Mexico City, Mazatlan and the Copper Canyon.


Advertisement
Mexico's flag
North America » Mexico » Sinaloa
November 3rd 2017
Published: November 3rd 2017
Edit Blog Post

The 20th October saw us set off on our travels again and we landed in Mexico City in the early evening. We were staying two nights to recover from the flight, adjust to the time difference and to allow a day between flights as we always do.

As we pulled up at the hotel the area around looked really run down and the driver must have seen our faces as he quickly said, "Outside bad but in hotel very good". He was right, the hotel was fine despite having a machine gun armed guard standing by reception. I was nervous around him to begin with but strangely we soon bonded by necessity. Neither he nor the reception staff spoke any English so I spoke Spanish. For some reason the reception staff could not understand me but he understood perfectly. I spoke to him, he repeated it to them (although to me it sounded identical to what I had said) and they replied to me. He seemed to gain a degree of status from this process amongst his colleagues and he was very helpful to us.

On day 3 we flew to Mazatlan on the Pacific coast. It is a modern city sprawling inland and along the shore and is nothing out of the ordinary until you reach the Malecon (Promenade) by the sea and old town centre, which is a beautiful example of Spanish colonial design. Plaza Machado is one of the prettiest central squares that we have seen. Unfortunately about 60% of the paving along the Malecon and around the Plaza was being replaced which made walking difficult in places but it should look wonderful when it is completed.

Adjacent to the Plaza is the lovingly restored Teatro Angela Peralta, named after an 18th Century singer. Next door is the building in which she died from yellow fever. Interestingly, her manager married her 15 minutes after she died. I never knew that was possible, or legal, but can only assume that she was rich!

Whilst on a bus around the town I started talking to the woman sitting next to me, Gabriella, who was on holiday from Mexico City. She told me that a singer was going to appear at the theatre the next day called Elisa Perez Meza. Unfortunately Gabriella and her mother were flying home the next day so could not attend but she said we should not miss it and explained that Elisa was the daughter of Luis Perez Meza, a very popular and loved singer from the 1940s onwards. He wrote songs about the struggle the farm workers had to survive through a period of great poverty when they were ignored by the ruling elite. After his death his daughter carried on his work by singing his songs. As we were keen to see the theatre in use we bought tickets.

We had worked out that she must be about our age or just a little younger then she came on stage and neither of us believed she would live long enough to finish the concert. Backed by a quartet of musicians she was dressed in a childlike off-white dress but her face was even paler. She started singing in a wobbly weak voice only managing a few words here and there. We really thought she was going to collapse any second. Then the audience joined the action, shouting and cheering and singing along. Miraculously she gained strength and by the end, after 25 non stop songs, she was on top form. A Mariachi band had taken over the backing half way through which increased the volume dramatically. It was very emotional as the concert was to celebrate 100 years since her father's birth and his musical legacy to Mexico. There were presentations of flowers and framed memorials and a speech from the local organiser of cultural events supported by constant cheers and kisses from the audience. It was a very Mexican experience and a wonderful way to enjoy the theatre. An added entertainment was the large bat which flew sporadically from above the stage to the back of the theatre and then home again.

The next day we took a six hour bus journey to Los Mochis where we had to pick up tickets for our Copper Canyon trip from the company office in their hotel, the Santa Anita. All went smoothly and we were soon being transferred to El Fuerte for our first night, together with three Californians, friends Susanne, Dennis and Michael. It turned out that our itineraries were the same so from then on we were together, sharing meals and excursions. From our point of view it could not have been better as we enjoyed their company very much. I only hope they enjoyed having us along!

The hotel in El Fuerte, Posada Hidalgo, is full of character with internal patios, elegant sitting areas and fountains. Unexpectedly, El Zorro appears at 8.00 each evening in full attire with sword. They claim the 'original' Zorro lived here and that the book was based on him. We checked online and found nothing to prove he is anything but a fictional character but the children loved to see him.

The next day we finally climbed aboard the El Chepe, the train on the Chihuahua Pacific line which climbs up from the coast to a height of 2,400 metres on top of the canyons in the Sierra Madre Occidental. The railway was built in the 60s and carries freight from the large city of Chihuhua to the coast as well as providing one passenger train per day in both directions. This is an amazing journey.

