Mx Trip # 51 OMG Etzitlan to Villa Corona ( Saturday)

Late Friday evening another camper arrived at Delia's but it was too late to introduce myself so I waited until Sat morning. He introduced himself as Ivan " just call me Ivan the Terrible" he said. He is French from , Quebec, single and speak fluent Spanish because he has been coming to MX for 30 years. I will dwell on him in another Post as he was interesting. 

We left Delia's at 11 AM and headed for Villa Corona which should have been a 1 hour and 45 minute trip on all secondary roads, meaning no cities and no 4 lane highways. Secondary roads do not have numbers and if you are lucky the map has the name of a small town which gives you some kind of confidence you might be on the right road. Once we left Delia's our map said ( we do not have a GSP for MX ) turn right immediately before the town of Teuchitlan and since we had been to Teuchitlan on Thursday we thought we could find the road to Villa Corona.  

Suffice to say we could not find the road so we carried on with the intend to take the next highway to our right. Not realizing I was approaching  the highway ( there are no signs ) that I wanted I missed the on ramp and had to enter the Hwg going the wrong direction. No probably ; I thought , I'll go to the next overpass and turn around. In my dreams as it turns out, so I entered the town of Tala where I had hope to pull a U turn. Not a chance: I was on the the main street heading to the center of town and it was one way with parking on one side and today is " Market Day ". How will I ever get out of this mess.  Luckily, a motor cycle cop was stopped so I pulled up beside him and I said please point me toward Villa Corona. He said follow me and he "wound " as through the town back to the highway but it was not without its' difficulties as we had to squeeze by several delivery trucks with mere inches to spare. 

Once back on the 4 lane highway and according to our map it was clear sailing. Drive 50 km turn right onto a another 4 lane road and 30 KM later we will be in Villa Corona. But I guess I was still dreaming. When we got to the city where we suppose to pick up the highway the sign it indicated a merge but there was no "on ramp". There was however a 1 km long line of people waiting for fuel parked on the "on ramp" but I bush that off as "surely that can not be my  "on ramp ". Therefore I continued on and end up in another city and the only way out was another U turn which was helped out by a Coke Cola truck who sensed my delima and held up traffic so I could turn.  We drove back  looking for the on ramp to no avail. Finally I stop to ask for help and a Pemex gas attendant seen me asking for help and since he spoke English he came to our recuse. I show him our map and said  Google says I'm here. He said forget the map and forget Google, you are in MX;  I will draw you a map, which did. 

As we approached, what we figure was the on ramp along side of the line up for fuel, Carroll as the general question "Is this the on ramp". A guy who spoke English said yes but you can't get thru yet. He then said they are moving some vehicle in the line up to the right so you and the bus ahead of you can get thru. Finally we started to move slowly, very very slowly with inches to spare. Several people got out of their vehicles to direct us and one guy adjusted my mirror as it was about to touch the wall. I did however touch another  mirror but the guy was kind enough to pull it in. It took us about 15 or 20 minutes just inch our way by the line up and reach the highway. What a relief. Thirty KM later we finally reach Villa Corona. 

After I got parked the attendant ask me if I had been here before and said 8 years ago and it rain for 4 days and one 5 th wheel had to be pulled  out by a tractor. He then left and returned a few minutes later and said this man was the tractor driver and they ask if I remembered the month and I thought was Feb but they said, no it must have be the middle of Jan.  I checked my blog and it started to rain on the 15 Jan and rain for 4 day. There will be no rain this year as it cool. Cheers

 

Mx Trip # 50 Tour of Tequila ( Friday )

Before we get around to the tour of Tequila I want to address the fuel shortage. We are in the town of Etzalan  and there was a line up last evening over a KM long. However at 10 AM today  the pumps were closed so they must have emptied the tanks late last evening. We had to go there Magdalena on the way to Tequila this AM and all the pumps in Magdalena were closed. When we got to Tequila there was one Pemex open and the lineup was several blocks long. We noticed that one guy, ahead of us, tried to cut the line but the cops sorted him out in a hurry. We left  Tequila at 4:40 pm and all the pumps were closed so I assume they ran out of fuel. When we got back home this evening our Pemex was open again and the line up at least a KM long so they must have got fuel late today. It appears that they are rotating the fuel supply to different cities.

