“Shit! I’ve done it now!” I’m racing along Central Mexico’s Arco Norte, not far from Tolcayuca doing about 120-130 KPH (maybe a smidgen faster) in a zone that’s 110 KPH at best, and I’ve just rounded a bend to be greeted by a Federal Policeman pointing a radar gun in my direction. “I guess my season of immunity has come to an end,” I think to myself as I apply the brake and hope for the best. I’m not standing on the brake; that’d be too obvious. But I’m definitely slowing down as fast as I can without making the nose of the truck dive, hoping that the cop sees that I’m at least trying not to just blow by him. But he seems unimpressed, though in an odd kind of way. His car is parked on the right hand shoulder of the road, and he’s standing holding the radar gun and seemingly indicating that I should pull over on the left-hand shoulder. This strikes me as very strange, dangerous even, as one of us will have to walk across the freeway in order to give me my speeding ticket. As I get closer he starts to wave the radar gun. Now I’m really confused. A few seconds later, it becomes clear. “Get the heck out of here, Gringo,” he seems to be saying. “I’ve got bigger fish to fry.” So I drive on, relieved to have officially maintained my perfect, unblemished Mexican driving record. Ah, if only stateside were the same.
I’m in Morelia after a wonderful two-and-a-half weeks with Edgar in Tehuacán, and it’s been very difficult to leave. I’ve grown very attached to him, and am already dying to get back. We’ve mostly spent the past two-and-a-half weeks just hanging out (there’s not too much to do in Tehuacán), and then working on his new house, painting, cleaning, dealing with some plumbing issues. Mysteriously 600 liters of water disappeared out of his tinaco overnight a week ago. Worse, the city provides water only Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. We managed to track the leak down to an incorrectly-adjusted toilet, but then had to wait three days for more water. But despite our hydraulic problems, we’ve managed to have a lot of fun together, laughing, joking, and just enjoying being in each other’s company.
My return plan has been formalized. I’ll store the truck in Laredo, and fly back to Boston on Saturday the 31st. On July 10th, I’ll return to Laredo and then drive to Tehuacán to spend an undetermined amount of time with Edgar. Four days ago, we declared ourselves “novios,” and he gave me a set of keys to his house. Our relationship is proceeding at warp speed, something that’s simultaneous exhilarating and terrifying. But the six-week hiatus should help to keep us from burning out, and I’m hoping we can make things last.
The trip to Morelia showed some of the best of the Mexican system of autopistas. The Arco Norte is a marvel of a freeway. It starts just west of Puebla on the way to DF, and then branches northwest allowing one to drive around DF completely. Yes, it’s a toll road, and the entire length will set you back by about 380 pesos or about $29 USD. But it’s worth it. The road is fairly lightly traveled, and it’s far enough away from DF that there is ZERO DF traffic on it, even on a Friday afternoon. It’s also fairly new, smooth, and pretty close to a US standard of construction and signage. Well, OK, the signage is still confusing, but otherwise it’s pretty nice. And it takes you through some beautiful country, with rolling hills, volcanoes, and verdant fields.
Crossing into Michoacán from Estado de México I passed a sign warning of an “ice zone,” which was surprising to say the least. Though there wasn’t any ice (thank god!), it was surprisingly cold, and at times was raining torrentially. I even had to use the heater in the truck, which is a first for the Mexican leg of this trip. The most remarkable thing about this ice zone? I passed another pickup truck that had MAINE plates! What are the odds? As I drove by, I stuck my hand out the window and waved. “Hola Compatriota, Nueva Inglaterrense!” wherever you might be. I hope you’re enjoying your road trip as much as I am mine. I wonder if he saw my plates and thought the same. Or was the reaction more typical? “Masshole!!!” Sadly, that’s our moniker in the other states of New England. I won’t comment on whether it’s deserved.
After the rain, I was treated to some marvelous Mexican vistas.
