Alright, let`s wrap things up for Mexico by picking up where we left off, Oaxaca and working our way from there. We decided that this time around, rather than take slow coastal roads or staying on secondary roads as we had done back in 2007 we would take the easiest option available in order to travel to the north of the country beyond the capital, taking a toll road from Oaxaca to just beyond Mexico city. It`s expensive but saves a massive amount of time.

What we had planned on doing was visiting Copper Canyon in the north west of the country. But the bike had other plans which we found out about just after filling up in the middle of nowhere. She just would not start leaving us scratching our heads...

After a few hours of this we finally managed to push start it as a temporary solution. But we had to cancel our trip to Copper Canyon in favour of a more direct route to the US and a repair shop (if needed). The semi-permanent solution was devised a few days later at another gas station on our way towards the border. But this time, we were armed with some know how and our trusty multitool...

The problem was a faulty clutch switch as well as a faulty neutral switch. The procedure pictured above was to bypass the clutch switch. And with that we were on our way to explore Cuatro Cienegas once again. Here are a few pictures of this magical place...

Brian

During the course of this trip we were lucky to have been visited by both friends and family a few times. This past month, our good friend Pierre came to meet us in Oaxaca for a week. We spent our time eating great food (lots of mole, a kind of spicy chocolate sauce that is usually served with chicken), visiting the local ruins and exploring the surrounding areas. Here are some pictures of our time there. First up, an explanation of the finer points of Mole...

A visit to the local market...

A strong argument for becoming a vegetarian...

No matter how much I pleaded Pierre simply refused to share...

A run down church somehow maintains some charm...

Monte Alban...

Oaxaca at night, always festive in the Zocalo (town square)...

It was great to be back in such a cultured and interesting city. Next stop, northern Mexico.

Brian

We managed to make good time heading out of Oaxaca and made it all the way to Chiapa de Corzo. The road to get there was at times spectacular (lots of twisties and great views) and at times a little scary (a 4 lane highway that just ends, no warning signs or anything, one minute you are rolling at 110km/hour and the next there is a field in front of you!).

On the way there we managed to break the other front flasher. We were at about the halfway point and I noticed a little too late that there was a carcass on the side of the road surrounded by about a dozen vultures. As we passed they took flight and we collided with one of them. The bike faired a little better than the vulture. They are very large birds!!

Brian

The following is a picture of a topes. If you drive a Motorcycle in Mexico this public ennemy number one!

Be careful, they have big brothers!

Brian 

We had our third taste of Mexican health care this week. Early on during our time in Mexico I felt pain in my lower back (on the right side). We thought that the pain probably originated in Real de Catorce with my attempts at keeping the motorcycle upright while it obviously preferred to take a little nap on the road. The pain was relatively mild for the first couple of weeks but persistent. Once we were in Zacatecas Marie-France encouraged me to consult a physician. And by encourage I mean that I had no say in the matter.

The doctor we were referred to had a small office right off of a main street downtown. The kind of hole in the wall place that could just as easily have occupied a bicycle repair shop. But it wasn’t necessarily the locale that shook my confidence but rather the doctor himself. You see, where I come from it is customary for a doctor to limit his eyewear to prescription lenses only when working. Sunglasses during examinations are a definite no-no. Not so for this doctor. I felt as though I was being probed by Elvis. It seems that Elvis was of the opinion that I suffered from muscle pain and it was nothing to worry about. After prescribing medication that he described as “very very” strong he sent me on my way. I stayed away from the medicine and ignored the subsequent pain. Besides, if Elvis says it is nothing to worry about who am I to argue?

Once our visit with the King was several days behind us I felt it would be a good idea to try waterskiing for the first time in my life. The fall did nothing for my back but I am told it was spectacular. It is with a little more pain that we headed to Mexico city and then to Oaxaca. Once we arrived it was obvious that something needed to be done.

So we headed to the local hospital, ready for another taste of Mexican health care. Once we got past the attendant at the front desk lying on a couch watching TV it was a question of minutes before we saw a doctor. I must admit that I was a little hesitant when I saw the teddy bear print on her shirt but once she explained that she was a pediatrician I found the little bears to be quite comforting. She determined that I had a kidney infection and antibiotics were prescribed. I spent most of the next 5 days lying on my back consuming industrial quantities of water. If I wasn’t on my back I was taking short walks almost all of which were to the washroom. I now have intimate knowledge of the washroom at the Hostal Santa Isabel.

