On the Road to Palenque-DAY FIVE & SIX

Sabino talked to us about his family, his pueblo and about
a neighbor of his who had became famous throughout
Mexico by painting wood creatures he had seen in his dreams.
 Sabino showed us where he lived and told us he walked
several miles from his house each day to
the ruins to sell his clay sculptures

From the ruins he pointed out the house he lived in

We decided to drive to the little Village and check out both stories and of course, found them to be true.  Sabino's is well know for his clay sculptures, his ancestors were very instrumental in the excavation of Monte Alban. Also recorded below is the story of his neighbor, best know as Alebrijes Jimenez.

Manuel Jiménez grew up in extreme poverty.  When he was eight,
his father asked him for help to support his family.  He found a job
caring for cattle in the field.  He had a little penknife and loved to
carve little animals for his siblings to play with.
As an adult he bacame and alcoholic and many times had very
strange dreams about dragons, strange and weird animals
He combined his dreams with his carving ability



You could find about any kind of animal in his gallery

Our Favorite was this preying mantis

the tables were infested with insects and crazy animals

and they were crawling all over the walls

Rob's favorite was a "horny toad" by another artist,
but when he went back to show it to Bickmore
someone had bought it for a mere $800.00
So Rob took a picture of this one, by the same
artist to show the detail

This night we decided to try some local cuisine

Yes, these were served on our indigenous plate for two.
They are chapulines (grass hoppers).  It included several entries
from the area.  It was all nasty.  We went to bed hungry



You can tell by the look in my eyes
that I barely survived last nights meal
but this morning I washed it down
with some wonderful Mexican fruit

 

We drove on and spent the night in Tuxla Gutierrez

We traveled again the next day passing fields and fields
of what appeared to be very large Aloe Plants.
We finally stopped to ask and found out they are
 agave  plants used to make Tequila.

We loved the Taxi service is some of the little towns
we passed



We spent the next night in
San Cristobal de Las Casas

Rob loved the Marimba

We spent the day in San Cristobal being mauled
by the street vendors

We were able to bargain with the natives and bought some
fun things for the grand kids

This lady decked me out in her native custom
It was hot and uncomfortable and she was disappointed
I didn't buy it

We bought tickets to a play, which we attended that night
 "Palenque Rojo" which told the story of Kan Joy Chitam,
one of the most brilliant leades in  Palenque History
The story takes place in 711 AD when the newly widowed
queen of Toniná dresses in the military robes of her husband
and leads an attack.  Kan Joy is taken prisoner. He later
offers his life to the gods in a ritual of self-sacrifice. 

Now remember we are near the Southern
tip of Mexico about to enter the jungle
and we ate at a wonderful little French
Restaurant.  The food was superb

Directly after the play,

 we went to our rooms to get a good nights sleep

before heading to our final destination

PALENQUE CHIAPAS

AAA Mexico Tour Book 2009

"The town of Palenque has little to offer tourists.  Sporadic outbursts of politically motived violence occur from time to time.  Although these ruins are an established tourist attraction, they are in a remote location.  Use extreme caution." 

 We Drove Five Hours
 Stopped at a roadside stand for "Watermelons???"

Had a Few Road Blocks
Now here is a great marketing technique.  A rope
pulled across the road to stop your car, then young
children approach selling locally grown fruit and other wares.
We tricked the parents by having lots of suckers which
we handed out to the kids, they were so happy to have
a candy, they forgot about trying to sell....



Stopped at a Waterfall
 Misol-Ha (meaning "Streaming Water")
 creates a beautiful waterfall as the river glides off the edge of a cliff some 120 feet down into a 45 foot deep
pool of water surrounded by lush vegetation.

Had a Great Dinner
This restaurant was brand new and I had the very best
Camarones of my entire life. 

Found a Great Hide-Away to Spend the Night
Right in the heart of the Jungle

Dave and Mayrene Went for a Swim
can you believe we forgot to take our swimsuits



Had Our Own Grass Hut for the Night 
Rob took some great video footage which is attached.
Be sure to check it out

So much for the information in the AAA Tour Guide