Richard's Travel Blog

Guadalajara kind of grew on me. I can’t point of anything in particular. I think it’s a function of my lack of motivation to travel as long term as I have in the past. It is only a matter of time till I plunk down somewhere. As it is, I’m fine hanging out for at least a while wherever I am, almost. I could have stayed in Guadalajara. with 4 million people, as it certainly has everything. It’s not real crazy like Mexico City. A lot of it is fairly safe. The weather is good. I just liked it there, whether it was about Guadalajara or me, or both, doesn’t make any difference.

That said, I’m still on the move. Going is still at least as attractive as staying. Myung seems to be getting closer  to getting rid of the lease on her shop in Chongqing. She almost had a deal this week, but the guy backed out. When she eventually joins me (“eventually” is the key, unknown variable), I doubt she will want to backpack for long. So, my thinking is I may plunk down with her, maybe by the winter. If that’s coming, I don’t want to become stationary, then burn out on that and want to travel again, just as she gets here hoping not to travel for long. By waiting, we might be on the same page.

In most ways I can tell, Guadalajara isn’t all that special. It has appeal. I liked where I was staying. There are the usual majestic buildings….

… and plazas…

… street life …

… and interiors …

It’s been awhile since I cared about the names of the particular buildings, like the 19th century legislative chamber to the left, or even the particular local culture. Things like the mask dance above are interesting to watch. Do I need to know, much less remember, what they are? Not really. I enjoyed them in the moment. I’m going with what strikes my fancy day to day. The nice thing about a big city like Guadalajara is it’s busy with things to notice, and that occupies me.

I had a poster in my room when I was maybe 12. It was of Lucy from the old comic strip “Peanuts”. She is sitting in her 5 cent therapy booth, chin in hand. The caption is, “Who says you are supposed to accomplish anything? I thought you were just supposed to keep busy.” I think I’m satisfied with traveling because at least it’s better than watching 5 hours of TV a day or being a wage slave/tax donkey. For what, a perfect lawn? Personally, for me it’s a choice between bus fare to the next place or the latest Roundup applicator. My addiction is my computer. So, I can be a couch potato, a serious one at that sometimes. Now, almost all the places I stay in have wifi and a TV which often show American programs. I could pay almost as much for my internet/smartphone/TV in the US as I currently do on rent, without any contracts. Or do this. It’s a good life. I am glad, though, that I already satisfied my inner mommy by accomplishing stuff when I was younger.

Okay, people who know me know all this anyway, so back to the travelogue. I have a few pictures of an area of Guadalajara called Tlaquepaque. Guadalajarans like it because it’s a little quaint still, like old Mexico. Old Mexico is still old Mexico in most places, but this is right in town.

It’s interesting how big city people in most big cities in the world like to visit their roots. Tlaquepaque is where cosmopolitan Gaudalajarans go for the evening,, or even a weekend, to feel “at home”. Guadalajara is hardly a foreign tourist center, and most of the attractions and things going on are for Mexicans.

They may be all cool about it, like, “this is us”, but you can be sure Mexico is modernizing along the same path as the more developed counties. Chains and uniformity are taking over everything. Like Texans, Mexicans can be all hat and no cattle, for sure.

I don’t want to imply Tlaquepaque isn’t nice. It is, even if it’s become an upscale retreat. I was a little surprised when I left Guadalajara on my way toward the coast. Lonely Planet talked up a “charming” town in the mountains, Tapalpa. I said to myself, “Charming is good. I’m all about charming towns with cobblestone streets and preserved preserved historical centers. I’ll stop by there.” It’s three hours from Guadalajara, so I didn’t expect it to be a weekend retreat for Guadalajarans, but it is, and even more upscale. It is nice, but not particularly photo-worthy (not that my redundant photos are photo-worthy anymore). It is even more upscale that Tlaquepaque. I couldn’t find a hotel for less than 100 dollars/night anywhere near the center. I carried my pack for maybe two hours and down and all around. By then I felt like I had seen it all before, so I just went back to the bus stop and continued on to Colima.

I don’t generally like to get into a city after dark, but hostelworld.com had a good looking hostel with plenty of vacancy. Mexico can be very sketchy at night, so I just showed up there via taxi from the bus station. And here  am.