Unfortunately the pain remained so we went to go see yet another doctor (the third one!). He agreed with Elvis, it was only muscle pain. The good news is that I am now physically much better but the scars of spending so much time in the Hostal washroom will remain forever. Nothing a little motorcycle ride can’t heal. So tomorrow we head off to Tehuantepec some 5 hours away.

Brian

As often happens during a trip like the one we are taking we had a small change of plans. Instead of heading to Mexico city we ended up staying an extra day in Pie de la Cuesta. When speaking to people back home we sometimes get the sense that some of them don’t quite see the appeal in traveling for as long as we travel. A couple of days ago we had the kind of day that reminds us of why we do this.

But first let’s go back to November 20th and the chance meeting with Baptiste. After a long day of driving we arrived in Pie de la Cuesta hot, sweaty and tired. The first place we stopped at is where we met Baptiste, but the price of the room was a little high so we decided to check out some other places. After driving around for a while we decided to go back and take the room we had first seen. We then planned to go with Baptiste to the city of Mexico the following day but the planned departure did not take place, for undisclosed reasons, and instead we were invited to “go to the lagoon” in the afternoon. OK, we thought, we’ll be going for a swim and will probably be back for an early supper.

We made our way to a restaurant on the shore of the nearby lagoon where we were joined by 6 other people. In total, 7 nationalities were represented by our little group of 9 persons. Everybody either came from abroad and had lived in Mexico or came from Mexico and had lived abroad. After drinks in the restaurant we boarded two speedboats and were informed that there would be waterskiing on the way to our destination which at that point was still unknown to us.

So off we went and after a brief stop in the middle of the 24 kilometer long lagoon for a quick swim it was time for the waterskiing. Neither Marie or I have ever tried this so after seeing others don the skis we decided to try it ourselves. Turns out that Marie has the gift for this whereas I looked a fair bit awkward. Apparently the point of waterskiing is to avoid spreading your legs to the point that you feel like the water is uncomfortably close to you private parts. But we both had a great time and after the skiing we stopped on a small island where we got to know the people we were with a little more. Our host for this day, Alexis, promised that there was more to come and that it would get even better.

We set off again and made our way along the lagoon for a few more kilometers until we arrived at a small village where we all transferred into a long, narrow and slow riverboat. We were joined by two musicians from the place with their guitars. At that point the lagoon narrowed quite a bit so the progress was slow but that suited all of us fine as the musicians were serenading us while outside the boat and the slow moving waters gave way to a beautiful jungle like coastline. After yet a few more kilometers the boat stopped at a point at which the lagoon was about 3 feet deep and about 100 feet wide. The plastic chairs that were brought along were taken out of the boat and there we were, in the middle of the slow moving waters sitting in our plastic chairs and having the time of our lives.

We left this beautiful spot just in time to catch the sunset as we made our way to what would turn out to be a great seafood supper. There, the sea and the lagoon are separated by a 100 foot wide beach, which makes for a beautiful place. After supper we all crammed into a truck and made our way to a guest house owned by Gilda, who had spent the day with us. We spent the next few hours talking until fatigue finally took over and off to bed we went. What made the day so special for us was several things. First we had no idea what was on tap for the day so everything came as a very pleasant surprise. Second, we did things we had never done before and third we did them with some very nice and very interesting people. The biggest thanks in the world goes out to Alexis for organizing the day for everybody!

The following morning we left for Mexico where we stayed at Baptiste’s. The visit to the BMW dealership (there seem to be more than one in the city) went fine and the head mechanic felt that the seal which has been worrying us should hold. We’ll keep our fingers crossed. While there, we had the rear brake pads changed. The dealership was better than we expected but if any readers are planning on driving a BMW down this way you should know that parts were very scarce. There was, however, a good selection of tires and about every type of BMW you could imagine so my guess is that if push comes to shove you could probably obtain what you need here and the mechanics seemed to know what they are doing.

