Quit our jobs, sold our home, gone riding...

Googled crime in Durango and looks like there has been a few events over the last month or 2 that would likely contribute to the heavier police presence.

"The Alaskan winter had scarred Neda deeply and she curses bitterly anytime she's forced to put on her jacket
liner..."

I'm still laughing. Thanks and stay warm

Incredible trip

cool you rode the Espinazo and made it to Durango.
great pics. we don't see too many of colonial Durango. beautiful city.

make sure to PM Steve (SR) as he lives in Durango.
http://advrider.com/forums/member.php?u=79025
like i said he has info on that newly paved southern route back to the coast that he describes as even better the the Espinazo. it goes through Jesus Maria and spits you out at near Ruiz and and quickly you're heading down to the San Blas and costal 200 and no tolls.
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=ruiz...-a&hnear=Ruiz,+Nayarit,+Mexico&gl=us&t=m&z=14

You mentioned Telcel....When you crossed the border did you get a new SimCard for your phone, or did you get a whole new phone? What type of plan did you get? And, how is the ease of calling back to Canada or the US?

The reason I'm asking is that I am leaving in 10 days from Scottsdale, AZ and I willing following a similar route as both of you.

Great RR and any info you can share is much appreciated.

Yes, we just got a SIM chip for the phone, available from any TelCel outlet. The cost is 150 pesos ($11 USD) for the chip and will work with any unlocked phone. From there, we had to purchase a pre-paid plan. We don't actually make any calls with the plan, we have a Skype-to-Landline account, so all we care about is the data. However, to buy a data plan, we had to put a nominal amount of money on the voice account, I think we put like 20 pesos (less than $2 USD).

Then, you can go on the internet to http://www.mitelcel.com, register your phone, and add data to it. I bought the high-usage plan, which is 500 pesos for 3GB over a month. There was a special at the time, and I think I only had to pay 399 pesos ($30 USD), they have specials all the time. Unless you're planning on downloading movies over mobile, 3GB is pretty good and we've come nowhere close to using that, since most hotels have wi-fi as well.

Look into the Skype plan, for $14/month, you can call any landline in the world flat rate.

Also, the TelCel calling plans are very confusing, more so if you don't speak Spanish. You'll have three different balances: Amiga, Regalo and Data. Amiga is the regular calling account, where you can make calls to non-TelCel Mexico numbers and LD calls. Regalo is the TelCel-only account, so if you're calling TelCel mobile numbers, it'll decrement from this account. And Data is Data.

When you start making calls, you'll get an automated message, and if you don't understand Spanish, you'll be confused why your call isn't going through. It's just a reminder to register your name and setup your voicemail, but if you wait till the end of the message, it'll put your call through eventually. The only way to get rid of this message is to get a Spanish-speaking friend to call the TelCel operator and register your name and setup your vmail for you.... 2 weeks of Spanish school wasn't enough for us to figure all this out!

Oh yeah, TelCel will send tons of SMS spam to your phone. This one is my favorite, an English lesson!

love your RR.
subscribed!
Simba

I really enjoy checking on this report! You both have a great eye for photography and tell an interesting story. It must be tough to update from the road but thank you.

Updated from http://www.RideDOT.com/rtw/62.html



We took a leisurely two days to travel from Durango to Guadalajara, opting to bypass the Cuota roads to take the non-toll highways instead. The roads are flat and boring, skirting the far eastern side of the mountains and nothing eventful happens, save for my Sena communicator, which stopped transmitting just as we arrived into town. The problem with constantly being on the move is that if we do need parts shipped to us, where do we send them to? And how long will it take? The logistics involved are annoying. So for the time being, I was in listen-only mode, which suited Neda just fine! :)

Guadalajara is Mexico's 2nd largest city. Our bikes are due for regular service (again, so soon?!?!) and we had originally thought to schedule an appointment in Mexico City, but after some research, we found a dealership just less than 10 kms away from our hotel! The only spot they had open was next Friday, so I guess we're here for a while! We took the opportunity to get acquainted with the city!


