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Last Saturday morning we saddled up Mr. Bork and headed out to Bernal, about 2.5 hours from SLP.  Bernal is a tiny little town in the altiplano with one big thing going for it:  La Peña de Bernal.  Depending on where you do your research, La Peña is the 3 or 4th largest monolith in the world.  The really cool thing is that you can climb within 50m of the top.

We arrived a La Peña de Bernal around 11:30 AM, which we thought was quite late but there weren’t too many people there yet.  It was a hot sunny day so we wanted to hike up to top before it got too hot out.  It took us about 45 minutes to get to the top but it was a bit confusing because we arrived at a platform which we assumed was the top but we saw two people further up the mountain so we decided to see if we could get up there too.  This last part of the hike is a bit difficult and we were definitely thankful for our hiking boots and rock climbing classes we took oh so many years ago.  Getting to the top was definitely worth the effort as the view was absolutely breathtaking.  We got to the top just in time as while we were hiking down, lots and lots of people were just starting to hike up. 

After climbing up La Peña de Bernal we decided to have lunch at an Italian restaurant in Bernal.  I had read some good things about it and thought it was worth a try.  We took a mototaxi into town and we dropped off at La Piave which is on Zaragoza and had a delicious meal of home made pasta and tasty salads.  There were cute things on the menu (rabbit), which in my world means the restaurant has potential.  I was tempted to try the rabbit, but I hadn’t had good ravioli in a long time so I settled on that.  The food was amazing and we’ll definitely return the next time we’re in Bernal. 

After lunch we headed down the road to the Freixenet Winery and did a winery tour.  It was an interesting introductory tour, but let’s just say that we’ve been spoiled by winery tours in the Niagara peninsula.  The Freixenet Winery is quite the destination for tourists.  You can come do a winery tour, then buy a bottle of wine and some lunch and sit out on the patio and enjoy your afternoon.  There were a few people there that looked like they had spent a lovely afternoon sharing a bottle of wine or two with their loved ones so we decided to try a glass of wine and then head out to hotel in San Juan del Rio. 

The next morning we visited an opal mine near Tequisquiapan (Te-kees-kee-a-pan).  We arrived at the mine owner’s house just behind a large group of people so the owner first checked to make sure we had a “high vehicle” and then drew us a map to get to the mine and meet up with the rest of the group.  I was really thankful we had Mr Bork on our way up to the mine and even more thankful that Don was driving.  This is one section of the road, there are better parts, but there are worse parts:

Fortunately with Mr. Bork’s big knobby tires and Don at the wheel we made it there and back with only a small scrape in the paint—no biggie, it just blends in with the other “beauty marks” Mr. Bork has.   The great thing about the mine tour was that we were given hammers and we were allowed to look for opals.  Most of the opals were cracked and useless for polishing, but it was great fun to play miner for a day. After the mine tour, we were brought back to the mine owner’s shop/house where we saw some amazing jewellery and carvings. 

…and of course I had to bring home a stone turtle with opals on his back. 

After the mine tour we hit the artesian market near Tequisquiapan and then headed back to San Luis.  On the whole it was a great weekend getaway and we plan to return because we want to do some via ferrata, check out the centre of Tequisquiapan and also visit Queretaro.  

At the end of August we headed back to our roots and visited the Istmo.  It had been about 10 months since our last visit and it was long overdue.   The biggest problem about visiting the Istmo is getting there –it’s just not that easy.  Our options are 18 hours by car, 20 odd hours by bus or 6 hours by bus + 1 hour flight + 2 hour drive.  Any option makes it difficult to get there, but that’s the beauty of going there:  it’s well off the beaten path so you don’t run into too many tourists. 

There aren’t any beaches up here in the altiplano so we wanted to take some time to relax and enjoy the beaches near Huatulco before heading into Salina Cruz.  We made arrangements through our friends at Hecho en Mexico Tours to stay 2 nights out at San Augustin, which is a tiny village about 45 minutes outside of Huatulco and is an amazing spot for snorkelling–all you have to do is stand in less than 3 feet of water, stick your snorkel and mask on and open your eyes.  It’s the most important coral reef on Mexico’s Pacific coast and a must see if you are in the Huatulco area. 

Most people come for the day, snorkel and eat some fish and return to their resorts in Huatulco however there are a few rustic cabins where you can spend the night.  The cabins are basic: bed, mosquito net and a light.  If you need to go to the bathroom or take a shower, you’ll have to climb down the stairs and walk down the road a bit.  This is exactly what we were looking for and Don was actually a little disappointed that we had a bed and didn’t have hammocks to sleep in.  Of course there was one on the patio so he slept in the hammock (for some reason mosquitos don’t like Don) and I slept comfortably in the bed under my mosquito net. 

