Mexico, Day 7
Mar. 22nd, 2009 12:35 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
catmint1 23 Feb. 2009
Surrounded by dozens of traditional Tzotzil and Tzeltal villages, San Cristóbal de los Casas sits at 7800 feet elevation. Two local weavers, Juana and Catalina, guided our bus to their village.
San Lorenzo Zinacantán, located in a valley at 8500 feet elevation, is just six miles from San Cristóbal. Large greenhouses support a flower-growing industry. Roses, chrysanthemums, gladioli, daisies and alstromeria are grown for export. In Zinacantán, the women dress in brilliant blue and teal embroidered chales over black wool skirts. Craftwork such as weaving traditional brides' huipiles, rugs, tablecloths, blouses, chales, and straw hats, is a major source of income. Catalina’s mother’s home is a weaving studio and self-sufficient farm. After we shopped, we went into her kitchen for fresh molé, tortillas, beans, goat cheese, and local coffee, brewed with sweetening and a hint of cinnamon. She fed all 30 of us! Located just outside Tuxtla, the Cañón del Sumidero National Park is a Mexican ecological reserve on the Usumacinta River. The boat trip through the canyon was a great diversion. One 42-passenger jet boat handled our entire group. We passed through the Sumidero Gap, portrayed on the state seal. The Park encompasses the river and the steep canyon walls, protecting all sorts of birds and wildlife. We saw crocodiles, egrets, herons, iguanas, and enormous flocks of turkey vultures. Tuxtla Gutierrez Lunch at the world's smallest Subway restaurant in the capitol city of Chiapas, then the unbearable drive began. Our only stops were for bano breaks or roadside venders. San Pedro Tepanatepic We were thick in mango groves when Armando bought a whole box of ripe mangoes for $10. The senora came on board our bus with a big knife and cut thick slices of sweet, ripe mangoes for each of us, up and down the bus aisle. When she stepped off the bus, she said, "Wheee!" and we all laughed. We made her day, and ours was richer for the encounter. The terrain continued to change for the Next Five Hours of our drive. Every place Armando asked said that Huatulco was still 8 hours away, no matter how far we'd already driven. We were cranky passengers today. MEXICO 200 to Huatulco We got to Huatulco after 10:00 p.m. I got into my room at 10:30 p.m. I did not go out for dinner. I did not walk along the marina or swim in the pool. I went to bed. 
