Mexican Madness: 2005-2006

Our next stop after San Miguel was the pleasant city of Puebla, south of Mexico City. The skies cleared as we headed south on the bus and the weather has been pleasant ever since.

Puebla, with many beautifully restored colonial buildings around a Zócalo. Many of the buildings are decorated with Arabic design tiles or red bricks in a basket weave pattern. A few houses had a white stucco facade, swirled in elaborate designs to imitate a popular 18th C meringue candy called Alfeñique.

Free concerts are given on the weekends and are well attended. We enjoyed a classical guitar concert by two young men in the public Art Gallery across from the Zócalo. On a stage set up on the Zócalo we watched an excellent troupe of 12 folk dancers put on an hour long performance that included several costume changes and dances from various parts of Mexico. During the performance there were announcements of a Jazz concert being held in the Municipal theatre. There was standing room only to listen to Orbis Tertius, an accomplished group with several recordings to their name. When that concert finished we wandered outside to take in part of the performance of a popular music group with a decided Latin beat perform for an enthusiastic young crowd. But that was not all. Several of the cafés around the Zócalo had live entertainment. There were at least two singers and a xylophone group. The Poblanos are certainly privileged to have so much musical talent to choose from.

On our way to visit the Museo Amparo in Puebla, we were asked to answer a questionnaire in English by a group of teenagers, accompanied by their teacher. This was a way of encouraging the students to practise their new English skills and to hear real English speakers. To show their appreciation, we were presented with small souvenirs of the area.

The Museo Amparo was very interesting and varied. There was an excellent temporary exhibition of the works of Roberto Morelos, whose large, colourful paintings and collages depicted village life and legends. Dreams and fantasy figure prominently in Mexican writings and art work and these were prime examples. There were also several rooms of Colonial furnishings and art work to explore.

But the main reason we visited the museum was to see their collection of pre-Hispanic artefacts. The display was one of the best presented we have seen with excellent signs explaining the techniques used and the development of the various crafts.

Just 10 km west of Puebla is the small town of Cholula with one of Mexico's biggest pyramids. Pyramide Tepanapa was built between 1 and 600 AD by constructing successive layers of pyramids, one on top of the other until the structure measured 450 M on each of its four sides and reached 65 M high, making it larger in volume than the Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt. Cholula was an important religious center and one of the largest cities in Mexico until it was overthrown by the Olmecs around 600 AD and the pyramid fell into ruin. By the time the Spanish arrived in 1519, the pyramid was a grass-covered hill. To celebrate their victory over the indigenous people, Cortés vowed to build a church in the area for every day of the year. There are actually 39 churches in the area, still a large number. One church, Nuestra Señora de Remedio, was built right on the top of the grass-covered pyramid. The Spanish developed the nearby town of Puebla to undermine the influence of the pagan center of Cholula, now a small and sleepy town. It seemed poetic justice that an earthquake in 1999 damaged the church on top but didn't affect the pyramid.

We arrived to see the pyramid at the same time as several buses disgorged at least a hundred school children for their visit. Rather than compete for viewing space with them, we retired to the local Zócalo for a well-deserved coffee break. There were four churches around the Zócalo, a few of which we visited. The most unusual was the Capilla Real, built in 1540 with 49 domes. Inside it reminded of the Alhambra in Cordoba with its multiple pillars supporting the domes.

By the time we returned to see Pyramid Tepanapa the school buses had departed and we had the site almost to ourselves. Architects started to explore the site in the 1940s by digging 8 km of tunnels under the site. You can walk through some of the tunnels to see the inner structure of the pyramid. For us, the Patio de los Altares, the Great Plaza on the south side of the pyramid was more interesting. Excavations have been made to establish that this was the grand entrance to the complex and the place for religious ceremonies. Nuestra Señora de Remedio is a pilgrimage spot for many Mexicans and broad, but steep roads lead to the church on the summit. We walked up to get the view of the surrounding valley.

We showed up at the bus station in what we thought was plenty of time to get the first class bus to Oaxaca only to get the last two seats on the bus, at the very back. This was the first time we haven't had our choice of seats so we were surprised. Thank goodness it was a relatively good road and the movies shown, one of which was Million Dollar Baby, had Spanish subtitles so we could still hear the English dialogue. Usually the movies are dubbed into Spanish, which makes it difficult to follow the story.