I don’t know how long I will stay in Colima. It’s a pleasant capital of Mexico’s smallest state by the same name, with a population of about 140,000. It’s not sketchy and the people seem really nice. I’m not in that big a hurry and I really like this hostel I’m staying, so maybe I’ll just hang out for a while. Somewhere near the end or shortly after, I’ll blog about it. Till then, be well, all of you.

Hi again. Greetings from Guadalajara. I got here yesterday after about a week in Zacatecas and a town of about 40,000 an hours south of there, Jerez.

Zacatecas is a pretty good town. It’s nothing to write home about, though here I am writing home about it. What’s to say? Let’s see. It’s got it’s own character. Though it’s mostly urbane, the area around is cowboy county. It’s at about 2600 meters elevation, on the edge of what becomes increasingly desert as you go north. It’s still cool, with the highs in the teens and 20’s centigrade, and no mosquitoes. That alone makes it worth visiting. Things to see? Well, it’s got an extensive historical district with stuff like you’ve been looking at on this blog, and a famous mine which was in operation for 450 years. Other than checking that out, I just soaked up the goings on.

I stayed at the only hostel I know of in town. It was just fine, with a kitchen which I like so I don’t have to buy food at restaurants. My roommates were quiet. The wifi was okay. I don’t need much. There was a nice roof terrace.

And it is located right behind the cathedral in the center of town. Here the back of the cathedral view from terrace.

Here’s a nice feature on the front of the cathedral.

The mine is right in the mountain in the background there. It’s proximity to the city is one reason it was closed. The noise and waste just didn’t go with  the modern city. I went on a tour of the mine, but there were no good photo ops. Too dark. Like in Bolivia, it’s no wonder the average miner for most of that 450 years lived to be about 35. Of course, in Bolivia, they still only live till 35. This mine tour was nothing like that one. Whew, that one was tough, up and down through narrow passages, coming across miners chopping away. This one only went on the main, flat passages.

Zacatecas had the most music of anywhere I’ve been. In at least four areas just in the nearby center, there was live music and people singing and dancing well into the night.

On top of that, there are elections on Tuesday. The candidates get a crowd by putting on a show. If there is music, Mexicans will gravitate toward it every time.

I know y’all are into rodeo. One day I went with three hostel-mates to a semi-big rodeo. There were only two events, women’s barrel racing and men’s bull riding. The women were locals. The guys were professionals, mostly from all over northern Mexico. There was even a Brazilian and an American. The barrel racing was boring.

That particular contestant fell off her horse, landed hard, picked herself up and started crying. Here the cowboys are consoling her. I guess even cowgirls get the blues.

Before the bull riding event, the riders were introduced, then there was a moment of prayer. Maybe not a bad idea. I saw a TV show in China that was nothing but fatal rodeo accidents. It was gruesome, like Jackass for real.

Here are some random pics.

I got some nice smiles for being so out of place looking there, but I am a city guy and definitely not from there.

Back in the city… After going on that mine tour, there’s a gondola ride to the hilltop opposite the city below, up behind the center. I went on that and walked down.

Here’s the view from the gondola.

For me, the best site in Zacatecas is a partially restored 17th century convent. Parts are as they are, that is, ruins. Part is an amazing mask museum.

I probably should have taken pictures of the 1000-some masks. Or maybe photography wasn’t allowed. Maybe that’s it. I can’t remember. Anyway, here was the entrance to the exhibit. This area was very nice inside.

There is a pretty courtyard. While I was there, a wedding was getting started. What a nice place to get hitched! It must cost a pretty penny to rent that.

This brings me to the end of Zacatecas. My next major stop was Guadalajara, but Lonely Planet had a boxed spiel about Jerez, about an hour down the road to Guadalajara. LP called it “charming” and “as Mexican as tortilla”. I stopped there, thinking I could kill an afternoon and continue on. It was charming and I stayed two nights.

I figured it would be tranquil compared to Zacatecas, but the first night was an election show, though this one was more traditional music as befitted the populace there. Jerez seems to be a PRI stronghold

I just have one more picture I’d like to share. When Myung and I were in Korea, we got real, fresh honey. 95% of Chinese honey is drastically watered down and expensive. They have real honey in Mexico. A guy on the street in Jerez was heating a honey comb so it would drip into a container. Yum! This is the real deal.

So, now I’m in Guadalajara, a village of 4 million people. Some people asked me why I would want to go there, implying it didn’t have anything to offer. I like it so far, though. I think I will stay a few days.

