At the airport waiting for the plane to arrive.  Through security where they confiscated my water.  What was I thinking?  Don't have to remove shoes here.  They gave my pack a thorough search and thought my colored pencils might be a problem and my vitamins smelled a little strong.  Those vitamins do stink!  Will be in Mexico City soon.

To be honest we stayed in Tuxtla an extra day because our hotel room is quite comfortable.  Guidebooks seem to skip over Tuxtla and really the city has little to recommend staying more than a day or two.  It is sprawling low rise buildings.  The buildings in the center are old but not in a historical sense. We can see the Sumidero Canyon in the distance from our room.  It's too hot here this week but it's not always this hot.  The temp is still about a 100 outside.  In spite of that we walked to the anthropology and history museum.  The museum had some nice artifacts and we tried to learn a little more about the other cultures that were here before the Spanish arrived.  Sadly the museum is not air conditioned and we asked the security guard about that.  He said the system was thirty years old and broke down six years ago.  It had not been replaced because the government could not afford to do so.  The stone and ceramic artifacts probably don't mind the heat but it can't be good for the paintings and the textiles.

Arrived in Tuxtla via bus yesterday. Taxi dropped us off directly at our air conditioned hotel.  The temp was 100 degrees and we did not attempt to go outside again until early evening.  We passed the modern looking Cathedral and fair of some kind that was going on. We walked in the direction of the Marimba Park looking for dinner.  The only criteria was that the restaurant must be indoors with air.  That was harder to find than you would imagine.  Taco stands were in abundant supply but the heat coming off the grills and outdoor seating did not make us tempted.  Then there was Burger King with the security guard at the front door.  Deliciously air conditioned, we went in for a brief moment before talking ourselves out of it.  We finally found a diner with air although they could have cranked it up a notch or too.

It's time for us to be leaving San Critobol de las las Casas and head by bus to Tuxtla the capital of Chiapas.  The trip is short and there should be no chance of a blockade on that toll road. We've enjoyed the parades, the marimba bands and the food.  The climate is great with highs in the 70' s by day and the 50's by night.  I have to admit the elevation does me in here and I'm hoping the near sea level elevation of Tuxtla will do my brain some good.  We've done a lot of hanging out here, walking, and people watching.  We've noticed lots of Europeans here but few from the USA.  We hear Italian and French and German being spoken here.  As tourists we are constantly being asked by folks to buy something.  I have learned to not show interest when I am not going to buy and a quick shake of the head usually does the trick.  We've noticed the same couple of little grandmas all over town asking for money everyday.  We've been told the shoe shine boys tend to be homeless and get their shoeshine kits from an organization that also provides them with two meals a day but no bed. We've noticed a group of tall skinny hippy looking guys that make jewelry on the street.  Sometimes one of them carries his small daughter with him and tries to sell empty egg cartons to restaurants.  I wonder what their story is. We've noticed that the tourists from Mexico City like to wear their five inch high heels (the women anyways) and watching them go down the cobblestone streets is hilarious.  We've stayed both in the city center and out in the country at private guest houses.  Trading the traffic noise of town for the quiet of the country did not pan out as planned.  What we got was more dogs barking, chickens making a ruckus, fireworks and some noisy neighbors that liked to party until 3am.  San Cris has some excellent bakeries, coffee houses, and chocolate candy makers.  The chocolate banana croissant I had from a little shop right off the zocalo was probably the best I've ever had.

There has been a lot going on in San Cris in the weeks that we have been here.  Both before Easter and the week after are busy with events. Easter parades, music events, art shows.  There's been something going on everyday.  Yesterday in the zocalo there was a demonstration of techniques by both weavers and those doing fine embroidery work.  We spoke to the coordinator of the event and she said that it was to honor the 1,000 textile workers killed a year ago in a Bangladesh factory.   I can recognize the differences in the traditional dress of the women from the two villages that we visited.  I also have a copy of a book here in our guesthouse that describes the clothing and the history behind it of about twenty villages in the area. The traditional dress has greatly been influenced by outside forces as well as one village influencing another village.  In the 1990's women from a church in the USA brought sweaters to one group of villagers.  I don't know about changing religious beliefs but it had a long term effect on fashion and and also brought about a change in the kind of blouse that those woman began making to go with those sweaters.

