Adventures |
Barb´s Travels in Mexico Michoacan and Zihuatenejo |
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Author´s Note:
Recently, I met Barb when she was in Veracruz, and what an interesting woman! She really knows how to pack in a lot of experience in a short amount of time and not spend a whole lot of money. She knows what she is looking for, and goes for the best. I found her posting on the Thorn Tree fascinating and got her permission to reproduce it her as an inspiration for others who travel alone. She shows how you can do it yourself. I hope one day you can get a chance to meet her on her travels in Mexico. |
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It has been almost a month since I have returned from my 34-day trip to Michoacan, Guanajuato and Guerrero. I received helpful responses from folks from the Thorn Tree, so I hope to share with other travellers interested in the path I took. About Me I am a 46-year-old female from Seattle (that was travelling alone and on a budget) and have travelled alone in Mexico previously. My Spanish is mediocre, but I get by. I want to assure other women (and men) who have doubts of travelling alone in Mexico, that is quite doable and pleasant. Many times it has been an advantage for me. Natives and locals and travellers constantly approached me, asking if I was travelling alone. I was invited for coffee, beer and conversations time and again. So, if you have doubts…don't. Whenever I travel and come home I notice the difference of Americans and the Mexicans. Americans need to learn something about the polite manners of Mexicans in their daily lives. Things as simple as, Good Morning, Thank You and Excuse Me. Many Americans have forgotten these phrases in daily life. One of the workers at the hotel I befriended, was amused that I thought it was funny how people get on the combis and say Buenos Días, Buenos Tardes, etc. I told him that does not happen in Seattle, a city similar in size when getting on a bus. The next morning, I woke to a note on my window, from the hotel worker, telling me to have a nice day! Was he flirting? Maybe…but made a point a couple days letter to ask if I got the note and what did I do that day! About my trip: I travelled from April 15-May 18 landing in Morelia (State of Michoacan). It was in the early evening and the sun was going down. The airport is about a 40-minute drive from the city and cost 180 pesos (the return I negotiated for 150). It has been 3 years since my last solo trip to Mexico, but the thrill and excitement built up as we drove through the country side into the city. I did not have reservations, but got a room at the Hotel Fenix on Madero. (112 pesos) It was a bit noisy and a bit run down but the people who ran it were nice. The next day I moved to the Hotel Colonial on 20 de Noviembre which I ended up using as a base for my trip, (returning twice, once to see a dentist and make connections to Guanajuato and Zihuatanejo) leaving my wheeled bag, carrying a small pack for my week long trips away from Morelia and buying those plastic bags to carry extra things if I bought craft items. It was close to the center of town and fairly quiet except for the television that was on in the lobby until late. (I always carry earplugs). I negotiated for a lower price, which they agreed too. I paid from 113 pesos to 100 pesos while staying there. Instead of describing my travels in sequence, since I retraced my step through Patz and Uruapan, I will describe what I did and where I visited as if I had only visited once. Because I found someone to travel with for a few days, I changed my schedule and was not sure altogether whether I would go to the beach, which I did, so I retraced my steps. I went with the flow..so to speak. Morelia I really enjoyed Morelia. It is a very clean and architecturally beautiful city. Morelians are very proud of their city and rightly so. My first 4 days there, I visited several museums and churches and walked all over. I especially liked the area east of Madero by the Aqueduct and El Bosque, the fountain of the Tarascans and the Jardin. I visited the San Diego Church several times because of the beautiful color and carvings. I always say if you aren't religious (I grew up Catholic, not practicing) you might feel religious when you visit a church in Mexico. Many of you know what I am talking about, the grandeur and the labor that went into building these cathedrals and churches amaze me! I love old working buildings, which these are, after living in Seattle all my life and see the construction of unaesthetic pleasing architecture. I attended a few different concerts in Morelia. There seems to be cultural activities going on all the time. I went to a chorus of Venezuelan and Cuban music at the Casa de la Cultural for 30 pesos, a free concert at the State Museum, which I thoroughly enjoyed. The woman named Rocia Vega sang traditional songs of Mexico and had a beautiful voice. Her father was Purepecha (she grew up in Uruapan) and her mother from Oaxaca. I also attended a free jazz concert in the Clavejero Palace, fireworks going off at the Cathedral in the Saturday night sky. I was always alone when I did these activities. I met a 26-year-old female engineer one evening when I was walking back to my hotel. She invited me for beer and conversation. The next morning I was at the Café Europa under the Portales when I met Jorge, a retired music teacher. I saw him other times while in Morelia and even my last evening in Morelia. He invited me to his table for coffee, pastry and conversation. Both incidents were enjoyable and I believe very gracious of these people, young and old, to want to meet me. I