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| From Oaxaca (K) to Juchitán (L) |
Viewing the map you could think I discovered mainly the
south of Mexico. Well, yesterday in class our professor talked about Zacatecas and how beautiful it is. Unfortunately, it would be a bit dangerous to go there now. Ah, really? When people hear that we have been there, they always stare at us, saying "
That far north you dared to go?!". Yah - everything above Mexico City is considered "the north" - read: The drug war area. But as always you should use common sense. Just because "people" say that it's oh so dangerous, of course it doesn't mean that you are shot down as soon as you enter the affected state. We did skip Michoacán on our trip, as things there are really ugly right now, but we even met travellers you came from there and who said, that they didn't have any unpleasant experiences. The only thing, which is really notable is the strong military presence in "the north". But living in Mexico, you have to get used to see heavily armed officials. That's the way it is...
So, back to the travel report. Originally, it wasn't my plan to go any farther than Oaxaca. But as I changed a bit my schedule and my travel speed, I had plenty of time left. As my French fellow students who I had met in Mexico City strongly recommended the state Chiapas to me, I decided to go there. In order to shorten the trip from Oaxaca a bit, I stayed a bit more than a day in Juchitán. One of my best ideas. I didn't see any traveller apart from me, and as it always is: Locals are much more interested in foreigners, as long as they are not tired of it. So, I had lots of nice talks, and received a lot of smiles. Moreover, Juchitán and the nearby Tehuantepec are located directly in the isthmus of Mexico (
Isthmus of Tehuantepec), that is, it represents the shortest distance between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean.
You really notice the presence of two seas, as there is always a strong wind. But it doesn't matter, as it's always really warm. According to my travel guide, people here are a bit "different" from the rest of Mexico, due to the fact that they live in the isthmus - a quasi seperated part. In fact, people's traditional dress is differently and supposedly homosexuality is openly accepted and shown. Well, I didn't see this, but I saw the difference in (guess what) local food specialties, which I had never seen before. The local cuisine still strongly sticks to its historically eaten ingredients and foods. In fact, you get turtle eggs everywhere and apparently iguana is also a favoured dish... I sticked to the cheese bread (man, I didn't know there is such strong cheese in Mexico - poor tongue and nose...), the "caballo" (lit. "horse", very similar to alphabet biscuits aka
Russischbrot), the Búpu (hot atole with cold foamed sugar cane topping), nice small pickled radishes, corn bread with dried shrimps, and
Garnachas. The latter are mini corn tortillas, topped with
pulled pork and onion, deep fried and then topped again with cheese. Actually, this wasn't bad, as you didn't have the pork flavour, and instead the great taste of caramelized onions. Just a bit heavy to the stomach...
On my way to Juchitán I saw a signpost "Guiengola" with the symbol for an archeological site. I had never heard that, so I investigated a bit and it turned out that it was an unkept Zapotec pyramid. As my connecting bus started after midnight the next day, I decided to go there. With no public transport and no really visible paths I searched a guide and actually discovered a mobile phone number in my travel book. Surprisingly, it still worked and so the next morning I met with him to visit La Guiengola. Soooo amazing. For a long time we just sat on the pyramid, listening to nature and not doing anything. During the eight hour trip we didn't meet any other person, just saw, well, quite a few snakes (which all were "not that dangerous", according to my guide). What I liked most, was the magnificent view for the isthmus - Wicked!
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| Turtle eggs on a market in Juchitán |
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| "Thai" auto rickshaws on the market in Tehuantepec |
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| Isthmus of Tehuantepec |
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| La Guiengola |
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| La Guiengola in Tehuantepec |
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| Isthmus
of Tehuantepec (the "narrowest" part of Mexico, that is, with the
shortest distance between the Golf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean) |
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| Doing
some networking with the locals. Certainly a great idea to talk about
future internship possibilities, directly after an exhausting hike and
while sweating like a bull |
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| The emblems of Tehuantepec - iguana, pidgeon, turtle - and everything eaten, of course |
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| Speciality
of Juchitán: Garnachas (tortillas, topped with pulled pork and onion,
deep fried and then topped again with cheese - something THAT unhealthy
HAD to be good - adiós vegetarianism ) |
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