Eating goat with the Cartel

Loved the RR and can appreciate the excitement with your brush with the cartel. Glad you are safe and have a lifelong memory.

Great report thanks!!!!

Nice ride report. Looks like a great trip. Wish I had the drive to take the photo's and document rides I do but I just don't seem to. Enjoyed reading your trip though. Cheers

Thanks for reading it.
I do enjoy sharing my adventures with everyone, almost as much as taking them.

Not being of RR quality, meaning not a whole lot of riding pics, but mostly of one city and our experience with the people of Mexico.
I didn't want to start a whole new thread, but I still wanted to share our experience with everyone, I just tagged it on to my last trip.
Hope that doesn't confuse anyone.


Still needing to learn Spanish we set off for a school in Zacatecas (Fenix Institute) in hopes to improve our Spanish.
Why did we pick Zacatecas? Simply, do a google search of the city and we knew this was a place to immures ourselves in the culture.

We leave a day earlier than planned because the excitement level is to high and we want to get there.
Our first pic is with the Boss of the Aduana in Auga Preita, A great guy who is excited to see us entering the country he loves.



He insisted on a photo with us.

Our second stop was of Paquimé in Nuevo Casas Grandes. I went here last October, but Cheryl hadn't been, so this stop was for her to see.







If you want to see more pics, read back a few pages to see more, however this time the rain has made everything blum and has a different look to it now.

Maybe this was the right turn, but not taking us where we wanted, we find this place.



The thunder is starting to clap and the sky opens up. The traffic on the Cuota is down to 35 mph which makes us feel more comfortable, we can barely make out the road 2 car lengths ahead, but the people kind of box us in so that we don't get rear ended, very nice.



We make it into Torreon unharmed but wet to the bone.

Heading out of Torreon on are way to Zacatecas.



Zacatecas is crazy, we live in a city that is set up like a grid, it's much easier than this city where everything runs in circles and merges at fountains. It took us almost an hour to figure out how to get to the other side of the split highway so that we can find the hostel were staying at.



We find the Hostel Villa Colonial, our home for the next 2 weeks.



We quickly find our way to the roof top terrace to take a look at the view.







The hostel is right behind the main Cathedral. The bells ring into the late night, but you get use to it after a couple of days.















Our accommodations for 300 pesos a night, in a building over 300 years old.



Gotta love the 5 foot crucification over the bed.



With a full kitchen and a small private bath, to us it's a real bargain.

It was raining or mostly cloudy the first few days, which made navigating int he city hard for us, not being able to see the sun we couldn't figure out which way was North. But all we had to do was jump in a cab and we were pointed in the right direction then.

Like I said this will be mostly photo's.













The old bull ring with the aqueduct in the back ground.
There are rooms here on the top of the ring for $400 a night, abit out of our price range, but there is a very nice restaurant and shops toward the bottom of the ring.

More of the city.





















Wasn't this in Back to the Future???









Gordita's are good...





The Centro seems to have something going on every night.









We head back to the Hostel for the night. We still haven't found the school yet but everyone is pointing us in the direction of the University, so tomorrow we'll go and see about that.

As I stated before, the hostels are a great way to meet ppl during their Journey.
Tonight we find Pepe, a History professor from Spain. So not only do we get good company and some Spanish lessons, but we get to hear some of the History of Zac and the Mexican Revolution.



For instance. This cantina has carried the same name and been in the same location for over 113 years.












We ended up closing this place down 3 night in a row.

Who here knows the difference between a cantina and a bar???

School ends up being almost a bust for the week. With less that 3 hours for the whole week we probably learned more from Pepe and had a whole lot more fun.



The high wire over the city, the Teleferico.

































We land high above the city at La Bufa, the hill where the Generals conducted the war efforts during the Mexican Revolution.



The statue of Pancho Villa and 2 others but somehow I lost the 3rd photo.











We start the long walk of many steps in Zac.

Today we headed off to the Mercado, where the locals do their shopping and eating. Spanish is a must in this area, but we have Pepe.









In here you get treated like family, especially if you don't speak Spanish.
Today was a day I eat too much. Cheryl and Pepe are eating at every stand and market, I'm starting to sweat due to the force feeding, but the food is good.



I have no idea where they're putting it, but I'm miserable.





More sites of the city.



























It's been fun having a personal tour guide, but it's time for Pepe to spread his wings and go visit other parts of Mexico and leave us to our own devices to learn Spanish.

Nice work! Great RR and awesome pictures, Mexico may have to be moved up a notch on the soon to do list.

HA, i spent about two weeks in that room with the blue curtain. But that was on 2007
Zacatecas isa great place
great photos, keep having fun.

oh just wait...you'll be back. again and again and again.
it's in your blood and very addicting.

ps if you loved Zaca then put Guanajuato (GTO) on your list of must see cities.
San Miguel and hot springs (La Gruta) are also close by.
For winter riding check out the Huasteca region w/ Xilitla & Las Posas!

Looking forward to returning, Cheryl had a hard time leaving this time.
We wanted to go to Xilitla this time but time didn't permit, so we'll definitely be heading back in that direction soon.

When we weren't in school we took in all the local attractions.



The pics in the mine didn't turn out like we had hoped, but here are a few.
There's also a night club in the bottom of the mine, but unfortunately it was booked for a private party the weekend of my birthday.





There's still gold in the walls.



The bathrooms are pretty crazy down here.



And a large collection of different minerals and rocks.

Thanks for sharing your RR great fotos
I see you having company on this trip

Raphael Coronel Museum, home of over 10,000 mask and puppets.

Thanks for following.
I think this is was the trip that now has her hooked for more adventures, so we might be seeing her more often now.