San Cristobal. Has to be one of the funnest places I have visited in Mexico so far. Mainly due to the people we met, but let me start at the beginning…
We arrived in after a looooong bus trip. What was supposed to take 5 hours took nearly 7. Partly due to the amount of speed bumps (topaz!) Mexico has (every 50m near towns, I’m not kidding) and partly due to civil unrest.
This was our second instance of civil unrest that day. The first was when our minibus was stopped on the road (traffic was backed up) by activists roping off the road and only dropping the road to let you pass when everyone had paid 10 pesos (less than a dollar) and handed out their flyer – very civilized! They were fighting for free education, as the government had pulled out of major funding for schools a couple of years ago, so families were now forced to contribute.
(Trying to take a photo of the flyer in the minivan going over topaz didn’t really work..)
Anyway, back to the story. After being picked up on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere we boarded a bus to San Cristobal that accentuated every bump in the road. An hour or so into our trip we stopped. Not overly unusual here (the bus driver may need to stop in a his sisters to pick up a bag of oranges or something else ridiculous) but after 15 mins we started to wonder what was going on. Over an hour later we passed a group of locals on the road who we can only speculate were stopping traffic in an effort to promote their cause. Very frustrating!
But San Cristobal made up for everything. The city is set in the mountains at about 2000m and was another colonial town. We explored the city by foot and watched more civil unrest unfold. Peaceful marches through the town and rallies in the centre. Exciting! The people here look more Indian/Mayan than Mexican, like people from Guatemala. The women wear heavy wool skirts made from cow hair to keep them warm & the some men wear, what can only be described as a sleeveless shirt made of the same hair.
(Everyone needs champagne whilst watching a protest march)
(View from one of the churches overlooking town)
(Tortilla home delivery)
We did some day tripping as well, where we got to know some great people. We visited San Juan Chamula, where we got to go inside a church that combined both Catholicism & Mayan rituals. Walking into the church there are no seats, just pine needles covering the entire floor. Shamanic healers are seated on the floor burning candles and offering their services for healing. Thousands of candles burn on table along the walls and on the alter. Unfortunately taking photos is STRICTLY prohibited and I wasn’t taking any chances! Incredible incredible to see. We also checked out their huge market. Very fun.
(Outside the San Juan Chumala church)
We also did a boat trip down Canyon Del Sumidero. For two hours we cruised on a river running through a major canyon, ending at a hydroelectric power station at one end. We saw crocodiles, exotic birds and sadly, a heap of rubbish that washes into the river from the rains.
And then we had one of the best nights out of this trip. Through our day trips we had met some great people together, so we pulled everyone together for a night out. The countries represented included Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Canada, England & France. Languages other than English were banned. Wine was drunk, popcorn thrown, dancing in the streets, stealing of clothes and ending with alcoholic chocolate. Thank you to all involved – we had a brilliant night!
(The crew)
