DAY OF THE DEAD
Last night the day of the dead celebrations went off around Morelia as people flocked to the streets and graveyards to hold candlelit vigils in respect of those passed away. The city was covered in marigolds and the streets were alive with kids of all ages in Halloween costumes. We celebrated by buying a huge rotisserie chicken.
Today we caught the bus to Patzcuaro, about 50km from Morelia, and find ourselves in a tiny town with far too many people. I think we must of got the last hotel room in town because the place is just a seething mass of people everywhere. The Posada de San Rafael cost us about US$14 for the night but it was charmless compared to where we had stayed in Morelia. Patzcuaro is the center of the day of the dead celebrations and apparently Mexicans flock here each year in huge numbers. It’s a lovely little highland town with some great colonial-style buildings but we will only stay one day. Tomorrow we head off for even more mayhem – in Mexico City.
Saturday, November 2, 2002
Friday, November 1, 2002
Morelia, Mexico
ANOTHER OVERNIGHT BUS THAT DIDN'T LAST THE FULL NIGHT
From Mazatlan we caught a bus during the day to Guadalajara and arrived there at about 9pm. After looking at the bus schedule we decided it was best to head straight to Morelia on an overnight bus rather than stay in Guadalajara for any length of time - the only reason for going there was because of the good bus connections. The overnight bus was a bit deceiving because it arrived two hours ahead of schedule at 2am, probably because there was no traffic on the roads and the driver drove like a maniac. Because we were so early we had to get a hotel room for the night which through off our plans since we had planned to sleep on the bus as much as possible. I had read in my Lonely Planet book that Mexicans were only on time for two things - funerals and bullfights, but the experience with the bus has led me to doubt this assumption.
UNESCO
In Morelia we discovered a city of Spanish style colonial architecture so outstanding that it was declared a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site in 1991. It feels more like Europe than Mexico here. We are staying in a lovely Spanish-style villa with a large open courtyard surrounded by two levels of rooms. The rooms are pretty and we have hot water, a TV and a very comfortable bed. The locks on the doors are unique in that the outside latch and inside latch are not connected. Yesterday when Sara went out ahead of me she latched the door shut, effectively locking me in our room. Much to my embarrassment, I had to lean out of the window and call to one of the chambermaids to unlatch the door in my best Spanish (which involved counting to ten and getting six and seven around the wrong way).
OUR EVENINGS
Many of our evenings are spent in fierce competition over the backgammon board or playing cards until all hours. In Mexico we have both been practicing a little bit of Spanish. Sara has the jump on me by six years and is very good at getting us around town and ordering food. Yesterday she even filled out a street survey in Spanish. I have been learning to count to a hundred - using playing cards to mix up some of the numbers and slowly picking up words from the television or by hearing people speak. It is a slow process for me and in public I usually rely on Sara to do all the work. Much of the time though we drift into meaningless debates like weather Spiderman could beat Superman in a fight (the answer is no), and why Kevin Costner hasn't made a decent movie since Dances with Wolves (some might say Waterworld was decent).
From Mazatlan we caught a bus during the day to Guadalajara and arrived there at about 9pm. After looking at the bus schedule we decided it was best to head straight to Morelia on an overnight bus rather than stay in Guadalajara for any length of time - the only reason for going there was because of the good bus connections. The overnight bus was a bit deceiving because it arrived two hours ahead of schedule at 2am, probably because there was no traffic on the roads and the driver drove like a maniac. Because we were so early we had to get a hotel room for the night which through off our plans since we had planned to sleep on the bus as much as possible. I had read in my Lonely Planet book that Mexicans were only on time for two things - funerals and bullfights, but the experience with the bus has led me to doubt this assumption.
UNESCO
In Morelia we discovered a city of Spanish style colonial architecture so outstanding that it was declared a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site in 1991. It feels more like Europe than Mexico here. We are staying in a lovely Spanish-style villa with a large open courtyard surrounded by two levels of rooms. The rooms are pretty and we have hot water, a TV and a very comfortable bed. The locks on the doors are unique in that the outside latch and inside latch are not connected. Yesterday when Sara went out ahead of me she latched the door shut, effectively locking me in our room. Much to my embarrassment, I had to lean out of the window and call to one of the chambermaids to unlatch the door in my best Spanish (which involved counting to ten and getting six and seven around the wrong way).
Sara and I in Morelia
Many of our evenings are spent in fierce competition over the backgammon board or playing cards until all hours. In Mexico we have both been practicing a little bit of Spanish. Sara has the jump on me by six years and is very good at getting us around town and ordering food. Yesterday she even filled out a street survey in Spanish. I have been learning to count to a hundred - using playing cards to mix up some of the numbers and slowly picking up words from the television or by hearing people speak. It is a slow process for me and in public I usually rely on Sara to do all the work. Much of the time though we drift into meaningless debates like weather Spiderman could beat Superman in a fight (the answer is no), and why Kevin Costner hasn't made a decent movie since Dances with Wolves (some might say Waterworld was decent).
The aqueducts in Morelia
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