The Mountains; Day 1

The ‘getaway’ is to a small mountain village, up in the Sierra Madre range. Clean air, simple life and simple folks. I had assumed I would see the stereotypical chicken in the street scenario (which I did!) and the possibility of Mexicans dressed like my former step dad, wearing those odd Levi polyester western ‘jeans’ and stiff cream colored straw cowboy hats( I did!)…with the added bonus of slapping dominos on a table while sitting outside the liquor store on the square, backed by an obscenely loud jukebox blaring local favorites. Yes, life in a simple town. I guess this is what they call the simple life.

The place.

The view outside our window

One thing I did not expect was the poop rule. Upon our arrival, we get a quick once over of where we will be staying and we are given carte blanche-except for poohing. That is right, you can do the business in the commode, but you cannot flush your toilet paper. Instead, you are to deposit your filth in the tiny trash can waiting patiently beside the commode. This I do not get. I had encountered this phenomenon way back at Tonya’s house when a little Mexican kid came to visit. I was horrified to find ‘used’ paper in the trash can instead of the toilet! Well, this is obviously alive and well and a way of life here in Mexico! What a startling introduction to a peaceful getaway. I now will have to handle my dirtied toilet paper, and neatly fold or wad it up and wrap it in even more toilet paper. Nice. I pray that Montezuma does not seek his revenge on me while I am supposed to be taking it easy.

This is also my first encounter with a mosquito net. I have only seen them in catalogues and movies about Africa. Now, I am lying on a nice white bed with this bug protector around me. I feel mummified. Tonya and I discuss if it is necessary. She reminds me of the obvious fact that if we wrap ourselves up to keep the creepy crawlies out, it will only mean disaster when our dogs want to hop up on the bed. After all, they have no idea how to open the mesh curtains to get inside. Fortune smiles though, as we opt out to keep the net at bay, and do not encounter any creepy crawlies. However, this did set a precedence for checking nightly for scorpions and spiders and other assorted local insects.

I get up this morning and step outside to get a whiff of the clean mountain air. No need for alarm clocks here…the countless amounts of roosters will make sure you get up at regular intervals from anywhere between 3:30 am and regular 7am wake up time. As soon as I focus my eyes, I see a small Doberman standing on the stone fence across the yard, eyeing up this new gun in town. In a flash it is gone, and then comes whipping around the side of the house “HKeep the dogs in! There is a Doberman out here!” I yell at Tonya inside. This is Nina. We were told about her form Lourdes. She is a sweetie. After a few minutes, she is a nuisance. She will not leave you alone and will follow you all around town. We had to deal with this every day.

Winston meets Nina for the first time

First things first. Breakfast is the cornerstone of all our days, so we start at Leonora’s place. Two rooms, the one to eat in and the one to cook in. Four tables. You had best be in good standing with your fellow villagers, because here, you are definitely in close quarters, and will assuredly rub elbows with your neighbors. I am struck by the simplicity of it all, and the friendliness of those popping in and out. Mostly, I keep staring at the blank wall with the single ice pick hanging alone, up for all to see. I would like to think it is what small town folk do, keep something like this handy in case some shyster tries to skip his bill or cheats the owner. You grab the pick and slam it through the offenders hand so that he is stuck to the table until the transaction is completed. Sadly, I was informed that it is simply to chip off ice in the cooler below. Leonora is like the mom of the village, and she makes the best huevos rancheros you will ever eat. Promise. She comes out and meets us after we eat, and stands politely next to her cooler and laughs her funny laugh. She is immediately likeable…and somehow reminds me of my brother-in-law.

The ice pick

After breakfast we tour the town. Ray and Lourdes take us around the village and show us all the ins and outs and who is who. It is a beautiful day and we have a wonderful set of tour guides. I feel like I fit right in, people stop and chat and joke with Ray. I feel like no one will bother us because they all like Ray and Lourdes. In a sense, I feel like we are very welcomed guests. They take us up and down, through alleys and over small bridges. We see each corner of the place. A Mexican wearing the mandatory cream colored straw cowboy hat and perma-press jeans sits atop a white horse. “That is Chuy” says Ray. “He’s very proud of his horse. He can make it do all sorts of tricks. You will probably see him performing while you are here”. Chuy smiles, showing his two front gold teeth. He tips his hat to Ray and they exchange greetings. He sits so proud and watches our every move. He obviously wants to see the awe in our faces. I smile and keep moving.