We took our seats and quickly realised that the window frame limited our view. As there were spare seats I went to ask the guard if we could move and he said it was fine. So we moved to the other side of the carriage and back a few seats. A few minutes later the guard came by and stopped when he saw us. In Spanish he smiled and asked if all was well. Then suddenly in silence his face went totally expressionless, with his left index finger he pulled down his left lower eyelid and at the same time wagged his right index finger from left to right, signalling 'no' we thought. He was clearly giving us the wink but about what we didn't have a clue. After a few seconds he gave up and rebooted his face to normal asking where we were from. Then suddenly the deadpan expression returned again, together with the same wink and finger movement and still we were totally clueless. Eventually he decided subtlety was not going to work so he bent down and whispered in broken English, 'this side no view, nada, nothing, better over there'. So we moved and he was right.

After the first hour the train starts a slow climb. At one point it enters a tunnel in the mountain, completes a huge loop in the tunnel and emerges much higher up and facing the opposite direction! That is called the lasso. Very clever. It is an engineering achievement as the line goes through 86 tunnels and crosses 37 bridges and the scenery is spectacular. The foliage gradually changes as the train climbs from tropical through mixed vegetation until it reaches the pine and cedar trees at the canyon rims.

After about five hours we reached Bauchivo station where we alighted and were met by Alonso from the Mission Hotel in Cerocahui, a half hour drive away. Cerocahui is the smallest and poorest of the three halts along the journey.All three hotels are owned by the Balderrama family and provide a similar standard of food and comfort but they are very diffferent in style and position. Posado Hidalgo is by the central plaza of the small town of El Fuerte and has a bird rich river flowing close by. The Mission Hotel is in a small hamlet in an isolated and very dry countryside. Last and most impressive is the Mirador, Posada Barranco, which is set on the very edge of the canyon in a precipitous position at some 2,200 metres above sea level.

Alonso took two young Spanish couples and me for a walk around Cerocahui, explaining the history and showing us the church and vineyard which is also owned by the Baldarramas. The tradition of producing small amounts of wine here ( for mass of course, nothing to do with the monks' personal consumption?) is four hundred years old but as Alonso explained it is a 'surviving' vineyard, not a thriving one. The climate, with frost and snow in winter, the poor soils and lack of water all hinder growth. The owners wanted to make more of it to provide an additional point of interest for visitors but it is a constant challenge. Having said that the wine produced tasted fine to me and we had a wine tasting, thankfully accompanied by nibbles, at the end of the walk.

However the most interesting part of the walk was around the girls' boarding school next door. The local people are called Tarahumara, a name given by the Spanish conquistadors. They prefer to be called by their own name for themselves, the Raramuri, which means light-footed people. That is certainly accurate as they are amazing runners but more about that later.

So the boarding school has ninety young Raramuri girls between the ages of 4 to 9. There is also a boys school in the village which is also boarding. In my ignorance I had thought how good it was to provide an education for the girls to integrate into the changing society around them. I was wrong.

Alonso explained that there were three reasons that the nuns run the schools. Firstly to feed the children as food is scarce here especially in the winter. Secondly to keep them safe and free from abuse. I did not ask more as he was clearly uncomfortable talking about this. Then thirdly to provide education but that is the least important as almost without fail the girls want to return to their family when they leave Cerocahui school and do not follow up on their education. The nuns try to teach their pupils about hygiene and nutrition to improve their health. A very practical point is that the dormitories have beds, something the Raramuri don't normally use in their homes, which traditionally are caves but have been replaced for some by small homes with tin rooves. Sleeping on the ground with cold and damp, plus insects is detrimental to their health so the nuns try to accustom the girls to beds but most can't wait to return home to their floors.

It is a boarding school as they come long distances, often, unbelievably, walking for 4 or 5 days to reach school and then the same returning home. The kitchen, with the prize possession of a new oven, (the very old one still on view in the playground), laundry, dining room, and clothes room were all simple but clean and well organized. There were very few learning materials in view. The school is funded entirely by donation without any government support.

The next day we went to Gallego's Outlook, named after a priest, and which provided excellent views down the canyon to the small tropical town of Urique below. It is difficult getting to grips with the fact that there are different climatic zones in the canyons as it looks close when looking down but the bottom is tropical and can grow bananas, mangoes, papayas etc whilst the top is similar to alpine areas and can have snow in winter. If visiting here it is important to choose the right season so it is not too hot at the bottom or too cold at the top.

From Cerocahui it was back on the train for an hour and a half climbing higher up the valley to the hotel El Mirador at Posada Barranco right on the edge of the canyon. This is a spectacular hotel, clinging on to the edge of the cliff providing every room with astonishing, and for some people scary, views down to the canyon bottom. The sunrises have to be seen. Pauline, you would be proud of us. We set the alarm for 5.30am to watch the sun come over the cliffs.

