back to mexico

north america → united mexican states → mexico city, distrito federal

just to get through what’s left in mexico…

my original plan was to go from taxco, the silver mining town to puebla. spend the day in puebla and catch a night bus going to oaxaca. spend an overnight in oaxaca, and get back on an 8-hour ride north to mexico city.

this is entirely possible if and only if the bus from taxco to puebla was not cancelled on my 4th day in mexico. i could have gone back to cuernavaca, and they have buses every hour leaving for puebla, but at that time, i just decided to go back to distrito federal, back in mexico city. i wish i had done the backtrack to cuernavaca.

back at mexico city is not as disappointing at all as i had plenty of time roaming around the capital. ‘got back in auditorio station for the multitude of museums scattered around. i started with the anthropology museum, which is in chapultepec park. this is considered one of the most important museum in mexico as it holds significant archaelogical artifacts from pre-columbian (that is before discovery of the europeans) period. there is an original aztec stone of the sun. this symbol is one of the most popular aztec mark. it is a portrayal of the four catastrophies that destroyed the four universes prior to the universe that we know as today. on its surface are lots of hieroglypics that layouts how the aztec measured time, that this emblem is also popularly know as the aztec calendar.

more pics here

a lot of artifacts, unearthed historical findings, paintings and murals, smal scale reproduction of temples such as teotihuacan and tenochtitlan, and models of locality of various mexican tribes, it could take you more than 2 hours checking everything. a good thing in this museum is the presence of english translation of texts. costumes of natives are on display as well, and some are really weird like a  man with a horse head somewhere below his torso. just imagine.

the exhibit layout is organized according to each period or location, and its better to start from the right side (upon entrance) going to left. it begins with an introduction to anthropology, which features the prehistoric man, and a copy of famous lucy, an australopithecus, ancestral to the genus homo. other sections includes the american settlement, sacred regions such as teotihuacan, the toltecs, aztecs, and rich indigenous people in oaxaca, and the mayas among others.

the museum is set on a huge space with exhibits lined around forming a square, in the middle is an artificial pond, and a square shelter supported only by a single mid pillar. resembling an umbrella, this structure is known as el paraguas, spanish for “the umbrella”.

a really nice morning history trip.

holga is back!

the lack of holga-pic post for the last few months is not because i abandoned lomography already! it’s because i didn’t find any shop that processes 120s in st paul, and even if i do, i bet digiprint’s price would still be cheaper…and so, i had 10 rolls processed recently, which of course, you can get to see in my multiply:

http://yossarian22.multiply.com/photos/album/78/Manila_-_Ang_Pagbabalik_ng_Holga_I
http://yossarian22.multiply.com/photos/album/80/Manila_-_Ang_Pagbabalik_ng_Holga_II
http://yossarian22.multiply.com/photos/album/81/Mga_Tao_Ang_Pagbabalik_ng_Holga_III
http://yossarian22.multiply.com/photos/album/82/St._Paul_MN_Ang_Pagbabalik_ng_Holga_IV
http://yossarian22.multiply.com/photos/album/83/BW_Bulb-_St.Paul_MN_Ang_Pagbabalik_ng_Holga_V
http://yossarian22.multiply.com/photos/album/84/More_of_St_Paul_MN_-_Ang_Pagbabalik_ng_Holga_VI
http://yossarian22.multiply.com/photos/album/85/More_St._Paul_MN_-_Ang_Pagbabalik_ng_Holga_VII

here. a week back.

things have been unexpectedly busy, especially at work, and the fact that i’m still under the aura of trance, yet to adjust in GMT +8 timezone didn’t help much. i’m at home at the moment, and this first weekend is nothing but lazy ordinary rest day. i cleaned haggy (my toshiba) disk space, updated anti-virus engine, spyware, malware, uninstalled unused programs, etc.. in the aim of reclaiming few gigabytes. i’m so much out of space at the moment that aside from haggy’s 80gb (yes, that’s small. this machine is old, but running perfectly!), and 160gb portable hd, i’ve used a 16gb mp3 player, 4gb cf, 2 gb xd, and 1 gb microsd memory cards for additional memories! i’ve even dumped a few gb in my workstation at the office (hope my boss won’t read this…)

