Blogs from San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico, North America

We have woken to a slightly nicer day. I’m not sure if St Cristóbal is any nicer though! We’re also not sure how today’s van trip will go either - 8am to 9.30pm on a van tour could be a bit much! We are collected promptly at 8am and thankfully we are first pick up today so we secure the seats behind our driver. ‘Non ang-lazy’, says our driver to let us know we will be on our own today. ‘Non Es-span-nol’, we reply to let him know it’s much as we expected. We all laugh. The van proceeds to circle St Cristobal for the next hour, picking up other clients or returning when they are not ready - the Mexicans are not known for their meticulous timekeeping. Finally the van is full and we are ... read more

SC writes.. More trips out to different communities today, each of which has their own culture and way of celebrating the Day of Dead. See more on this below. I tried the local brew, called "Posh". Not quite fire water but a clear tasteless 36% proof variant on Rum. Many locals drink it mixed with Coca Cola which has assumed mythical status in these parts. We saw many Coke bottles left on graves (the departed's favourite drink) filled will this hooch. We also saw many locals filled with it too...very very drunk indeed at 11:00 in the morning. Also today we saw more evidence of the damage caused by last year's earthquake: some 25 churches in and around San Cristobal were badly damaged and remain closed. One where 3 massive bells had fallen to the ground ... read more

An eight hour slow drive today through the highlands but with fab scenery and a stop at some very photogenic waterfalls. We could have swum but chose not to. San Cristobal is delightful: Cobbled streets, markets and squares, lovely colonial syle buildings and, of course, everyone (and I do mean everyone) is gearing up for the festivals. We found a great steakhouse for dinner and while we promise not to bore you with food stories and pix, this meal was notewothy. - see picture. Over a late night drink we were pestered by small children "trick or treating". We had nothing to offer but will put that right tomrrow... The day of the dead!! SC adds : Apologies for the bits of junk text in ealier blog posts. That comes from copy / pasting text. I ... read more

We’ve been travelling around Mexico. At least a part of Mexico. We only have three weeks. In three weeks you can’t really get to know a country. But you can get a feel for it. For me this trip is a bit like a taster of Mexico. A glimpse of what there is to see. One day I will be back and I will do it properly and give it the time it deserves. For now, the three weeks we have will have to do. Starting off in Mexico City, a city that itself deserves three weeks, and even then you will only have seen a small part of what it has to offer. Mexico City is huge. We had three full days. In those three days, we saw three things properly, the Templo Mayor, the ... read more

Also known as the native Tzutzil name Juvel, is a town located in the central highlands region in the state of Chiapas. The municipality is all mountain terrains, but the city itself is a small valley surrounded by hills..The city center maintains in Spanish colonial layout much of the architecture, with red tile roofs, cobblestone streets and wrought iron balconies often with flowers. Most of the city's economy is based on commerce, services, tourism. Tourism is based on the city's history, culture and Indian population. The center of the city is the main Plaza ( Plaza 31 de Marzo) in coloniel times the main market was there as well as the main water supply. The corners have markers marking the major events at San Cristabol. The Cathederal is North of the main Plaza built in 1721.At ... read more