PUERTO ESCONDIDO AND STUFF

Our stay in Salina Cruz was short.  It was a very new hotel.  Very efficient and clean.   Our drive to Puerto Escondido was rather long because of the serpentine road and a few topes.  However we were here just a little after noon, checked in and Pete went for a swim.  I enjoyed sitting by the pool in the shade listening to the birds and watching them fly from palm tree to palm tree. We are at the Posada Real Puerto Escondido and we think it may be the place we stayed at 25 years ago. The town however is absolutely not the same in any way.  You just cant go back. 

Anyway the air is warm and a little humid.  We are close to the beach but it is down a cliff and seems far away although we can see it.  We drove into "town", there are plenty of restaurants and lots of people in the beach front area.  Too many for me today.  Maybe tomorrow early in the morning we will walk down and see what we can see.

We stopped at a restaurant "Paris" and had an early dinner as we have gotten used to eating only two meals a day.  I have to say that Mr. P looks great.  He has lost a bit of weight and has a light tan.   I on the other hand have only gotten more grey hair.  

So what we have fun.  On the way here we were joking about the fact that we are "undocumented" and will probably have self deport.  We hope that is all that happens but untill then we are "acting natural" whenever possible.  It is all a big mistake that WE MADE.  Not the first one in the 70or 80 years .  We are the old desperados continuing on our adventure. 

This evening is entirely worth being outlaws.  We are sitting here as the sun sets in the very mild and a bit humid air.  There is a very slight breeze.  Birds are chirping and making  pleasant noise.  People are sitting out near the edge of the property watching the sunset.  Children are quietly playing in the pool.  The restaurant behind us is readying for a late dinner.  Yep, it is so very pleasant.  We will remember this evening.

LEAVING SAN CRISTOBAL DE LAS CASAS

I know I have left out a lot about San Cristobal de las Casas.  We did so much.  The last couple of days were full.  The Kakaw Museum.  Told the history of chocolate and how it is and was used.  Chocolate or cacao comes in three types but they all have that hard outer shell which was one of the first vessels used for food and drink.  The beans and flower images were used in earrings, necklaces and other jewelry made out of jade in ancient Mayan times for those who could afford it.  The beans were used to trade for whatever you needed from rabbits to jade. 

We ordered a chocolate drink which was delicious but way, way too much chocolate.  We didn't eat again until 8 pm.

Yesterday, Thursday, our last day, we went on a trip to the Sumidero Canyon and boat ride.  We first looked down into the canyon from two view points taking photos, of course.  Then we drove down to the canyon floor where the river (lake now because of a dam) flowed.  After donning the required life preserver, we hopped in a boat along with about 10 other people.

It was spectacular with crocodiles, egrets, herons and we saw spider monkeys.  A geologist would just love the canyon sides.  Many colors and stripes of different rocks.  Some unusual formations from what might have once been a very large water fall.   The trip one way was about an hour.  The canyon walls were almost vertical and were about 3000 feet high. We had loaded up with sun screen and needed it.  Also put on bug spray and didn't need that.  Bugs love Pete.  Riding back was fun because we went really fast.  On the way  back the van stopped for what we thought was food, it was about 3:30, so we went and ate a little chicken mole.  Thank goodness we shared because that was not what was said.  The little town we stopped at was "mexican typical" and some of the people wanted to walk around the square, which was very large, and shop and look.  (First time our Spanish failed us.)  After stopping once again, this time for comida for real, so we ordered quesidillas and guacamole and limonada.  We weren't very hungry.  No one on the van spoke as much English as Pete spoke Spanish.  It worked out.This was the first tour that we took that had other people on it. All the other tours 5 or so we were the only participants.

Came back to the hotel and packed.  Also began to obsess about our illegality.  More about that later.  Checked out this morning after breakfast, drove through more mountains, up and down and around.  We drove at about 60 miles an hour for 45 minutes and there was constant windmills.  The wind was blowing so hard and constant it was sometimes difficult to stay on the road but those windmills must produce a huge amount of electricity. 