The hotels we had in San Miguel de Allende and Oaxaca were the best we have had so far, given our low price range. Both had large nicely decorated rooms and rooftop patios. The rooms in the Oaxaca hotel were set around three patios, one of which was a nice garden.

Oaxaca, like many of the towns we have visited, has a large Zócalo surrounded by arcades with cafés that are popular with tourists and locals alike. Free concerts are held every evening at 7 PM. One night part of the plaza was cordoned off to form a dance floor where an appreciative crowd of mainly middle-aged Oaxacans danced to a Marimba band. Some tourists joined in as well but they couldn't match the skill of the locals. Another evening, a band of at least 30 musicians assembled in the central bandstand to play familiar tunes such as the William Tell Overture and the March of the Toreadors.

The Museo de las Culturas Oaxaca was housed in a beautifully restored convent next to the 1570 Iglesia Santo Domingo in Oaxaca. The exhibits traced the development of the Oaxacan people from their pre-historic beginnings to the present day. The signs were all in Spanish, which stretched my vocabulary but the building itself was worth the visit. The exhibition rooms were the original convent rooms, some left their original size and some combined for larger exhibits. Particularly interesting was the exhibition explaining the current day situation of the 15 different ethnic groups who live in Oaxaca state. The rooms were arranged around several large patios with corridors looking out over extensive gardens with plantings indigenous to the area.

A service was in progress in the Iglesia Santo Domingo next door but we were able to have a look from the back of the church. It was the most elaborately decorated church we have ever seen. The front altar was entirely gold leafed and gilt was everywhere. The dome over the entrance depicted the family tree of Santo Domingo de Guzman, for whom the church was named, in relief figures surrounded with more gilt.

Just a 20 minute bus ride out of Oaxaca is Monte Alban, a sacred site for the Zapotec people. First occupied around 500 BC, the hill was eventually levelled and terraced to house up to 25,000 people. Temples were built and the site dominated Oaxacan culture from 300 to 850 AD when it was abandoned, for reasons unknown. The uncovered areas include both temples and several burial sites. Treasures of jade, silver and gold, found in one of the tombs, were displayed in a very large room of the Museo de las Culturas. We wandered over the site admiring once again the knowledge of these ancient peoples and enjoying the view of the surrounding countryside from the top of the temples.

People we met in Melaque had glowing reports of a guided hike into the mountains north east of Oaxaca, so we contacted the firm Tierra Ventura and arranged to take a two day hike. In 1998, the same year that Tierra Ventura started, several Zapotec pueblos (villages) banded together to offer eco-tours, with the emphasis on the natural environment. They built simple but comfortable cabañas in the pueblos for overnight guests and arranged for meals to be served in local restaurants and guides to be trained.

Gord, an American working for Tierra Ventura, drove us out to start our hike. He explained that the pueblos operate on a co-operative basis. Each resident is required to contribute their time and effort each year in the schools, build community centers or whatever project is deemed necessary for the village. It seems to be working very well. There are few vehicles in the pueblos. Farmers use oxen to plough the fields and burros to carry their goods. The villages are clean and the houses, although very small and simple, are well kept.

We started hiking at 3000 M in the pueblo of Cuajimoloyos, accompanied by Gord and Tsauro, a 35 year old farmer. Our hike of 16 Km started out past several of the small lots farmed by the villagers. They farm at sometimes considerable distances from their homes in the pueblos. This is done to conserve the soil and to prevent diseases from spreading too close to the pueblo. Besides farming the villagers log the pine forests that blanket the mountains. Some time ago they hired a Finnish firm to teach them responsible forest management and now adhere to those principals; no clear-cutting for them.

Tsauro pointed out several varieties of medicinal plants used by the locals to cure sore throats, stomach ailments or headaches. Gord returned to the van after an hour of hiking as he had to drive to our lunch spot in another town. We continued with Tsauro until about half way through our hike. There we said good-bye to Tsauro, who returned to his pueblo and Georgina joined us. Georgina, a 20 year old from the next pueblo, led us about 8 km downhill through the pine forests to a small river in the valley. We were glad to have out walking sticks with us.

A trout farm run by three local families was our lunch spot. Gord was waiting for us there. It was the best fish dinner we have ever had. We each had a large trout stuffed with vegetables, wrapped in foil and steamed.