Found a great place for late morning coffee today and went back for the comida del dia (lunch special) which started at 1pm.  For 85 pesos (that's about $6.50 US) we got a really nice artfully presented salad of layered artisan lettuce, mango, red onion, cucumber, and ripe tomatoes.  It came with fresh bread with black olive tapenade and chili salsa.  The main course was chicken breast sautéed with peppers and baby zucchini accompanied by a nicely flavored rice.  It was served with a really hearty rich glass of red wine.  How can they do that for that price?  Ok, I know how they do it...some folks aren't getting paid enough.  By the way I want that painting hanging on the back wall.

I'm just trying to blend into my environment at the new guesthouse.  No owner here, just the company of Goldie and the two basset hounds, Nicholas and Lola.  Nic likes to sit on the picnic table and bark at everything and anybody who will listen.  Lola prefers to roll around in the grass (sometimes in her own poop) and drink out of the rain barrel.  Goldie spends her time in deep contemplation in her doghouse.

A little fun street art walking in the Guadalupe neighborhood yesterday.  I' m not sure what the artist wanted to say here but I want to figure it out.  By the way I really hate it when people just tag their name on a building especially to property owners who can't afford to have it painted over quickly.  On the other hand I do love walking down the street and finding something like this.  Real street art is few and far between.

We took a walk yesterday about a half mile out of downtown to see the location of our next guesthouse stay.  We passed some beautiful rich looking farm fields and a combination of old homes and some new housing developments.  We will have cooking facilities so we stocked up on a few things at a small local market before we make a taxi excursion to the larger market outside of the center.  It will be nice to be out in the country for a change.  Walking to the market this morning I was cursed by a driver because I was indecisive in crossing the street.  "Chinga de tu Madre" he said.  No need to translate that.  Our current host would say that a better insult is to ask "were you educated by your Mother".  I don't know why insults need to involve someone's Mother.  Most of the streets are one way here.  There are no stop signs but there is an unspoken method of right of way and horn honking.  I just haven't figured that out completely yet.

New accommodations are somewhere up in those hills in the distance.  They said it's only a fifteen minute walk.  Walk it or taxi?

Coffee in the Zocolo this morning.  Lots of activity and people watching.  Protest rally and police on one end of the street and music, chalk art and art show on the other.

 We were at a breakfast buffet a few weeks back when my husband brought back a quesadilla loaded with what we would consider unusual ingredients.  Squash flowers (sounds innocent enough), chapulines (toasted grasshoppers with lime and chilis), and huitacoches (what we call corn smut in the USA).  I had been wanting to try the chapulines but had not done so when I had the chance in Puebla a year ago. They are an excellent source of cheap protein.  I found them to be a little tart and while I wouldn't buy a bag and snack on them like chips I would have no objection to throwing them into a quesadilla again.  What I didn't know about the huitacoche I found out about over breakfast this morning.  The smoky, earthy, mushroom taste in my quesadilla was the corn smut and it was delicious.  Looking at pictures of the thing right on the corn may look like bluish white carbuncles or brain matter and canned products from brands like Goya look even worse.  They are high in lysine, an essential amino acid and make corn a more nutritional product for us.  Chefs in the USA are introducing huitacoches in gourmet recipes and some organic farmers are finding that they can get more $ from a good crop of smut than the traditional corn crop.  We have a lot to learn about what is food and learning from other cultures is great way to eat a better diet.