Talk to you later. Be well, all of you,

This is Callejon del Besos, Alley of Kisses. Legend has it that the daughter of a wealthy man fell in love with a common miner. When her father discovered this, he forbid them from seeing each other. In order for the young man to see his beloved, he rented the room across the alley, only 68 inches (200 cm) wide. So close, they could exchange kisses and touch. The father discovered them together and it ends in tragedy. He knifes his daughter in the heart and the miner dives to his death down a mine shaft.

Some say Guanajuato is the most romantic city in Mexico. The custom, repeated all day and night by Mexican and foreign couples alike, is to kiss on the third step, the narrowest point. This  promises seven years of happiness together. If a couple passes this spot without kissing, they will have seven years of bad luck.

With this, I am done with Guanajuato, at least for now. It’s been great hanging out in this nice, quiet hostel. I get so impatient with partying backpackers now. Yes, they are mostly young and want to have fun, but I’m taking the laid back lodgings every time I can.  My perfect day is doing something for a few hours and chilling. This has been especially good because I have had a big, airy dorm room with a view all to myself.

But, I’ve run out of things I want to do here and am going to Zacatecas tomorrow. I’ll post from there, of course. Until then …

I’ve been here in Guanajuato for, I think, five days, and it’s still good. I like this mellow hostel, plus all but one night I’ve had this big room to myself. So far, there hasn’t been any difficulty finding something to do. I thought I’d go back into diary mode and just show you where I went. These places and pictures wouldn’t have merited posting back when I was lazy about doing it or there was no way for extended periods, but I liked the places okay.

Right in town is a garden called San Gabriel de Barrera.

I thought is was nicer in person than my pictures indicate. Just imagine walking around in here for a couple of hours. There was no one else at all there, so it was tranquil.

I thought this stained glass window was nice,then I went around outside and circled back to it. It was even nicer from the outside.

A couple more…

The hotel part is probably nice on the inside.

In the hills just out of town was an old mine. Many metals  were taken out of it from the late late 16th to late 19th century. It was of passing interest, but here is how it looks on the surface where visitors are allowed to go.

Visitors can’t go down the entrance.

There’s a view of Guanajuato from up there.

The day before yesterday was a fiesta before the opening of the floodgates on the dam in about two weeks. I’m told they do that to wash out the Guanajuato River bed. I’d like to see that, actually, but I doubt I’ll be here that long. The fiesta ringed the reservoir and had carnival stuff like rides, food and hawkers. there was also tons of music,including overlapping electric groups.

I wandered around there for about three hours till I was bored. A lot of Mexicans love boxing. there was an exhibition scheduled for the evening, but I didn’t stick around for it.

Other than that, it’s been mostly wandering around or hanging out at the hostel with my computer, like now. The music school has an opera performance tonight at the Teatro Principal. It’ll probably be okay, considering they are students. For 3 dollars, what have I got to lose?

Later….
Well, that could have been better. It was an hour of snippets of famous operas. A couple of the soloists weren’t awful. I was hoping the university orchestra would be there, but there was just a student pianist. Oh, the chorus! “Weak” would be flattering.

The owner of this hostel asked me how long I am staying. I committed to two more nights. Maybe it will be time to go then. Meanwhile, hasta luego.

Guanajuato is a lovely city. I wonder how San Miguel de Allende became the favorite of expats? There is nothing I saw in San Miguel that doesn’t seem nicer here. It’s prettier, much more photogenic, and just as sophisticated. I’m considering adding this to my short list of where I could plunk down.

Guanajuato is almost all up and down, so as the city bus wound down to the center, it was hard to see what Guanajuato is like. I kind of don’t like cities where I can’t get the lay of the land on the way in. The hostel I booked said it was above and away from the noisy center, and the pictures on it’s webpage looked like you could see around from it. This did turn out to be the case. From up high, one gets a better idea how Guanajuato is laid out. Here are pictures from the terrace outside my door.

This is a great town for wandering. Due to it’s maze of crooked alleys and streets, wander you do. I’ve gotten lost and unlost several times already. Let’s go for a walk.

You go down a footpath, then a couple of little streets until you get to this corner.

