December 11, 2008

Well.....the adventures just keep on a coming :) The adventure of last night was not so great for me though....we already told you that we were catching a night bus in Tuxtepec to arrive in Oaxaca at 5:30 this morning. We did catch that bus, it was a little late leaving (10:30 pm) but basically it wasn't that far behind schedule and so all was good until I got into my seat and discovered that I couldn't even fit my legs into the space I was allocated! Lynda's seat was a little better but still very crowded. People were already on the bus and sound asleep in their seats snoring away. Before long.....my worst nightmare came true and my legs started going buggy (mom will know exactly what I mean). It was 7 hours of torture for me and 7 hours of virtual torture for Lynda as she could see how uncomfortable I was. I spent most of the trip (winding through the mountains) standing beside my seat holding on for dear life. Somehow, I even managed to drift off for a minute or two while standing (must have been a horse in a past life). I had taken a dramamine to stave off motion sickness as we had been warned that the trip was not going to be good and that only complicated my discomfort. I didn't get motion sickness but my eyelids were made of sandpaper and I was so groggy that I could barely focus when they were open. All in all.....I have vowed to forget that one night of this trip.

Now for the good parts....we arrived in Oaxaca at about 6 a.m. and thanks to the fact that Lynda was able to converse and function (not like the zombie I had become!) a taxi was secured to find us a restaurant that was open for breakfast so we regroup and plan what to do or where to go from there. Interestingly, I don't remember much after that but I have a vague recollection of climbing some stairs and then falling onto a bed (could have been anyone's for all I cared at that point!). This afternoon, I awoke to find myself in a gorgeous hacienda just 2 blocks from the zocalo and right across the street from the main market in a queen size bed that was the perfect firmness with a gentle breeze blowing the curtain in the window to the sound of a shower (that turned out to be massive in size)....it was hard to know if I was dreaming as when I went to sleep I'm sure I was having a nightmare!

Lynda had located (with the help of the taxi driver) this perfect spot named Posada del Rosario on calle 20 de noviembre (that's 20 of november street - they often name the streets days of the year here) for $47 per night (and they let us come in at 6:00 a.m. without charging us for an extra day.) We've both agreed that we could stay here for a while - it's a great little place and so if any of you are planning to visit Oaxaca - be sure to check out this accomodation.

Once again, luck is on our side and by simply trusting that it will all work out has resulted in another great experience.

Our day started pretty late (about 3:30 pm) so has been short but full and very good. There is shopping shopping shopping here and the zocalo is absolutely breathtaking. Everything is decorated for Xmas (navidad) so there are poinsettias everywhere. In the zocalo (which is HUGE) there must be at least 10,000 potted poinsettias lining every inch of the walkways and seating areas. All of the trees are lit with fairy lights and there must be 100,000 lights or probably even more than that. Every tree trunk and lamppost and the gazebo and the area they've got for Santa and the giant Xmas tree they've made by putting lights under a massive piece of sheer white fabric that is in the shape of a tree. It has a star atop it and more strings of lights cascading from top to bottom to finish the effect. It is so impressive and so simple.

I have to say again, that I really think we're missing out on something very special by not having these zocalos in our communities. Everyone comes there to spend time and visit and just walk around or sit and relax all times of the day and night. Everything is spotlessly clean and kids of all ages run about freely as their mom and dad visit with one and other or friends. It is a very family oriented place....actually, everywhere we've seen in our travels seems to be very family oriented. Kids don't go to bed early....everyone enjoys the evenings together. We've also noticed that there are very few kids crying here. They seem to be content just being where they are. Tonight as we sat in a little cafe at the edge of the zocalo (finding our next flights online) we couldn't help but notice the young families spending time with their kids, holding hands, and just enjoying their time together. People here are generally very happy from what I've been able to see. The pace of life seems to move a little more slowly and there doesn't seem to be a lot of stress. I'm sure there is stress though....I just haven't seen much of it. Certainly there is poverty but there is also a lot of generosity. I see locals helping out people with disabilities and I also see a place where anyone with an entreprenerial spirit can make a good living doing pretty much anything they want to. If I wanted to open a shop selling muffins and coffee from my kitchen, I could and no one would mind at all. As far as I can figure...they do have laws similar to ours but not a lot of attention is paid to the ones that don't make much sense. It's really quite nice.

Lynda just brought out a chocolate bar (I'm sitting on the veranda that surrounds the courtyard of our hacienda) that reminded me of something we learned/saw this afternoon. They grow cocoa in Mexico and there are chocolate shops all over the place here. We watched as people came into the shop we were visiting, and order their "blend" the way they prefer it. Some add almonds or cinnamon sticks to the chocolate. They can choose how much sugar they like to have added to the blend and then the mixture goes to a guy who runs a grinder where all the ingredients are pushed through the grinder resulting in a near liquid state. The chocolate mix is then pushed through another grinder and scooped into a bag for the buyer to take home where they will add hot water or hot milk to make hot chocolate for their family to enjoy - yummy!!!

Tomorrow is the day to celebrate the virgin Guadalupe in Mexico and that is a really big deal. We've been giving you tidbits about the fireworks etc well....tonight at midnight....it really begins big time and I think we're in the perfect town to enjoy it. We're planning to go to the Church of Guadalupe (about 10 blocks from our hotel) for midnight tonight which is when the mariachis will begin their performances for all the locals (and the two of us) to enjoy. We found out about the celebration from our waiter tonight - it's not a touristy thing at all but he invited us to join in the festivities so we're gonna check it out :) The celebrations will continue for 24 hours and tomorrow night after 6 pm there will be dancing and fireworks and food food food so we'll be there again. Actually, the festivities tomorrow night after 6 will be in the zocalo so that will be a huge party!! Maybe we'll get to see another castillion (that crazy fireworks thing that shoots everywhere and then the top lifts off like a space ship that drips fire on everyone below....it's super exciting and I hope I get to experience another one!)

I told you we were shopping online for our next ticket and guess what??!! We're heading back to Zihuatanejo (home to Troncones). We fly out of Oaxaca on Saturday night (the 13th), spend the night in Mexico City and then catch another plane from Mexico City the afternoon of the 14th arriving in Zihuat around 2:30. Once we touch down there, we'll catch the local bus (costs about $1.00) unlike all the tourists who are arriving for their vacation and hailing cabs to get to their all inclusive experience. We'll hit the market to get some stuff to take home with us (food such as massive shrimps for the BBQ and tequila for the margaritas). Then we'll catch another local bus for about $1.20 that will take us the 30 miles up the highway where we'll catch yet another little "bus" or jump in the back of someone's pick up that will take us right to our door. Oh yea....did I mention that I found the plane tickets online tonight for $18. plus taxes....yep....you heard right.....a total of $75 each for a plane from Oaxaca to Zihuat with time to sleep in Mexico city in between. Life is good!!! As you can see...we've done really well sticking to our budget! We've been on the road for almost exactly a month and haven't spent beyond our budget at all so we're feeling pretty proud of ourselves. At this rate, we'll have money to spend when another adventure presents itself to us :)

Better go for now....gotta check out those mariachis tonight :)

Till next time,
Lorrie