Mexico: This summer in the state of Puebla up in the mountains

marty mopar

marty mopar

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July 23 to October 10 I am here for the 7th summer. Average rainfall is 110 inches a year in Cuetzalan
versus 7 inches a year where I live in Tempe. 10 room hotel and the family that owns it loves us. (my wife and I).
We travel with them and generally have a grand time here. We have use of the kitchen and cook together.
No car needed as you can walk everywhere and get what you need close by. Longer trips to villages nearby
you use public transport (small vans or pickups modified to carry people in the bed).

any questions ask away!!

Fiesta & Procession in Acaxiloco, Puebla Mexico 7-8-2024

Cola de Cabello Waterfall near Cuetzalan, Puebla, Mexico

Dona Mary Restaurant (all food cooked on wood) in Cuetzalan, Puebla, Mexico 7-1-2024

Zacapoaxtla Puebla, Mexico: Barbacoa, BBQ 7-3-2024

Sunset/Sunrise/Fog from the roof of the hotel in: Cuetzalan, Puebla Mexico June to July 2024

Fiesta in Tecpanzingo Puebla, Mexico 7-1-2024

Ruins close to Cuetzalan, Puebla Mexico 6-28-2024

Big-*** Rain: Really Big! Cuetzalan, Puebla Mexico 6-27-2024

Zacapoxtla, Mexico: The Wednesday Market 6-27-2024
 
a hike and dancing

The hike was at least 6 hours one way and Jaime and his brother used a machete for at least 1/3 of the hike. Very overgrown
due to the endless rainfall here. That reminds me of my running total since June 23...as of today August 25 64.5 inches of rain!
Not bad for 2 months. Along the hike we had Marisol who used to work at the hotel years ago and her 12 year old daughter Lizbeth.
It had waterfalls, huge mountains and hardly any people. We saw only one person on the hike until the end when we came to a
few small towns.

When we got to where we could get on a collectivo we got just a 5 minute ride and everyone had to exit and walk up the road for 20
minutes to bypass a huge construction site on the highway. Then back on without any extra cost to Zacapoxtla for a late afternoon meal
In a HUGE restaurant. First time for all of us. We ordered loads of food: 3 plates of French fries, 2 pitchers of horchata, and lots more.
As the entrance was huge there were pigeons at least 40 feet back into the place near our table. Well folks I had my trusty rubber
bands on my wrist and proceeded to hunt pigeons from my table! They were soon gone.

Last night we (Rosy and David of the hotel) plus May and I to a town over and hour away just before sunset. Xochitlan had their big
fiesta yesterday. Lots of dancers with masks, gobs of food vendors and a huge fireworks display at the church around 11 PM. I have
been there many times over the years. The bonus is that it has Huapango music/dancing. This type is ALWAYS on a wood floor.
Plywood is attached to a wood framework with screws or nails and is removed after the event is over. All the ones I have been to
are in front of the government building in the main square. The plywood flexes and you get a bigtime bounce off of it. There is lots
of stomping and jumping on it. Easy on the knees too. I pounded the hell out of it. At the end of the pictures is a close-up of the wood
attachments at the edge of the stage.

Before the dancing we had BBQ chicken on charcoal at the same place we ate 2 years ago. This time we ate when we got there, because
the last time we ate there at 3 AM and they had no utensils, napkins or plates. We ate like dogs. 3 pics of the wood pile and the BBQ chicken.

2 bands played and both were 3-piece bands. All males. The dance floor was huge but after 2 hours it was super crowded and super loud.
Earplugs prevented total deafness.

Fiesta (with Huapango dancing) in Xochitlan, Puebla Mexico 8-24-2024 - Google Photos

Xocayolo to Puente del Infiernillo to the Chapel, Puebla Mexico 8-23-2014 - Google Photos
 
Falling is not the problem it is the sudden stop.

The owners of the hotel decided to take a trip to Oaxaca. With their son (19 years old now) & (myself and my wife) we drove down yesterday. About an 8-hour trip.

I got an Airbnb house with 3 bedrooms for the 5 of us.

More to come.
 
In the past May and I have gone with my friend Jaime to Oaxaca while we were here in Cuetzalan.
Out of the blue Rosy and David asked us to go with them using their car. We did. I got an Airbnb house for
5 days in Oaxaca. 3 bedrooms, 2 bath house, big yard and enclosed parking. About 100 dollars a day but a
20-minute drive to the center of town but not a problem with a car. Marco their son joined us for the 1st
part of the trip and then had to leave to finish his exams at school.