On arriving in Morelia, I had the pleasure of dining with Jennifer Rose of “Red Shoes are Better than Bacon,” though neither was on the menu at Parilla y Canilla, the Uruguayan restaurant where we met. Today I have lunch with “Tancho” of “On the Road to Pátzcuaro, Mexico,” and hope to meet up with Don Cuevas of “My Mexican Kitchen,” and “Felipe Zapata” of the “Unseen Moon.” Then I’ll spend a day or two between Morelia and Pátzuaro before I start heading north in earnest.
Though I didn’t get to take many photos in Morelia, I’ll leave you with one nice shot at Sunset before I sign off. Saludos!
Note to fellow bloggers: I’ve sworn off the adulatory, breathless “I just met so-and-so of such-and-such blog” post. Don’t feel offended, and please don’t write such a post about me either, LOL. I know I’ve done a couple on this trip, but I’m officially quitting. Thanks.
Andean said:
Que chévere!
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Kim G said:
Gracias! It was kind of a fun drive, even if I was leaving Edgar behind. Saludos and thanks for stopping by!
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Andean said:
The yin and yang of life, and with travels, we come and go.
Pero si, a veces, muy difícil….
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John Calypso said:
Always a good idea to know where to get a water truck when living in Mexico 😉
Kim – Ain’t Love Grand! Have fun amigo.
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Kim G said:
Hola John! We do need to find a water truck, though they’d need a long hose to reach the tinaco. And love is grand. I’m already missing him a ton, despite being away only 4 days. Thanks for stopping by and Saludos.
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NORM said:
My guess on the policeman and the speed gun, it was for show, just to slow folks down a bit. You see police cars parked at the entrance to little towns here in Ohio that have two foot tall weeds growing through their bumpers.
I try to never make eye contact with patrolmen, I look down, look in the mirror, act like I’m talking to the other person in the car, I never make it easy. Police like easy…
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Kim G said:
Hola Norm! You might be right about the “show” aspect of that cop. Who knows? But I’m with you on ignoring them as much as possible, particularly the transitos here in Mexico. John Calypso has written about the effectiveness of just ignoring them and I have taken that to heart. That said, one of the things I’ve noticed about cops here in Mx is that it’s much easier to engage them in conversation than in the USA. One conversing, you humanize yourself in their eyes making it harder for them to ticket you or whatever. In Tehuacán I was successfully able to talk a cop into letting me drive down a temporarily closed street to my hotel simply because he seemed to not want to put his foot down as a US cop would have done immediately. Of course your mileage will vary. Saludos!
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Tancho said:
It was a pleasure to meet you the other day. I was glad that you were able to experience the sun, the wind, the rain with lightening, and the sun returning all in the matter of a few hours. I know that you will be returning soon now that you have a good reason to enjoy life south of the border.
Have a safe trip.
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Kim G said:
Hola Tancho! Igualmente! I quite enjoyed our lunch and hope to see you again. And the weather was a blast, literally at times, LOL. Saludos!
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babsofsanmiguel said:
I hope you don’t stop mentioning your fellow bloggers in your comments. I love knowing when people are traveling and they meet some of the people I’ve been reading and corresponding with for years! Glad you’re in Morelia and enjoying yourself. I didn’t realize you were not heading to Boston til the 31st. Enjoy, wherever you are!
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William said:
I thoroughly agree. It was such a pleasure to get to meet two fellow bloggers on my travels this year, and on both occasions I wrote an entry about those encounters. One of these days, Barbara. I’ll make it to San Miguel, and I’ll get to meet you!
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Kim G said:
Hola Bill! I think you’ve now committed yourself here in writing to write a fabulous post about Barbara. Of course given who she is, that post won’t be particularly difficult to write. Thanks again for your numerous comments. Saludos!
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Kim G said:
Hola Barbara! I’m not going to stop mentioning fellow bloggers at all. Meeting fellow bloggers is half the fun of this. I’m just not going to write full posts about meeting people, that’s all. And I’m not expecting anyone to write a post about me either. And, yes I have 6 more days here, and I’m still trying to figure out exactly what to do with them. Saludos!
