Puebla: A Daytrip to Tlaxcala

We finished our breakfast by 9, so that we could catch a bus that would take us to Tlaxcala. Jennifer had done a lot of research on the surroundings of Puebla, and her verdict was that Tlaxcala was well worth a visit. And she was right. Except for a few descriptors, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

On the bus to Tlaxcala:














Escalinata de los Héroes:



























Downtown street. Behind, the Parroquia de San José:














Here's the church from the front:

Through the Calzada de San Francisco to the Ex-Convento de San Francisco, then up the steps, towards the Iglesia del Christo del Buen Vecino:

Then back down the hill towards downtown. We visited the Palacio de Gobierno to see the murals that tell the story of Tlaxcala:.

Then up another hill, to the Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Ocotlán, one of the nicest churches we'd visit on our entire trip:

All this walking around was good for us, but we were exhausted by the end. And since no vacation-day is complete without a decent cappuccino with dessert, we stopped downtown again for a treat:

This last picture was taken by Jennifer, because she thinks that the display-man in the store behind me is dressed in "Benetton clothes that are just like the clothes that you wear", according to her. I'll take that as a compliment:

Puebla: Churches

I visited many churches today, and I took pictures of virtually all of them. Here are a few of them.

La Basílica Catedrál de Puebla de los Ángeles:




















































This is the church located right across from our hotel, Templo de la Compania de Jesús:







































Iglesia de Santo Domingo:

































Iglesia de San Cristobal:














Templo de San Francisco:

I'm a bit disappointed because I missed one of the most important churches in Puebla: Capilla de Rosario. There are so many churches, there's one almost every block, and so in my excitement I missed it!

But Puebla is much more than churches. It's well laid out and easy to get around. In the historical centre especially, everything's well marked, the streets are generally clean, and there are lots of other interesting sights. Here are a few other pictures I took.

Mexico City > Puebla

This morning Jen and I parted ways with Ruben and Tati: they're on their way back home to Cuernavaca, while Jen and I are now in Puebla. We checked into the Hotel Colonial mid-afternoon, and have settled here nicely. It's a lovely hotel, the architecture of which makes obvious that this was at one point either a monastery or convent.

Here's the restaurant inside the hotel. It's wonderful:

Our rooms are nice: two single beds, two balconies (the hotel's on a corner, so we have a balcony on each of the cross-streets), and a small bathroom. The room hsa a safe, and a tv with cable. Here's the view from each of our balconies. First, hers:

Then mine (photo taken late afternoon):

We'll be stationed here for the next 5 nights. Tomorrow I want to do a tour of the city. My focus will be mainly churches. Puebla is known for having many and beautiful churches! I'm in the right place...

On Wednesday Jen and I want to do a day trip to Tlaxcala.

Thursday is 5 de mayo, a big celebratory day here. I think it commemorates the defeat by the Mexicans of the Spanish army, or something along those lines. We will watch the army parade throughout the city, and then in the afternoon we want to head to Cholula.

Friday we will rent a car and go for a drive. We're not sure yet what our destination will be, but my preference would be to get as close to the Popocatépetl as we can and do some hiking.

And finally, on Saturday we will take a late morning bus to Cuernavaca, where the emphasis of our time here in Mexico will be not so much sightseeing (although that too) but meeting up with Juanjo and catching up with Ruben and Tati.

Mexico City: Museo de Antropología

A few notes on yesterday. In the morning, Jen and I visited San Angel and Coyoacán:

Late afternoon, Ruben and Tatiana arrived. We all rested a bit (Jen and I from a day of sightseeing, and Ruben and Tati from a day of travelling. Then, we went for dinner at an Italian restaurant recommended to us by Diego, the owner of Patio 77:

As for today, the highlight was visiting the Museo de Antropología. What an amzaing place. I will limit myself to only posting a few pictures, but suffice it to say that it's a museum well worth the visit. As my friend Paul told me, there are 3 "must see" museums in the world, representing 3 civilizations: 1- the Egyptian Museum, 2- the Athens National Archeological Museum in Greece, and 3- Museum of Anthropology in Mexico.

I always thought maybe his praises of this museum were slightly exaggerated, but, who knows, maybe I was wrong. It wouldn't be the first time. Anyways, it's a museum that I will surely visit again on my next trip to this beautiful country. Here are some pics:

Ralph Awake

Dad emailed me this picture today. Ralph seems awake here. I'm in Mexico, and upon seeing the picture my heart melted, and tears streamed down my face. My mind was flooded with feelings of guilt: while I'm on vacation, Ralph continues to struggle with life post-accident.

But alas, one must not be drawn into the depths of despair even at this time. Or at least, if one is drawn into these depths, one must not remain there for long: that's where feelings of resentment and doubt rise.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on Ralph, a sinner.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us all,
for we are all sinners.