We revisited places from prior trips and went to many new places. Everything worked out great and
everyone had a splendid time. Insane food that made you want to never eat American food again, crazy
fun, lots of walking, hanging out at the markets, great weather, and tons of handmade stuff to gawk at and
buy.

Rosy's Sister's House in Nochixtlan, Oaxaca Mexico 9-2-2024 - Google Photos


We stayed here one night. Big house and her sister's husband repairs cars at the house. The town is very small and
out in the countryside.

Pulque in Las Alcantarillas Apan, Hidalgo Mexico 9-2-2024 - Google Photos

Pulque is a fermented alcoholic drink made from fermenting an agave (maguey). It was a long drive in the countryside
to find this place and many stops along the way to ask for directions. A very sweet milky drink and Rosy got pretty
drunk...the rest of us did not as we did not pound down a ton of it. The man with the sombrero is the owner and maker
of the drink and the farm. We spent about 3 hours there. The ramshackle dwellings are for the animals and equipment.
And a few for people too.

The Train at Apizaco, Tlaxcala Mexico 9-2-2024 - Google Photos

Pan flute song: Bing Videos

There is a train and a train museum here. The train is for freight only. The last picture is a guy who sharpens knives.
He is an afilador. He has a modified bicycle as do most of them. They play a pan flute.

Villa de Zaachila, Oaxaca Mexico 8-29-2024 - Google Photos

A small town with a cemetery next to the market which is unusual. The Coke truck is loaded with empty and full bottles.
The glass bottles are refillable and have a deposit on them. Mexico is the #1 per capita consumer of Coke in the world. Also
available are 3-liter plastic bottles of this crap that you can hardly lift.

Rosy, David and Marco Oaxaca, Mexico 2024 - Google Photos

Here are the owners of my hotel, David and Rosy, and their 19-year-old son Marco. In the evening at the zocalo there is live
music at some of the restaurants on the plaza. Impromptu dancing happens and they did join in.

Tlacolula de Metamoros, Oaxaca, Mexico (Sunday Market) 9-1-2024 - Google Photos

This Sunday market is full of handmade items (baskets, clothing and more). Much of it made by the indigenous people
who lives in the area.


Ex Convento de San Pedro y San Pablo in Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca Mexico 8-30-2024 - Google Photos

This is one big-*** convent. It is a museum and hardly anyone was in there. We ate at a market across the street.
And oh yeah, the food was great.

Oaxaca, Mexico 8-27-2024 - Google Photos

Oaxaca is full of old buildings with balconies, lot of political commentary on walls, large parks and plazas and loads of chocolate
shops where they make it there. See the last 2 pics of the machines. We brought back 20 kilos of it (44 pounds).
There are a couple pf pics of Rosy's art on my arm. In ink..it did thankfully wash off.

Santa Maria Cuatempan Ruins: Oaxaca, Mexico 8-28-2024 - Google Photos

The second picture is a ballcourt. All the ruins have a ballcourt. In the most common theory of the game, the players struck the
ball with their hips, although some versions allowed the use of forearms, rackets, bats, or hand stones. The ball was made of solid
rubber and weighed as much as 4 kg (9 lbs), and sizes differed greatly over time or according to the version played. There was a
small circular hoop that the ball had to go through.

Oaxaca, Mexico 8-26-2024 Pottery plus Fiesta "Candela en honor a San Agustin" - Google Photos

On the outskirts of Oaxaca Rosy spotted some garish and **** stuff on the side of the road. We pulled over and yes that is stone
dick and balls. We did not buy it. We ate at a small place along the highway. While in Oaxaca one night there was a large religious procession
and we joined it for at least and hour as it wound all through the city.
 
What is the car scene like in Mexico? Are there shows? Cruise nights? Swap meets?

I should say that I have seen photos online of car shows, even specifically Mopar shows, but I guess I'm looking for commentary from someone on the ground.
 
I do like floating_boobs for sure.
The chocolate looks amazing! Can you elaborate on chocolate specifics?
 
Only once in the town I'm mostly staying was there a car show years ago. Well, there were all travelling together and stayed in town one night and were parked out by the church.

One Mopar C Body car...nice too. Most of the cars here are beat to death by the cobblestone streets and lack of $ to keep them nice. Shitloads of the air-cooled VWs about and mostly sound like **** warmed over...trashed exhaust and loads of smoke belching out. None would pass any inspection on any level in the USA. Missing/broken lenses, lamps, destroyed sheet metal.
There are newer cars here but in the end they all meet the same fate: neglect.

