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Published: January 10th 2009
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Neil & Alfonso
At the edge of Nevedo de Toluca Day 6
The ride to Toluca started off beautifully, we were weaving thru the mountains of Morelia. While traveling thru heavily forested mountain sides we would pass thru several grassy pastures filled with horses and cows lazily grazing the day away. We also passed some small villages that seemed to be in the middle of no where and lost in time. You couldn´t help but wonder how different your life would have been had you grown up here. The further in our journey we got the more the road deteriorated. This was not the 1st class bus like we had taken to Cuernavaca. Not only was it lacking AC and a movie, it also seemed to be lacking vital suspension components. The 800,000 or so speed bumps were having an affect on Laura´s stomach. Her face became as green as the guacamole, but unlike the guy that got off before us, she was able to refrain from lossing the contents of her stomach on the street.
We walked from the bus station to the hotel(we got lost once). We were very please with our room, the hotel is very colonial hence the name Hotel Colonial. On the walk Neil keeps
Neil & Laura
At the edge of Nevedo de Toluca commenting on how hard it is to breath. We are assuming it´s because we are at 6,000 feet above sea level. We look for sherpas to carry our back packs but there aren´t any. We relaxed and watched a Mel Gibson movie then decided to go enjoy the night life, only to discover that by 8:30 everything was pretty much shut down. While walking back to our hotel room Neil heard some music coming from the 2nd floor of the building across the street. There was a single word ¨Bar¨over a door way leading to a steep narrow stair case, disregarding Laura´s apprehension Neil dragged her up the narrow stairway to a smoke filled bar with a ceiling height of 5´8¨. Neil being 6´had to duck to get to our seats. Silence filled the air as we grabbed a table in the middle of the action. Shortly there after the crowd became accustomed to the 2 white strangers in their midst. We sit down and write our blog and are distracted by what seems to be a man serenading his wife on their anniversary. We decide to head back to our hotel before they close the gates.
Day 7
Outside of Toluca is an extinct Volcano with 2 lakes, one being the sun and the other the moon. We rose early so we could get a taxi out to the volcano in order to get the best views. There´s a road that leads you to within 2km of the craters edge. The taxi driver quoted us about 1/3 of what the lonely planet book told us it would cost. It became apparent to us that he had in fact underestimated the distance, and was trying to make up for it by screaming up the side of the volcano and passing cars without regard to safetyl It will cost him in the end when he realizes he has to replace the finger imprinted arm rests in the back seat. We were suprised to see the shear number of joggers and bicyclists training at that altitude. Upon arriving at the 2km mark we noticed that there were no other taxis in the parking lot and we asked if he would wait for us. We agreed on a price and Alfonso asked if he could join us as it had been 8 years since he had been up the volcano.
After
starting off at a brisk walk, forgetting we were at 13,000 feet, being unaccustomed to the thin air Neil quickly felt the affects with a temporary loss of vision and dizzyness. We couldn´t help but feel inadequit and embarassed as the throngs of joggers breezed past us as Neil regained his vision. As we continued on towards the edge of the crater Alfonso seemed to find our struggle some what amusing as Neil tried to explain in broken spanish that we are not used to the thin air. Upon reaching the edge of the crater Alfonso asksif we would like to descend into the dome, after realizing we then again have to re-ascend the steep slopeof the crater we quickly declined. After a short rest we decided to try to summit the highest portion of the craters edge. About 1/3 of the way up the steep incline Laura needed to stop and catch her breath. With loose shale and an increasingly steep incline we decide the risk simply wasn´t worth the reward of marginally better views and bragging rights. Although descending the steep slope was easier on our lungs, choosing your footing wisely in the loose shale became paramount. Laura
Piramide Calixtlahuaca
We were able to go inside. had a sense of exhileration that took her back to childhood memories of running down a hillside with her arms spread wide. Neil attributed it to the oxygen reaching her brain.
Alfonso asked us if we had been to a little known archeological site north of Toluca. The adventurous Neil persuaded the oxygen deprived Laura to go. Located on a side of a hill in a small town outside of Toluca, this site presented itself with some unique features. A round piramid and access to the center of it were features we hadn´t encountered before. Upon returning from the piramids we decide to visit the botanical gardens. The gigantic stained glass panels overshadowed the amazing botanical garden display. Returning to our hotel we were shocked to find an out door skating rink smack dab in the middle of Mexico. We felt vindicated that although they may be able to breath at this altitude they can´t skate worth a damn and their zamboni was a 4x8 sheet of plywood.
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