sábado, 20 de mayo de 2017

Cuetzalan del Progreso


After almost nine months in Mexico, I feel more independent, worldly, and spontaneous than ever.

Full disclosure, that last one is typically by accident. Last week I talked my friend Jazmin into taking a weekend trip to a pueblo mágico in the north of the state just because I'd heard it was beautiful. (As in it's heavily featured on all of the Puebla Instagram accounts I follow.)

Shockingly, quaint Cuetzalan does not show up on trusty hostelworld.com, so we set off on the 100 mile bus journey without having booked a place to stay. As far as I've come from my painfully timid and risk-avoiding middle school self, I admit that I was freaking out about that one. Luckily everything worked out perfectly, and despite being eaten alive by mosquitoes and sweating excessively for three days la pasamos muy bien. 



View from our (last-minute) hotel
This posada was worth the *gasp* 7 bucks a night 
Our spontaneity was short-lived. We immediately made our way to the tourist information booth where we got a handy map from a guy who said I speak Spanish with a French accent. This was not the first time I've been told that.  Je ne sais pas.


All churches should be this colorful 




Sunday tianguis 

Did you know true friendship is measured by how many solo shots someone's willing to take of you? La verdad. Also by one's willingness to scroll through all of them. Best of luck.









We spent our first afternoon just walking around the incredibly picturesque streets. These dogs were incredibly photogenic, but they also barked their heads off and almost jumped of the roof and killed me. "Almost" being the key word there, thankfully.






The result of 15 minutes and 4 different shopkeepers trying to figure out how to use my camera
You know you're in Mexico when most people don't even bat an eye at the existence of these stunning ruins. Not only did we bat many an eye, we took advantage of the lack of tourists by taking the most touristy photos possible!!







Our next destination was almost an hour from downtown, which wouldn't have been an issue except for the fact that we were in a minivan with approximately 30 people and had to stand up the entire ride. The sweat dripping from our bodies rivaled the waterfalls we were visiting.





Just when I'd become accustomed to the combi life, Cuetzalan switched it up with a collective camioneta transport system. As in everyone sits in the back of a pickup truck. Amazing.




We hit up another cool waterfall right afterwards, because we're outdoorsy like that. Apparently the mosquitos felt so drawn to my nature-loving aura that they feasted on my calves. 

Also worth mentioning, at this particular site there was some sort of topless/mummy-inspired photoshoot going on? Kinda ruined the family-friendly vibe.







And last but not least, the straw that broke the camel's back. Or, more literally, the molé that broke Malissa's digestive system. Worth it though.



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