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redshoesarebetterthanbacon said:
Your aproach and perspective on the Centro at sunset photo is wonderful, making this photo really stand out from the pack of the usual Centro scenes. I enjoyed meeting you on Friday evening at the Parrilla.
Yes, Michoacan is a place where you can go from having the heat on in the car to air conditioning in seconds. But for the most part, it’s the Goldilocks of Mexico.
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Felipe Zapata said:
Goldilocks of Mexico. Good one!
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Kim G said:
Jennifer is not someone lacking a certain turn of phrase.
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Kim G said:
Hola Jennifer! Thanks for the kind words on the photo; I’m pretty happy with that one too. And I enjoyed dinner at least as much as you did. Thanks. Goldilocks? Does that make Guanajuato, Jalisco, and Hidalgo the 3 bears? LOL. Saludos and thanks for stopping by.
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William said:
The sunset photo in Morelia is beautiful. I’ve not been to Morelia, or anywhere else in Michoacán, but I have read that it is gorgeous. Safe journey to you as you make the trip northward.
Saludos,
Bill
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Kim G said:
Hola Bill! Thanks for the compliment. I’ve actually got a ton more nice pictures from when I was last in Morelia, in 2007. It’s a beautiful place, and well worth visiting. There are also nighttime tours done by students in period dress telling tales of ghosts, lovers, and intrigue. F and I did such a trip in ’07, but I think I’d understand it now. Saludos and thanks for stopping by!
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Felipe Zapata said:
Seeing U.S. plates here is fairly common. Often the vehicle simply belongs to an ex-illegal alien who’s come home at last. The recent changes in visa rules is reducing the number of U.S. plates one should see on cars owned by Gringos down here, and that’s a great thing. We’ve been too easy on those people.
By the way, the next time you face an empty tinaco, just phone someone with a water tanker truck. No need to wait. It does not cost much either.
The drive from Mexico City to Morelia is indeed a beaut.
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Kim G said:
Hola Felipe, I’m with you on the US plates, though if you take away Texas and California, the “fairly common” goes away. And Maine? That’s what surprised me. There are very few Mexicans in New England, and of those, an infinitesimal fraction are in Maine, which is one of the whitest states in the USA. That and Vermont, which I think has the US’s highest mix of redheads, or at least it seems so. As for calling the water truck, I thought of that, but we didn’t know who to call. Thanks for stopping by and Saludos!
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Felipe Zapata said:
Any neighbor would have known about contacting a water truck. Something to remember.
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Kim G said:
I should have called you first. That’s what’ll happen next time, LOL. Consider yourself warned. Saludos.
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Don Cuevas said:
I promise not to post anything about our breakfast meeting today, nor take any photos.
Saludos,
Don Cuevas
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Kim G said:
Hola Don Cuevas, LOL! No photos please, but of course you can write whatever you like. I just got involved in some gushy posts a few weeks back, and then felt kind of awkward about it later, LOL. No worries. I’m looking forward to meeting you! Saludos.
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imaginemerida said:
Your photos of hills and valleys, and the gallery in on the restaurant website you linked to, remind me of one thing I’ll miss when I’m in Yucatan — those sweeping balcony views. Morelia looks lovely. I grew up in flat South Jersey, and now I’m returning to something similar. My knees are thanking me, anyway.
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Kim G said:
Lee: You owe it to yourself to visit Morelia. It’s beautiful, colonial, has a great climate, is full of energetic young people due to the various universities, and has good restaurants. The centro is flattish, but there are hills around the city. Where we ate, there was a lovely view of the centro. Saludos and thanks for stopping by!
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Don Cuevas said:
Parrilla y Canilla in the Santa María hills is our favorite restaurant in Morelia, although there are some other contenders for first place.
Saludos,
Don Cuevas
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Kim G said:
Don Cuevas, Jennifer’s comment that that was one of your favorite restaurants put it at the top of the list of the four she suggested, at least in my mind. Saludos and thanks for meeting me for breakfast. It was a true pleasure.
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