happened to meet up with a young man, Matt from Australia (who has posted on Thorn Tree) and is a character, while in Morelia and who was staying at the Hostel Allende. Patzcuaro I ended up meeting Mary, a woman from Victoria B.C. also at the hostel. We decided we were compatible enough to travel to Patzcuaro together. The bus ride was about an hour (several buses running hourly) and cost 26 pesos. Mary and I stayed at the Hotel Valmen a block east of the Plaza Chica. Together we paid 200 pesos and when I was alone, I paid 150. I liked it fairly well for its location and its interior tile work. It was a bit noisy at times, but once again…earplugs are a good thing! I enjoyed visiting all the sites in Patz and just hanging out in the Plazas. It was hard to get decent coffee before 9:30 though. I mostly ate at the markets, an occasional comida corrida and sometimes just cake and coffee for dinner. Mary and I did the tourist thing and went to Janitzio Island in Patzcuaro on Lake Patzcuaro. It was a good breather to climb up to the statue of Morelos and then up further in the statue for a great view of the lake and surrounding area. We treated ourselves to beers after the climb. I was disappointed about how polluted the lake is, but see there is an organization that is trying to clean it up. Therefore, I would not eat the white fish that comes out of the lake. We also visited Santa Clara del Cobre the copper town. We got to observe Copper being worked in the back of some of the shops and also visited the Copper Museum. I bought copper pots and bracelets. We had a great comida corrida at the Camino Real hotel/restaurant off the main plaza. Tarascan Soup, rice with avocado, bread, enchilada Suisse, flan and a beer for 70 pesos including tip. After Mary left and I returned to Patzcurao at the tail end of my trip I visited many of the towns around Lake Patzcuaro. These included the towns and ruins at Tzintzuntzan and Ihuatzio. Both times, I got to experience being the only person at the ruins (before others showed up) besides the workers. It was really peaceful sitting up above Lake Patzcuaro under the trees looking down at the lake (Tzintzuntzan) and writing in my journal. There were birds and black squirrels going about their business. I could hear the church bell gonging and voices below in the village. I visited some wood carvers and the small market in Tzintzuntzan and bought some of the green pottery and a basket. In Ihuatzio, some young boys showed up at the ruins and when I left they walked back to town with me. They wanted to practice English so we did and when I told them I had played soccer, we kicked the soccer ball. They had to ask me what the word motherfucker meant! What a surprise…They asked so innocently! Can you imagine trying to explain? I also visited Quiroga buying some leather and taking pictures of a family from Santa Fe de la Laguna and having lunch. I also visited the mask-carving town of Tocuaro and two carvers' homes and studios. I bought a small mask. I also visited the village of Erongaricuaro only seeing the church. It was pretty quiet (siesta) when I was there. On my second trip back to Patz I met a retired couple that invited me to their house off the Plaza Grande. They offered me tea, cookies and the Internet. Al suggested I go to Lake Zirahuen, which I had originally opted out, but decided to give it a go. I lucked out getting a bus at the bus station that was leaving shortly. A guy at the tourist office told me I could get a collectivo taxi. When I started asking around, I got too many answers so I just headed to the bus station and took a bus for 11 pesos and around 40 minutes or so. When I was dropped off I was pointed to the lake. When I went down there I saw a couple restaurants and asked about a launch. I ended up having white fish at one of the restaurants but when I looked down and saw the house on stilts over the water, I was concerned about how clean the lake really is. I could not get a launch, as they needed more people to take it out. As I wandered around I saw other launches in a distance and saw fishermen hanging their nets. When I got down there, I realized that is where I should have eaten…looked a lot better than where I ate and what I had. I eventually got on a launch to go out on the lake when they gathered up enough people. It was 30 pesos. Buses do not run regularly there and I had hoped to get a collectivo taxi returning but there were no people returning to Patz so after waiting an hour, I took one of the last buses back. Lake Zirahuen was pretty, but raining and I am not sure how worth it was considering I realized I missed organ music in Morelia for the Organ festival by staying one extra night in Patz. But I did have some major shopping to do also before I left Patzcuaro. I was not impressed with the white fish, but I think I just ate at the wrong restaurant and should have explored more. Uruapan I visited Uruapan (33 peso bus ride), about an hour from Patzcuaro. I stayed at the Hotel del Parque for 155 pesos. This was the most I paid the for a hotel, the whole trip and it was also the smallest room I had. There was the bed (and little space between that and the wall) and of course a half of a wall separated the toilet, shower sink in one from the bed. I did not like it except for it was clean, quiet and the manager spoke good English and was informative. It was a short walk to the National Park. I bought a ticket for 12 pesos and visited it in the morning and before it closed at 6 pm. It was beautiful with the river and waterfalls, foliage birds and butterflies. I felt it was more of a city park and somewhat commercialized, but a peaceful respite from what was