Since when has chocolate been political?
I spent a few more days in Mexico City, clutching my bag on the metro and seeing more sights. The anthropological museum was fascinating, especially the Mayan room and the section on Teotihuacan as I´d been there to the pyramids. After a day of reading, translating and trying to absorb the vast amount of information in one of Latin America's largest museums I was all museumed out....so the next day we went to... a museum. Brilliant.
It happened to be a very good one so all was well. We travelled to a part of town where they have lambourginis etc in car show-rooms so we figured this was a bit up-market. Frida and Diego's blue house was the destination and their artwork was interesting if not the actual house itself, separated in two thus representing their rocky relationship. On the way back I stopped in my tracks at the sight of a chocolate specialist shop and we all treated ourselves mmmmm. I tried to take a photo of the shop afterwards and was confronted by an angry policeman running over and shouting at me. He was too irratic so I asked the calm lady in the shop why I can't take pictures of the chocolate and she said ''It's political'' and shrugged. Odd. I didn't understand and she didn't seem to either.
Our last night was spent watching a bit of a heavy metal band at another hostel (exactly my kind of music?) but they were really good. I was back on the tequilas too which helped. We then travelled in a convoy of three cabs to Plata Negra a club in Zona Rosa. I got to show off my salsa skills a bit with a Mexican guy from the hostel which was fun and this was also followed shortly by a few more tequilas...we ended up at another club with Alfonso our Mexican friend and a local plastic surgeon. We danced salsa and Merengue until 5 in the morning then stopped off at a suprisingly busy all night taco restaurant. It was a good end to the city.
Cervantino festival and a million stairs
On our way to the bus station we looked like tourists on a mission...5 of us with our huge backpacks trying to squeeze into the metro was not fun...to top it off Oli had his wallet stolen from his bag half way there :( It was not a good start. Anna and I went to Guanajuato to meet the guys there the next day and we later found out they had been to 4 different police stations before finally being helped - and this was with our Mexican Alfonso there to assist!
When we arrived at Guanajuato we realised there are hundreds of steps to get there (yes I exaggerated with a million) with all our bags and Anna's skateboard...but it was worth it when we arrived at the hostel. The owner was like a 'mum away from mums' she constantly fed and watered us and was so friendly. The view from her rooftop terrace was beautiful and we heaved a sigh of contentment at no longer being in Mexico City. Here we breathed in the fresh air and gazed across the hills speckled with multi-coloured casas. This place would be good - we knew it already.
We spent the day seeing the town; the evening began with tequilas and ended in me singing karaoke in a local bar and they loved it phew...there was a lot of pressure being the only non Mexican song of the night! The town was full of students from the university and the Cervantino festival was also in full swing. There was that fun festival feeling and many street performers and shows. Anna and I walked around the whole town, shopping in the markets, eating fruit in the zocalo and enjoying ceviche tacos with the locals.
We fell in love with Guanajuato. Our favourite phrase became ''¿Porque no?'' Why not? This applies to many situations in Mexico.