There's mostly new cars in town but you still see plenty of old VW bugs and a few of the old vans.  My old VW bug might still be in service in California.  I hope so. I left it there in good condition thirty years ago.  After owing it for eleven years I sold it for $300 more than what was paid for it originally.  I wonder what it's worth now. The streets are all mostly one way in the centro historico.  Folks who need to park go to a ramp (estacionamiento) or they parallel park in the streets making them tighter yet.  Watch out for parking in restricted areas.  The local police will not only give you a ticket but they will unscrew your license plate and take it with them just to make sure you pay the fine.

Went to the Sumidero Canyon today.  The canyon is located just outside of Tuxtla off the road between San Cris and Tuxtla.  We drove with fellow travelers which made it easy for us not having to go by bus.  Coming down out of San Cris it felt like we were almost at sea level again.  The canyon walls rise up to 2,625 feet as your lancha (fast boat) speeds through the canyon.  It takes almost two hours.  Today there were so many boats that it made for one choppy ride bouncing us around in the boat like a carnival ride.  Wildlife including herons, vultures and crocodiles could be seen at the shore.  In spite of the beauty here it is one of the most polluted rivers in Mexico.  We could see trash accumulating in one grotto area.  Part of the price of admission goes to pay for cleanup.  We could see some trash boats hauling stuff out of the water.  Apparently solid waste from Tuxtla ends up here too.  Kids were swimming down river near the boat ramp.  Seems like a bad idea.  Hope they can figure out how to keep this area in the pristine condition that it deserves.

More ideas from the street.  I was thinking about our tour yesterday to Chamula and our English speaking guide.  I cringed when he claimed that the indigenous women have rights and to not judge their ways.  I hadn't planned on judging them but since he said not to then I think I will.  They have a cargo system where the men are in charge of everything in the village and can have more than one wife.  Women do not vote or choose a husband, but they do have the right to divorce.  Well I guess that's something.  But who am I to judge.

Walking through the neighborhoods on the way to the Na Bolom Museum.

The second village we toured today was Zinacantan.  The ladies in the village wear a highly embroidered shirt and cotton skirts.  At one home they showed us the kinds of weaving that are actually done in their village.  Some things in the markets come from Guatemala and even India or China.  We sampled some tortillas with ground pumpkin seed before going back to look at their church.  They were just beginning a ceremony inside.  As young boys laid down a carpet of rose petals statues of saints covered in cloth were taken from the church and paraded around the outside courtyard.  The statues were covered because the devil is on the loose at this time of Lent.

We took a tour today to two villages outside of San Cris.  The first village was Chamula.  Our tour guide spoke English and had connections to that village.  He warned us about the use of cameras inside the church or whenever we were watching ceremonies inside the home of a spiritual adviser.  The church in town is no longer a part of the Catholic Church having thrown the last priest out a hundreds years ago.  They do allow a priest to come out once a month for baptisms.  They have a mixture of Catholic traditions and native traditions.  While we were there a woman was performing a healing ceremony for a client that involved candles, incense and a chicken that did not leave the church in the same way as it entered.  It's all interesting and I am not there to judge.  We saw a man in the local jail who had been sentenced to one day in jail.  If he has another incident then some community service will be needed.  Third time and you are expelled from town permanently.  Our guide told us of a man who had recently raped a young woman.  He was tried and put to death in a very unpleasant manner involving a can of gasoline.  The crime rate is low.  Costumes are particular to this village.  Women wear wool skirts and men are often seen in a wool tunic.  Western culture creeps in too.  The town is relatively prosperous and there were plenty of cars and trucks.

Last few steps, almost there.  Are you kidding me...there's no potty up here!

Our destination this morning was to get to the top of that hill in the distance.  Not necessarily to see inside the little church at the top but rather for the exercise and the view.  We were fortified by another outstanding breakfast by our host.  Omelet, brown rice and vegetables, fried plantains.  This time another four guests had arrived and it was interesting to talk to other folks who came to San Cris for Easter week.  The hill can be gotten to by taxi on a road that comes up from behind and that would have been easier but not as fun.  Half way up little eleven year old Juan hit us up for some change for a school project.  He suggested a hundred pesos would be nice but he was happy to have the five that I gave him.  He asked us in English and wrote my name down in his book, where I was from, how old I was and how much I gave.