outside of the park. I met several people in the park that approached me, walked with me and asked many questions in English and Spanish. This is what I mean about being alone and being approachable. Never did I feel alarmed. Someone on Thorn Tree described Uruapan as a bit gritty compared to Morelia. I visited it twice (as I did Patzcuaro) and enjoyed it more the second time around. Maybe it was because it was more familiar and felt like an old friend. I also took a taxi (20 pesos) to Angahuan to visit the old San Juan church engulfed by the Volcano Paricutín. I was a bit concerned about hiking alone but fortunately met up with a young woman in town, from Switzerland named Barbara. She was a friendly companion and it took us about 45 minutes to hike to the church from the Mirador. Some folks take a horse or hike to the Volcano itself, but that did not interest me. Especially after meeting a couple of Austrians who were sunburned and saddle sore. No thanks. I was happy to see the church and volcano. We got a taxi back for 15 pesos total. My second trip to Uruapan (passing through from Zihuatanejo). I arrived at 10:30 p.m. which I do not normally doing as a female but I had no choice because the bus left Zihua at 3 or so in the afternoon. I stayed at the Hotel Oseguera in the center of town. It is a bit of a dive, but the Moderna next to it was worse! I paid 70 pesos for a room and stayed two nights. I liked the location and the people that owned it. Plus the manager had a cat so he gained points for that in my book! It was close to Café Lucha, a café that has been in business about 80 years. The coffee was wonderful. I spent a lot of time drinking Americanos and Frappuchinos for 8 and 12 pesos and bought coffee beans to take home at 80 pesos for a kilo. This time in Uruapan, I visited the guitar town of Paracho (bus was 14 pesos). I am not a musician, but I did enjoy meeting one of the most famous guitar makers, Geronimo Americua Gomez and his shop. There were various articles posted by LA Times magazine and Christian Science Monitor, posted on his wall in English. His family has been in the business for 350 years. I also visited the guitar museum, the market and plaza taking some nice photos of some of the Purepechas. I found it easy to take photos there, compared to Patzcuaro. While on the bus returning back to Uruapan, I visited the town of Capacuaro because I read they made woven purses. When I got off the bus and asked about it, some of the people seemed stumped, but then pointed down the road to a fence where purses were hanging on a fence. I visited this Purepecha home (compound) where 4 families were living and bought 4 woven purses, of various colors, made on a back strap loom by the mother. In return I gave a ruler, pencils and stickers to the kids. They gave me many smiles and thanks. That was a memorable experience. The purses cost about 4 bucks a piece. I showed a postcard to them of where I live (Seattle). The daughter in law of the mother had lived and worked in E. Washington, as a migrant worker. I asked her why she did not stay and she told me she did not like it. I found that time and again from people that had come to work in the U.S. that they did not like it. I though the area around Uruapan was beautiful, pine forests, avocado trees and lovely greenery, reminding me of home. I appreciated the weather a lot more after visiting Zihuatanejo. Zihuatanejo I took a bus (six hours, 315 pesos-Parhikuni line) from Morelia to Zihua. The bus leaves at 7 am. I was told not to take the night buses because of some safety problems, i.e.: robbery in the past. I did not like the idea of arriving at 5 in the morning either and having to hang out. So I took the 7 a.m. bus. I thought since I was in Mexico I better have some beach time. My feelings about Zihua were pretty much what I thought they would be. Granted it was the off-season, still it was not the place for me. I know there is a whole website dedicated to Zihua and people just love it but I have visited smaller beach towns in Jalisco and Oaxaca, which I prefer. I also realize that to me, Mexico is about history and colonial towns. This is what attracts ME. The beach is nice to lie around and read books and swim, but I get bored after awhile. Zihua had the feeling of tourism…too much. The prices were higher and it was all about shopping at inflated prices. I stayed at the Hotel Ulises for 4 nights, at the price of 130 pesos in town, which was a good deal. It was very clean and comfortable. The woman that owned it was very sweet and we conversed often. I would take the camionera to Playa La Ropa in the morning (4.50 pesos) and hang on the beach for 3-4 hours. I had an experience that made me think about how I did not like the tourist beaches. I was going to have lunch (fish meal) at one of the restaurants. I told the waiter that I needed to make sure that I had enough money with me (as I left my pouch with money, passport etc. with the senora at hotel). His response in perfect English was, "Make sure you have enough for the tip also!" I could not believe it and probably should have left, as that was a turn off. The meal was very good, tuna steak, rice, veggies and beer and tip for 115 pesos. But sure enough, the waiter stood close to my table waiting to see if I would leave that tip…which I did reluctantly because his attitude stunk! Some Americans I met who live in Zihua said, "We have caused that behavior." Have we? Anyhow, Mexicans and others I spoke with thought that was bad. Guess this one of the reasons I do not like resort areas. Petatlán I did take an afternoon bus ride to Petatlán about 40 minutes south of Zihua. It was an enjoyable bus ride (12 