We are now in Salina Cruz, Oaxaca for the night

MORE PHOTOS

Alter in House at Zinacantan

More of Tonin



Tonin



MORE PHOTOS EL TAJIN



El Tajin

PHOTOS

 



Potter

This is at the Talevera Factory in Pueblo.  I was so very impressed with all of the workers and enjoyed this part of our trip 

T0NINA

Our trip to Tonina archeological site went through many small indigenous towns, over countless topes and around many curves up into the mountains and back down again to the jungle.  It took 3 hours driving and was worth it because after a short walk we came out of the trees and there was a huge building over 1300 years old.  There were alters and a wonderful ball court with a lot more seating than we have ever seen.  There are 13 temples and 4 palaces that they know of but the area still has a lot of excavating to be done.  It is a huge site and the temple has a lot of stairs.  I decided not to go all the way up but Pete did.  He found the bed room and the fact that they had a toilet that flushed. Observatory, throne, many other  departments all in one huge building. 
At its peak Tonina was dominant even over Palenque, even though Palenque is now more famoous because it was discovered and excavated earlier. The nearby town of Ocosingo bills itself as the "gateway to the Lacandon jungle", and the area grows lots of coffee, bananas, black goats, hairy pigs, and chickens all over the place.
The trip was exhausting,even though we were not driving. If we had gone to Palenque we woiuld have had to get up at 4 a.m., left at 5, and gotten back at ten at night. That would have been a miserable trip and we think the option which we picked was much wiser. Also we learned about a place that we knew nothing about, instead of viewing a place that we had already read a great deal about.



 

SAN CRISTOBAL de LAS CASAS




SHOE SHINE IN PUEBLA


SATURDAY IN SAN CRISTOBAL
Yesterday we had a tour of the city. It was in Spanish but that was okay I enjoyed seeing the people and everthing that was going on. There are many Indigenous people here and they have distintive clothing depending upon which village they come from. They are selling textiles, belts, amber, jade and wool items. From the very old to the youngest.
The city has two squares connected together by the church. There are other tourists here and we actually talked to a young man from Alaska. Otherwise, we think the tourists are from France and Germany etc. There are Mexican tourists here too.
We visited a jade Museum and the tour guide spoke English. There were examples of jade being worked in the pre Olmec culture. There were solid jade masks and the mosiac jade masks, there were very large jade necklaces which were found in the tombs. We were shown the different kinds of jade and where it comes from. Chiapas has a lot of jade and lots and lots of amber.
San Cristobal has the best coffee so far. For lunch we shared a torta and I had a latte, Pete had a frappe.
It is chilly in the mornings here but by 1 or 2 it is nice and warm in the sun. In the shade it is very comfortable. Headed back to our hotel and tried in vain to get a good internet connection.
Dinner is served at 8 pm (a little late for us) but we have an all inclusive so we waited. It was our first dinner and was great. Fish wrapped in banana leaves and rice. Before the main course we had a plate of wonderful appetizers - tapas - and after we had a small dessert of apple crumble. All of it served with the greatest of care and beautiful presentation.

SUNDAY TOUR OF INDIGENOUS TOWNS FIRST ZINACANTAN
This morning after a nice breakfast we were driven to two Indian villages. They are both higher in the mountains than San Cristobal. The first village was Zinacantan. In order for tourists to come in, the driver had to buy us a ticket. The man in the booth was suspicious because there were only the two of us and he had to check for himself. The people there speak Tzotzin and very few speak Spanish. In this village the women wore very elaborate blouses and skirts made of goat wool (fuzzy and black). They wear capes over their blouses. Some of the skirts are also elaboratly embroidered. They are using a lot of shiney threads and some beads too. It is Sunday so most were dressed in their best. Not many of the men seem to keep up the costume tradition but all of the women and children do. In Zinacantan the men raise flowers. I saw an impressive number of covered "green houses". We went into the home of a family that makes textiles. We were shown some of the different outfits that are worn for special occassions such as weddings. Saw the woman sitting on the floor weaving the cloth which our guide said would take 1 week. It would have taken me a month or more. Then the cloth is hand embroidered in many designs and colors which takes another week? I bought a table runner and napkins. The members of this family was very small in stature. The woman invited us to her kitchen and made tortillas for us which we filled with cheese and a meal made from squash. There were also beans and some other fillings. It was a large room, she sat on the floor but it there were many small wooden chairs stacked in the room so she may feed a lot of people there. We were allowed to take photographs in this village even of the people. But we asked and some said no.