Oaxaca chocolate is ground there and sold/served there. Tons of it in stores and served up hot. Pretty damn good!!!
 
As of today, Sept. 8 at the hotel we have gotten 67 inches of rain since June 23.
I forgot to mention... In Oaxaca one morning David and his son had
the car jacked up and the front tire off. I asked what the problem was. A bolt had fallen off
the brake caliper. Now what? They walked up the street and found a mechanic working on a car.
He told them where to go to get it. About a 5 minute walk to a place that sold bolts. Got one for
40 cents and borrowed a wrench from the mechanic, fixed it and then brought back the wrench.

Today Jaime and I went by a collectivo to Nauzontla as it was their fiesta day. About 40 minutes
away and a 20-minute walk from where the collectivo dropped us off. Lots of food, rides and a
procession from the church through town. Unusual was a cow decked out on it's head and a rope
around it and a pig on wheels in a metal cage. Jaime said they were going to killed and eaten shortly.

Pictures 5-16 were at a chapel at the cemetery. Loads of graves and as usual crazy and weirdness about.
Great views of the town below from there. Lots of dancers in front of the church. We had an awesome
lunch of chicken and pork ribs over wood on a barrel BBQ. Mom, Dad and their 2 kids helping. Their 7
year old boy took our order and brought our food. I left a good tip and then gave dad a 50 peso tip for the boy.
The kid was overjoyed!

Fiesta Day: Nauzontla, Puebla Mexico 9-8-2024 - Google Photos
 
As of today 9-26 I have gotten 73.5 inches of rain since I arrived here on 6-23.

Xalcuahuta Puebla, Mexico: Fiesta Sept. 20, 2024 - Google Photos


This village is very small and very few attend this festival. The one thing that stands out here is the wall
that the voladores (flyers) have to be careful of when they descend from the pole as it is possible to crash
into it if they misjudge the distance.


Xalcuahuta Puebla, Mexico: Fiesta Sept. 20, 2024 - Google Photos


This is a very out of the way market to visit...about 2 hours away. One part of the 2 rides is a spectacular
view of the mountains and a huge river valley, but nearly impossible to photograph as it is blocked by
huge trees. The town is on a very steep hillside. The second picture is a list of the towns that you can visit
at this tiny station where you hop on a collectivo. The best one is the 1st town on the last line...a real tongue
twister.

Cooking and making Passion Fruit Atole (Maracuya) September 2024 Cuetzalan, Puebla Mexico - Google Photos

Rosy the owner and 2 of the girls that help here were making atole from passion fruit. You scoop out the gelatinous
seed goo and combine it with masa from the tortilleria. Grind the seeds in a blender and strain. Cook it in a pot.
serve hot.

Tecuantepec, Veracruz Mexico 9-23-2024 Family houses - Google Photos

An hour from the hotel is the home of David who with his wife owns the hotel we live in. We drove there in his car.
his mother lives there and they are building a new house just around the corner from mom's house. The walls and roof
are done but not much else. About 400 live here and it is much hotter than Cuetzalan due to its lower elevation. The moth
on the interior wall was about 5 inches across.

More repairs at the hotel using rice as a filler. Cuetzalan, Puebla Mexico Sept. 2024 - Google Photos

Before and after shots of a broken wall next to the refrigerator. Nobody could remember how or when it broke.
I filled it with mashed and cooked rice, filled the end of the wall. Let it dry for 5 days then a small amount of a
Spackle like filler added and finally 3 days later sanded and painted it. Like new and edible (possibly).

Rancho el Encanto, El Arenal Cascadas, Zoquiapan, Jonotla, Puebla Mexico 9-25-2023 - Google Photos

There are 5 waterfalls here. We took 2 collectivos to get to a spot where we could walk into the area. It is
privately owned and we had to pay a small amount to get in. Nobody was there. Very nice place. On the way back
we ate at a BBQ place on the road. Not a town. May needed to use the bathroom so one of the girls working there
took her across the street to a house where there was a bathroom. Meanwhile the mom was making tortillas
faster than we could eat them and in spite of Jaime telling here we had enough she kept on making more.. A
lot more.
When we finished, we walked out on the road waiting to catch a ride on a collectivo. A guy with a pickup stopped
and offered us a ride up to the junction. We got into the bed and stood up for the 15-minute ride. At the junction
was a guayaba tree and they were on the ground, so we snagged them. Yummy.
 
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