That fountain was my landmark the first day, or I don’t think I would have remembered which street to take up to my place. If you stick to one of the two main streets from there and not into the warren of alleys, you continue to go down until you hit the main plaza. This is the weekend, so it’s been busy down there. There’s a shady, triangular park…

Actually, on the walk I took today, this was where I ended up after about four hours. I sat on one of those benches on the right and listened to this band behind me serenade the diners.

Here is the scene around the outside of the shady area.

If you look down the right side of that theater, you look down what used to be vehicle access to the Subterranea Padre Miguel Hidalgo. See the headlights down there? The cars make a left and go underneath. Nowadays, that way is one of many pedestrian access points to a one-way road in what was the Guanajuato River before the river was diverted in 1905 after it flooded the city. This tour is all out of sequence from the walk I took, but let’s go down there, anyway. Here’s one end…

Then it goes like this. I don’t have any pictures that show how it’s really a pretty walk, photogenic is some places. Of course, I couldn’t capture it.

You look up at these funky homes and stuff.

After walking that for a while, I came out in a neighborhood area.

Then I came around toward the center…

… where there were even more people than when I left.

A cute thing was these guys who made themselves up like they were made of copper. They mimed and posed for pictures.

This guy has a little hose behind him. See? So, he is sitting there continuously pouring a drink. Pretty cool live fountain. I didn’t move quick enough to get a picture of him handing one of the carnations, tin man-like, to a little girl.

It was at that point I sat on the bench and listened to the band in the restaurant I was telling you about. After that, it was about 4 o’clock and I was a little hungry. I started back toward the hostel and grabbed a slice of pizza, thinking I’d make some spaghetti I have in the kitchen. On the way up the hill, I passes this chic tea house/bar/restaurant in front of which I had seen a sign saying there was live jazz from 11-5. At noon there was no music, so I went on the walk. On the way back, I could hear it on the street, so I went in and gave myself my weekly treat. There was a little table on the little balcony next to the drummer. Here are the views to the left and right, and of the dudes. They were good, especially the bass player.

Music is a big deal in Guanajuato. There is a music school here. Students and guest artists from all over put on frequent shows at the many venues. There is something just about every night, and usually two, three or four programs on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. The first evening I got here, I went to a piano and oboe recital in a room next to where this jazz was. There is a school symphony, a ballet company, voice, and a serious folklorico department. The environment attracts musical and other artists, not to mention money, to town. This is why I say Guanajuato is chic, compared to San Miguel de Allende. San Miguel isn’t particularly classy. Don’t get me wrong, I like San Miguel. It’s got plenty of stuff. It’s just Guanajuato pulls it off with more style

Look at me, t-shirt and sandals in a swanky bar, discussing chic. I do, though, recognize the difference between San Francisco and Sacramento (not to mention, God help us all, Stockton!). With enough money, not that much by most Western retiree standards, in my opinion Guanajuato would be a very nice place to plunk down. Even without much money, like yours truly, it would be nice. I’d just have to budget. The performances cost 4-5 dollars, which is doable. The jazz club thing could add up, especially with drinking and eating. My treat was a plate of nice cheeses with good bread, along with an actually fine glass of Mexican white wine. I was wondering if the expensive Mexican whites were any good. My glass was from a 20 dollar bottle, and it was dry, had plenty of character and a good nose.

Speaking of chic, this is some kind of dorm I’m staying in. It’s, like, three beds in the Astrodome. I’m the only one in here tonight, typing away in that bed with yellow sheets. As you saw, though, the view is good.

Boy, this was a long post for having only been here two and a half days. For sure, I will have more to say. I don’t know how long I will stay in Guanajuato. Maybe few days. Who knows? I’m not that busy.

Be well, all of you.

It’s windy and rainy here today, plus I really don’t feel like going out. I might as well finish up with San Miguel.

My time here has been mostly social. The people at this hostel have been good company, but they are all leaving Saturday except one who is moving to a house sometime soon. It’s a good time to go. If a photo op arises today, I’ll take a picture of us.

Meanwhile, here are a few shots of town. San Miguel is attractive in it’s own way, but you may get the feeling you’ve seen these pictures before. Here’s around the cathedral…

… and here are street shots…

… Here is the front of my hostel. Well, at least the red door is the entrance.

And here is the front of a cute little church next door. I don’t know how many churches are in most towns, including this many, but it’s a lot.

I’m off to Guanajuato tomorrow. Talk to you from there. Be well, all of you.