After a good night’s rest we headed out by foot to visit the city. Our first stop was in a small French café from where I am writing these words. Breakfast was delicious! So here we are back in the now of our story and back to why we like to travel without any fixed plans. Less than four days ago we were feeling a little discouraged and the 7000 kilometers we had covered were taking their toll. Today I am sitting in this café while in front of me a contented Marie-France is eagerly planning out our day using our guidebook. I am listening to Jazz while outside the city is bustling. We can’t wait to see what new adventures and great people are just outside the café doors.

Brian

So we traveled down the coast and made it all the way to Pie de la Cuesta which is about 20 minutes away from Acapulco. The oil leak that we mentioned at the beginning of our trip started to get progressively worse the past couple of days. In addition, after hearing some squeaking in the rear brake we took a look and we realized that we are overdue for a change of the rear brake pads.

The problem is there are very few BMW dealerships in Mexico and even less in the next countries on our list. So the big question is: Do we move on and hope for the best or take a detour to one of the dealerships? As luck would have it, we ended up staying in a beachside motel that had among its guests a fellow who rides a BMW 1150 GS. Batiste lives in Mexico City and offered to drive with us to Mexico City which is about 5 hours away. So tomorrow we leave for the big city and one of its several BMW dealerships.

Brian and Marie-France

We left Zacatecas with the intention of bypassing Guadalajara and going straight to Tequila. The road heading south was stunning. Literally hundreds of curbs leading into mountains which, if you drive a motorcycle, is heaven. Although I had already started to adopt a more aggressive driving style before this day (a necessity if you want to stay alive) I really started pushing the limits once we were in the mountains. In Canada and the US we are conditioned to follow the rules no matter what. This works great if everybody happily obliges but in a country where rules are either non existent or merely a suggestion you have to go with the flow. This means that if you only have 100 feet to pass the slow moving truck that has a precariously tied down load and has been spewing black exhaust in your face for the past 30 minutes, you take the opportunity. It doesn’t matter if oncoming traffic is heavy and there is a blind curve at the end of those one hundred feet.

After the fun of the mountains we were hoping to take a ring road to bypass Guadalajara altogether. Turns out we went directly into the city. Driving in Guadalajara made the mountain passes seem like a rather cautious practice for true Mexican driving. After a wrong turn or two we eventually made our way out of the city and headed for Tequila. An hour later we arrived to find a laid back town where, it seemed, every night was a fiesta. For those who know us well, it was like coming home.

In Tequila there are several plants which produce the fine drink. José Cuervo is one such plant that offers tours. For 10$ we (along with about 100 other tourists) were shown how tequila is made and of course were allowed to sample the product. You get about 4 or 5 shooters (I stopped counting after a while) during the tour which ensures that everybody leaving the plant looks very happy and laid back thus ensuring that tourists standing in front of the plant debating whether or not to go in actually do. Pure genius!

On that same day, we met with Mike, an expat from France who has been living in the town for a couple of years. He was a great host and showed us around the surrounding areas, the highlight of which was a visit to a traditional tequila maker. Rather than elaborate processes and quality control testing as we had seen during the tour of the José Cuervo facility, this local man was making tequila the original way. As it happens, during our visit a film crew from Japan was there to capture the images of a dying industry, the local tequila maker. A mule was used to pull a giant wheel which crushes the agave plant from which tequila is made. The crew did their filming seemingly happy with their footage and left. Afterwards the owner of the place explained that the mule in question had to be brought in and had never done this before. What the film crew conveniently kept off the reel was the old truck motor connected to a semi-modern crushing machine. This is how the agave plant has been processed by this particular producer for several years. For 20$ you could by 5 liters of this “real tequila” which was actually very good.

After much testing of different tequilas we left the town for San Sebastian about 4 hours away by motorcycle. More twisting roads lead us to a town that up until 5 years ago did not have any electricity or so we were told. What we found was a bit of a tourist trap. OK, a lot of a tourist trap. Rooms were very expensive as were meals (all things being relative, we are trying to live cheaply). But despite these little drawbacks we learned a very valuable lesson in San Sebastian. Feeling discouraged we decided that we would try the local Cantina. It is essentially a bar without the formalities of decorations, good music or hygiene. You go there to drink and drink we did. Suddenly the town seemed far more friendly and pleasant. We now understand that if you are not having a good time in any particular place in Mexico just head to the cantina and everything will be OK.

