Xalapa

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We made it to the state capitol of Xalapa, home of the Jalapeños, at night. We Parked the car on a hilly street with stone sidewalks higher than the tops of the cars in order to walk around and figure out where we were going. The raised plazas were beautiful at night! We found the hotel and checked in - this one was much nicer than the one we stayed in last night, but the same price. We were all thrilled to take our showers here and came out much more refreshed than we had in the past days. Pablo and I went to find a parking place for the car. We walked back though the plazas, then drove around the city, a bit lost again.

In the morning, Silvia slept in and Pablo and I went out to find the airline office to try to save something from his ticket north for the wedding canceled on account of flu. The streets were bright and full of flowers. The city seemed wealthier, better kept, than the others we were recently in. More like some neighborhoods I know in California, and Guanajuato. We enjoyed our walk, looking at little businesses and houses along the way.

We had a late breakfast through an alleyway and us some stairs on a balcony overlooking the city. It was quite a treat! Afterward, we went though market alleys and bought a map book and found some computers to plan out the rest of our trip, as we decided to throw away all of our previous plans - everything is closed!!! Silvia and I strolled along the alleys with people selling cheap jewelery and she eventually picked out a bracelet and some earrings.

In the afternoon we left for the drive to Oaxaca City. A note on highways in Mexico: they all go through, not around, cities. We had to drive back to Vera Cruz to get to the road south.

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