a stage where they put on performances of regional dances. A terrific way to pass a Sunday morning.









Here is a link to a video of the dancing in the plaza. https://drivegoogle.com/file/d/0Bzqb0g33bQ4aSkhDRlk0RUU5aDQ/edit?usp=sharing