Blogs from Chihuahua, Mexico, North America
December 19th 2010
My mum always set great store by the entry to a house. A proper entry was vital. It needed to be welcoming and give a good impression but without necessarily letting someone you didn't know straight into your living space. Some countries could take a lesson from my mum. We crossed three borders in the last week, all different. With the UK we were leaving and, apart from the loss of our spending in their country, they didn't really seem too bothered by the fact. On entry to the UK, on the Eurostar from France some months ago, we were interviewed, skilfully but gently, by an immigration officer who established who we were, what we had been doing, intended to do and for how long. For the USA we arrived after a long flight, longer because ... read more
and a freight train running through the middle of my head
Published: December 15th 2010North America » Mexico » Chihuahua » Copper Canyon
November 30th 2010
We slept well our last night in Chihuahua. The dodgy room had a strangely relaxed feel to it, the rough wood floors polished by many years of bare feet and Chihuahua boots were cold, but the bed warm and comfortable. Our room was at the end of the building, down a long hallway, next to hard-working little gas heater which kept the few feet just outside the door at a comfortable temperature. Handy when you were searching for the keyhole in the cold. The free wifi in the hotel would only work if I sat out in the stairwell, but there were some handily placed couches there, possibly for the purpose, possibly for a pitstop for inebriated guests as they struggled up the stairs from the bar below. Which was playing some very decent trance and ... read more
Through the badlands of....
Published: December 7th 2010North America » Mexico » Chihuahua » Chihuahua
November 28th 2010
We woke early again, well, at 8am anyway. Another travel day, but not too far. As far as Durango, the capital of Durango state, official name Victoria de Durango, population roughly 460,000. A lot of Hollywood westerns were filmed in Durango back in the day, so it's also known as Tierra del Cinema. Not a bad place, really. We found a cheap place with a hard bed, but it had a private bathroom, and the building was the best so far. A 200 year old mansion, gracefully crumbling at the edges, with a hodgepodge of architectural influences (Arabic, Spanish, Mexican), converted into a hotel in the early part of last century. Disappointingly, the Oxxos in Durango don't sell beer, and we were unable to find a bottle shop, but the search for a grog shop meant ... read more
El Chepe - Barrancas del Cobre
Published: November 1st 2010North America » Mexico » Chihuahua » Chihuahua
October 28th 2010
J ai eu la chance de pouvoir faire le voyage "Chihuahua - Los Mochis" avec le Ferrocarril Chihuahua Pacifico. C est tout simplement magnifique. Apres 4h de sommeil et un bon mal de crane, suite a la soiree avec les mexicains, je pars a 5h du matin pour la gare de Chihuhua. Deja, le taxi est tellement pourri que je ne sais pas si je vais y arriver. Vous savez, le genre Nissan avec 800000km au compteur qui fait autant de bruit qu un avion ou 3 voitures reunies. Bref, on yarrive, sans me faire arnaquer, et boum je m endors dans le train. En gros, les 2 premieres heures n ont pas d interet si ce n est le lever du soleil. Le voyage consite en 650 km en 14h avec 39 ponts et 87 ... read more
October 27th 2010
ola todos ! I arrived yesterday in Chihuahua (I promise Iason, I put a song link and a good one... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7NHNJK4ONg) after a nice trip. Again, I almost missed my flight because I was late and the check-in was closed. Damn it ! 2 flights, and twice I am at the border. But thanks the professionalism of continental airlines crew, I managed to overtake everybody at the security gate, took off my shoes (you never know, I might carry explosives) and ran to the gate. Got it ! After a transfer in (Whitney) Houston, I took a plane sooooo small that it could land in my garden. I mean, it was 3 rows of seats in toal, 2 on the right and 1 on the left. And you cannot stand in. But it does the job ... read more
June 26th 2010
On Saturday, we crossed into one of the most dangerous cities in this hemisphere. (Juarez, Mexico) The violence here over the last year and a half has claimed an average of 7 people PER DAY. We met with a pastor of a small local church and asked him what ministry looks like in this context. More than once, he has witnessed to someone who was killed weeks or even days after he presented them with the glorious Gospel of our Lord. He and the members of his church have to be careful who they speak to as “association” with someone marked for death (even if that means being seen talking to them in the street perhaps inviting them to church) can and has brought death to innocent people and even their families. However, this level of ... read more
October 10th 2009
Today we went for a short walk in the canyon. Mexican short. American long.... read more