SAN JUAN CHAMULA

In this village they also spoke Tzotzin. There are about 30,000 inhabitants in this community. We first saw the cemetary which was interesting because according to who you are or how old you are, the cross on the grave is a different color. Black for adults, white for babies and other colors for young men and young women. Many other colors for other catagories of people. Each grave had a pine bough and flowers too. Saw some fresh boughs.
Then we parked near the church. The square was crowded with 98% women. They were congregated in lines - long lines. We found out that they were lined up to get their money given by the government. The government gives these people lots of help. The town is nice with nice houses and healthy looking people.
Our guide bought us tickets to go inside the church. No photographs were allowed in the church and the people did not want their picture taken at all. Since it is Sunday there were people worshiping. The floor was covered with fresh pine needles (slippery). Candles were ablaze everywhere. All sizes and types of candles each of which have a different significance. There were no pews or chairs. People sat on the floor or stood. The priest was handing out large bouquets of flowers to women mostly. Then they formed a parade with the priest, a man carrying a wooded Jesus, a woman with an incense burner burning copal and then the long line of women and some men carrying the bouquets of chrysanthmuns. They were followed by a band which was made up of an accordian, a tuba, a drum and a guitar. They marched out of the church and into the town. Fireworks went off as they progressed.
We were talked into buying a small wool purse from Gloria who asked my name when she first saw me and I said no but she said maybe later and sure enough she remembered my name and sold me the purse later. Also bought a necklace. Well, what are you gonna do?
We were able to take photographs of the outside of the church. Sure hope I can manage to get some on this blog at some point.
Tomorrow we go to Tonina, an newer archeological site. We have chosen not to go to Palenque because the trip there takes 6 hours one way, so we would have to get up at 4 am and wouldn't return 10 pm. To much for us old folks no matter how much we would like to see it.

Later.....












FORTIN TO COATZACOALCOS THEN SAN CRISTOBAL DE LAS CASAS

We had a short trip from Fortin to our hotel in Coatz.....but I saw pineapples and coffee plantations. Of course the sugar cane everywhere. We left the highlands, went to the coast again on our way to San Cristobal de las Casas. We were on good toll roads but they were working on them about every mile or so. We were stopped once by the Federales but they just waved us on. We began to climb again into the misty high mountains, very beautiful, a high jungle.

At 11:45am we were stopped, outside of Tuxtla Gutierrez, in a long long line of traffic as far as we could see trucks and cars. We were told to back up and turn around and so Pete had to back up with large trailer trucks on either side. Then we turned and drove, along with the other cars, in the wrong direction on the highway. We were directed off and on to a dirt road in order to get all the way around the city and the disturbance. The dirt road scene was priceless. All of the residents came out and gave directions, waved us on along with their wives, children and dogs to help. It took a while but we finally got back on our way.

A few miles down the highway we came to a toll booth. There was a policeman there warning everyone about something that was happening in San Cristobal. We couldn't understand exactly what so we went on. About an hour later as we neared the outskirts of San Cristobal we again encountered this massive backup. Pete finally asked and found out that it was a teachers strike or demonstration and that's what the other problem was too. We heard the music, saw people watching and waited for about an hour for the speeches to be over. We drove on witnessing the truck drivers honking in support of the teachers. Wouldn't have missed it for anything. Chiapas is known for it's labor demos and protests.

San Cristobal is beautiful, clean and somewhat sophisticated. There are more tourists here than we have seen all trip. We found our hotel with our taxi trick. They greeted us and said we would be upgraded to another hotel. Well, okay. A map. We found it The hotel Escalera! Now, escalera means ..stairs...62 of them in this altitude! After the first trip up and down, no hand rails, I have gotten used to it so no problem. We do have a wonderfully large suite with a view of the city. If my sister in law reads this I will ask her to recall our hotel in San Miguel de Allende twenty years ago.