Main streets are really busy, so we took to the side streets

A lot of Mexican life centres around three things: the church, the market and the plaza. Every neighbourhood has a local version of this triumvirate. We rode to the center of town to the Marcado Libertad, which is the largest and most popular market in the city, right beside the Catedral de la Asuncion de Maria Santisima, which also happens to be the largest cathedral in Guadalajara.


Snack-time: Watermelons drenched with lime, seasalt and chilli! *delicious!*

Limes are Mexico's beloved condiment, they use them like Americans use ketchup. You can put them in beer, on tacos, watermelons, etc! We met a local girl the other day who just got married to a Belgian and had moved overseas to be with him. She told us that in Belgium the limes are so small and expensive, and this is one of the things she really misses about Mexico!


The moment the camera came out, this guy started doing tricks with his knife, flipping and tossing it up in the air. Very entertaining!

Mercado Libertad is huge; sprawling through indoor buildings and spilling outside into the open-air stalls. The air was alive with the sounds and scents of vendors selling fast food, groceries, toys, clothing. We had a great day snapping pictures and interacting with the locals, with Neda honing her ever-increasing Spanish skills. As for me, I was skilled enough not to need a knife to butcher their language...


Grabbing some lunch, over-the-counter-style, inside the Mercado

There are so many places to buy food, so we've developed two criteria for deciding where to eat: 1) no gringos! 2) it has to be busy. If there's nobody eating there, there must be a reason! I've fallen in love with the taco asada (shredded beef) and chorizo (sausage), but one item on the menu intrigued me - Brain Tacos! Walking Dead Style? It sounds much more appetizing in Spanish: tacos de sesos. Mmmmm! I've made up my mind to try this the next time.


Mercado is alive with bursts of colour everywhere!


Fruits and vegetables here are so much more juicier and flavourful than back home


Ice skating? In Mexico?

Outside the Catedral, there was a long lineup and when we investigated, we found that a large outdoor skating rink had been built, complete with skate rentals. Everyone wanted to try ice-skating, which I assume is a novelty in Guadalajara. It's 28C outside! Ice-skating skills must be a rarity here, because this girl target-fixated on my camera and I barely got out of the way as she careened towards me, arms flailing. :)

Also, no zamboni, so the ice got pretty funky after a while...


A different kind of taxi around town


Pedestrian traffic is heavy on this beautiful, sunny weekend. Catedral on Neda's left


Inside of the Catedral de la Asuncion de Maria Santisima

The inside the catedral is so beautiful and ornate, however there was a pre-recorded mass playing over the speakers, and the record kept skipping over and over again in the same spot. So we had to leave because it was a little bit annoying and slightly creepy :) A friend of mine told me that this catedral is a popular place to shoot TV shows, a lot of Spanish soap operas are filmed here!


A family is surprised by a toy bird flying overhead, set aflight by one of the vendors in the plaza


Boys playing by the fountain


Pensive? Or slow day for shoe-shining? I love the look on his face, so lost in thought!


Church spires compete to reach the sky


Catedral de la Asuncion de Maria Santisima, the centre of Guadalajara


Selling beads and other religious trinkets outside the catedral

the photos and ride report have been wonderful.....happy new year to the both of you....all the best and continue well,

Great shots, Thank you. I love the market, also go to the "Plaza Dos Le Mariachi's". Great music most of the time it is near the market.

Really inspirational! Thanks for keeping us in the loop. Subscribed.

oh nice to went to Guad.
when you check out Lake Chapala don't miss Chapala at sunset on the dock and the these hot springs west of Ajijic http://www.accesslakechapala.com/2011/06/23/hot-springs-spa-and-hotel-in-san-juan-cosala-balnearios/

Man there are some way funky animal parts for sale in that market. :huh
If you were on the fence go veggy, this would be the place to visit to put you over.

Just read this from start to finish! Can't wait to see where the road takes you two next!

great RR, subscribed!

your photography is fantastic. looking forward to more! save travels, y'all!

Next time, if you can, try "tacos de tripa", it is intestine tacos, they are good but ask the "tripa dorada" fried.

I like your ride report, keep going.

Gene, thanks for the Telcel info, that should help a lot. Perhaps we'll meet up in the coming months.

^^^ THIS!
Also called tripita - "little guts". Some of the best tacos ever!

you guys still Look Great ! Happy New Year !