We then headed for Puerto Vallarta with the intention of bypassing the city, because we do tend to get lost in cities, and going about 3 hours south to Barra de Navidad. It seems that it is not possible to bypass cities in Mexico and we found ourselves in the heart of the city. After a bit of traffic we headed out and eventually made it to Barra de Navidad. This small coastal town was very pleasant but not exactly what we are looking for in terms of having a room on the beach and price. We are both looking forward to spending a few weeks on a beach somewhere but have so far found that prices are quite high in Mexico, compared to Central and most of South America. If we are to make it around the world, we cannot spend more than 50$ per day on average. So far in Mexico, we are spending about 70$ per day and more. So after a couple of days in Barra de Navidad we decided to try a beach town called Barra de Neixpa. Again prices were high so we left the following day and are now in Zihuatanejo. This city is also on the coast and has a little of everything. Internet cafés, lots of restaurants and even a Kawasaki dealership. It isn’t our make of bike but they carry quality engine oil so today we are going to change our oil. Gotta keep the bike happy at all times!

We will probably stay here in town another 3 or 4 days before heading to Pie de la Cuesta which is about 30 minutes north of Acapulco. 

Brian

From Real de Catorce we had an easy ride south to Zacatecas. We’ve spent nearly a week here so far and have not yet been bored. We managed to secure another great room, this one with its own kitchen.

Getting the motorcycle into the room proved a little challenging however. It turns out that the tool cylinder we had installed on the bash plate is too low (lower than the bash plate by about 2 inches). Given that there is a step to get into the room the bash plate had to be removed entirely since we cannot easily remove the tool cylinder. So after the bash plate was removed we managed, with some help, to get the beast through the door. In doing so some gas found it’s way onto the floor. The origin of the gas seems to be the drain plug for the gearbox oil which doesn’t make much sense. So we checked the oil and everything seems fine. Time will tell.

Once the bike was secured we started checking out the sights. Zacatecas is certainly not lacking in that department. On top of seeing a “battle of the orchestras” being played out in a town square (sorry, the picture is not super clear), we spent considerable time walking around the narrow streets and soaking in the sights.

The highlight of our time here has been visiting a 400 year old mine that is no longer operating. Access into the mine is by miniature train or by elevator. Once inside, a guide explains the history of the mine but more importantly the conditions in which the silver it produced was extracted. According to our guidebook, 5 people per day (including children) died inside the mine when operations were at their most dangerous. Makes you realise that everything we chose to consume has a price that we don’t necessarily understand or sometimes understand but chose to ignore. I mention this because I have no doubt that the conditions which existed here years ago probably still exist elsewhere today (if not in a mine than perhaps a factory).

Although Zacatecas has been great we are eager to find a beach on which to relax for a while. So tomorrow we head off to the south-west as we gradually make our way to the pacific coast.

Brian

Real de Catorce has ended up being one of our better traveling spots. The town of 1500 inhabitants sits at an altitude of 2756 meters and is built on the side of a mountain. All around are remnants of old mines, abandoned villages and many mountains all set amid an arid desert like climate (but it’s not really a desrt, it is called “altiplano”).

Since we arrived we have done a couple of day treks, one of which was with the knowledgeable owner of the internet café El Quemado, Martin, who showed us some sights that I doubt we ever would have seen without him. including venturing into an abandoned mine and visiting a sacred mountain with an offering house at the top. We spent a lot of time at Martin’s internet café to create our blog, drink real cappuccino (for Brian), warm ourselves up, and watch the Simpson and the Incredibles in spanish.

We also had the chance to meet Alex, the owner of the Eucalipto restaurant, and to take pictures for his restaurant. Of course, we were lucky enough to taste his great meals of steak and pasta, which were excellent, accompanied with great wine, 100% aguave tequila, great companie and conversations.

During our stay, Marie got sick (small virus?). Thankfully it only lasted 1 day and she is already up and about. As for the Bike, we made some necessary repairs (God bless Duct Tape!). The bike is running fine and within a couple of days we will be off to Zacatecas, about 4 hours southwest from here.