The trout farm has had a difficult year. Hurricane Sam arrived in the area on Oct 4 with heavy rains and winds that flooded the rivers and caused mudslides everywhere. We saw evidence of the slides on our walk the next day. Luckily no one was hurt but two trout ponds were destroyed and the third covered in mud. They have just started back in business with a smaller number of fish in one pond. If that weren't enough, frost destroyed their greenhouse crop of tomatoes just recently.

That was the end of our hiking for the day. We accepted the offer of a ride, rather than walking another two hours up the hill to Latuvi, where we spent the night in a cabaña.

The next day was even more scenic. We walked with Rene, another local guide, down to the river where Rene asked if we would like to taste pulque. We had tasted it before on our visit to Teotihuacan outside Mexico City and it was not our favourite beverage, but we agreed to go. An elderly, blind farmer lived nearby with his niece and her husband. He makes his own pulque, a fermented drink from the Maguey, an Agave plant and offers it to passing hikers for a small contribution. He was only too pleased to have us sample his product and brought out a liter container of the brew. Rene started pouring a large glass full for each of us but Ray and I insisted on sharing one glass. That was more than enough for me, but Ray, being polite, did drink a small second helping.

That was enough to see us through our 12 Kms of hiking for that day. We followed the river through a gradually narrowing canyon with steep rock walls on either side. It was up and down all the way but very pleasant. Gord met us near the end and walked us back to where he had parked the van after driving from Latuvi. We had lunch in another small village, Amatlán and then drove two hours down through the hills back to Oaxaca. We felt very good having seen how so many Mexicans still live and to have survived with only minor muscle aches.

It was time to return to the Pacific for some beach time before heading farther south. My cousin Andrea and her husband Paul Terni had recommended Puerto Escondido, so that is where we headed. We found out why many people prefer to fly to Puerto Escondido. The coast is protected by a high mountain range that must be negotiated. The road through the valley out of Oaxaca and up the mountains was the easy part. Sitting in the back of a second class bus being tossed about with each sharp curve for hours on the way down was probably the worst bus experience to date, especially for Ray. After nearly 7 hours we reached the small crossroads town of Pochutla and Ray declared he was not going any further. We had a choice of staying overnight in Pochutla or sharing a taxi with a young Dutch couple who were heading to Puerto Ángel. We chose the 20 minute ride to Puerto Ángel and had a great time there.

Puerto Ángel is a small town on a protected bay that is still in the development stage of tourism. Fishing is still an important industry. We found an inexpensive hotel near Playa Panteón where we were able to snorkel right off the beach.

We shared a four hour boat excursion with the Dutch couple, captained by Alvaro, the owner of our hotel, who brought his young family along. There were no whales or dolphins to see that day but we did see several turtles. As we pulled up in the boat beside one turtle, Alvaro jumped in and held on to the swimming turtle. His older daughter jumped in too so I had to join them too. The turtle cooperated while we held on to the shell and touched the leathery flippers. Once released, the turtle dove beneath the surface and swum away having amused the tourists for another day.

We stopped at two beaches to snorkel. At the second there was a school of mackerel sized fishes so large it darkened the bay. Other tour boats had stopped for a break and something to eat at the restaurant here. We talked to a group of English teachers, taking advantage of a long weekend from their duties at a branch of the University of Oaxaca in a town just the other side of the mountain range. One woman, originally from London Ontario, told us she really liked teaching the students who are so keen and polite. Education is still a privilege in Mexico.

We met two Americans is Puerto Ángel, one of whom, Dave, told us he was going to a cock fight that night. There was also supposed to be a rodeo that we were more interested in so later in the afternoon we took a taxi to Pochutla to find the rodeo. Nobody knew anything about it. One taxi driver took us to a fairground where workers were just setting up, but there wasn't anything resembling a rodeo ring. Since we were in town anyway, we decided to check out the cockfight, slated to start at 6 PM. We found the site, a sand covered ring in the middle of a partially completed warehouse, but we were told it would be at least three hours, or 8:30 PM, before anything happened. We started to walk out to the road to get a collectivo back to Puerto Ángel, when a truck pulled up beside us and Ernesto, one of the organizers of the evening, offered us a ride to a local restaurant.

