Chapter 46: The Tale of 2 Pizzas

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A wise man once said, "A great Pizza is not made, it's born". Of course I may be paraphrasing, or even making it up, but I believe that was the gist of it. This is the tale of how two great pizza's were born, and how they were then, promptly killed (consumed) by yours truly.

We arrived in San Cristobal late in the afternoon. And after 5 hour ride on some of the most windy and "topéy" (yes, this is a new word) roads I have ever had the displeasure to travel on, we were tired and wanted nothing more than to rest and relax. So that night I just settled into the house of my new Host Family... or as I call them, roommates (as I have said before they are both my age). We sat around that night and talked and had a nice soup dinner (little did I know that this was just a prelude of what dinner was going to be for the next month... soup every single night, without exception).

The next day we woke up early and headed down the "hill" toward Tuxla Gutierrez, the capital of the state and the nearest big city. The drive down from SCLC to TG is one of the most stunning you will ever experience. The caratera (highway) starts you up at 6000 feet (above the clouds) and in 30 minutes you go to virtually sea level. The highway is constructed so that you can for miles, and watch as the earth slowly gets closer. Add to that the incredible effect of the temperature rising 20-30 degrees (F) in that time frame, and the vegetation changing from pines (like New England) to Palms (think Florida). Sorry no pictures of the ride yet.

At the bottom of the hill we got off at a small town called Cahare. From there we walked to the river and found ourselves a lancha (speedboat). Along with 12 other people we started our 2 hour tour of Cañon de Sumedero. The ride started out disappointing for me. The first 15 minutes we were traveling between small hill, and I remember thinking to myself "they are really exaggerating with the whole canyon thing", but just as I was about to complain, we turned a corner and there it was.

Walls of rock going up hundreds of feet on either side. Small patches of vegetation made could be found all over the rocks. At times our guide spotted small monkeys playing in the trees, vultures sunbathing on hot rocks, and aligators taking a mud bath (I did find out later that there is a swiming competition that takes place in the canyon every year... I wonder if the competitors know they have reptilian company?).

Along the tour we had the typical stops you expect, "look here is a formation of rock that looks like a sea horse... ". And while it was an impressive looking rock, I would have to stetch my imagination pretty far (probably with the aid of alcohol) to see a seahorse. The one, most impresive thing you see on this tour is a calcium formation they call "El Arbol de Navidad" or the Xmas tree. And from the pictures, I don't think I need to explain why. The canyon tour goes until you reach a large lagoon created by the construction of a large hydro-electric plant. I was amused to see a small boat pull up to us and sell us beers at this point in the tour. After this small beer break, we made our way quickly back the way we came. After 2 hours in the hot afternoon sun, we were all happy to finally find some shade.

After the canyon I made my way back to San Cris and spent the afternoon just miandering down some of the streets and people watching. And there is plenty to see. Between the local indigenous people, the hippie population, to the hordes of European tourists, and the local Metzito population, it is almost like watching a parade of interesting cultures. Add to that the backdrop of green mountains and old catholic churches and it is easy to pass the time. Those who visit will get to see, and be part of this.

To end the two days as a group (with Joe and Maryem) we went out to a Pizza place called El Puente. This is a small "hole in the wall" pizza joint with only 4 tables. It is run by a Italian guy named Pietro. It is also home to the best Pizza's I think I have ever had. After two very busy days, I was starving. So I asked him to give birth to two of these delicacies for me... and promptly ended there lives. Ok, so the story did not have much to do with pizzas... but I was at a loss for a title for this entry. :Learn Spanish Mexico Spanish Schools in Queretaro Querétaro Queretaro, Mexico
San Cristobal Spanish School, San Cristobal Language School


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Chapter 45: Indiana Jones eat your heart out

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New years day we all parted ways, all heading off to our sites for work... but not before Kevin got a really bad case of food poisoning (luckily we heard that with some good medicine he was back on his feet a few days later). Laura and I headed towards my site in the mountains, San Cristobal de Las Casas. But we made sure to take the long scenic route. We started off by heading to the city of Villahermosa. This was only a 1 night rest stop, because, though its name may imply differently (Villa Hermosa = Beautiful City) it is actually not very pretty. So after an quick night of rest, we headed on to our real destination. Palenque .

