Today, I will head out towards Coatzacoalcos, further South along the Gulf Coast.

A lime on a lime tree :)

Model of the Papantla town square, as it was in its glory days.

Entrance sign to Papantla.

Yesterday, some nice folks at the La Revolución Restaurant and Bar on the zócalo in Veracruz helped me out. Thank you Marina and José.

A boat ride across a river where there was no road, Tecolutla, state of Veracruz. This guy was taking his bike across, too.

Me and the mariachis, zócalo, Veracruz.

Marimberos (Xylophonists) en el zócalo en Veracruz.

Zócalo in Veracruz.

The goal of the ball game the Totonacos played. They could only use their shoulders, hips, or knees to propel the ball through this hole, which was placed high on a slanted wall. Back then, the winner was deemed holy/chosen because it was not humanly possible to achieve a goal. The winner was given the honor of being sacrificed to the god of Death. The game is played still today in the states of Chihuahua and Sonora, but the winner is no longer sacrificed. Whew!

Alter to the moon god. The Totonacos were a peaceful group who inhabited the Mexican Gulf Coast. They were polytheistic, with five gods: the Sun, the Moon, the Air, Death, and the Earth/Land.

King for a moment, on the throne of the Totonacos--a majorly obese king ruled over the animal sacrifices from this throne in Cempoala, near Veracruz.

Quiahuiztlán.

The view atop Quiahuiztlán, Punta Villa Rica, Veracruz, Mexico.

The ruins of Quiahuiztlán from the peak above! Twas fun to climb this hill and get a great view!

Campsite behind house behind restaurant in Palma Sola, 100km north of Veracruz.

A family I stayed with in Papantla. Una familia con quien me quedé en Papantla.

Tour of Ruins of El Tajín

Papantla

So I am in Papantla now. Awesome. I guess it is one of the more touristic places I have been in Mexico so far, probably the second most touristic place in my whole trip compared to New Orleans, and that is mostly because the ruins of the Totonacos, El Tajin, is just four miles away. But the energy, the spirit here, is wonderful. This medium sized town is quite hilly with narrow, mostly one-way streets, and a constant two-way flow of pedestrians moves outside the internet cafe as I write. Just up the hill is the ¨zocalo¨ or town plaza center--people hang out there on the benches with the palm trees, the large church overlooking with a large wall of Totonaco engraved pictures and symbols. The presidencia, and many stores line the plaza, and last night was a folklore music and dance presentation.

I wandered through the streets last night until I happened upon a little store with friendly looking teenagers hanging out inside, and I told them I needed a place to pitch my tent, along with of course that I am biking from DC to Brazil. The young man suggested asking the lady across the street, but the young lady went down the street to ask her mom if she would allow me to camp out outside the house. She eventually offered to let me sleep in her tortilleria, where she is making corn tortillas this morning. I slept on the floor there last night, and washed my clothes by hand this morning. They are hanging on the line to dry as I write.

I am now in the tropical coastal region of Mexico. Though it is mid-January, I am in t-shirt and shorts, and I slept in just a silk liner last night. The climate is more humid than in the north-eastern state I left last week. As I head south, I expect it to get hotter and more humid until I hit the hills/mountains of Chiapas. Veracruz is supposed to be a beautiful coastal town with nice beaches. Further north in Tampico, the water was a bit to cold for swimming.

In Tampico, I once asked a family if they would let me pitch my tent in their yard, and they said that their mother and sister were heading toward mexico city in a truck, and the back was empty and they could drop me off along the route for no cost. I said why not, and after a breakdown a couple hours into the ride and a morning of the mechanic fixing the truck, they dropped me off in Poza Rica that afternoon where I stayed a night, and then headed to Papantla and El Tajin yesterday morning. Yesterday I explored El Tajin, and then came back to Papantla.

In Poza Rica, the family dropped me off at a gas station, and the woman who maintains the restrooms and charges uses 3 pesos, or 30 cents, to use them, tried to help me out. Her niece actually helped me the most my letting me pitch my tent on her yard a block away. Out of the front of her house, she ran a little ¨puesta¨, or food service joint. I guess she also takes shifts at the bathroom post as well. I talked to one of the bathroom post workers whose main job was at another food joint, and she said she made about 150-250 pesos a day, or $15-25 a day, after working ten hours. And she said she had to pay for healthcare per service.

We talked about siblings, and she asked if my sister would inherit the family house since she is the oldest. I told her no one was really interested in the house; everyone would really rather live somewhere else, and will probably rent apartments until we get older. And we will probably move around a fair amount until we are older. She said she was interested in inheriting her parents house and living there pretty much the rest of her life.

I am having a decent time here in Mexico, and I really enjoy moving forward, getting on my bike and seeing and experiencing new places and people. Andy and Shelagh are around here somewhere, and Pat took a bus to Mexico City. As Papantla is more touristy, I have seen a few more gringos here--a couple from Idaho last night, some more Canadians, a Frenchwoman who moved to Mexico a year and a half ago, and others here and there. Another couple of Canadians on bike I saw at El Tajin--they started in Veracruz (they didn´t start from their doorstep as I did), went north to Papantla, and will go back south to Yucatan and Cancun. They will be on the trip until March.