We tour the city tomorrow. I think we are gonna love it,

OUR UNEXPECTED PLEASURE

Walking back to the hotel from our noon coffee, a gentleman asked if we spoke English and introduced himself to us. He is Jose and he once worked at Anthony's in Kirkland. Only a few months because he missed his wife and family. His English is quite good. This is Ash Wednesday and even though he would be celebrating with his family, he generously invited us to his home. We met his lovely wife, his beautiful daughter who is going to university, and two of his cousins. I can't think of a better way to end our visit here in Fortin de las Flores. Jose and his family and warm welcome symbolize the goodness of the Mexican people. Thank you Jose.

Tomorrow we leave Fortin to continue our adventures in the state of Chiapas!

MEXICO MISCELLANEOUS by PETE

YANGA
Some random thoughts from Pete about the area around Cordoba. First, that Yanga was founded over 400 years ago by free blacks--former slaves of African descent. Shakespeare was still writing in 1608. And Yanga was a real man, the leader and organizer whose image is prominent in the large mural in the Cordoba city hall. So their claim is likely accurate that Yanga is the first town in the Americas that was founded by free Africans.

TOXPAN
Now, what was special to me about our tour of the 2,500 year old ruins of Toxpan is that the pyramids and ball court have not yet been excavated. They are still covered with grass and brush, so we got to see and climb on something that looks like all the other sites looked when the explorers and archeologist first saw them. You have to use your imagination in a different way. Of course, with any other ruin you still have to use your mind's eye to picture how the pyramids looked when they were covered with plaster and brightly painted, in the midst of a throng of people going about their daily business.

SPANISH
My Spanish is not good enough to understand most of what people say to me. Not only does it come at me too fast, but the accents vary. Much is elided. It is the same at home, where most conversation involves lots of gonnas and consonants, vowels,and whole syllables are regularly elided. Of course some people speak more slowly and clearly. For example my tocayo, Pedro, works as the bartender here. By the way, a tocayo is someone who shares the same name, which is a sort of a bond. Anyway, Pedro speaks no English, but his Spanish is so easy to understand that he can tell me what someone else is trying to tell me. In effect he is my translator.

CORDOBA SURPRISE

Cordoba is a city near Fortin de las Flores. Today we had a tour which was sponsored by the City of Cordoba and free to us. We were extremly surprised and delighted to have a tour of an archeological site that we had not known about. TOXPAN!! This site has only the road excavated so far but we climbed one hill which was obviously a pyramid. There are twenty pyramids and one ball court. The site is Olmec and dated back 2400 years. They are planning to excavate only a few of the buildings but the going is difficult because of red tape really. The federal government owned it until recently when the gave it to the university and the university doesn't have the money or the interest.

The Olmecs came because of the obsidian which is found nearby at Orizaba mountain. Orizaba peak is over 18000 feet high and is the highest mountain in Mexico.

Cordoba was founded in 1618. It is famous for sugar, coffee and many other products. The zocolo is large and beautiful. There are several churches, of course, but the one in the town square is blue. We skipped the tour of the church. We did go to visit a cancel making factory which has been in business in the same building for 90 years.

There are people who live high in the mountains who sell handcrafts so of course I bought a pot. They still speak Nahuatl which was spoken by the Aztecs.

We were told about the town of Yanga which is near here too. It was founded in 1607 or 1608 by slaves or escaped slaves of African decent (known as cimarrones). Their leader was named Yanga which means king. It was the first free settlement in Mexico.

Cordoba is very proud if it's history and have records of almost everything that has happened in the past 300 years. We were privileged to see the archives.

It was a candle factory.

FORTIN DE LAS FLORES

We have been here for 4days surviving on Pete's Spanish and the wonderful good will of the people of this town. Not much English spoken here.
On Friday we walked ro the square. There was a large canopy set up with about 400 people seated under it. In the front were three very important people. In the front several rows there were probably 100 or more brides and grooms. Some attired with fancy wedding dresses and suits, others less dressed up BUT all of the women had white veils which were cAught up in their hair and trailed down mid back. All the same. Each couple was called up, given a paper and a gift and the crowd applauded. After, the mayor had cake A drink and music. There were old couples, really young couples (with children) and, of course, pregnant girls. These weddings are free and unlike those in the church they don't require the families to entertain.
Yesterday, we walked to the flower market and again to the square to see what was going on. We were too late to see the buff young men and women performing a Zumba routine but we were entertained by four young people doing Spanish dances. One dance with glasses balanced on the heads of the dancer. They were excellent but had a small audience.
We managed to find a lavanderia and will pick up tomorrow after our tour around the area towns which is gratis by the hotel.
Today,Sunday, the hotel has a buffet comida in the afternoon so we will see if this big meal brings more people to the hotel.
My Acer computer really has died now I think so no photos.

