Once we had settled in to the marina, it was time to explore the area. The local taxis are very reasonable; 14 pesos each to get to Puerto Madero., and 20 pesos on the "collectivo" to get to Tapachula. Puerto Madero is a small town, notable for its rickshaw style taxis, (peddle and powered). We walked up to the beach, and saw a small seafood restaurant,; time for lunch! When we walked in, we were surprised to see a pool for the children to play in, right in the middle of the restaurant.
After enjoying a great ceviche, and fish fillet, we were entertained by watching the iguanas sunning themselves on the rocks.
A few minutes later, an old woman selling mango's came up to our table, Karin bought a few, but the woman insisted that she get a few more. We were obliged to help her out; we've seen so many people, selling anything, trying to get by. They carry heavy loads, all day, in the sun.. to maybe sell some fruit, or shoes, or jewelry, or carvings. I have to admire their stamina, and patience.
Next, we decided to rent a car and see some of the surrounding area. The fact that Easter weekend was approaching was evident by the crowds in the marina restaurant, and on the road to the beach. Ruta de Cafe sounded interesting, a drive up into the mountains = cool air!! It has been hot and humid, thankfully our A/C is working great, but it's time to get off the boat for a while.
As we wound our way up into the mountains, the road got smaller, and eventually deteriorated to a steep rocky trail. The little Hundai made it. At one point the road was so bad, we seriously considered giving up and turning around but Mark said "Carry On!" Glad we took his advice. When we arrived at Finca Hamburgo, we were amazed to find a beautiful restaurant, and 70 degree temperatures, overlooking cloud forests and coffee fields.
Bertha, the hostess/manager was so nice. There are three cabanas, which were full, and we were thinking about staying the night, because none of us were looking forward to the bone jarring ride back down the mountain. Berta being a good business woman, said we could rent one of the apartments in the coffee mill for $80.00. Two bedrooms, one bath and a kitchen. Karin and Mark went to check it out, while I stayed with Jack. They came back smiling! We'll take it. What a relief... we can relax, hike around, and come back for dinner.
A short walk up the hill, led us into the workers village. There seemed to be a celebration going on. In this part of Mexico, the Easter festivities are not as Catholic as you would think. We were confused about the costumes, men dressed as women, devils, and ghouls. Supposedly, it's more about Judas, than Jesus, I don't know, but everybody was having fun.
We still had the car for another day, so after we left Hamburgo, we got back to the boat, and planned to go to the volcano the next morning. Another drive through some small towns, but this road got steeper and steeper, until the little Hundai could go no farther. We stopped in Union Juarez to see more of the Judas celebration, then made our way down the mountain to for some lunch.
Now, it's time to get back to sorting out stuff on the boat, and making a plan for the haul out.
As usual, we've found ourselves with too many options......should we stay here for the summer?, should we go home?, should we bring the car down? I think things will work themselves out, it's just very hard to make plans.... things change, new situations come up....we'll figure something out!
No comments:
Post a Comment