I have had fun learning the Mexicanisms of Spanish. ¨Que padre!¨--Awesome! ¨Órale¨--Look/Wow. ¨Ándale¨--Right on! You go! ¨Ha poco!¨--Yeah, right! ¨Nada mas que.../Pura...¨--Only.../Nothing more than... ¨Nombre!¨--No!/My goodness! When answering the phone, ¨Bueno!¨--Hello! ¨Este...¨--It´s that.../Like.../Uh...(filler word). I look forward to hearing how the slang and the vernacular changes as I move through Central America.

Thanks for following. All is well.

Photos

Some of the hilly terrain between Papantla and El Tajín.

Voleadores stepping to the music of the flautist, preparing to ascend the great pole.

Voleadores getting ready to fly.

Dude who grilled corn on his bike.

Model of the ruins.

Voleadores leaving the circle after performing.

Voleadores landing.

Voleadores, near landing, crowd watching.

Voleador, near landing.

The great voleadores of Papantla/El Tajín, descending, unwinding, to the music of the top guy.


At El Tajín, human sacrifice was common, and a privilage and honor. The winner of a ball game they played got to be sacrificed as the reward.

Pyramids of El Tajín--awesome.

Pyramid ruin at El Tajín. Equilibrium is a virtue of the founders of this place.

Pyramid at El Tajín.

Butterfly at El Tajín.

Statue at entrance to cool town of Papantla, where I am now.

Vista from hill, Poza Rica to Papantla.

Statue near Poza Rica.

Gator swimming near dock.

Alligator hanging out on a dock on Laguna del Carpintero, Tampico. These guys come closer to people than those in Texas.

Monument to this obviously very important Mexican historical figure--he comes up many places. ¨Respect of the right of what is not yours is peace.¨ This is on Laguna del Carpintero in Tampico.

Mural in tumultuous downtown Cd Madero.

Neat looking church in Cd Madero.

Me and José Luís, cool dude I hung out with in Tampico.

This town name reminded me of my friend Amalie Malachee from back home. This is a shot-out to you, girl--keep biking!

Dama, Mariana, and the waitress, the girls of Cockteleria "El Guero", Tres Marias, as they bid me farewell.

Milo, a dog I befriended and played soccer with in Tres Marias near Tampico. Wanted to take him along, but he would not be able to run 100km per day.

Nice lady whose husband, a ¨blue angel¨ (helps people on the highway), stopped me on the highway before Playa Miramar in Cd Madero (next to Tampico). He gave me his info if I needed anything. They put me up that night and fed me. I was still getting over a stomach condition. Now I am eating vegan to protect my stomach.

Sunrise in Ejido Gonzalez.

Grackles are officially awesome--one of my favorite birds. Did not see them until Austin, but they have been everywhere since. This flock in Ejido Gonzalez the morning after I slept there--they flock, but each individual flies in a slightly different direction, independently. And their repertoir of noises is fascinating.

Some of the boys I met in Ejido Gonzalez, a suburb of Gonzalez between Mante and Tampico. They were curious, fun, and very helpful.

Cerro de Bernal, an impressive hill between Mante and Tampico named after a historical figure.

Tropical flowers and foliage at the Hotel in Gómez Farías, the main jump-off village into El Cielo.

El Cielo group just before we broke up: Pat to Mex. City, Memo, Flash and Colacho to Victoria, and Andy, Shelagh, and I to El Nacimiento and Ciudad Mante.

One of Flash´s perfect tortillas.

The vista as the cloud moved away.

Pat watches as dog follows car up into the cloud in El Cielo.



El Elefante rock in El Cielo. The highest into the hills we climbed.


Pretty goose in a village in El Cielo.

La campana, or ¨the bell¨ rock formation in El Cielo.


Trail in El Cielo.

Forest in El Cielo.

Pretty bird in El Cielo.

Ajol, an antecessor to the turkey.

Cute puppy in a village in El Cielo.

Our group as we climbed on foot (we left our bikes in a base town) into El Cielo.

Abandoned at birth, this ¨el tejón¨ was raised by people and is a cool relative of the raccoon, I think.

Climbing into El Cielo, Shelagh, and a scenic view.

Memo on a fun descent, and a shapely hill off to the left.

What I wrote on the yellow globe at the tropic of cancer--Stop Global Warming. Chainbreak, the Canadian group, made their mark as well.


A shot of a Mexican ribbon of highway on the way to El Cielo as we started to climb through the hills, and cross the Tropic of Cancer.

Flash as he passed the 100 km to El Cielo sign.

The last of Chainbreak (Cycling Hard Against Imperialist Neo-Conservatives Because Radical Eco-Feminist Anarchy Kicks Ass)--they started out as five, and after this ride to El Cielo, Pat would leave to Mexico City, and in Tampico, Shelagh would leave her bike for buses.

Our group to El Cielo from Victoria: Flash, Memo, me, Shelagh, Pat, and Andy.

Artist in action in Victoria.