Finca de los Vaqueros was a favourite grill restaurant. We had eaten our main meal of the day late in the afternoon so we just ordered a beer. After our beer was finished, our host sent over mescal for us to try. He kept sending over more mescal and wouldn't hear of us paying anything. It was similar to tequila and can be powerful stuff so we limited ourselves to two mescals.

Closer to 8 PM, Ernesto indicated he would drive us back to the cockfight. There we met Dave who had come earlier with one of the beach restaurant owners in Puerto Ángel, who had a team of 4 cocks entered for the evening. We chatted with him and another American, Vic, who follows the fights, while teams arrived and the birds were weighed in. There were wives and children there for the show as well as lots of men busy greeting each other. Two men circled inside the ring selling tickets on each bird and people in the audience, which numbered about 300 by this time, were placing private bets.

Finally, around 9:30, the first fight began. The birds have a vicious looking spur attached to one leg but these two preferred to peck at each other and scatter feathers. Just like at a prizefight, the birds are separated if they are in a clutch and the next round is begun. There is a time limit of fifteen minutes to the fight and these two birds were getting pretty tired. Several of their rounds consisted of a few pecks culminating in one bird collapsing on top of the other. Finally the birds just sat there looking at each other. It was a draw.

The second and third fights were over in a matter of minutes. One bird managed to overpower the other and slash its throat with their spur. Apparently that is more the norm. We were going to wait and see one more fight but there was a long delay, it was nearly 11 PM and Vic offered us a ride home. The next day we saw Dave who told us he had left early, at 3 AM! Apparently the fights went on until 6 AM! He thought it was so much fun that he returned the next night with a friend, but one night was enough for us.

Tuesday we took a taxi into Pochutla and a bus to Puerto Escondido. Thankfully it was an easy and pleasant 1 1/4 hour ride. The original village of Puerto Escondido is almost a Km up a hill away from the beach. The tourist part of Puerto Escondido stretches along several beaches. The main tourist street is lined with souvenir shops, restaurants, bars and hotels. We are staying in a very nice room in the Hostel and Hotel Mayflower, just up from the main street. Fishermen unload their catch on the main beach every morning and the restaurants serve the catch of the day.

The beach to the south of where we are staying is a long 2 km stretch of sand that is a favourite of surfers who come to ride the big rollers that crash in all along the shore. We walked down to watch the action but the waves were a bit bigger than we like to brave. Instead we walked to other smaller and more protected beaches to the north of the town. Both Playa Manzanillo and Playa Carrizalillo were great swimming beaches with chairs, umbrellas and small restaurants serving drinks and food.

Our stay in Puerto Escondido was extended by another day so that we could join a birding tour to Laguna de Manialtepec, about 15 kms north of Puerto Escondido. It was a great success. We went with Mike Malone, who makes his home in Point Pelee in the summer. The winter months are spent in Puerto Escondido where he runs a small birding tour company with his wife. His extensive knowledge and friendly manner made the trip very enjoyable. The 8 km long Laguna de Manialtepec is surrounded by mangrove swamps, which makes it an ideal environment for shrimp, fish and the birds that feed on the water life. A wide sandbar separates the lake from the sea during the dry season but washes out during the rainy season. The waters were 20 M higher when we were there because of the dam effect of the sand bar. We all piled in an open motor boat to tour the laguna in the early morning. We passed local fishermen laying nets at the edge of the mangroves and were surprised to realize what we thought was a floating coconut was a fisherman with a face mask and a spear waiting for an unwary fish. Mike hoped that the spear fishermen didn’t come upon the crocodile the group had seen the day before.

The mangroves were full of egrets, herons, hawks, kingfishers and others stalking their next meal. By the end of the trip Mike helped us tick off 52 species of birds from his list of over 200 varieties found in that area.

We stopped for a break on the sand bar where we had a choice of watching dolphins dive through the pounding Pacific surf on one side or swim in the calm waters of the Laguna on the other side. Locals have set up a small refreshment stand on the sand bar with shade to shelter from the sun. The locals have been enlisted to help protect the turtles who come ashore to lay their eggs all along the coast. Turtles used to be favourite delicacy but Mike told us that they have now agreed that saving the turtles would bring in more money with increased tourism. A metal bucket held six newly hatched turtles that were due to be released that night when the threat of predators would be less. We carried a few of the babies to the sand and put them down. Unerringly, they turned themselves towards the sea and starting heading for the waves. Even if we held them wrong way around on our hand they would turn themselves seaward.