We arrived at Palenque late at night (seems to be trend when traveling in Mexico). Initially we had decided to go to a place that was recommended in the Lonely Planet, but as we were riding the taxi there, the taxista recommended another place instead. We decided to take his advice and were really glad we did. The places name was El Panchan. It is actual actually a old hippie retreat that is centered around a restaurant/cafe. The food was delicious, the live music was really good... and it was all incredibly cheap.

After we had got a good night sleep and filled our stomach, we headed out to the ruins of Palenque, or as it was originally called Lakam Ha which translates to "Big Water". Lets just start by saying, for all there other faults, the Mayans really knew how to pick the locations for there cities. Lakam Ha exactly what comes to mind when you imagine a Mayan city. It is located in the middle of a jungle. In fact over time, the jungle has actually integrated itself into parts of the structures, adding to the effects. The ambiance is made even more dramatic when you hear howling monkeys screaming all around you.

From Palenque we headed over too Mizol Ha. This magnificent waterfall, also located in the middle of the jungle, that actually has a pathway that allows you to walk behind it. If you follow that path far enough you will find a cave with a small stream coming out of it that you can explore. The site also contained an area for swimming near the waterfall, but unfortunately our bus only made a 40 minute stop, and we were not able to partake.

But there would be swimming that day. Our next stop was Aqua Azul. This site was a serious of at least a dozen small waterfalls, flowing the the most surreal emerald green water I have ever seen (except in certain parts of Lake Erie... but I am pretty sure chemical waste was the cause of that). Luckily this stop was scheduled for three hours. So we had plenty of time to walk up and down the cascades, swim in the crystal clear (and freezing cold) mountain stream, and catch a bite to eat. A nice way to end a day.

After all this was done, Laura and I headed back to our little cabin in the woods for one last night before continuing on to San Cristobal. On the map they are not very far, but once again I forgot to take into account the hundreds of curves. 5 hours later, and a little car sick, we arrived at the place that will be my home for the next two years.

Spanish School Mexico

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Chapter 44: 2006 We Hardly Knew Ye

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After spending 2 weeks seeing what the state of Veracruz had to offer, we finally made time to check out the city itself. But first we had to return the rental car. We were all expecting the worst, to be charged 10% of the value of the car as was stated in our insurance. But much to our surprise, when the guy at the rental facility came out to look at our bumper held on by wire, he just shrugged and told us that was not even worth worrying about. Not wanting to argue the point, we thanked them for the car, and quickly made an exit.

Chris headed back to to D.F. (Mexico City) for two days so Yale and I spent two days relaxing in Veracruz. The slight crimp in the plan was that we had arrived in Veracuz 1 day ahead of our original plan, so we did not have a room reserved for the night. We figured that would not be a problem, but unfortunately the days before New Years tend to be packed. So we spent our first afternoon in Veracruz going from hotel to hotel trying to find a place to stay. After a number of unsuccessful tries we ended finding a room in a hotel that was slightly more than we wanted to pay, but it was better than sleeping on the street. After a long day we decided to simply relax in the main square of Veracruz and do some people watching in the Zocalo.

The next day we made it over to our hotel. It was about 10 km south of the city center right on the beach, so seeing this as the last chance we will have for a while (I will be 6 hours from the nearest beach in my post, and Yale... well, he's going to the middle of the desert) we decided to enjoy it. The weather was perfect (but the water was really cold), but we spent a lazy on the beach.

We were joined the next day once again by Chris, and also by Laura, Kevin (another PC volunteer from an earlier group), and Peggy (Chris girl from the U.S.). We went to the beach for a short while, but unfortunately in 24 hours the weather had gone so we cut that plan short. For the rest of the afternoon we saw some of the sites around Veracruz, the castles, the aquarium, and the old colonial buildings (Veracruz was the first major Spanish colony in the new world, so they had a lot of beautiful buildings from that era).

The next night was New Years eve so we all did a little research to try to find a good place to go. Unfortunately, we ran into the same problem that we had on Xmas. Apparently in Mexico, New Years is also a family event. So unlike what we are used to in the U.S., were every bar, club and hotel has a huge party, here nothing... or at least almost nothing. We were lucky enough to hear that there were some restaurants on the sea shore that were going to be open. So we brought in the new year just like we do in the U.S., with friends, dancing, beer and on a table on the beach (ok, one of those 4 things we don't do in the America, I'll leave it up to you to figure out which). So with that we said goodbye to 2006... may it R.I.P.

¡Happy New Year! ¡Feliz Año Nuevo!

Spanish School Mexico

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