When we got to Tequila we toured the town to find a bus tour of the town which included a plant tour. The first place we stopped at had tours but not in English. Then we headed into the center of town looking for the visitors center. While driving down the main street we spotted a street vender flogging bus tours however there is no parking on the street so I stopped and Carroll got to check the price etc. I foolishly said I'll just go around the block and pick you up. Twenty minutes later as I got totally , totally lost and drove the wrong way down a street I found my way back to the main street and picked up Carroll. She was beginning to wonder if I had left her. We told the vender we would return once we found a parking spot. Which we did. 

After we parked we returned to the vender and purchased our tickets with a promise that the plant tour would be in English. We had 2 hours to kill so we stopped for lunch.

Thinks we found out from the plant tour. Tequila is located in the state of Jalisco and is one of 5 states that can grow Aguave plant to make Tequila. Any country can grow Aguave and make the juice but they can not call it Tequila. The  Aguave plant is called a pineapple because once you cut off the leave it has the shape of a pineapple. They are harvested by cutting them off at the root and all the leaves. Then a machine loads them into a truck because they weigh  approx 40 kg but could weigh  up to 150 kg so you can not man-handle them. 

When they get to the plant they are split in 1/2 and steamed at 33C overnight to get the juice out and they stay in the steam overnight. The juice is ferment in vats for 3 days and then the juice is distilled 3 time to get the pure liquid which is 55% alcohol. However , by law they have to cut it with water to reduce the % to 40 %. Then we where forced to do a taste test of the best Tequila and you have to drink it straight. I only sipped a little as I did not want to drink and drive. Actually Carroll sipped a little without choking which amazed me. They also make several less expensive versions  which is use in  Margaritas. 

I bought  a bottle of the Blue Aguvae and Carroll tasted some Tequila cut with coffee so she bought a bottle. You folks from Med Hat can have a taste when we get home.
Tomorrow we are going to Villa Corona. Cheers

Mx Trip #49 Visit Magdalena and a Pyramid ( Thursday )

In the morning we went to Magdalena which is a busy farm supply town but is also known for it's Opal business. There are several Opal mines in the area so it follows that there was at least 6 or more Jewelers whose main product is Opal Jewelry. Carroll had ear rings made here several years ago and lost one. She had hope to find the Jeweler who made the ear and get a replacement however she did not bring the ear ring with her and after checking at 4 shops she could not find the right style so she abandon that idea. 

While driving from Guayabitos  I left my wireless mouse on the table and when I made a turn on the winding roads it fell to the floor and broke. So while in Magdalena I ask around about a computer store and as it turns out they out number Jewelers so I purchase a new wireless mouse for 23.00 Cdn.

I ask the hostess, Bonnie about the Pyramid in  the area and she insisted that we go there as  it is about 30 KM away. The Pyramid is located in the mountainous area above  the town of Teuchitlan. First you must visit the museum at the base of the mountain and this is a must as they have a 20 minute video and then a guide to explain how the people lived. After the visit to the museum you have to climb 400 M on a steep slope to the base of the Pyramid. In our case they allowed us to drive as Carroll nor I wanted to do do the walk.

The Pyramind is called Los Guachimontones and is a prehistoric archaeological site near the town of Teuchitlan. It is the major site of the so-called Teuchitlan tradition, a complex society that existed from as early as 300 BC to perhaps 900 CE. If you google the Pyramid you will see the layout and it depicts the same layout as we seen today.  It is amazing how the archaeological dug this out of the mountain.

On our return to the camp site we drove by many more Green houses and the ends of the buildings were open so we stopped for a look. With the help of our binoculars it was obvious to us that the plants where in individual pots standing 3 to 4 ft high and they sure look like Blueberry plants. So maybe Bonnie doesn't really know what is inside the Green houses. She made it known that she was not happy with this business because it is detrimental to the environment. cheers   

Mx Trip # 48 Guayabitos to Delia's( Wednesday )

We left Guayabitos around 9 AM and my first stop was at the Pemex north of town to fill with fuel because it is easy in and easy out however they were out of Gasoline.  So I had to return to Guaybitos to a smaller Pemex that is anything but easy to get to the pump, and on top of that I could only get in and out of the end pump and I blocked in 2 parked truck. Luckily the Mexican are very patient people. 

Finally we got on the road and headed for Delia's camp grounds located in Etzatlan which in the middle of a huge farming area.  Grandmother Delia owns a camp ground in Guayabitos ( I spoke to her on Tuesday ) and I'm sure she  also owns this one even though   her daughter lives on the ground and runs the park. The Grand daughter told me that they own a large tract of land here and  several people from Europe, Canada and the USA  have built homes here. I spoke to one of them and he has been to Medicine Hat so he must be a world traveller. Ha Ha . Most folks who visit here usually say Delia's in Magdalena because you can not get off the toll road at Etzatlan hence you have to exit at Magdalena and then back track 20 KM. Mexican common sense.