TALAVERA POTTERY FROM PUEBLA


In Puebla we walked about 4 long blocks in the morning to the Talavera Factory in Casa Uriart. The Uriart family started making pottery in 1824 and has operated here since. We had a private tour Given by an English speaking guide.
We were shown and explained the stages a piece goes through. All of the clay materials and the pigments come from the Puebla area with one exception and that is the cobalt blue which comes from Africa.



t;/ We saw the colors being made in very large mixing bowls.  Really big.  Saw the cobalt blue in the form it comes and how the crush it and make the paint.  She explained that even the smallest item made has to have the logo and Talavera date etc.  One woman does this writing on the bottom of all of the pieces all day.  The brushes are made from mule hair.  We saw potters making lids for large and medium sized jars.  The oven from 1824 is there but they have a modern one now.  We saw the glazing, drying, smoothing and painting.  Then we saw their inventory of stock.  It was a grand tour and I loved it.  Pete took fantastic shots which I hope to include someday.

We also visited another museum but didn't stay long.  By the time we sat down for coffee, we had been walking for about 3 hours. 

Then we sat in the zocalo for a while and watched the children and the pigeons.  We filled our pockets once again with pesos in preparation for leaving tomorrow. 

Fortin de las Flores is next on the schedule.

VARIOUS PHOTOS




OATMAN

 



ELONGATED AND DEFORMED SKULLS



PUEBLA

We had an excellent trip from Xalapa to Puebla. We were on cuotas (toll roads)the entire way until we were very close to the city. This time we found the hotel by asking questions and following directions. It wasn't easy because there are many one way streets and even though we were only a block or two away from it we had to go around the zocalo at least

twice before we found it and found a parking lot. When we first asked no one knew the hotel by name but at one point Pete got out of the car and asked a lovely young senorita and before you knew it there were 4 others of all ages and conditions (one had crutches) offering to help and pointing and having him repeat the directions they gave. Oh how I wish I had a video of that. So anyway we were a little concerned what had we booked?

We walked in to a lovely little coffee shop with many very large portrait paintings of composers. The reception desk was small with a beautiful young man who spoke English. He explained that our room was "Chopin" and that each of the rooms were named for composers of classical music. We were shown to our room which was very modern and he gave us an ipod of music to play. The halls are decorated with paintings on each floor and the rooms open up to several sitting rooms which are so beautiful. Pete was a happy camper.

The walk to the zocalo was only a block and a half of the most gorgeous architecture and beautiful colors of houses. The zocalo historico is large, all around are businesses and open air restaurants. It was filled with happy families. We walked thru one shopping area which reminded us of Brussels. Beautiful arcades with everything you would ever want to buy. And people watching is delightful.

There are many, many churches just in the historic center. We walked until I started complaining because I had not hydrated enough and the altitude is 7000 feet here even if it is flat. Altitude affects me probably because I was born below sea level (Washington,DC) or just maybe because I smoked. Maybe....

Our dinner was at a restaurant on the zocalo. I had mole pablono enchilades and Pete had a Huitlacoche (corn smut) pizza. He said it was delicious, my enchilades certainly were.

TUESDAY
Pueblo was established in 1531 and has played a large role in the history of Mexico. We visited the home of Aguila Serdan. The casas de los hermanos Serdan which is where the 1910 revolution began. The Serdan brothers were supporters of the people who were against the Porfirio Diaz dictatorship. The house still has the holes in the inside and outside walls showing the massive fight that went on.

On one of our walks, we were accosted by 6 young girls and asked if we spoke English. This is, I think, the second or third time this has happened. I wonder how they know. Anyway, we had a good time answering questions they asked in English - for their home work.

Off we went on a double decker tour bus....all over the area. Our tour was probably over an hour with earphone in English for me and Pete listened to the Spanish but they didn't charge anything. A nice service.