i realize i’ve left much to post here especially my remaining days in mexico, and last few days in st paul. i’ll try to update everything as speedy as possible. i’m feeling better each day, but still occasionally waking up in the middle of the night. i feel the need of a big eat at breakfast and tormentedly sleepy after lunch hours. i used to believe that jet lag is something overly emphasized, but believe me, it’s true..and crazy wicked. minneapolis-st paul time zone is almost opposite of manila’s time. it’s 13 hours back, so 1 in the afternoon in the philippines is midnight in st paul.

meanwhile, i’m glad of doing usual things, and getting back to my normal routine as 3 months ago, which honestly as i know myself, i’m not sure how long this will last. i admit i have an itchy feet and simply amazed by fortuitous changes so i hate to look too much ahead, albeit future plannings have been unavoidable recently. so, i’m happy to drive item again along the continually narrow traffic of southexpress way constructions, which if i remember correctly is going on its 3rd christmas this december. i’m happy to see familiar faces at the office. i’m happy to have eaten at yellow cab again. i’m happy to see my family, and sleep at the comfort of my own lofty bed. i’m happy to play my keyboard once again. i’m happy to glance at what’s on telly, and watch an episode of some random koreanovela. i’m delighted to eat mom’s cook, and bring lunchbox at the office that i brought one right on my first day back at work. i’m simply happy by the common things that i’m doing before, and it’s a nice feeling to find out that things haven’t changed much.

i’m going to see some highschool friends (mark and jp) in awhile, so i better end this post for now. ‘will be back later.

i’m here, groggy-eyed!

south-east asia → philippines → metro manila → taguig city

apart from the pasalubong, and chocolates people would expect from you when you just got back in the country, they expect you to be whiter, or at least a few shades lighter..and as for my case, it’s the opposite. perhaps basking under the sun in mexico for 8 days is enough to cook my melanin to golden brown. mind you, it’s not really hot in mexico. i guess the UV is much more intense.

at the moment, i’m in the office, at the fort in manila..earlier today, i was surprise to find my own new cubicle (they had a new seating arrangement) with my workstation on top of a neat desk. to add more, i was able to get in the network as simple as if it’s like i was just here yesterday and not 3 months ago. no need to make calls to have something activated, or email request for some technical issues. kudos to lawson!

never had the same “privilege” (if that’s suppose to be a privilege!) where i worked before that i always had to loiter around, and wait for my own space and workstation to get done.

going back

north america → united states of america → minnesota → st. paul

while i realize that my mexico tales are not yet over, i’m going back to the philippines tomorrow morning. it’s 20 minutes past 9 pm already, and i’ve yet to finalized my luggage. st paul, minnesota over all provided a very good vibe for me. i’m not surprised that the state is considered as the most livable state in america. my last week here after having gone to mexico has been so fast. ‘went to office for the last 5 days. ‘had my last cycling and donated my bike last wednesday. ‘had our last pictorials in front of the landmark with snoopy characters, and ate for the first and last time in historical mickey’s diner, and white castle fastfood too (good food for a fastfood!).

there’s a vague sense in leaving north america. having been here for only 3 months yet seeing and experiencing a lot, united states is still a great country. perhaps conceded by the fact that i may not return to this side of the globe any sooner makes me feel a bit of melancholy. but people move, things change, and in part, i’m happy that soon i’ll be back in my own country, where the climate is hot and the traffic is heavy.

silver bargain!

north america → united mexican states → guerrero → taxco

continuing my way headed south, i decided to pass by taxco, a former colonial silver-mining center in the state of guerrero. from the country’s capital mexico city, the town is situated some 200 km southwest. although i did not go to acapulco (which is a shame), this is same route for the famed beach. the city is standing along the sides of a mountain (i think sierra madre, the same name as a mountain range in the philippines), with narrow steep roads, streets paved with cobblestones, and colonial houses generously decorated with bricks and red-tiled roofs.

