Friday, August 04, 2006
SLP, The Trip
At just shy of 6am I arrive in Monterrey after 12 sleepless hours on a bus. When Alvaro comes to pick me up he says: "Hey men, vamos a Real de Catorce." So about 8 hours later, of which maybe I slept 2, I am again on the road, heading south to the state of San Luis Potosi and the old mining town of Real de Catorce.
Sure I have always thought going to visit San Luis Potosi would be nice, the same way I feel about, say, Arizona. A cool place, sure, but never a specific goal of mine.
The magnificent mountain landscapes I had hoped to see between Monterrey and Guadalajara had been disappointing but along the way to Real de Catorce I saw the type of scenery I had been hoping to see. So, right away the trip was well worth it.
* * *
The Trip
We arrived to Real de Catorce with the intention of camping, but it was already late. Only shortly before leaving were we warned about the cold. The altitude of Real is about 3000 meters. Strong cold winds blow throughout the night.
After we got situated in the Hotel San Juan (Us$10 per person) we went to eat at a taco stand. At 20 pesos (2 dollars) you could either enjoy the platter of 5 tacos or 5 enchiladas. Enchiladas por favor!
Despite that fact that my digestive system was in a mess wither from eating pork and/or an excess of spicy food, I sauced up my enchiladas with some delicious green chile sauce. By the fourth enchilada I was ready to pay the price so I want to the hotel to use the sanitary facilities.
We all ended up in a hip(pie) type bar to have a Few beers. Still tired from the previous night's journey I retired just before everyone set off to the old bullfighting ring to sing and enjoy the night.
Everyone is:
Me: El Gringo
Alvaro: Padrino, a great old friend
Guns: Your typical regio bad-ass
Casasa: The self-styled leader
Chino: El Ranger, an adventurous guy
Fernando: a very friendly fellow
Slow: sort of a hippie type guy
The next day Padrino woke us up to go to the desert. We set out on a stone road that wound its way down into the valley. About 1/4 of the way down we came across a jeep and a driver and we decided to pay him for a ride. Myself and a few others rode on top of the vehicle. This gave us a beautiful view and also a sense of danger. We were repeatedly hit by tree branches and a poorly timed stop could have sent us flying over the side of a cliff. I made this comment: "La proximidad a la muerte hace que todo parece mas hermoso. (Being this close to death makes everything seem more beautiful.)
Along the mountainside we came across little villages. It was hard for me to comprehend their existence. How do people live in such places?
In the desert we took part in an ancient native ritual.
The day had been ideal and from that point until nightfall a feeling of euphoria ran through my blood. I visited the local market where a variety of things such as locally made crafts,cheezy souvenirs, traditional Mexican sweets and Chinese-made toys were being sold. I bought a gorra knit-cap, which I believe is traditionally Peruvian and so not typically something of the region but I have always wanted on and it was cheap ($5) and it would be functional at night. Something else I got from the market was the chance to hear indigenous people speaking their native tongue to each other, an opportunity that I never had before in Mexico.
We set up camp in the old bull-fighting ring on the side of the mountain under the view of a church dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe and St. Francis of Assisi. The hippie-type people were already congregating and playing their drums.
After some effort we constructed the tent. Then we got the fire going and put the grill on to cook some sausages and carne asada. Night came and brought with it the cold and the wind. I commented: "Todo esta con madre y a la vez a la verga." - "Everything is really good and at the sametime really bad." (In the typically vulgar Monterrey venacular.)
Soon that balance broke down and fell over to the negative side. The wind took our tent to task, first pulling it out of its supports, then after we tried to reinforce it, one of the support poles broke. We discussed abandoning the campsite and even heading for Monterrey that night. With the tent broken and fearing even more damage we had to put it away.
So we were without a place to sleep, but we had convinced ourselves that it wasn't worth the pena to return to Monterrey at that point. Our financial situation left us with just enough money to get back the next day. Another night in a hotel was not an option. At that point either the stress of the situation, the smoke of the fire, the poor diet of the last few days, the thin mountain air or a combination of these factors had me feeling terrible and I tried to sleep in the truck. I never got much sleep and by morning I felt much worse. I slept as much as I could on the ride back and upon returning to Monterrey I took a shower and went to sleep. I woke-up just in time fore Alvaro's birthday celebration. We had cake, talked for a few hours and then I went back to bed. ¶ 7:04 PM
At just shy of 6am I arrive in Monterrey after 12 sleepless hours on a bus. When Alvaro comes to pick me up he says: "Hey men, vamos a Real de Catorce." So about 8 hours later, of which maybe I slept 2, I am again on the road, heading south to the state of San Luis Potosi and the old mining town of Real de Catorce.