There’s a really nice botanical garden/nature preserve on the edge of town. I went there yesterday and it was really very nice. It covers about four square miles and I spent about 3 hours walking around there. Let’s go for a walk.

It gets hot there, but there are many cute places in the shade to sit.

There are ruins of an 18th century hacienda. I felt like being Joe Photographer. Didn’t really work out, but you can picture the place.

This park is on the edge of town. Here’s a shot of town from behind the ruins.

Here are the remains of a 16th century waterwheel and what’s left of the adjacent building.

Below the reservoir is a canyon with a green pond in the bottom.

Nearing the end, you come around the side of the high ground and get another view of San Miguel.

You had to be there, I guess.

I’m not that busy here, so I thought I’d just post these. Why not? I’m leaving for nearby Guanajuato in a couple of days. I’ll post something more about my time in San Miguel de Allende before I go or as soon as I get to Guanajuato. Until then…

You may want to fly through this post, or skip it altogether. One of the reasons I came to San Miguel de Allende now was to see this soiree. It was a hoot. Actually, it’s a religious holiday honoring St Anthony of Padua who lives from 1195-1231. Right here, I’ll insert a thing I copied off the net about Day of the Crazies. Then comes my practice at uploading many pictures at once.

So Loco: The Day of the Crazies in San Miguel de Allende

Pascual Baylon Yubero was born into a peasant family in 1540 and spent his youth toiling in the fields of Aragon, Spain, tending his meager flock of sheep.  Consumed by devotion to God and commitment to prayer, Pascual joined the Franciscan order as young man and dedicated his life to veneration of the eucharist and abnegated service to his Franciscan brothers as shepherd and cook.  Numerous miracles on behalf of the poor and aggrieved were attributed to him, and following his death in 1592, Pascual Baylon was beatified by Pope Paul V and canonized as a saint of the Catholic church by Pope Alexander VIII in 1690.

It is said that San Pascual Baylon’s passion for prayer was such that he was given to ecstatic visions, most notably of the Holy Eucharist, which appears in most representations of the self-effacing saint.  In reading up on San Pascual’s legacy, we were moved to wonder if his visions had ever come to include, say, a mariachi band made up entirely of Bart Simpsons, or perhaps a bright green outerspaceling in full Santos Laguna football kit.  Sound crazy?  Oh, it’s crazy: It’s the Day of theCrazies in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico — el Día de los Locos — and it’s loonier than an extremely loony mountain goat.  Here’s how San Pascual got the party train rolling:

Although he was actually designated as patron saint of eucharistic congresses by Pope Leo XIII in 1897, since much earlier San Pascual had come to be known as patron of field and kitchen workers, for his lifelong labor as shepherd and cook.  Since the 17th century, pilgrims from around southeastern Spain have gathered in the village of Orito on May 17, San Pascual’s feast day, for the Romería a San Pascual, a celebration in his honor featuring music, dancing and revelry.  Over in the colonies, the relatively recent converts to Catholicism were keen to get on board, and in the central Mexican town of San Miguel the agricultural workers, known as hortelanos, initiated a tradition of dancing to their patron each year on May 17.  According to tradition, the hortelanos danced to flute and tambourine, some dressed as scarecrows, and gave away fruit and vegetables from their fields to the townspeople who gathered to see them.  One version of local lore holds that in time, members of the higher social classes, eager to beseech San Pascual for favors, began to join in the dances.  To avoid being recognized in such a vulgar pursuit, the social strivers would conceal their identities with wild disguises, thus the “locos” or crazies.

But San Pascual wasn’t the only saint in town.  He was outranked by the venerable Saint Anthony of Padua, who had been canonized in 1232, served as patron saint for a veritable grab bag of themes, and was represented in old San Miguel by the Church of Saint Anthony of Padua, located on Saint Anthony Plaza along Saint Anthony street in the Saint Anthony neighborhood.  The parishioners took their San Antonio seriously.   So when the feast day of San Antonio de Padua rolled around on June 13, up went the streamers along San Antonio street and out came the tambourines and flutes, and oh, they danced.  Such was the fervor of the Feast of San Antonio that in time it snowballed into a serious rager, joined by various cuadros, or platoons, of merrymakers from other neighborhoods.  These came to include a cuadro that danced “El Torito,” a traditional folk dance from the nearby town of Silao which featured costumes simulating ranch hands and an ill-tempered bull; the Los Locos cuadro fresh off their own feast day the previous month; and others such as Los Gallos, La Danza Grande and Los Jardineros.  By the early 20th century, the two saints’ celebrations had largely morphed into one, and as the years went by, the costumes of the revelers became ever more barmy.