the main attraction of taxco is probably the silver bargain. taxco is considered the world’s silver capital, and as much as i dislike golds (don’t have a single glittering yellow personal ornament) because it has this kababayan-galing-saudi effect, i prefer having silvers. but not that i am a expert in silver, in fact, i don’t have a silver necklace for ages and just found a new one in this town. most silvers here are engraved with MEX 925 or TAXCO 925. just so you know, it is an alloy as silver alone would be too malleable for jewelry. 925 represents the 92.5% of silver in it, and usually the remaining percentage is copper. silver shops line the main plaza, zocalo, and all the streets leading to it.

getting to taxco from cuernavaca is straightforward. ‘went to the bus terminal of estrella blanca, and got a costa line ticket going taxco for 57 pesos. the travel a bit more than an hour, and takes you through spectacular mountains and fields before a sea of whitewashed homes with red-tile roofs, and the spires of santa prisca church will suddenly appear over the last crest of the journey. a major problem i had is that i don’t have a slight idea where in taxco hostel arellano is. i tried asking at the bus before getting boarded in cuernavaca and they don’t know it. good thing, a girl overheard our conversation, and she knew exactly where the hostel is. she speaks enough english, and even too nice to sketch a map for me! reaching taxco, and eventually casa arellano hostel, i couldn’t imagine how would i find the place without her help with all the complexities of unnamed streets plus small alleys! so that was really a saving grace.

another notable jewel in the town is the 250-year old santa prisca church. it is one of the most elaborate construction in mexico and a unique display of an architectural design called churrigueresque. a person that played an important role in this town is jose de la borda (yup, the same borda from jardin borda in cuernavaca). sometime in the early 1700’s, jose de la borda left france and tried his luck in one of spain’s vast empire. by then, taxco has long been a mining excavation, and the original mines were soon sucked dry that not a whole new significant discovery happened for the next 200 years, that is, until jose borda’s arrival. luck wasn’t all visible and easy that borda was about to return home after several months of fruitless toil, however, when he finally struck it rich. as the story goes, one day, his horse stumbled on a rock, dislodging a stone and exposing the precious metal. it is at this exact location that the santa prisca church now stood. he solely funded the construction of the magnificent church on the condition that neither the catholoc order nor the viceroy would ever interfere with the project. borda’s quote being: God gives to Borda, Borda gives to God.

after trying the local food in a restaurant’s balcony, with an impressive view of zocalo, and the architecture, i headed along narrow streets haggling for silvers. as in all territories, those main establishments, being those in the immediate plaza or square, are the most expensive silver stores. finding smaller silver stores in a street to the left of santa prisca church (when facing), i bought a necklace, 3 pendants for it from different stores, some earrings for pasalubong. earrings is the most safest item as there is no sizes to consider, plus, it’s a lot cheaper than rings, bracelet, or necklace! got 2 silver bookmarks as well, a plain ring, and a keychain.

hard rain poured in the late afternoon, and after waiting for it to subside, i called it a day and walked my way back to the hostel. of course, i got a dormitorio, the cheapest as always, with a bathroom ensuite (which is nice). there’s nobody in the dormitory when i got there earlier, and now there were 2 big backpacks that later on revealed to be owned by 2 young lovely french girls (which is also nice, hehe), marianne and laura. they’re going around mexico for 6 weeks (longer than me, i envy), and have just explored some towns north of mexico city. not surprisingly (because of the proximity), they also came from cuernavaca before taxco, and surprisingly enough, they’ll be heading to puebla the next day, exactly the same as my plan! so i figured i could join them for awhile. however, they’ll be heading more south to oaxaca from puebla whilst by then, it’s almost bye-bye time for me as i have to go north back to distrito federal in time for my sunday’s flight to st paul.