Sure I have always thought going to visit San Luis Potosi would be nice, the same way I feel about, say, Arizona. A cool place, sure, but never a specific goal of mine.
The magnificent mountain landscapes I had hoped to see between Monterrey and Guadalajara had been disappointing but along the way to Real de Catorce I saw the type of scenery I had been hoping to see. So, right away the trip was well worth it.
* * *
The Trip
We arrived to Real de Catorce with the intention of camping, but it was already late. Only shortly before leaving were we warned about the cold. The altitude of Real is about 3000 meters. Strong cold winds blow throughout the night.
After we got situated in the Hotel San Juan (Us$10 per person) we went to eat at a taco stand. At 20 pesos (2 dollars) you could either enjoy the platter of 5 tacos or 5 enchiladas. Enchiladas por favor!
Despite that fact that my digestive system was in a mess wither from eating pork and/or an excess of spicy food, I sauced up my enchiladas with some delicious green chile sauce. By the fourth enchilada I was ready to pay the price so I want to the hotel to use the sanitary facilities.
We all ended up in a hip(pie) type bar to have a Few beers. Still tired from the previous night's journey I retired just before everyone set off to the old bullfighting ring to sing and enjoy the night.
Everyone is:
Me: El Gringo
Alvaro: Padrino, a great old friend
Guns: Your typical regio bad-ass
Casasa: The self-styled leader
Chino: El Ranger, an adventurous guy
Fernando: a very friendly fellow
Slow: sort of a hippie type guy
The next day Padrino woke us up to go to the desert. We set out on a stone road that wound its way down into the valley. About 1/4 of the way down we came across a jeep and a driver and we decided to pay him for a ride. Myself and a few others rode on top of the vehicle. This gave us a beautiful view and also a sense of danger. We were repeatedly hit by tree branches and a poorly timed stop could have sent us flying over the side of a cliff. I made this comment: "La proximidad a la muerte hace que todo parece mas hermoso. (Being this close to death makes everything seem more beautiful.)
Along the mountainside we came across little villages. It was hard for me to comprehend their existence. How do people live in such places?
In the desert we took part in an ancient native ritual.
The day had been ideal and from that point until nightfall a feeling of euphoria ran through my blood. I visited the local market where a variety of things such as locally made crafts,cheezy souvenirs, traditional Mexican sweets and Chinese-made toys were being sold. I bought a gorra knit-cap, which I believe is traditionally Peruvian and so not typically something of the region but I have always wanted on and it was cheap ($5) and it would be functional at night. Something else I got from the market was the chance to hear indigenous people speaking their native tongue to each other, an opportunity that I never had before in Mexico.
We set up camp in the old bull-fighting ring on the side of the mountain under the view of a church dedicated to the Virgin of Guadalupe and St. Francis of Assisi. The hippie-type people were already congregating and playing their drums.
After some effort we constructed the tent. Then we got the fire going and put the grill on to cook some sausages and carne asada. Night came and brought with it the cold and the wind. I commented: "Todo esta con madre y a la vez a la verga." - "Everything is really good and at the sametime really bad." (In the typically vulgar Monterrey venacular.)
Soon that balance broke down and fell over to the negative side. The wind took our tent to task, first pulling it out of its supports, then after we tried to reinforce it, one of the support poles broke. We discussed abandoning the campsite and even heading for Monterrey that night. With the tent broken and fearing even more damage we had to put it away.
So we were without a place to sleep, but we had convinced ourselves that it wasn't worth the pena to return to Monterrey at that point. Our financial situation left us with just enough money to get back the next day. Another night in a hotel was not an option. At that point either the stress of the situation, the smoke of the fire, the poor diet of the last few days, the thin mountain air or a combination of these factors had me feeling terrible and I tried to sleep in the truck. I never got much sleep and by morning I felt much worse. I slept as much as I could on the ride back and upon returning to Monterrey I took a shower and went to sleep. I woke-up just in time fore Alvaro's birthday celebration. We had cake, talked for a few hours and then I went back to bed. ¶ 7:04 PM