This area grows a Zillion acres of  Sugar Cane ( as far as the eye can see ) and this is the harvest season so there are caravans of Cane trucks , loaded 10 feet above the racks on the highway heading for the processing plant. It appears to me that most, if not all of the Canes is harvested by hand because I have not seen a combine and the Canes is piled in the fields and loaded with a "clam shell " loader. However they also grow some corn and I have seen several corn harvesters so one would think that they would use a combine for Cane. 

This area also has hundreds of acres of Green Houses and Delia ( the mother ) tells me that they grow Bell peppers but I'm not convinced so I'll check it out tomorrow.  

We drove into the town of Etzatlan last night for a "look see " and there was a line up for fuel at least 2 or 3 miles long. I believe most of the towns in this area are out of Gasoline ( Not Diesel ) however we have a 3/4 of a tank in the MH so I can drive 600 KM before I need to re-fuel. 

 This camp ground has 9 sites but we are the only one here which is a surprise to us. The grounds are all grass with full hookups and concrete patios. Tomorrow we will visit Magdalena and a Pyramid in the area. Cheers 

MX Trip # 47 Absolutel our last Day in Rincon ( Tuesday )

Two weeks ago we picked up Glen and Sharon at the airport in PV and as pay back they insisted they take us for lunch. The restaurant  of choice was Jwann's which located and accessible from the beach only.  Glen's only vehicle is a Quad much like several others,  both Gringos and Mexicans and they roam the streets, in some cases without a licence plate. The reason he took the Quad is that the walk from the parking lot is about a a city block and it is thru the sand , of course. Carroll would have had a hard time walking that distance so Glen gave her a ride. Sharon and I walked from the parking lot to Jwann's which actually looked like a badly cultivated field. The area also doubled as a parking area for several other beach restaurant and it doesn't appear that anyone owns this area. 

As our last day, we hit the pool again as we are unlikely to find many heated pools again. However, we  are going to Villa Corona next week which is a theme park with 9, I say again 9 hot swimming pools. Cheers

MX Trip #46 Another Day ( Monday )

Chris, the heir apparent of the the Park and the on site operator  advised me on Sunday that we could stay an extra day so we accepted and  we stood down on packing up the last few things like chairs and mats. 

The reason I say heir apparent is that Grandpa ( 94 ) who lives in the condos and Dad who is a doctor and has another business in Guadalajara seems to us to be the owners and Chris runs the park.

We did hear the President of Mexico has order his Gov't to stop the fuel shortage as it is really impacting the entire country including our area. One report is the they have contracted 3500 tanker trucks to deliver fuel where needed. I have a 1/4 tank in the MH so I hope I can get fuel on Wednesday. The car is full. Unlike Canada, the fuel shortage does not cause the the price to increase.

We did a pool day in the afternoon, then I played cards from 3 to 4. One guy ( Glen ) likes to play Sequence everyday at 3 so he rounds up different partners because once he gets people interested he will have a tournament later. During happy hour everyone was interested in where we were going. Some people where concerned and can believe we do not have any reservations. We told them there is always a Pemex gas station if we are stuck.

Our friends Dave and Joanne suggested we go for supper as they were not available on Tuesday evening which is now our last night.
Cheers 

MX Trip #44 Laundry Day ( Sunday )

We are getting ready to pull out on Tuesday and we don't want to leave too much for Monday so we took the laundry in at 9 AM today. ( I know; it's Sunday but this MX ). The owner specifically said it will be ready by 1 PM and they would be closed by 2 PM so if you miss the timings you will have to wait until Monday. We had 5 bags  ( light , dark, white, black and bedding ) which all have to be separated.  Black means dark shorts, other than white underwear and in my case black sox. It cost us 18.00 Cdn. 

While waiting for the laundry we did a beach day. So when friends ask what we were doing , besides drinking a few beers my, answer was " Laundry ". 

Around 4 PM we all  meet at the beach patio, sit in a large circle and swap stories. I called it a "dope ring" but that doesn't always go over to good. If you don't get to the patio early you don't get to chose who to sit next too, which means you get to hear what people did for a living or where their travels will lead them next. Most people are very interesting and their travel stories are far and wide. cheers