early the next day, i went out for a final walk around zocalo, and tried native drink atole, which is a starch-based hot drink common in mexico and central america. chocolate version of it is known as champurrado, which is also the same name for a chocolate-rice soup in the philippines. then, went to the very hidden silver museum. it was a bit hard to find, but with the guide i got from the web, it became possible to locate it. when i got there, (it’s in the basement level), walls were locked and lights were off. i was about to leave the place when i braved enough to get in a dank alley and howl, “hola?”. unexpectedly, i got an answer, and i asked if the museum is cerrado (close). she didn’t answer, and opened one of the walls with her key. then, she pulled it open, and then revealed a mini silver museum (more of exhibit) with an entry fee of 10 pesos. inside were marvelous silvercrafts from renowed silversmith and artist william spratling. collection includes silvers in various forms, from simple to elaborate design. silver crabs, human head silver figures, silver jewelry and ornaments, even silverwares, and asked permission to take a single picture (yes, this is another museum where photography is not allowed) of silver representation of christ’s crucifixion. ‘really magnificent.

more pics

city of eternal spring with scary bus ride

north america → united mexican states → morelos → cuernavaca

mexico is the only place i’ve ever been where english is not widely spoken. but still, i find mexicans very kind that most of them will try to help you in finding your way. it’s a bit awkward when i try to ask my direction in broken spanish plus point to my map, and they would answer eloquently in full details while the only spanish words i can make is donde (where), izquierda (left), derecha (right), derecho (straight ahead), and quadra (blocks). occasionally, i met younger crowd who speaks english, and proved to be very very helpful in tough situation.

cuernavaca, the capital city of the state morelos, is about 85 km south of mexico city. from my research, the ride would only take a bit more than an hour on a well developed highway. i went to the bus station after breakfast with 2 belgian traveller i met from the hostel. they’re heading acapulco via taxco, and it should be the same bus terminal for cuernavaca. bus station (pullman de morelos) is in taxquena metro station (2 pesos to get there, the metro would take you anywhere in its destination for 2 pesos), and the bus ride from the capital to cuernavaca is 30 pesos. that is, because i asked for a segunda clase ticket. what i didn’t realize is that second class buses make use of different route, much longer, with a lot more stops, and much scary! the whole ride took more than 2 hours, close to 3 hours including a scary almost-slide-down-the-cliff incident. that was so bad that everyone woke up in the bus. i didn’t dare sleeping at all to begin with!

at last reaching cuernavaca centro at well past noon, i searched my way to zocalo, and had something to eat. i didn’t feel like eating much and i’m not certain if it’s because of the scary bus ride, or the nausea i had from all the curves along the mountain. after getting 3 pieces quesadilla (delicious btw), and an orange-like fruit drink, i went in search for a hostel (posada morelos). using of course my very efficient notes for the address, some mumbling spanish, and provenly effective body gesture, i made my way to the hostel to be greeted by a rabid dog. the hostel is in an alley a few steps away from the street so it’s quiet. the attendant, however, barely communicates in english so we had to go as basic as possible. un noche. dormitorio. por favor. gracias.

cuernavaca is the only zocalo in mexico that doesn’t have a cathedral. in the middle is a small victorian gazebo designed by gustave eiffel, its base occupied by small juice vendors, and surrounded by litter. nearby are old government structures as the palacio de gobierno, and palacio de armas, with rally going on. i could only infer that they are teachers protesting some rights. in the vicinity as well is palacio de cortes, built in 1532 and now a historical museum. it has murals by famed diego rivera depicting conquest of mexico, some mammoth fossils, and historical artifacts. it’s a shame however, that the section with diego rivera’s mural is closed for renovation.

an important thing i noticed in mexico’s museums and exhibits is its phobia of camera. a lot prohibits taking pictures whether flashed or not. i don’t understand this.

a few distance from the center is jardin borda, an aged garden built in the 18th century by jose de la borda, a frenchman silver miner from the town of taxco. the park, which undergone several restorations, has a small exhibit in the east, garden carvings, colonial patios, manmade pond with ducks and rent boats, an outdoor theater, and lots of fountains and pools.

trying the food. pozole. a hodgepodge of chicken, overgrown corn?, lemon, avocado, chili, uncooked onion, and oregano. it’s a hearty heavy soup meal traditionally made in this region. ‘had it for dinner from a local pozoleria a few blocks away from the hostel. i had the big bowl version of it (gigante), its very tasty, and the profusion of involved ingredients makes its taste unclear. deliciously indistinct.

churches. cuernavaca’s cathedral is situated a few blocks from the zocalo, along hidalgo and morelos streets. the construction of the church was during hernan cortez’s time (a conquistador). recently discovered are japanese-style frescos depicting felipe de Jesus (philip of jesus), mexico’s first martyr and saint who was crucified in 1596, along with 26 other friars, by a japanese emperor.

salto de san anton. although i tried very hard to find this falls, and a very nice lady even drew a map for me how to reach the place. i wasn’t able to see it.