The village

The square

We sit for a bit on the square, and watch the locals and the recently arrived tourists. They wander around and are most definitely spotted by Chuy. To him, this is a brand new audience. We peep in some shops and see what the locals are selling. The tip is that the local honey is quite good. Personally, there really is nothing that enticing that you don’t see anywhere else while snooping around Mexico. Same caca different puebla.

Ray & Winston

If it is a donkey, it must be Mexico

Is this odd to you? So 'un' PC

Dentist office for those who have too many Negritos.

Ray greets a neighbor

Neighbor checks me out.

Lourdes keeps on about hiking up to the orchard. Thankfully, Ray takes control and offers to drive us instead, insisting that the newbies may not want to hike over an hour to stare at peach trees. We pile in the van and twist and turn and bump and grind our way up the mountain to where the road splits. We take the shorter path and Ray stops the van and proclaims “This is it!” Weeds. Oh, and a dirt road that ends right in front of us. Ray then waves us onward and we get the lowdown on the orchard. Once you walk a bit, you see over the valley. It is beautiful! This is definitely a nice place, and will be even nicer when they finish getting the land in order and cleaned up. Ray is awfully proud of the progress of the barbed wire and stone wall being re-laid. Just like a proud king, he smiles as he looks over his land and then says we should go and pick some peaches off the trees. Nah. We opt to sit on the new stone wall and watch Ray and Lourdes go and pick peaches. We get introduced to the local mosquito variety while sitting here too. These bites will prove to be very itchy and annoying and grow exponentially if you scratch them.

The couple that picks together...

a man and his peaches.

...more peaches!

After grabbing a load of peaches, Ray and Lourdes come back and Ray tells us to make room for the workers, as he offered them a ride back down the mountain. As we wait, ray hands us each a peach and tells us to savor the flavor. “Man!” he says as juice dribbles out his mouth, “That is a peach! No pesticides, this is pure nature man!” The workers wobble don the path and we say hello. Nice folks. We shake the old man’s hand and then his son, who shyly and limply shakes our hands in succession. We ride down the hill, smiling at the workers and they smile back, even throwing in a nod here and there.

After our tour of the town and the orchard, we decide to go and buy a few things we need. Ray and Lourdes have some business to tend to and we agree to meet them later at their house for dinner.

By the days end, it is such a welcomed event to walk onto Ray and Lourdes’ place to smiles and a few bottles of wine and tequila. Ray is crazy about his food and drink, and cannot wait to shove a shot of the local brew into your hands. Lourdes, always smiling, lays out a nice spread of snacks. Nuts (again!) and a few types of local cheeses to munch on. Oh-and don’t forget the peaches…because Ray won’t let you forget! He loves his peaches. We sit and have a drink while dinner is prepared. The beauty of this is that not only are we mingling and talking, but doing it all outside! The kitchen is outside the house. This will also prove to be a very wonderful thing. It just adds to the intimacy of the evening to sit out in the cool air and view the garden, at the same time being able to cook! You can watch the water boil and the flowers bloom at the same time! Truly, this setting could make almost any meal a night to remember.

In the kitchen

Andreas, pre-dinner jitters

A good time was had by all. As we get up to walk back to our place, ray hands us a flashlight and a brief set of directions. We look at one another as we stand outside the door, equipped with a buzz and a single flashlight. Now we must recall our afternoon tour and find our way back to our place through the unlit village. The stone streets are slippery thanks to the heavy fog that has set in with nightfall. We waddle a bit and do a few slips, but we do manage to wind back up the hill to where we are staying. We can see light peeking out from below the heavy wooden shudders, and the dogs start to bark with excitement with the realization that we did not forget about them.

Before the lights go out, a close inspection is given to the bed for the uninvited local guests. Once the light is out, and we lay there in this very dark place, and take in all we have seen throughout the day, and listen to the sound of the mountains.