We are here during Easter week so you do expect things to be busier than usual.  Traffic is fierce.  The roads through the center of town were not made with cars in mind.  Horses, donkeys, and carts would have worked better a hundred years ago.  Today it would be nicer if it was limited to bikes and pedestrians and maybe some of those three wheeled motocarts we saw in Juchitan. The sidewalks are narrow.  There are three pedestrian only streets so that helps with walking.

We've been staying with a family in San Cristobol the last few days and will do so for a total of ten days.  Staying in a private home brings the cost of travel down considerably.  Our host's home is part of a cut up hacienda in the center of town.  It's not fancy but it feels comfortable enough.  She serves a vegetarian breakfast every morning that has been very good.  Everyday is different and has included spinach and mushroom burritos, roasted vegetables, warm cooked fruit, homemade beans, fresh tortillas, fried eggs, yogurt, and avocados.  She makes her own kombucha and a brew of pineapple rinds cooked with brown sugar and ginger.  The house is not heated and an extra blanket is needed for the night time temperatures in the fifties.  You don't drink the water out of the tap.  We pump our own water from a container in the kitchen and if we want to use the kitchen we clean up after ourselves.  We can walk to everything in town from this location.  Today was laundry day and we bagged up our stuff and took it to a lavenderia down the street.  Five pounds of laundry costs us about two bucks.  We pick it up tonight at seven.  I'm thinking about going to the dentist down the street to get my teeth cleaned.  About $25.  My dentist back in the Twin Cities won't like that.

End of the day sunset out on the plaza after a great dinner.  We went to La Arrabiata, a small Italian restaurant mentioned on Tripadvisor.  It has three tables inside and a small kitchen.  We shared a pasta pomodora with basil and a salad.  I could see the cook clipping fresh basil from a plant in the kitchen.  The waitress sang along to old Dean Martin songs.  San Cristobol has so many great looking places to eat and the prices are extremely reasonable.  You can spend a little or a lot here. 

Words from the street....

Palm Sunday morning.  Local ladies are making decorative palm fronds to sell. The native dress here for women is a black skirt of what looks like shaggy felted wool and colorful tops.  Those with less economic status wear cotton. We found a great bakery and tried the banana and chocolate croissants then had two coffee americanos under the covered promenade.  Vendors passing by tried to sell us all types of things.  My backpack is packed so tightly I don't know how I could fit any more in it.

Evening walk around San Cristobol.  Getting acclimated to the 7,ooo ft elevation.

A blockade is a form of protest in the states of Oaxaca and Chiapas. They are used by both teachers and villagers to protest wages or living conditions or something else going on with the government.  They are non violent and the police do not interfere so as to keep them from being violent.  The state police watch from a distance. Essentially what happens is that the protesters block sections of the highway trapping truckers, buses, families in cars and everyone until they decide to end it.  That is what happened to us yesterday.  It started at 10:30 am only an hour and a half outside of Juchitan on our way to Tuxla the Capitol of Chiapas.  One moment we were watching Denzel Washington in Flight in our air conditioned first class bus and the next moment we were stuck on the bridge a quarter mile from the blockade.  I thought surely this can't last that long and we will be on our way.  Vendors from town came to sell us water and snacks.  Eventually we bought some hot chicken and rice from a woman passing by.  Periodically the bus driver started the engine to cool off the stuffy hot air back down to tolerable.  We walked and stood by the side of the road.  Some folks started hauling their luggage to parts unknown.  Some folks went to buy beer.  Eventually it became dark and we walked to a food stand to get more water and an egg sandwich when horns started honking so we ran back to the bus.  False alarm.  Didn't get that sandwhich.  We realized we were probably going to spend the night out there.  We stood in the cooler outside air for hours before trying to settle into our new reality.  We got our toothbrushes out and spit over the side of the bridge. Finally I saw the bus driver run to retrieve his white dress shirt and tie that he had stowed under the bus and jump back on the bus.  That was 12:30 am and when we started moving I thanked sweet Jesus for bringing us to the end of it.  We had another three and a half hours of driving and I hoped the driver could make it on such little sleep.  As we passed hundreds of truckers, buses, and cars on the other side of the blockade I realized just how many people were interrupted from their travels.  The most amazing thing I thought was how well behaved folks were especially small children.  I wished I could have enjoyed the circumstances more because the night with the mountains around us was quite beautiful.  We pulled into Tuxla at 4am and waited another hour to catch another bus to San Cristobol an hour away.  I saw the new bus driver stop at a statue of the Virgen de Guadelupe and cross himself. I wondered if he was asking for protection from blockades.