That deserved a good cup of coffee and since an establishment had been recommended by none other than our esteemed friends who preceded us here, we sought it out. Much deserved excellent coffee.

This is a wonderful city. Easy to get acquainted with. Lots of history. The buildings are magnificent and the people are so very beautiful and friendly.

(I wish I knew what is once again bugging my machine against uploading photos.)

OLMEC MUSEO DE ANTHROPOLOGIA IN XALAPA

Today we went back in time from El Tajin to the Olmec Culture which was from 1200 to 600 bc or so. This was the mother culture of Mexican civilizations and it existed long before the flowering of Greece or Rome.

This museum is second only to the one in Mexico City so they say but we enjoyed it even more than
that.  The layout leads you from one thing to another in a very logical way.  Of course, some or maybe most of the sculptures are so gigantic that they are out in the open and not behind glass. 

You have probably seem photos of the humoungous heads weighing many tons.  Well, up close they are most impressive.  We learned a lot about their way of life and some of their customs.  Especially interesting was the practice of skinning their sacrifices and wearing the skin.  (Ugh)  To me it seemed as if most of the sculpture and ceramic depictions were of women.  Maybe some parts were left off of some of the statues.  If a sculpture has closed eyes it means that the person is dead.  There were several sculptures of women who died in child birth.  Most of them looked to be very young. 

The paintings on the walls of the houses were interesting because one exhibit showed how they would paint a wall and then replaster and paint another picture over it and so forth.  (A practice I imagined I thought of myself.)  Some of the colors are still visible which is so amazing.  There were painting schools as was shown in a sculpture of a teacher and among the artifacts were brushes, paint pots etc. 

These pieces came from all over Veracruz and elsewhere but the state of Veracruz is the source of so many pieces.  There is so much of this sort of history here.

After a while they began to add terracotta pieces which are very detailed and intricate.  There are bowls, musical instruments, smiling faces (I'm sure you have seen.) toys for children.  By the way the toys had wheels but wheels were not used for every day life yet.  There was a beautiful funerary urn.  I have photos and hope to be able to add them here.

We stay three hours and took a taxi back to the hotel. 
Tomorrow we scout out on our own.

PHOTOS CLUB MAEVA IN TAMPICO

PHOTOS AT LAST

EL TAJIN



EL TAJIN



INTREPID TRAVELERS

POZA RICA TO XALAPA TRIP

Our route today took up very close to the Gulf Coast again.  We could see the waves from the highway.  The way was dotted with seaside type hotels, spas, large homes and many restaurants.  Some very beautiful and grand homes at the seashore.

I won't say another thing about the roads, the pot holes, the highways, the topes or the unpaved roads.  It is what it is and today was better because we were on cuotas part of the way.So we saw our first good roads today.

Again we were astonished by the tons and tons of oranges and tangerines.  We saw banana farms and I noticed that the stalks of bananas are wrapped on the trees.  There were trees in bloom and I don't know what they were they were wild but looked like a pink cherry blossom.  There were also yellow blossoms and white blossoms dotting the hills around.  The red flame tree was in bloom too. 

So we had a very easy drive today until we reached town.  Then again our GPS let us down and took us into the barrios because she didn't know where our hotel was.  So we did our trick and stopped and talked to some taxi drivers.  (They may have been a little barracho (drunk) but they finally understood what we wanted.)  All of them hopped in the taxi and we followed them back through the outlaying district into the centro where lo and behold there is a brand new HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS.  It wasn't on the GPS yet I guess.  Those few minutes of driving in the crowded narrow streets were the most tiring part but we made it.

Tomorrow we will take a cab to the museum and since we don't need a city tour we will see what is up for Sunday. 

EL TAJIN AND THE PYRAMID OF THE NICHES

We took off on another trip to find El Tajin.  The map gave us great directions and we managed to get there avoiding all of the pot holes. AND IT IS MAGNIFICENT!!!!    A very large area.  A big center of trade and culture from



PYRAMID OF NICHES AT EL TAJIN

 300 AD to 1200 AD.  We had an excellent guide - Juan Angel - another Juan.  He told us so much about the site, the excations and about the people it would be impossible to remember it all.

