San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas

(Andy)

Since yesterday morning we have been in the city of San Cristabol de las Casas in the southernmost state of Chiapas. SC is situated pretty high in the mountains and it is cool and pleasant here. It is the rainy season so it has been raining in the afternoons as well (but not today). Yesterday, after riding all night in a surprisingly easy 11 hour bus ride from the beach, we met up with Dan Cummings of Bosque School fame. Dan has been a great guide and showed us around the city yesterday, including catching a music act in the evening. This is a seems a different place from the north -- very liberal and artistic. The music last night, for instance included and accordian, drums, guitar and bass playing a wandering but very tight gypsy style of music. The vocalist somehow incorporated throat singing, Louis Armstrong style scat and many other types of wild vocal improvisations. It brought a smile to our faces through their whole set. I describe the music in a way to describe the town -- you never know what your are going to come across.

Today we dropped off Dan´s wife Kristen in the town where she was doing her Anthropology work and we headed off to a Zapatista village. A very short background... indigenous people in southern Mexico have been on the fringes of society for a very, very long time. In 1994 a movement led indiginous leaders and University intellectuals took over this city in a coordinated and well publicized movement the day that NAFTA was enacted. They had general support from the population here. Since then they have succeeded in many ways towards self-governence, land reform and general public awareness. In many ways it is a community based movement that makes perfect sense. The Zapatista army, EZLN, is still alive more in spirit than actuality. Zapatistas still adopt the black ski-mask look and are alive and well in a number of areas in the highlands here. We came to the gate of the town, our ID´s were checked, we were signed in and then we headed to the Council for Good Governance where we met with 2 or 3 members of the council and we had the opportunity to ask eachother questions. After that we were allowed in the town. We checked out the clinic and school and took photos of all of the murals on the side of the building. It was a good place.

The next stop was a church in Chomula unlike any church I have every seen. It was a fully Catholic church but there were no pews, just about 50,000 candles on the table and floor, pine needles all over the concrete floor, boxes for about 50 saint, groups of traditionally dressed folks praying with candles, bottles of soda and alcohol, incense, etc. Outside, as the groups left, they would set off big skyrockets and huge explosions that you felt in your chest. It was a happening place.

Following that Ted and I went shopping and got a few gifts, some great honey and some food for tommorrow.

Tomorrow we leave early with Dan for the ruins at Tonala. Following that we hop a night bus for Mexico City, where we will take a bus to Cd. Juarez, cross the border and take another bus from El Paso to Albuquerque. Since we are practically in Guatamala that will be a long trip of about 2 days. A gallon of jungle honey and a machete will follow us home next month with Dan and Kristin.

Ted: We´ve been busy since we arrived here. Doing things which are cool, touristy, geeky, or just weird. we´ve seen great live music, eaten great sandwiches, seen wild markets; the definition of foreign. We´ve walked around the city, traveled to villages governed by masked men, and had great coffee. Life is really great down here. Well paced, and calm. I like it, but I do kind of miss home. I´m tired, and cannot explain all that we´ve seen and done in these past few days.