Brian

With Real de Catorce only about 4 hours away we ended up leaving a little later than our usual 8:00am. We got hopelessly lost trying to leave the city and ended up on the outskirts of town at only around 10:00am. Once the formalities of getting out of the city were done the rest of the ride was uneventful except for the accident.

But first a little background. To get to Real de Catorce (an ex mining town now transforming into a tourist spot) you need to take a back road and will eventually end up turning off onto a very long cobblestone road. And when I say long, I mean long. This thing goes on for about 24 kilometers. Two up and fully loaded it is very punishing. The type of road on which going slow is just not an option.

Better to speed up and get it over and done with as quickly as possible. The road eventually started winding up a mountain and was supposed to bring us to the mouth of a 2.3 kilometer tunnel. After driving for what seemed like an eternity we decided to stop and confirm with a local man if we were going in the right direction. He indicated yes and off we went. For whatever reason, I decided that giving some throttle to get going just wasn’t necessary this time and of course we immediately stalled, on a cobblestone road, on the side of a mountain, with a sheer drop a few feet away to our right, in a curve, which had an incline.

The bike started leaning to the left and there came that point when I decided that there was no way I was going to save it. Down we went and all I can remember of the moment is the sound of crunching as we went down. Never a good thing. We managed to get the whale upright and inspected the damage. Wind screen cracked in several places, turn signal finished, mirror bent, oil of undetermined origin on the road. After several moments of inspection we decided to carry on and made our way around the bend. Sure enough, there was the entrance to the tunnel. If only we had gone on another 50 feet the accident never would have happened!!

Brian

We decided we had soaked up enough of Cuatro Cienegas and headed for Saltillo, which used to be the capital of a large area encompassing much of South Western USA. The guidebook we carry promised a laid back town but we were disappointed by the hectic pace of the place and decided to leave the following day for Real de Catorce, a very scenic and surreal place in the state of San Luis Potosi.

Brian 

We left bright and early and started heading for Cuatro Cienegas. Feeling a little more adventurous, we decided to take some back roads and were not disappointed. It is one thing to see Mexico from it’s main highways but an entirely different thing to see the country from off the beaten track. We felt truly out of place for the first time on this trip. After a 4 hour ride we finally made it to Cuatro Cienegas.

We stayed at what will surely end up being the nicest hotel of this trip. The Hotel Mission Maria Elena had massive rooms surrounding a beautiful courtyard with a fountain. All for the modest price of 35CAD per night (negociated down from 58CAD by Marie, thanks Marie).  We new we were splurging quite a bit but we only get to do this once.The area of Cuatro Cienegas is home to a half dozen natural “lakes” in the middle of this arid desert. When we visited, the waters were crystal clear and we took the opportunity to go for a swim. Definitely a strange feeling to be swimmng in the middle of the desert with fishes going after our toes.

There is also a museum in town that explains what types of wildlife can be found in and around the lakes. When we visited the museum, one of the displays had a Black Widow spider. I noticed that the lid of the display case had a large gap on top. Definitely big enough for a spider to get through. It turns out that the spider was in fact dead but the guide cheerily pointed out that there eggs about to hatch. I’m happy I won’t be around when those little fellas start swarming the museum! 

We liked the town and area, and ended up staying for 3 days. One thing I do regret is not taking the bike out for a spin in the surrounding desert. Would have been nice but I’m sure the opportunity will present itself again in the future.

Brian

Time to change countries again. We woke up early and started getting the bike loaded. Our goal for the day was to make it to Sabinas in Mexico. We chose the nearest crossing which is at Piedras Negras.

After the formalities of crossing into the US at Niagara Falls, going into Mexico was entirely different. To put it mildly, far less formal. In fact, we drove into Mexico looking for a place to get our passports stamped and obtain a Temporary Vehicle Importation Permit but accidentally drove right past and into the town of Piedras Negras itself. After asking around we were finally shown the right spot. Surprisingly, I did not have to go into the building which housed the border guards. Marie went in with both passports while I guarded the bike and when she came back both passports were stamped. As for the Temporary Vehicle Importation Permit, we had to drive another 55 KM into Mexico before we reached the ”aduana” office where we obtained our vehicle permit.

Driving in Mexico turned out to be far easier than I thought it would be, at least on that first day. We made it into the town of Sabinas just before supper and ended up staying there 2 nights.

Brian