PICS

thank you for the pornography

north america → united mexican states → mexico city, distrito federal 

mexico is the city with the most number of museums in the world. the city alone has about 160 museums. the station auditorio is a good start for sampling several of the museums, but doing it on a monday is a no-no. most museums in mexico are open from tues through sunday, with monday as break. not knowing this, i ended up strolling outside museums (after having been to teotihuacan pyramids), taking pictures of the street, trying street foods, and walking all the way from auditorio passing by zona rosa to insurgentes.

there are some interesting landmarks along the way, such as the El Ángel de la Independencia monument, situated in a roundabout over paseo dela reforma in downtown. it was built it the early 1900’s  to commemorate the centennial of the beginning of the country’s war of independence (between mexico and spain, mexican victory which led to mexico’s independence from spain). it’s nice to observe how the traffic goes on in a roundabout, and i believe traffic in mexico is just as bad as traffic in manila.

*real translation: thank you for not littering

more PICS

mexico’s first city

north america → united mexican states → state of mexico → teotihuacan

it was a nice change that i didn’t have to work on a new beginning of a weekday. so, last last monday, being my 2nd day in mexico, lim and i went northeast of the city to check out the teotihuacan. it has the third largest pyramid in the world, the pyramid of the sun, surpassed only be another pyramid in mexico (cholula), and the great pyramid of cheops in egypt. first thing after breakfast (free from the hostel, some toasted bread, coffee or tea, eggs, and jam), lim and i made our way to the metro, a couple of blocks away. metro in mexico city lacks any english signs or directions but it is designed with spanish-language illiteracy in mind. lines are color coded, and by looking at a metro map, it’s easy to know where to transfer or get off.

reaching terminal autobuses del norte at autobus del norte metro station (a very imaginative way to name the station), the fare is 31 pesos for one-way. at the destination, there is an entrance fee of 48 pesos to enter the pyramid park. the entire location is huge and a lot of walking is necessary, even hiking if you wish to reach the top of the pyramids.

teotihuacan. considered to be mexico’s first true city, the archaeological site of teotihuacan is located some 40 km northeast of mexico city. reaching the pyramid from mexico city (insurgentes) took an hour ride bus, plus the metro ride to autobuses del norte station. this site is one of mexico’s most famous tourist attractions. at its peak extending several miles in each direction, the population is believed to be more than 100,000 making it the largest city in the pre-columbian americas. there is more unknown about this magnificent structure than what has been discovered. honestly, it was a misconception that i thought that these are aztec ruins. truth be told, the site was already in ruins when the aztecs discovered it, and it remains a place of great mystery and reverance. teotihuacan’s religious, cultural, and economic influence peaked between 500 AD and the 8th century. experts believe the city’s builders came from the east about 2,000 years ago, their culture based on worship of the rain god. now, areas of the city were home to craftsmen from distant regions who brought their specialties here. obsidian workers were prevalent, and today local men make figurines from the iridescent black stone in home workshops for sale.

today the  language and history of this ancient city, even its original name, are lost. its present name, meaning “place where gods are made”, was given to it by the aztecs, who could only surmise from the monumental ruins of the abandoned city that they stumbled onto divine territory. it was here, they believed, that the gods created the universe and the world as we know it, called the “fifth sun,” the previous four creations having been destroyed by nature.

