Tepoztlan

Many of the people from Cuauhnahuac left this morning (4:30AM!!), since most of them had come for winter break through their university. That leaves us down to about 5 Spanish students (plus the many English students), so things will be pretty quiet for a while. I don't anticipate many new people coming until the spring and summer.

Today I got to go on my first trip away from Cuernavaca, to Tepoztlan. I was really happy that the trip was still on through the institute, since they had told us on Thursday that they were going to cancel the trip since not enough people had signed up (even though there are only a few of us left!). This was one of the trips included with Rotary, so I didn't have to pay, which is always a nice bonus. Tepoztlan is in the same state as Cuernavaca, Morelos, so it was not too far and took about 30 min. to arrive by van. It is a very picturesque and quaint little town, but also very turisty (lots of Americans there today). On the weekends, there is a large market full with artisans and food vendors.

Apart from the market, the town is famous for a few things. The major attraction of Tepoztlan is the temple (Tepozteco) of indiginous migrants, on top of a high mountain. The town is also known for its spiritual cleansing (which Nikkie decided to get), for many types of massages (there must have been around 50 places to get a massage) that have been influenced by India and other parts of Asia in addition to traditional Mexican indiginous culture, and finally for stories about UFO sightings. Three of us decided to climb the moutain to visit the temple: me, Jose, and one of the teacher's sons, about 11 years old. The climb up the mountain was much more intense than I thought it would be, and was quite a work out. Jose and I stopped once or twice to catch our breath, and we were amazed that the 11-year old kid almost ran up it like it was nothing. I'm gonna blame this one on altitude acclimation...At any rate, it was definitely worth it to reach the top; What a great view! There were also these cool little animals (I forget the name) toward the top that look like a mix between a possum and a raccoon.

After visiting the pyramid and taking some pictures, we headed back down the mountain (much easier) and had lunch at very nice restaurant called Las Colorinas. The outside was gorgeous, painted purple and a golden yellow with pink flowers flowing outside of it. Inside, everything was multi-colored and decorated festively. I ordered simple chicken quesadillas, which were very tasty. When we finished lunch, we browsed the market for about an hour or so, and then we left. Overall, a great day.