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It’s a Tuesday, a travel day. Zacatecas is 4 hours away, but we decided to take our time and do a little village searching. Along the way was Somberete, a traditional Mexican town where the streets are nice and crooked and where you constantly must watch your step. Think irregular curb heights, cobble stones and horse poop. It took a while but we found a “spot” to park so we could walk their central area. We were Somberized.
At Zacatecas we booked a room at one of our favorite hotels, Meson de Jobito. It’s large and like its own little village. Our room was so nice (and large) that we immediately asked for a second night.
We are no strangers to Zacatecas. We have a couple of favorite restaurants, but familiarity did not come with hours of operation. That’s okay, we’re professionals at “Plan B”s. We got to know Las Quince Letras, the oldest family-owned bar in the city. We quickly met “Dad” and his daughter, the bartender. They were generations 4 and 5. Then the neighboring table decided we were interesting. Everyone got “more interesting” due to the free-pour tequila shots. Thanks dad.
Wednesday was filled with walking the cobbled streets, perusing the mercado municipal, an art gallery in an old convent and Maricella, the lady that sold us our latest procurement of Mexican folk art. Come by and see us. It’s currently along for the ride in a padded caja, ready to survive the perils of Mexico roadways. We finished the day with a bottle of wine and an excellent salad at La Traviata Centro.
It’s a 5-hour ride to our next stop, Morelia, Michoacán. However, I received a surprise email stating my attendance is required TODAY for a Zoom meeting. Lovely. And that would be an hour BEFORE we get to Morelia. Add to that, we have a time change eating up an additional hour. Not to worry but deep in the heart of Irapuato, Guanajuato is a Starbucks that will meet our Wifi needs. I’m thinking Starbucks with nice mood lighting, eclectic soft music, and hipsters in the shadows sipping a double mocha grande capo bubble tea. I made the meeting right on time, but we didn’t figure on the Starbucks being a kiosk in the middle of a very large, very loud mall with lots of hipsters in the open and screaming babies in run-away carts. Still… I made the meeting, I didn’t get in trouble and they didn’t get asked where I was.
Morelia: the beautiful colonial capital of Michoacán. There is ample street art. The central cathedral has the largest pipe organ in the Americas. The streets encircling the cathedral are lively with parades or protests or nothing at all. This is when you can enjoy the constant low-volume music that comes from dozens of strategically placed speakers. This is where we spent a morning, eating a local traditional favorite; gaspachos. This is not a Spanish cold soup. It’s a Mexican fresh fruit cup that you can top with a wide variety of bad things. You can make it as unhealthy as you want by adding flavored salts, sugars and chamoy.
What’s chamoy? Water and citric acid, along with a heaping scoop of maltodextrine, modified starch, iodized salt, potassium chlorate, chili powder, xanthan gum, sodium benzoate, natural and artificial flavorings and colorings, red 40, sucralose and potassium sorbate. Nothing says diabetic coma like chamoy. Maybe next time you should consider Krispy Kreme donuts, (also sold throughout Mexico).
We had ours with a simple lime squeeze. Tasty and healthy.
One day we took a one-hour road trip towards Patzcuaro, which in actuality became a 6 hour tour. The drive around Lake Patzcuaro was scenic and curvy. We took a few “What’s over there” turns and explored the area. We decided to get lunch in the city of Patzcuaro but this “magical” city produced a paranormal squeeze on the traffic. One lane of cars, busses and tractors crawled along for about an hour. We spotted a dusty parallel side road and decided to chance it, along with a small caravan of others. My Honda Element became a nimble burro, attacking the chug holes with the keen eye of a very slow Olympic downhill skier. The dust trail landed us in the heart of Patzcuaro as well as into even slower trickle of traffic flow. Eventually we put Patzcuaro in our rear-view mirror, rerouting the day’s adventure towards Uruapan.
Fun facts: Uruapan has caught the eyes of the Guinness Book of World Records folks.
- In 2000, the city made the worlds largest batch of guacamole; 1288 kilograms using a ton (literally) of avocados. What did they do with the pits?
- In 2018, they made the worlds largest cup of hot chocolate; 1272.3 gallons on the stuff. Local stores ran out of marshmallows.
- In 2013, Uruapan was recognized for having the world’s narrowest house; 4’7” wide. I bet that king-size bed was a bitch to move.
In the heart of town, Sharon spotted a restaurant, and I spotted a parking space. A spontaneous decision ensued. Our late lunch was only a few steps away at El Rincon de Aquililla. The service was a bit overwhelming as our table was swarmed with a variety of wait staff wielding enough small plates of snacks to completely obscure our very large table. We cleared a spot for tequila and beer then had to start stacking plates once our meals were served. Then the flurry of waiters started again with non-stop Mexican flag colored fresh tortilla replacements. Gotta hand it to them, they were mighty attentive.
On our last morning in the Morelia area, we headed towards the small town of Paracho. This is the capitol of guitar-making in Mexico. Except for your typical businesses to keep a town alive, (ice houses, eateries and funeral homes) the entire existence of Poracho is based upon the craft of hand-made guitars. We didn’t see any machine automated processes or other signs of mass-production. Guitars here are truly a craft handed down from generation to generation and you were welcomed into their workshops, of which most were also their homes.
There was a fair amount of activity in downtown Morelia that night and that was our cue to stay away. We’ve fought enough traffic. 100 feet from our hotel was another hotel, a nicer hotel, a nicer hotel with a fantastic restaurant and view. We ended up eating dinner there twice. Both times we were served by Carlos, the super cool waiter with stylish X-ray specs. We also met the twins from The Shining who were cute as buttons and really wanted us to “Come and play”. We didn’t. But we did talk a while with Johnny II (Enrique) and his wife, Michelle, the opera singer turned HR professional. It’s Johnny II because he reminded us of our friend, Johnny Navarro. We may run into them in a week or so since they live in Manzanillo and we’ll be near there soon. First, we’ll spend a couple of days in Guadalajara.
was it the hawaiian shirt, the gray hair or the beard? i think it may be that smile thats hiding something witty! mom is worried for y’all but i told her as long as she keeps y’all in her prayers u’all be fine. the trevails of mexico – a la meals. best read with my jolly rancher watermelon tequila drink. looking forward to next post.
very nice