the pyramid of the sun (piramides del sol) is the highest, standing 210 feet high. thinking we might lose our energy easy from the sultering sun, we decided to climb this first. at that height, climbing along uneven steep stairsteps, it’s a bit tiring but reaching the top is astounding. the panoramic view is amazing with the smaller pyramids down below, and the mountains afar. unlike the pyramid in egypt (i haven’t been), teotihuacan monuments were built as flat-topped bases for ceremonial temples reaching high into the sky, to be near the gods. spending several minutes appreciating the view, a picture taken of myself with the expansive background of course, and walking around the flat base, we started descending and proceeded to the next pyramid.

climbing the pyramid of the moon (piramides dela luna) is less strenous as it’s smaller and it’s not allowed to reach the very top. so more or less, we just got in the middle part, which is not bad as the view is even more spectacular. the pyramid of the moon is at the rear part of the site so the view is the entire length of small pyramids, and the gigantic sun pyramid on the left.

creating such structures in the age when cement mixer is non-existent, or i suppose even a steel hammer is a prototype, requires a lot of effort and is indeed an elaborate task. adding the rich history, and the mystery in archeological sense that lies about mankind’s existence is enough to make this site a UNESCO world heritage site. truly amazing.

pics

*facts were taken from a mexico travel guide book from the hostel, missed the title though.

still alive

north america → united mexican states → mexico city, distrito federal 

the reason why i haven’t posted any more in mexico is due to lack of free internet access, or i’m too tired and lazy to sit down and write something. so at the moment, i’m back in st paul. having just finished cooking dinner, sitting at the comfort of our own dining chair, using company laptop. this week is going to be crazy as i have to do and sort things out. i’m leaving the us of a this coming saturday, which overall, concluded my short north american adventure(though i haven’t been to canada! or alaska )

mexico has been one of the uniquest experience i had, learned a lot of things, tasted different foods, seen more original relics from the past than i could remember, been to strange places, met fellow travellers, and seen humiliating situation as the rampant vulgar display of affection in this romantic latin american country, which if you think about it is not really bad at all.

anyway, to continue on where i left in mexico (which was in zocalo). zocalo is actually from an italian word meaning pedestal and it was in the zocalo of mexico city where originally, the plan was to erect a sculpture commemorating mexico’s independence. however, the plan didn’t materialize, but the term zocalo retained and was used to refer to all the public squares scattered around mexican towns. pictures of mexico city’s zocalo would probably be best than discussing history here…haha. -> PICS

when i was there, there are activities going on. probably for the upcoming celebration of mexico’s independence day (sept 16) so the square was not as expansive as it looks from the pictures. also, i left todo (400d) safely sleeping in my cabinet in st paul, and just used salvy (oly 770sw).

at the hostel, they offer free lockers but you have to provide for your own lock. not bringing my bicycle padlock, then the venture of searching for a lock. it’s very rare to find a store attendant (or even the general public) who speaks english. i ended up asking for a papel and pluma and drew it as best as i can, not until i sketched a key then they knew what i need and blurted out ‘ah, candado!‘, to which i agree having remembered that it’s the same word in the philippines that refers to locking something up. ‘no candado aqui’ (or something like that), he said.

not finding a candado in this shop is not a failure as it seems as i now know what it’s called. walked a few blocks, i saw a big grocery store and find my luck for candado. good thing a lady is kind enough to show me precisely where it is. she even left her stall (in front of the grocery), and drag me inside up the second level in a cabinet full of locks. ‘got the cheapest one for 40 mx pesos (about 4 USD). then went back my way to the metro to insurgentes, walked around to find where to eat. there’s a nice art restaurant a few blocks away from the hostel and it’s a shame that i ordered an authentic mexican…..hamburger with fries. i know  i have to try real mexican food, so the next meals will sound more mexicana.

at the hostel, some of my roomates were already there. there’s felix, a solo traveller from the big apple, already at the verge of his mexican adventure. and lim, a korean traveller who made his way from brazil passing all over south america until reaching mexico. sharing travel stories, good banter, i learned that lim plans to go to teotihuacan the next day, which is exactly the same place i scheduled to visit, so we decided to go together…whilst felix will be on his shopping escapade getting ready to make is bag full.

the sleep was okay because it’s quiet. however, there were mosquitoes (i don’t have repellant lotion) despite the luminous flux from the mosquito lamp.