A few more pics of graffiti in Zipolite.

Before leaving Zipolite we took one last walk down the beach and then up a dirt alley into what is essentially downtown.  This must be what Playa del Carmen looked like 20 - 30 years ago with dirt streets.  Workers were putting in a new road and sidewalks and I found a whole new gallery of graffiti on those streets. Yeah!  More on that later.  Our taxi driver took it slow and easy back to the Pochutla bus station as promised.  Our destination was Juchitan today, five hours away.  We were late in leaving. I'm guessing it had to do with the parade that went through town.  Not the kind of parade with marching bands and beauty queen floats but one with folks of all ages carrying banners for tierra y libertad (land and liberty).  I could see them in a dusty field as the bus finally passed them.  Along the way our bus picked up school kids, an old man with a machete, families, and workers.  We passed dry river beds, tall cactus with yellow flowers on top, birds flying overhead and way too much  plastic garbage along the road.  And that makes me sad.

We are leaving Zipolite this morning.  Our hostess here at La Loma Linda called a taxi last night to pick us up this morning and take us back to the bus station at Pochutla. She has a group of drivers that will take the road at a slower pace or else they get no more business from her.  Sounds good.  From Pochutla it's back on the bus.  Today's destination is Juchitan and then on to San Cristobal the next day.  Our host here says that in a few days the beach will be overrun with Mexican families in campers on the beach.  Time to go!

Living the simple life in our palapa.  I suppose there are things to do here like whale watching or fishing trips, but watching the waves puts you into a trance.  Not a lot gets done or needs to get done.

You don't have to be in an urban setting to find street art.  The climate takes its toll on stuff like this and maintaining property must be a chore here.

We woke up this morning to donkeys making their donkey sounds.  The chickens and dogs partied all night but we got used to that and slept fairly well.  In the morning we opened the front doors of our palapa to the sea view and discovered the neighborhood cats had been sleeping under our bed.  Perhaps they came in to avoid the Zopilote (turkey vultures) that circle in the sky overhead.  We went out for a walk first thing.  Didn't find very many shells but did come across a sea snake taking a break from the waves.

We made it to Zipolite Beach.  I can hear the pounding surf and neighborhood chickens.  No surfers out.  Maybe in the morning.  We left Crucecita this morning by second class bus to Pochutla.  There were only second class buses available and by that I mean that it still had cushioned seats that were more comfortable than the hard plastic ones on Metro Transit in the Twin Cities.  The bus was winding through the hillside and I was glad that I loved roller coasters as a kid.  By the time we got there an hour later I was wishing the ride would end.  Another twenty minute taxi ride to the beach and we were here.  Next time we will look for a taxi without broken windows and a driver who does not dream of Nascar.  The ride was worth the trouble.  Hummingbirds are doing what hummingbirds do while I watch from my hammock.  Our room is a palapa with private but outdoor cold shower, composting toilet, comfortable bed with mosquito netting.  Yes we have wifi.  No we don't have TV....I wonder what happened on The Voice last night!

