Thursday, October 19, 2006

Tuxtla Gutierrez to San Cristobal de las Casas, 55 miles

As you can see from the mileage, today was a breeze. We woke up late in our nice hotel room (with the AC blasting), packed our bike up and headed out of Tuxtla around 10AM. It’s a great city, the nicest big city that I’ve ever been to in Mexico. It was bustling with people and had plenty of charm. The only thing was the heat, already at 10AM it was 95 degrees and climbing. It was good to hit the road and have the little bit of breeze rush through my small jacket slits.

As soon as we left the town we start to climb the hills, they were beautiful. We decided to take the Libre (free) road instead of the optional toll road (only supposed to take 1 hr vs. a couple). It was a great choice as the drive was beautiful. The more we climbed the mountain side, the cooler it got, soon we were riding through the clouds at a nice low 70 degrees. I have to admit I even got a few goose bumps! The mountain sides turned in to fields of corn harvests and we started to spot indigenous people climbing the road with either chickens or sticks in their hands or on top of their heads. They all wore black thick skirts and heavy woven traditional poncho type tops. It was as if we climbed the mountain and were in another land. The mountain sides were so steep and yet covered with corn fields which they harvest; amazing. The ride was fantastic.

After a couple hours we landed in San Cristobal de las Casas. We found a hotel fairly quick and decided for the 200 pesos (20 bucks) with a clean room and a safe courtyard, we should just do it so we can enjoy the rest of our day walking the city.

The city is great, it’s lined with cobblestone streets, beautiful buildings, plenty of cathedrals, parks and a ton of shops, cafés and restaurants. The sky is bright blue with a ton of white billowy clouds and the buildings all seem to be painted in bold colors. Lots of life here. The coffee here is amazing…it was so nice to enjoy a REAL cup of coffee…something I’ve missed so much!!!

We didn’t find Adam wandering the streets today, but we think he’s still in town. My guess is we run into him tomorrow either leaving the town or at the Guatemala border crossing. At least I hope! I thought it would be a smaller town than it is; it’s quaint, but still fairly big!

I think Mike is eating too much Chorizo (aka nasty spicy sausage) because he keeps ordering it and then cursing at himself with a bad stomach ache. I think the combination between that and all the cheese he’s been eating would do anyone in! Put those two ingredients together and you have a dish he ordered just yesterday. That is right, a big plate of melted (half melted) cheese and Chorizo—Choriqueso. Yum! More like giant heart attack! I’m glad he is young…


Chiapas!
The guys carry the chickens...
The girls carry the machetes
Mike blending in with his garage pantalones cortes
San Cristabol's Cathedral
Perros de San Cristabol de las Casas

Amie Smiles! Last meal in Mexico - Guatemala has proven no better :(

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