Today, the once humble offering by agricultural workers in honor of their patron has come a long way.  The event now takes place each year on the first Sunday following June 13, and city government has issued guidelines for the parade to maintain order and safety.  Parade representatives work together with the departments of Public Safety, Transportation and the Municipal President’s office to closely coordinate the festivities.  The over 1,000 costumed Locos are organized into four large cuadros, named Cuadro del Parque, Cuadro Nuevo, Cuadro Antiguo and Cuadro del Tecolote, according to veteran Loco Emigdio “El Gordo” Ledesma, who has danced in the parade for over 50 years.  Mr. Ledesma told us that each cuadro is made up of 16 groups, each of which may include up to 40 or so dancers and chooses a theme for its costumes each year.  The costumes, ranging from simple to astonishingly elaborate, are made largely by the dancers themselves in the weeks prior to the event.  The dancers ride on or alongside colorfully festooned floats upon truck beds, and these days many include advertising for local businesses sponsoring the groups.  Music booms from speakers rigged precariously to the trucks, and the hortelanos’ gifts of fruit and vegetables have long since been replaced by candy, much to the delight of local children.  Throngs of locals and tourists from other parts of Mexico and around the world clog every bit of available space along the parade route, straining for a view of the eye-popping Locos.  The event reportedly drew some 80,000 spectators this year.

With some costumes channeling Sponge Bob or the Na’vi from Avatar, one might be tempted to conclude that the original traditions have been lost on younger generations.  Fortunately, this appears to be far from the case.  For every Bob Marley or Transformers-inspired costume, medieval figures and scarecrows still  abound, many adorned with hand-sized rakes, trowels and hoes in honor of the field workers of old.  Listening to the youthful dancers from the Cuadro Nuevo recite to us the story of San Pascual Baylon as we joined them for chicharrón and frijoles charros after the parade this year, we felt confident the saints and hortelanos will remain an integral part of el Día de los Locos for years to come.

It was a good idea to come Morelia. I was trying to be in a good place while waiting till this weekend to go to San Miguel de Allende, and people said it was good. Turns out, I agree with them. The cities I have visited so far have  a few 18th century stone buildings and lovely pastel colored 19th century buildings in their historical centers. Morelia’s historical center is about 20 square blocks of stone buildings and is deservedly a World Heritage Site. Anybody can enter many of them free, which is nice, and on Sundays practically everything is free. Typically, these grand old buildings were residences of officials, or administrative or church property, with column-lined courtyards.

Just walking the streets is great. One of the great things is you can walk for quite a while, as the district is so big. It’s not like you’ve done the whole place in an hour. These are not pictures of the same church and surrounding areas taken from different angles. There must be a dozen photo-worthy churches just in the historical district. The whole area is like this.

As is often the case, I didn’t mingle with anybody or go deep into this place. I spent a lot of time in this hostel completing, FINALLY, uploading seven years of travel photos onto the cloud. I am so glad to be done with that, plus, now they are in safe keeping forever, or at least until some post-apocalyptic cyber war crashes everything and civilization returns to woodblock prints. Anyway, for most of the days I’ve been here, I was the only guest in this hostel. I talked with the guy who runs it, actually learning a lot, did my uploading, and made most of my food in the kitchen.

Tomorrow, I’m heading for San Miguel. Tonight, if it doesn’t rain too hard (There are thundershowers every evening), I’m going to go see the 18th century aqueduct at night. LP says it looks good all lit up. It looked nice enough during the day a couple of days ago.

This plaza is next to the arches which I was stating under to take this picture.

I think that’s going to be it for now. I’ll keep this as a draft, and if I take a photo tonight worth sharing, I’ll add it before publishing this. In any case, I’ll say bye before doing that.

…….  Well, the arches were okay, but I didn’t bother taking a picture. The cathedral is lit up nicely, though.

Be well, all of you.

Though some might say my travels are slow, to me they are sometimes whirlwind. I just came to Morelia, Michoacan, after spending a measly two weeks in Oaxaca. In Oaxaca, I went to the two places “everybody” goes to, the beaches of Mazunte, San Augustinillo and Zipolite, Oaxaca City and some places near there.

