Church On A Hill & A Dramatic Night!!

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30th APRIL 2009 - PIRAMIDE A CHOLULA & HOSTEL NIGHTMARE AT OAXACA!!
Once again I did not sleep well. Around 4 hours of restless sleep...not good!! I got up at 8ish after admitting defeat and went to shower. Worst shower ever too...the seal seemed to have broken on the shower head and water spurted everywhere. I tried to swap showers quickly as there was no one else in the bathroom but just as I made my naked dash, Nat came in and caught me in my full glory!! Sooo embarrassed and I am sure it wouldn't have been the nicest thing for her to see when she woke up either!! Still...least it was Nat and not a stranger!! Note to self...never do a naked shower dash in a shared bathroom!!

Once both dressed and ready we headed down for breakfast and then checked out. With our bags in storage we went to catch the bus to Cholula, stopping along the way to book a hostel in Oaxaca for that night. Making the booking was difficult as the guy didn't speak English and you know I don't speak Spanish. I couldn't rely on pointing or universal symbols either. I did my best and managed to book a room for the night...or so I hoped!! Hostel booked, we continued on our way to the bus stop!!

Wearing the latest fashion accessory (our masks) we managed to get on the right bus to Cholula. The journey took about 30 minutes and then the driver signalled for us to get off. Good job he was on the ball because I wouldn't have had a clue!! We walked towards the town centre (Centre Historico) and then towards the church on the hill (the purpose of our visit). It didn't look too high up but we hoped it would give us the views we were promised of the Volcanoes and the city...fingers crossed!!

A pyramid used to stand there but it was knocked down. The ruins remain at the bottom of the hill and a big church was built on top of the hill. We were told that from the top we would be able to see 3 big volcanoes one of which is active! As we made our way up we spotted them in the distance. The view was rubbish as they appeared to be covered in some sort of smog...very disappointing! Such a clear blue day as well!! The view from the top was still nice though as you could see all of Puebla practically. We walked right the way around the church at the top, taking in the views and killing time hoping that the smog would clear. It didn't and so at 11ish we made our way back down!!

The town at the bottom was just beginning to open. Another square with lots of restaurants and a little market. Big squirrel running about and eating nuts. We stopped to watch him and he began to eye us up. He was pretty scary to be honest and at one point we feared that he was coming for us and had to back away!! I named him nutty!! We had a browse around the square...still journal hunting, and then made our way back on the bus to Zocolo. Off the bus we walked to the hostel, picked our bags up and set off again to catch another bus to the bus station. Never any peace on the bus...3 buskers this time working as a group. One guy on guitar, one singing and one with a wooden block that he failed to beat in time!! Should have gone for a tambourine...much more musical than a wooden block!! At the bus station, we booked our ticket for Oaxaca and then sat in the bus station until departure time. The bus was due to leave at 3.15pm and was a 4 hour journey. We were pleased that we would arrive in Oaxaca before dark!!

The bus journey to Oaxaca was ok. We had to sit separate but the reclining seats made it all the more comfortable . It was just a shame that all the films were dubbed in Spanish. I closed my eyes whilst the first film was on and listened to some music. The second film was High School Musical 2 and I watched that as all the songs were in English. Not a patch on Grease and John Travolta!!! Kids today have missed out if High School Musical is all that’s on offer!!

We arrived in Oaxaca at around 6.15pm. It was still light and we had written down the instructions on how to get to the hostel. It seemed pretty straight forward. We made it to the local bus stop and looked out for the 'Av Jurez' bus. Instead of waiting for the specific bus we were supposed to catch we jumped on the first one that came along and asked the driver if he went to Melchor Occampo. He said yes and so we sat down...sorted!! We looked out of the windows along the way for Melchor Occampo (the place where we had to get off) but we didn't see it. All of our previous drivers have indicated to us but this one didn't. We were on the bus for 20-30 minutes and had a feeling that we had missed it. Nat went and checked with the driver and he pointed backwards to confirm our fears. We sat back down and planned to ride the bus full circle however the driver told us to get off and catch the bus back the other way.

Off the bus we were well out of town and had not got a clue what to do. It was getting dark as well. We crossed to where we thought the bus would pick up from and waited. We had a crisis talk and decided to try and get a bus back to the bus station and then we could get a safe taxi from there. Not being able to speak Spanish was posing a problem!! A bus rode past and asked us where we were going. We tried to communicate that we wanted to get back to the bus station and they indicated for us to get on. After being on the bus for 15 minutes the driver’s lady friend turned to us and spoke in Spanish. We didn't understand. The bus hand (a young guy working on the bus as the drivers helper) tried chatting to us too but we didn't understand him either. This was becoming a nightmare!! We tried to explain where we were going and I showed them the hostel address that I had written down. The driver, lady and the bus hand all had a conversation and then communicated to us through signals that we were on totally the wrong bus and far away from the hostel. It was pitch black outside and things were not looking good!

The Mexicans continued their conversation and then stopped the bus. The bus hand got off and we were told to follow him so we did. Really stupid thing to do as we did not know him from Adam and he could have been taking us anywhere but what choice did we have?!! We walked down a street and waited for another bus to come. The bus hand waited with us and told us which one to get on. He got on with us and explained to the driver where we wanted to go. Nat and I exchanged worried glances. We did not have a clue where he was taking us or where we were and we could not speak Spanish and ask. Bad news!!

He eventually led us off the bus and indicated for us to follow him which we did. He led us down some really quiet and dark streets. We couldn't run if we needed to as we had our big backpacks on. We were at the mercy of a random man! We walked the streets for around 20 minutes and the guy didn't even seem to know where he was going. Nat was anxious and I wasn't feeling too jolly either. Good thing was that I didn't even feel the weight of my backpack on my shoulders as I was too worried about where we were being taken!! Just when I started to think that we were up shit creek without a boat (let alone a paddle) we saw the street sign...Melchor Occampo!! We walked down to the end of the street…no hostel. We turned around and headed back still following the bus hand. He stopped and asked another random where Casa DonDen Pablo (the hostel) was and he pointed further up the street. 2 minutes further and we were there!! Wooooo!!! We had made it alive and I was so pleased though my backpack suddenly felt heavy again! Mucho Gracias to the bus hand!! We slipped him some money and repeatedly thanked him for helping us. We would have literally been sleeping on the streets if he hadn't shown us the way!!

We went inside the hostel....9pm. It had been 2.5 hours since we had arrived in Oaxaca. A very scary evening and another lesson learned...catch the bus you are supposed to catch and unless you know the way then get a taxi!! Silly billies we were!!

At the hostel we went to check in. The guy I spoke with on the phone was there and showed recognition of our conversation!! He gave us a dorm to ourselves and we went and dumped our bags. We were tired and hungry but there was no way we could even consider trekking out into the night again just to find food!! We went on the internet for an hour (free) and then went to bed! It had been an interesting night and one I did not want to repeat in a hurry!!!!

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Photos

Can you see the Volcano?!!
Hidden by Smog!!! Arghhh!!!