A little more about Crucecita

The tourists may not be up yet but the locals get going early.  We met our waiter from the hotel out on the street this morning.  Women and men were jogging.  The drum section at the collegio was practicing in uniform in the courtyard.   Parents were dropping their kids off at the nearby elementary school.  A teacher greeted each child with "good morning, how are you" in English and "tenga un buen dia" to the parents as they drove away.  We walked to the main plaza to look at the local church as worshipers were beginning to arrive.  One local guy brought his finger to his lips to remind me to be silent inside.  I was. The vegetable and meat markets were busy as folks started their daily shopping.  The roads are good here, the taxi drivers polite and soft spoken, and the streets have little litter.  The beach had recycling containers for organic matter as well as plastic and the rest.  You can see by new construction that they are trying to grow their share of tourism.

Spent the day at a beach club yesterday at Playa Chahue.  The lifeguard there told us that there are beaches more tranquil than this one.  Hautulco has 36 bays but we are not going to explore all of those.  You can' t see it from this photo but the beach drops off quickly at the shoreline and can knock you right off your feet.  I took a dip in the pool instead.  This morning we walked into Crucecita at 7 am to avoid the heat.  We checked out bus schedules to Puerto Escondido and Puerto Angel.   The lifeguard warned us that all the locos will be in Puerto Escondido and it is much more relaxed here.  Our room here at Hotel Villa Blanca is certainly tranquil.  The food has been really great too.  Shrimp tostadas, fresh salads, and red snapper a la plancha were all perfect.  Our room is comfortable and clean but could use an update. It is time for us to think about where we will be during the busy Easter holiday week.

Why did we choose Huatulco as our entry point into Mexico?  There are several reasons.  Sun Country Airlines has a direct flight from Minnesota that leaves at 11 in the morning.  Beautiful.  Who wants to have to get to the airport at 5am.  The other reason is that if you follow the advice of the State Department's travel warnings then this place seems like a good place to begin.  There were only about sixty folks on our plane including the crew.  It is late in the season and they do have to pick up the people that came down here last week, but Sun Country can't be making any money on that flight. From the airport we took a taxi to Crucecita.  A guy we met on the plane who says he divides his time between living in Mexico and fishing in Wisconsin told us to get a taxi just outside the airport gates.  A short walk and the price drops by half.  We didn't get that far and instead got a discount from the guys at the airport taxi stand.  It's hot, the hills are brown and dry here.  Rains will green up everything but not until July.  The Wisconsin guy says tourism is down.  The Europeans are vacationing in India or Thailand and Americans are afraid or broke.  Our hotel seems full enough with guests at breakfast.  Half are North Americans and half are Mexican families.  Breakfast was great.  Eat like a king for breakfast, a queen for lunch and a pauper for dinner.  I've already had all my calories with a mushroom and cheese  crepe.  The carrot and cactus juices were fresh and fabulous.  I've taught myself to translate Celsius from Fahrenheit this morning because the heat is going to be on my mind today. We should have learned that in grade school but at some point Americans decided not to bother.  So take the Celsius temp times two less one percent then add 32.  Let me get my calculator  out.

Our bags are packed.  We will arrive in Huatulco, Mexico in two days time.  Home is sold, car is gone, possessions are downsized. We have one way tickets.  How long to stay.  When to return to the USA.  We have no real itinerary.  We are retired 60 somethings that are going to go at our own pace.  We are trading our urban lifestyle in the Twin Cities for the unknown.  No luxury resorts for us.  We'll be carrying what we need in our backpacks.  Keeping it simple.  We'll be looking for places to stay that have good value and when we find it we'll stay awhile before picking our next destination.  We hope to brush up on our Spanish skills, meet new people, and find some great food.  Journals and books instead of TV.  Walking and more walking everyday instead of going to the gym.  Getting around by bus.  Sounds like some drastic measures for a simple vacation.  We'll find out!