We spent our first day doing some snorkelling and taking it easy because we had been traveling since the night before and wanted to relax and rest.  We enjoyed some yummy fish at a restaurant and discovered that puffer fish aren’t always spiny, they can also be smooth (which I found out when I dove down and scared a pretty yellow one).  We planned scuba diving for the next day and we did two 2-tank dives in different areas near San Augustin.  The water was so warm you didn’t need a wetsuit and we saw octopus, lobsters and lots of different fish.  My only complaint was that there were a bunch of small jellyfish in the water and they were stinging me from time to time.  Of course, I was in their domain, so I shouldn’t really complain. 

After our dives, we returned to San Augustin and ate some clams that our divemaster had caught.  They were served up raw with just some chili and lime and they were perfect.  Of course, I ate Don’s clams and he drank my beer so it all worked out well. 

Don took this picture of the sunrise on our first morning in San Augustin:

What?  Sunrise on the pacific coast??  Yep, there is from weird geography that goes on near Huatulco and Salina Cruz and it was possible to see the sun rise over the pacific.  He wanted to try to grab a picture of the sunset, but it wasn’t nearly as nice that night. 

The next morning, we did some more snorkelling and then headed into Huatulco for 2 nights to shake the sand off of ourselves and get cleaned up before heading into Salina Cruz.  The two days in Hualtulco were relatively uneventful but also very relaxing.  It was great to be in a place where we didn’t really have to think too much.  We ate breakfast at Terracotta in the Mision de los Arcos hotel where they serve up the best omelettes and French toast that you’ll ever try on the Pacific Coast of Mexico.  Every time we’re in Huatulco, we go there for breakfast and I always order the same thing. 

The next morning our friends from Salina Cruz picked us up at our hotel and we headed on the 2 hour trip from Huatulco to Salina Cruz.  The highway is long and windy and unfortunately we had to pull over for one of our travel companions who got a little motion sick.  After arriving in Salina Cruz, we checked into the Mision San Jose which is by the far the best hotel in Salina Cruz.  It’s simple and comfortable with air conditioning and hot & cold running water.  That afternoon we spent having lunch with our friends and catching up on everyone’s lives.  The next day we did a little shopping (for coffee & totopos) in the market and then headed back to our friends place for some more good eating. 

That night we took the bus up to Oaxaca.  Normally night busses are rather comfortable but this ride was a little too windy and bumpy for me to be able to sleep (250 kms in 5 hours, you do the math).  We arrived early in the morning and checked into our usual Oaxaca hotel, Las Mariposas.  Again, it’s just a nice, simple, comfortable hotel with great service and it’s well located in the city. 

The first day we did a bit of shopping and then picked up some Scorpion Mezcal that we had ordered before we arrived.  Mezcal is traditionally bottled with the worm from the agave cactus however for a twist, this company puts in a whole scorpion instead.  It’s a great marketing tool and the mezcal is award winning too, plus there’s the added dare of eating the scorpion when the bottle is empty. 

The next day we headed to the village of Teotitlan del Valle near Oaxaca where they specialize in weaving and we picked up a beautiful area rug and also a wall hanging of Diego Rivera’s “Desnudo con Alcatraces”.  It’s a gorgeous rug and I’m so happy to have it.  We returned to Oaxaca and had lunch at Don’s favourite restaurant La Biznaga and ate some of the finest Oaxacan food in the city. 

The next day we arrived at the bus station at 8:45 to catch our 9:30AM bus to Mexico City only to find that the teachers were protesting and had blocked the highways in and out of Oaxaca and all buses were cancelled until 2:30PM.  This was not good news as we had tickets on another bus line for 5:30PM in Mexico City and now there was no way we were going to make our connection.  The roadblock was cleared by about 11:00 and we were able to get on the 12:30 bus out of Oaxaca.  We were still going to miss our connection in Mexico City but this meant we could make it home by 1AM rather than 3AM.  The bus company in Mexico City honoured our tickets even though we missed the bus we were supposed to be on and we made it back by about 1:30AM (we were originally planning to be home by 9:30 PM).  That’s life in Mexico. Some days even the best of plans can turn sideways but all you can do is laugh and be patient. 

It was an amazing holiday and I hope that I can get back to the Istmo again soon.  The friends we have there are like family and it felt so good to be back home again.  Hopefully next time we can stay longer.