Since a lot of people are wondering where we are exactly, we will keep this post with just the basic information regarding our whereabouts updated while posting other more specific blogs.
The world where we live in...
The first country we visited was MEXICO!
We flew into Cancun from Brussels (just because it was the smartest thing to do, budget wise) and we stayed there for one night in hostel Kukulkan. We had a descent stay there with a free breakfast included. The next morning we took another plane to Mexico-City, the capital! The journey really begins.
The city is officially divided into 16 delegaciones (boroughs) which are in turn subdivided into colonias (neighborhoods), of which there are over 1700. A lot right? We only knew the bigger areas by name, but the only thing you really need is the knowledge of the metro system. That gets you everywhere, so what else do you need?
For the first 4 nights we stayed in Hotel Universal. Afterwards, we heard that it used to be a love hotel, so you would have expected the really good and bouncy beds... Nope... Most of the time we had a bit of back pain in the morning. But if you looked at the price (only 230 MXN a night, with private bathroom) you couldn't complain.
The first days we did a bit of sightseeing: Bellas Artes, the parks, the Zoo, La Merced, UNAM... We will post specific blogs about everything later on. After seeing the city we decided we had to stay longer to get more the local experience. And how can you do that? Indeed, Couchsurfing! We found a lovely host Alejandra, her cute and adorable daughter and her German roommate Micha. We ended up staying there for 5 nights instead of 3, just because we felt so welcome there and loved to discover new places with them. During those days, we also went to a lucha libre match. If you want to know everything about it click here.
Ten days further and we must go to our next destination: Puebla! Located in East-Central Mexico it is the capital and largest city of the state of Puebla, and one of the five most important Spanish colonial cities in Mexico. So why go there? It has a great architectural feeling and lovely food. While we were there, we also went to Cholula. Just 10km outside of Puebla, you can see The Great Pyramid of Cholula, the world's largest pyramid topped by the Virgen de los Remedios church. Unfortunately the church itself was closed, because of the earthquake, so we could only see it from down the hill. We stayed there for two night in hostel Gente de Mas, after being recommended by a couchsurfer. And it was a good choice! Super friendly personal, a good bed, descent breakfast and amazing wall art throughout the entire hostel! If you are looking for a place there, just go!
Next stop: Oaxaca City. 343 km further on the road we arrived at Oaxaca City. Again a city full of history and most importantly great food! We arrived at 6 pm so we had to find a place to sleep. We looked online and found hotel Gala, right next to the Zócalo main square. You can't find a better location, but trust me, you can find a better hotel. The first room we got, missed a window at the hallway so we could hear everything. When we asked for a new room, we got it after 15 minutes. It looked well until we went to sleep... It was located next to the machine room: pure fun with air conditioning machines and boilers. Or another translation "a banging sound every 5 minutes so in total we could only sleep 1 hour max".New morning, new plan: check Airbnb! After a 10 minute search we found the perfect spot: a room at the house of Gerardo's mother, Norma. King size bed in a spacious room for only 245 MXN a night for the first three and when we asked to stay longer we got 4 extra nights for only 200 MXN a night. BARGAIN! But what to do? That's always the first question when you come to a new city. There is so much to do there, so we must choose. (We will make specific posts about each item later on)
Discover the historical center by foot
Visit the market at Ocotlan on Friday
Bus to Tlacolula market on Sunday
Hierve el Agua
Mezcal tasting
Go to Monte Alban --> maybe it is better to do this one with the bus instead of thinking you can walk up the hill easily like we did. If you really want to walk, it's quite doable but the two logical tips of the day: "don't do it in sun peak hours!" & "know which road you need to take"
Try the street food
Eight nights further and we are going south: beaches finally! Welcome to Puerto Escondido ("hidden port"). It is one of the most important tourist attractions on the Oaxacan coast, just because of that coast. On one hand you can do the big waves if you're an experienced surfer or you can choice the more quiet bays where you can just relax in the sea and on the beach. We stayed in Hostel Tower Bridge for three nights, and it was a pleasant stay. We just relaxed in the hostel (plus: they had a pool and a free pool-table!), went to Playa Carrizalillo and freely swum in the ocean. We booked a night extra at the beach of Zicatela to see the surfers in the morning.
4 nights already but we can't get enough of the beaches: Hello Mazunte! A a small beach town on the Pacific coast in Oaxaca. The town remains fairly typical and only has a small collection of hostels, hotels and restaurants to service tourists. Most accommodation in town is quite basic, however there are a couple of luxury places available in the hills. There we stayed for two nights in La Luceirnaga. Again filling the days with relaxing at the beach and swimming, nothing special.
Big city life... Tuxtla Gutiérrez. It is the capital and the largest city of the Mexican southeast state of Chiapas. We were lucky, when we arrived there we saw a poster for Ferria Chiapas. When we looked online to see what it was exactly, we found out that it was a big event with a huge fair, concerts, activities... So that meant that one night was already fully booked for us.
There we figured out where to go next and hello freezing cold... Like being back in Belgium for the winter, San Cristobal de las Casas. We thought we could escape the cold Belgian winter, but unfortunately, Mexico isn't a sunny paradise everywhere. San Cristobal de las Casas is also known by its native Tzotzil name, Jovel, and is municipality located in the Central Highlands region. The city’s center maintains its Spanish colonial layout and much of its architecture, with red tile roofs, cobblestone streets and wrought iron balconies often with flowers. Lovely! Being there around the 12th of December was the best. On the 12th the Mexicans celebrate the Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe (Día de la Virgen de Guadalupe), a popular Catholic feast that celebrates the belief that a man encountered the Virgin Mary, Mexico’s patron saint, in Mexico City on December 9 and 12, 1531. Fireworks during the entire day and happy festive people everywhere, with the peak on the 12th at night. But even without that, there is plenty to do in and around the city: Canyon Sumidero, Chiapa de Corzo, El Chiflon Waterfalls, mountainbiking, caving... So you won't be bored for one minute.
At the 15th we took a tour that would eventually bring us to Palenque. During the tour (that started way to early at 4 am) we visited Agua Azul and the Misol-Ha waterfall. Nature at its best! Arriving at Kin Balam in Palenque at 3 pm. Palenque is also anciently known as Lakamha (literally: "Big Water"), was a Maya city state in southern Mexico that flourished in the 7th century. The Palenque ruins date from ca. 226 BC to ca. AD 799. After its decline, it was absorbed into the jungle of cedar, mahogany, and sapodilla trees, but has since been excavated and restored and is now a famous archaeological site attracting thousands of visitors.
20/12/2017 and we must leave Mexico now... But hello Guatemala, hello new adventures!
From all of these places we will make specific blogs with more information and photo's!!!
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