There are over 20 ball courts in this site. The central area with four great pyramids were used for ceremonies. Just outside the ceremonial area were the houses for the upper class, then the common folk and high up on a hill the ruler lived. That was so he could have a view of everything. He and his family were the only ones who were priviledged to know the calendar. So that if he said the rainy season is coming you need to plant or plow or whatever, and the rain did come then they would be in wonder. The site was abandoned by the Totonac Indians when the climate changed and there were tremendous rains that flooded everything. It rains 83 inches a year now so it was a big rain. They retreated to higher ground leaving only a few behind. Those few were unable to maintain the site and left also. They came back later but decided not to stay. There are Totonac Indians in the area now and our guide was Totonac. He was an archeologist also. Lots of information.

I have many photos but you know about this blog and photos or this computer - they won't download. As in any county or tourist site, the way in is lined with food and things to buy. The sellers were Totonac Indians.

When we first arrived we parked by a motorhome with California tags and Pete began to speak English, that didn't work, so he tried Spanish. They called for someone inside and out came a woman who spoke English with a French accent. These were three motor homes of French young people who were traveling Mexico and had been at El Tajin about a month and a half.

So we still haven't met any Americans since we got into the country. To put it another way, this sure ain't gringo Mexico.

Our stay in the LaQuinta was delightful with a nice hot shower.

XILITLA TO POZA RICA A LONG HAUL

Yesterday was our longest and slowest drive yet. We were on the road for 8 hours. Maximum speed 45 mph but mostly slower because of the pot holes and the fact that some of the roads were not paved or paved with stones. It was not unusual to see a car coming head-on in our lane in order to escape the holes so we did that too. There are no direct routes from where we were to Poza Rica so up and down mountains, in and out of tiny towns which all have at least one Tope. Pete was once known as a driving fool (affectionately) and he is adding esteem in my book.
Nevertheless we were never bored. The small towns were active and had typical chickens, Pigs, dogs, cows, and burros munching just next to the road. People walk all the time everywhere. They sell all kinds of fruit and veggies and drinks from roadside stands. We were able to see children of all ages being walked to school and later picked up from school. Thereare lots of children and they are well cared for usually.
We really enjoyed the experience. Then when we finally arrived at Poza Rica, our wonderful GPS (Juanita) disappointed us because our hotel was so new it wasn't on the map. For about 15 minutes we followed the directions and then we resorted to our old trick (remember Joan) of asking a Taxi to lead us there. We were close but would never have found it.
LaQuinta, new and very plush for us. Nice choice if you ever come this way.

TUESDAY AT XILITLA AND LAS POZAS

Continental breakfast at Posada el Castillo and then to the long awaited Las Pozas sculpture gardens. We drove straight downhill, a very steep hill, turned left and entered an unpaved road for a mile or ao. We had seen photos and read about Edward James surreal sculptures in the jungle but nothing could compare to walking through and experiencing them in person. The art works themselves are tremendous in size and surreal in placement. This is a wonderfully fecund land. Everything grows and it grows big and beautiful - jungle beautiful. So when you come up a long staircase (with no handrails) and around a corner and see tall sculptural erections of all kinds, shapes, it is awesome. Who thought of this? Why? How where these concrete buildings with stairs leading to only the sky, built? Walk and walk, up and up on stone stairs and there are castles, dreamscapes of concrete and stone. Finally you reach an immense water fall which has been gently massaged by Edward to form lovely clear pools at the bottom. I can't describe how the vegetation has enhanced all of the works. It is truly amazing and I only wish we could be here in the spring when all of the thousands of orchids are in bloom not to mention the blooms of all of the other plants and trees. This is in the jungle but in the mountains.
We climbed up and down as much as our legs could go and then drove to a recommended little restaurant over a dirt road. The name is Cebolla. There we met Mr James cook. She started working for him at age 15, her husband who was Edward James driver and young Miguel their son. Miguel spoke perfect English and regaled us with stories of Edward James. Miguel and his family lived in the gardens when he was young. I asked
how the massive project was accomplished. He told me it took up to 150 workers every day for 20 years and of course, Edward died before it was finished. I don't suppose he ever would have been finished anyway. He certainly left a wonderful legacy for numerous families and actually the whole town.