It is the off season for tourists everywhere in Mexico, so even if I wanted to party down at the beach, it isn’t happening. There were very few people at the beaches and most of the businesses catering to tourists aren’t even open. Even the main beach, Zipolite was practically empty. This is fine with me. I’ve been to many beach resort areas, and empty beaches are just fine with me. I hung out at at cliff-side hostel above Mazunte for a week doing almost nothing but uploading onto Snapfish my pictures since I hit the road in 2006. The uploads are slow, so I am still only about halfway through that project. It was particularly slow with the ultra slow and sporadic internet connection in Mazunte. But slow was fine with me. I just sat and read on my porch and wandered down to one of the resort areas from time to time. Here is the view from my porch.

If you think I’m holding out on telling about what I did, don’t. I was the only one at my hostel. I was in my own private Idaho the whole time, only occasionally talking with the owner. So, all I can do is post a few pictures from down by the water and move on to talking about Oaxaca City.

Mazunte beach isn’t particularly photogenic, so here are pictures from the next beach over, San Augustinillo, about a kilometer east. There are some nice looking places to stay above that beach.

When I walked there, my doggy companion and I would chill out at this chair and watch the surf. This is the Pacific coast, so the surf comes in pretty hard.

Just for the record, here is the beach in front of a kilometer of beach hostels, shacks and dive bars on Zipolite. On-season must be a lot like Koh Samui in Thailand was many years ago, with overlapping loud music and partiers. The beach is famous for nude sunbathing. Now, Zipolite is dead as a doornail.

I finally got bored with that and wanted to upload photos onto Snapfish faster, so I went straight to Oaxaca City.

Oaxaca City is smaller than I imagined, about 270,00. Like the other cities I’ve been to, it has a nice historic center. The historic center isn’t that great, but here are a couple of pictures.

As usual, the zocalo is nice.

And, of course, there were nice buildings. Inside the second one were good murals.

My hostel was very nice, right across from this park.

Near Oaxaca City are some interesting sites. One is the ruins of Monte Alban which date back over 2000 years.

There’s a nice restaurant up there with a nice view from the patio tables.

Another place “everybody” goes is Mitla. It’s a very old city with even older ruins of it’s own. Here’s a shot of one of the churches from the ruins.

Here’s one of a church built right on top of the platform of what was an ancient temple.

I went to Mitla and the other place coming up, Hierve de Agua, with a couple of the guys from the hostel on a tour. It’s just easier that way and hardly more expensive than patching together time consuming colectivo rides. We went to a place famous for weaving. The photos from there are lousy, but here are a couple. Those of you who have traveled at all to places like this have seen this. Hand weaving is done nearly the same everywhere. The wool (or whatever) is spun…

… and dyed. Here is all natural dye. The colors are mostly variation from a red dye produced as a by-product of a worm which is put inside a kind of cactus which turns the insides red. The other colors are from other plants and minerals.

Here, the guys work the looms, not the women.

Let’s see, we were also taken to an artisan mezcal “factory”. Small batch, practically hand-made mezcal is popular here. Mezcal is similar to tequila. No pictures of that. I think I forgot, as there was unlimited tasting. Nothing like several snorts at lunchtime to make you lazy.

The last place we went was Hierve de Agua, a place where cool water bubbles out of the rocks making  pretty pools on the rocks.

There’s also a mineralized (no water at this time) waterfall. I’ve never seen this before.

There’s plenty to do in and around Oaxaca, like, there’s an art scene, but I decided not to stick around and partake in any of that. I hung out with a group from the hostel, making up for the isolative self I was at the beach. Three of us left Oaxaca together and made for Mexico City. They planned to stay there, while for me it was just a transfer point for Morelia, Michoacan, where I am now. This time, I stayed with them at the most popular hostel there, right behind the cathedral. Here is the view out our window.

So, that’s it for Oaxaca, at least for now. I’m in Morelia now. From here I will go to San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato. After that, I don’t know. It doesn’t look like Myung will be joining me anytime soon, as she is getting little interest in taking over the lease on her shop space. I had hoped that she would join me while I am in Mexico, but who knows what’s going to happen with that. I may head back south to Guatemala, or maybe I’ll decide to do more here.

Until next time, be well, all of you.