Day 4: Volcano to Tehuacán
Waking up after being terrified by a ghost during the night, I'm no believer but there was something and for some reason our shower would not give us hot water despite the attempts from the management. But this is part of the adventure, no?
Today we had all kind of roads, from super soft sand, hard gravel, wide open dried lake and uphills riding above the 4.000 meters.
An hour after starting we had to climb this sandy hill.
Video: Day 4
Then we followed river beds, with some tricky parts and a few uphills were we all waited for each other to pass and help when needed.
The ride to the base of volcano Pico de Orizaba was not as difficult as expected yet the lack of air could be felt. Luckily sleeping the night at 2.600 m helped us conquerer this pass of Valle del encuentro.
Late afternoon we arrived to the city, stay together Hernan said, and we did our best to survive between cars, trucks and other.
After a well deserved shower we went to have dinner at a local "fast food" Mexican style "Las Parrillas", where they had soup, tacos and more, dinner for only 200 pesos.
Day 5: Cactus to Oaxaca
What a sleep, you do start to feel the tiredness, but nothing better than a great breakfast with fresh orange juice and "Swiss Tacos"! It is to be said that the meals are not included except when there are no alternatives, quite a few actually. But it is cheap and as some might ask for more, 100 pesos here and there suddenly adds up. Overall I spend 10K pesos including souvenirs, a few rounds of Mezcal and a some premium meals.
Video: day 5
Slightly dusty gravel roads, in between enormous cactus trees was an all new experience. Calm and exciting.
At the exit of the forrest we passed a few rivers and a small village, on the other side Carlos and Caro were waiting with Sandwiches and beverages. Today no real lunch, but those Mango's just made it.
Mountains, with wide hard compact gravel roads, covered in fine sand that made it feel like sliding sideways in each curve. It felt like racing but in slow motion. Nice to get some speed and feel the fresh air. Later we got to follow an old abandoned train rail were we had to be a bit careful when crossing, nice wooden old bridges.
Late afternoon, with the sun still giving us the needed light we arrived save to Marco & Adriana's house. She had made Guacamole and other finger food to welcome us. Delicious, thanks!!
We let nearly all our gear at their place and went to the hotel, shower, dinner and lights off as we were beyond tired.
Day 6: Oaxaca as tourist
A rest day, but not only because we all needed it but because this city deserves a visit.
Monte Albán, the white mountain. A well guided tour of the archeological site was impressive. Well preserved and very different from the stories told of the culture at Chichen Itza,
After history lessons we went downtown. The old part of the city is extremely welcoming, people are friendly and polite. It's clean and you feel at home very fast. Several weddings gave it extra music and tradition. Food is excellent,
Video: day 6