Pop. 900 to Pop. 6 Million

Our time on the Nayarit coast has finally come to a close. But we didn't leave before we had a few more memorable experiences and made a few more great friends.

As promised, Julia finally got to see her whales on Saturday! We took a "lancha" out from San Blas (nobody ended up coming along), and it was a three-hour round trip. Departing early in the morning, it took us about an hour of uneventful searching before Julia finally spotted a flipper on the horizon! We blasted toward them, but once we got there, they'd moved on. It took us a while to figure out where they'd come out next. But once we did get near them, it was a tremendous experience. The whales were, um... huge, as Julia pointed out about 50 times. We even got misted by their spray once. On the way back, we drove right along with 3 big humpbacks and a pod of dolphins. At our closest, we were within about 15 or 20 feet of them as they crested. You could feel a primal dread and awe of such a massive beast so close. We were unable to get any good photographs of them (because you had about 2 seconds before they were gone again). However, we did get some terrific video on Grandad's videocamera that we'll show you when we get home. On the way back, we saw this brilliantly white stone island in the middle of the ocean (white from pelican poop) topped with a statue of the Virgen of Fatima.

We ended our final Pacific-coast weekend with another trip to the delicious Garza Canella restaurant. We enjoyed it just as much as the first time, including the (very spicy) arbol chile and chocolate cake.

Perhaps the best part of our final week on the farm was the arrival of some new WWOOFers. We were joined by Phoebe on Sunday. She arrived during a massage we were having from a local lady (whom we heard about through a local gringa we met). We instantly fell in love with Phoebe, who was to room with us. She was quirky, easy going, and a great help around the house and the farm. She managed a farm in Boston and she's only 22! Later that day, another couple, Jason and Victoria arrived too. They're from Washington D.C., and they were a hoot too. They'd been camping in California for the last few weeks, and were slowly making their way to Argentina. Jason is fluent in Spanish, but is as American as Julia or me. He'd spent a year in Costa Rica teaching English classes. We really enjoyed working with these three WWOOFers (and they were hard workers), cooking together, and sharing stories. We were kind of their tutors for the first couple days because Amaranth was gone and Wally stayed pretty busy. We'll definitely miss them, but it's good to know Green Acres will be in good hands after we've gone.

Thursday morning we departed. Wally was picking up Amaranth from Tepic, so he offered to give us a ride there in his van. We said our goodbyes, got our tickets, and were soon on our way to the state of Jalisco. Jalisco is the birthplace of many things Americans think of as "Mexican". It is the cultural home of mariachis, rodeos, and tequila! There were a couple movies played on the three hour bus ride, but I was more interested in the scenery. It quickly changed from lush tropical jungle to arid farmland. The brownish landscape was broken up by beautiful seas of greenish-blue agave plantations, as far as the eye could see. About an hour outside of the city, we entered Guadalajara. There were probably over 100 miles of endless suburban sprawl. Guadalajara is home to over 6,000,000 inhabitants, making it the second largest city in the country.


Taking a taxi from the Central, we arrived at our hostel about 20 minutes later. We checked in, and really were impressed. It's SO quiet compared to Aticama! There is wifi in the whole building, the beds are comfortable (I sleep on the top bunk), we get a free (if overly sugary) breakfast, and the reception is very knowledgable and helpful. We are in a room with 6 beds, but we are lucky enough to be the only ones there right now.

We quickly headed out on an evening jog to explore the city. What an enchanting place Guadalajara is! We are staying in a chic little barrio called "Nueve Esquinas" or "Nine Corners", that reportedly has the best birria restaurants in town. Birria is a type of stewed or roasted meat stuffed into tortillas with salsa, onions, beans, and chiles. Yes, it does sound alot like tacos. But we went to the place that is supposed to be the best. And boy was it GREAT! We shared a couple of plates, one with slow-fire-roasted goat meat, and one with tender lamb stewed in maguay leaves! We were talking about it for hours -- easily the best "Mexican" food we've had here yet.


Our place is also only about 4 blocks from the "centro". Thousands of walkers, lovers, and families stroll the area's endless plazas. Towering cathedrals loom over the cool gardens, and there are more statues and fountains than I could count. We caught a live performance from the city's excellent orchestra in one of the squares. The centro is also host to the legendary Mercado Libertad (a 4-story labyrinth of vendor stalls that covers 9 square city blocks) and a huge multi-story jewelry mecca. We visited both yesterday. Perhaps because of the lack of options we had in Aticama, or perhaps because we shopped for over 5 hours, we were finally overwhelmed by all the selection. In the Mercado they sell everything imaginable, from fruit to leather goods, whole pig heads to granola, video games to soccer shoes. And each stand comes equipped with an aggressive salesman or woman. We did get some great purchases though, including some jewelry for Julia, delicious meats, cheeses, fresh yoghurts and produce. Defeated, we fled back to the serenity of our room once more.

We're also walking distance from the city's primary food and bar scene. Last night we spent an hour hunting for the perfect bar, before settling into a hipster French-themed espresso bar and cocktail lounge. Today we went on a 2-hour long walk/jog through that area again (in search of a remote English-language bookstore). Through that search, we came to realize that Guadalajara has ALOT of restaurants and lounges from every culture. We found beautiful open air bistros, authentic looking Italian pizzerias and tratorrias, gobs of nice looking sushi restaurants, and even a Swiss restaurant! With a population of 6 million, I suppose we shouldn't be suprised that that culinary scene here is in the 21st century. We might be eating less Mexican food while we're in Guadalajara, simply because all the other stuff looks so good. So tonight it will probably be chianti and fettucini. Or... sushi and a Sapporo. Or maybe fusion nuveau Mexican...

In our last two days here, we hope to see a ballet folklorico, go to the Sunday antiques market, visit the beautiful Parque de Agua Azul, and more. We are still a bit overwhelmed... after all, this is the biggest city I've ever been in! It's so rich, sprawling, and huge, and yet it is still inviting and warm in the way only Mexico can be. I mean, last night we forgot our umbrella at a lounge, and the bartender chased us down 3 or 4 blocks to give it to us. God bless Mexico!

Saludos!

Philip