We probably gave you the impression that we left Seattle for warmer climes didn't we? Well, that hasn't happened so far. We believe Seattle has had almost as warm temps as we have encountered thus far. BUT we have certainly scored on the excellent adventures! The trip has been a blast! We are loving it.

Later.......I have to tell you about the birds.

MONDAY FROM TAMPICO TO XILITLA

We checked out this morning on a very overcast but warm day for what we had been warned was a trip of about 150 miles on rough road. It was 66 degrees and people had their heavy parkas on. We programed our GPS to our destination and it really paid off in navigating through Madero and Tampico. Some of the first part was very picturesque in a sort of Mexican Aurora Avenue way. Soon we again came to the large farms of sugar cane, cattle ranches interspersed with the typical tiny villages. Each village had speed bumps (topes) that were meant to slow traffic but the pot holes in the road had accomplished that.
After being in the sand, sun and wind of the shore, we drove on into a veritable jungle with mist and lush growth. We saw villages which were one plant nursery after another with what we would consider exotic indoor plants for sale.
The land becomes marshy in areas and access to waterways is frequent. Lots of scrimp for sale. And oranges,,, I have never seen so many and probably never will again. At one spot in the road there must have been 100 large trucks loaded to the top with oranges. And they have to travel over that two lane pot holed road. Other trucks were laden with sugar cane to be processed that is if they didn't topple over.
As we begin to climb there is light rain like we used to have in Seattle. We really didn't realize that Xilitla was as high as it is. It is in the Huasteca mountains. As we drove on the winding road going higher and higher, we could make out through the mist beautiful vistas of steep cliffs and deep canyons. We are hoping that it is clearer when we drive out in a couple of days for we can imagine the amazingly spectacular scenery.
Our GPS was accurate and brought us to this most wonderfully different town of Xilitla!!!!! At first it kind of gives you a feeling of unreal or surreal. Turn the corner into the town and meet head on another car - have to back up, drive forward while another car waits - all on an extremely extremely steep road. Fun once you get used to it. Of course I wasn't driving.
Our hotel, Posada el Castillo, was the home of Edward James, http://www.laspozasxilitla.org.mx/en . An interesting character, descent of English royalty and surrealist. We will visit his sculpture garden (HEY! THE ELECTRICITY JUST WENT OUT HERE IN THE HOTEL)!!!!! tomorrow. (electricity on now)
So we find our hotel easier than a parking space, I stay in the car in a no parking spot while Pete checks in. If you read the history of this place you will know that Edward James had a Mexican friend. That friend built this house and Edward James became a member of his family and vice versa. Louisa, is the granddaughter of that man and runs this house that is now a hotel. Our room is supposed to be Edward James old room. It is modest with tall elaborate windows, an interesting wrought iron door to the tiny bathroom, a double bed, an easy chair and several tables. An interesting surreal part of the decor is a wooden table and two chairs located on a ledge which is about 11 feet from the floor and above the bathroom. The table has a beautiful cloth and a decorative basket on it.
We walked up the street to the plaza. By up I mean up about twenty stone steps straight up. Many of the streets are stairways. We had the most delicious late lunch. Best food yet!!!!! Back to the hotel because we are a bit tired and are saving our energy for tomorrow.

END FOR NOW.

FRIDAY, SATURDAY AND SUPER BOWL

Well, we used the last few days to slowly book the next phase, sit in the sun and scout out the lavanderia. Club Maeva is such an easy place to be. We love the families that checked in for a long weekend. We even had some fellow Americans here for a day. They live and work in the area. I don't know why the little girls seem so darling. I think it is because they start walking around wherever when they are very young, dressed up and out going.
SUNDAY - We admired all of the people young and not so young who came to the beach early in the morning to run, walk, bicycle or skate. There seems to be good attitudes toward exercise and we didn't see any overweight people. Very health conscious.
By the way, I ran out of my med for my arthritic back (I knew I would),so I went to a Farmacia and just asked for it. They had it, no problem. Cost for over a month approximately $12 US. Just about the same as I would have to copay with my insurance.
THE SUPERBOWL!!!!!!! The hotel arranged to have it on their big screens and although it was announced in Spanish we followed it very well. We had some other people watching with is who felt sorry for us when that pass was intercepted. Oh well, .....

Next our road trip to Xilitla,