¡En Oaxaca!

¡Hola a todos! I'm in Oaxaca right now, sitting on the porch of my friends/second parents, Teri and Allan.

My flight from Hermosillo to Puebla went well--it was actually kind of funny, as I've never been on a national carrier before and their security video was half instruction, half telenovela. But they give you snacks (beat that American carriers!) and it was a pleasant trip all around. Even though my solicitous row mate did ask the inevitable do I have a boyfriend in Mexico? question. But he was nice enough and helpful, and our flight was smooth and uneventful. Coolest thing--as we were flying into the airport at Puebla we passed right by this archaeological site on a hilltop.

Anyway the whole journey went smoothly. The only hiccup was having to buy a whole new bus ticket for the trip to Oaxaca, but that was more the fault of Ticketbus than anything else. Thus the bus I wanted to take was full and I had to take the next one, which wasn't leaving until 6pm! Dang! As it turns out though, there is an earlier bus that leaves at 5, but its 50 pesos more--ADO's luxary line, ADO GL. So I thought why not, paid for the ticket and was on my way.

The bus ride was like any bus ride--uneventful. And since it was a first-class bus we didn't get stopped by the military. Yeah! I stayed awake for most of it and enjoyed the beautiful landscapes as they rolled by. I saw some pretty sweet vistas and valleys, with a gorgeous backdrop of mountains and clouds. Amazing stuff.

Side thought: Funny how when most people think of Mexico, they think of tropical beach, the Cancun stereotype. Or Tijuana, dusty dirty polluted Mexican border craziness. For me, when I think of Mexico, I think of those dramatic views where you go through a mountain pass and suddenly the landscape spreads out in front of you and its this grand sweeping valley thats green and brown and white, sometimes red in parts where the erosion is bad. And you see milpas, churches, and sometimes isolated wattle-and-daub houses with donkeys and horses scattered about. And you see two children riding through the fields on horses, bareback and without bridles. And you see what's left of church as its walls crumble, abandoned and forgotten on some hill. And you see the trappings of modern life imposed on a landscape that just seems ancient. And its all so incredible, so vast and yet so pinched and rugged, and your mind stretches to take in it all.

That's Mexico to me.

Anyway, I'm here safe and sound and I have a bed for the night. Cheers!

p.s. I didnt have time to download them yet, but I promise to put up pictures tomorrow to show you all what I mean by frickin cool landscape!