There were a number of outings arranged to different sites including the vast area close by which is covered by thousands of standing rocks with names like the Valley of the Monks, and the Mushroom stones. Faces and characters can be imagined everywhere where the stones have been shaped by erosion. We always travelled as a group of five which was good fun and meant we could have a say about the itinerary which isn't possible with a large group.We also went through a modern 'residential' area of the Raramuri. Traditionally their homes are well spread out as one family would settle near a spring or stream and could be quite a distance from the next family. So even in the more modern homes they are scattered lightly across the countryside. Most Raramuri have two homes, one close to the top of the canyon and one a little lower down where they go when the weather turns cold. Mostly at the top they are caves with perhaps a canopy to provide a little cover outside the entrance.

The Raramuri are divided into Alta Raramuri, the people in the north, and the Baja Raramuri in the south where we were. At the moment the Altas are more successful as a group as they live completely separate lives from Mexicans, having they own elders and continuing in their traditional way without integration. The Bajas are struggling more as they are at the meeting point of two cultures, seeing train visitors daily, and so it is more of a challenge for life to continue as before. They do not value money, nor do they have an acquisitive culture, but share what they need such as tools and food. They make beautiful intricate handicrafts from natural materials but seem more engrossed in the work itself than selling the goods. They rarely ask you to buy or call you to see their goods as in other countries. Both groups own huge tracts of land and restrict building or development upon their land.

Then one afternoon we went for a walk with two Raramuri men. They explained their running and 'ball game' to us. Originally they ran to catch deer. They would run after the deer until it was so exhausted they could catch it. Later they would do a dance to the deer to show respect for it before (or maybe after, I can't remember) eating it. As if it is not difficult enough to run up and down the steep landscape, they have races where they kick a wooden ball along as they run. In fact they seem to flip the ball onto the top of their foot and then hurl it forwards. They carry a stick to tease the ball out from undergrowth or to flip it back to the trail as it is against the rules to touch the ball.

The races are well organised with rules. There are two teams of five or eight men. If someone stops to rest or touches the ball with a hand they are disqualified. Team members are allowed to support each other to overcome tiredness but they must keep moving and kicking the ball. The races can be for ten hours or longer. The reason for the race - to bet. Each team puts up stakes in the form of a donkey, or sheep, or maize. This has to be matched by the other team and the winning team takes all. Our guide explained that they cannot run on level ground only up and down hills as flat ground makes the position of their foot change, they land on their heels and that causes damage to their knees. Not only is it awe-inspiring to see them run it is unbelievable that they can keep track of the ball as they hurl it forward into the undergrowth and keep on moving.

Women also run but not quite so far, I think it was eight hours maximum! Sadly, the special annual November run has been cancelled for the past couple of years as there was fear of attacks by narco-traffickers but it looks as though it will take place this month as we saw a poster advertising it.

Just a couple of kilometres from El Mirador Hotel is the Parque Aventura de Barranco del Cobre where it is possible to take a cable car across the valley or zip line down and come back on the cable car. There are two options, a series of seven short zips straight to the cable car station or a very long zip which finishes below the station and requires an steep uphil walk/scramble of 700 metres. I opted for the latter - an amazing flight across the canyon which was wonderful, but the climb was quite challenging. Having said that I would have done it over and over again if I could have afforded it! What an experience. Jim tried to video it but as I was moving fast and he was travelling in the slightly bumpy cable car, unsurprisingly, it is a little blurred. The rest of the group took the cable car both ways which particularly for Jim and Dennis who don't enjoy heights was quite a feat, so we all managed to enjoy a park activity.

Now we are back in El Fuerte at the Posado Hidalgo for a couple of nights before taking the ferry from Topolobambo to La Paz where we hope to settle for a month. If possible I will post this blog before leaving as I am not sure how good the next wifi will be. At the top of the canyons we had no wifi and no telephone signal but that only added to its allure. The combination of superb scenery, a fascinating culture, interaction with guides, cosy hotels with good food and entertaining companionship made it a trip to remember. I hope our three fellow travellers, Susanne, Michael and Dennis have had a safe flight and drive back to their homes and thank them again for a great trip with lots of fun and good conversation. We hope we meet up with them again one day.


Additional photos below
Photos: 51, Displayed: 34


Advertisement



Tot: 0.214s; Tpl: 0.017s; cc: 12; qc: 53; dbt: 0.0964s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.2mb