pesos) with yellow and blue curtains with fringe, stuffed animals above the driver and of course the music blaring and baby in the seat next to me drooling. It was a pretty ride. Petatlán is known for its gold vendors in town, around the church and plaza. I bought a pair of butterfly earrings for about 13 bucks. It was really hot and not much more to do. I also have to say that I like being hot, but the humidity was horrible when I was there. I have a friend who has a house near Barra de Navidad and he said, "I could have told you not to go anywhere south of Colima on the coast this time of year." So when I got back to Uruapan, the climate felt really pleasant. Guanajuato I took a bus from Morelia to Guanajuato, which was about 4 hours and 115 pesos. I stayed at the funky Posada de la Condesa for 3 nights. Reminded me of an Alfred Hitchcock movie, but the price was right at 110 pesos. Guanajuato is lively and very pretty. I enjoyed hiking up to the Pipila for a great view of the city. There was a lot of music and entertainment with the University on the streets and in the plazas. Unfortunately, one of the days I was there was May 1st, which is a holiday, and so many museums were closed. I did visit the Mummy museum (60 pesos for both wings), which I enjoyed. People think it was weird, but I work in the medical field and was fascinated. The only other place I visited was Diego Rivera's birth house and museum. It was interesting but a couple of the visiting exhibits were more interesting. There is a great little coffee place a few doors down. I never connected with anyone in Guanajuato, which I thought was odd, since there were so many foreigners there. San Miguel Allende I took the bus to San Miguel, 65 pesos and stayed at my first hostel (Alcatraz 85 pesos), which was fine and nice to connect with others. I did not think I would like San Miguel because of my impression there would be many gringos there. It was a pleasant surprise, maybe because it was off-season. I met a lot of different people there and did not do a lot except visit some shops, the church, mirador and La Gruta hot springs but it was nice just to connect and have some conversations with others. I loved the hot springs. Took a local bus from near the hostel. I stayed about 3 hours and once again found many Mexicans wanted to talk to me about where I was from and share ideas of music and food etc. When I was on the highway waiting for a bus, a young Mexican couple offered me a ride to town. I offered them money and they said no. When I got out of their car, I met a couple from Nova Scotia who invited me to Happy Hour. They insisted on paying. We had a really enjoyable visit. My last days in Morelia My last days in Morelia were retracing my steps a bit, listening to music, meeting more people. I took a bus to Zinapacuero to visit the Atzimba hot springs, which were, dirty and run down. There was also a dead bird in the pool, which really made me concerned about getting some bird disease! I visited the ex convent and ate in the market. Not sure if it was worth the outing. I was starting to dread the end of my trip and the idea of returning to the U.S. Never once did I feel anyone hated me because I was from the U.S. and when we talked politics, I found a lot of people from all over, and they were very sympathetic. It was a wonderful trip and I have had a difficult time to adjusting to being back in the U.S. I know Mexico is far from perfect, but some of the things that we think are a big deal, in Mexico, just are not. For instance, I took the direct bus (on the cuota) from Uruapan to Patz, thinking "Oh good, no stops." Except for when the bus broke down and we waited an hour to get another bus. No one fretted! It's just accepted I guess. When I arrived in Patz, I had to pee. I debated on waiting to get to the hotel. Well, I paid the 2 pesos for my square of toilet paper, the toilets did not flush and there was only 1 sink that worked. No towels, no soap. So, this is why I carry my own. Would I be frustrated living like that on a permanent basis? Don't know. There is a trade off…Mexico could be part of my future sooner than planned. Also, I visited a dentist in Morelia who was recommended by several people on the Yahoo Morelia groups' site. He spoke 4 languages and was very pleasant, having trained in Japan in porcelain work for over a year. I had an exam, x-ray and a resin put on my tooth for about 85 dollars. A crown and root canal would have been under 300 dollars. If I have problems with my teeth, I will be on a plane to see him. If I had another month… If I had another month, I probably would have attended language school as my Spanish has gotten worse over the years, but I seem to opt to travel and learn while I go along, though stopping for school could be advantageous for more intelligent conversations! The craft shopping is fabulous around the villages near Patzcuaro. In a month's time, I spent just over $1000.00 for a little over a month. I booked my plane ticket two days before I left, buying it the day before for $569.00, the day before I left with way too many stops. I was packing bags a week before waiting for a window of opportunity that opened. My budget hotel rooms averaged just over 10 bucks a night. I ate usually two meals a day, travelled a lot on combis instead of taxis, bought and ate at the markets and bought close to 130 dollars worth of stuff to bring back including coffee, wood carvings, silver and gold earrings, woven tablecloths, placemats, purses, leather purse, fanny pack, plastic shopping bags, copper, pottery 2 tops and many other goodies. I look forward to my next Mexico trip and hope it comes sooner than later. Adios! |