At the beginning of last week we crossed the border into Mexico, at Tijuana, and then spent a couple of days on the coast of the Baha Peninsula, sampling Mexican food and trying out our Spanish.
We then headed down the Pacific coast, staying at Guaymas and Mazatlan on the way, the latter with a busy local old town where we stayed. We also swam in the lovely warm sea.
Yesterday we took a 6 hour stomach churning, but scenically beautiful, bus ride up into the Sierra Madre mountains to reach the 400 year old colonial city of Durango. This elegant city feels almost European and has a baroque cathedral and many grand old palaces and mansions, one of which we are staying in.
The city is nearly 2000m high and has intense clear light, one of the reasons why the area was used to film Hollywood Westerns in the 1950s and 60s. Tomorrow we plan to visit one of the filmsets.
All the Mexicans weve met so far have been friendly and helpful and the atmosphere is relaxed and laid back. Some of the best food we have had has been at small cafes and stalls on the street: spicy tacos followed by fresh tropical fruit.
