Postcard from Banamichi- March 10, 2015

Believe it or not, we purchased no pots in Mata Ortiz.  It's not that we didn't see beautiful work. Just that we're no longer into acquiring things.  

We loved wandering around Mata Ortiz and the Casas Grandes area, and our stay at Posada de las Ollas in Mata Ortiz.  Posada-mates Fabiola Silva and Sterling Trantham were interviewing six or more elder potters each day, so we heard plenty of stories about the old days in Mata Ortiz.  As we came to see it, the village where everybody makes pottery is less the result of divine inspiration on the part of Juan Quesada and more a communal outgrowth of pot-looting after the real pots ran out.  This doesn't make the current products any less beautiful or valuable.  A controversial topic.

Paquime (the ancient Casas Grandes) was once a Chaco-like center of what the Museo del las Culturas del Norte calls the Gran Chichimeca. At its height, this fascinating site was the largest mud-walled city in the Americas, with an impressive system of water collection and distribution, that brought settled water to individual buildings via stone-lined ditches.

Sunday morning we purchased queso menonite in Casas Grandes Nuevo, then headed north and joined Mexico Highway 2 at Janos.  It being Sunday, the sotol distillery was closed.  No matter.  Here in Banamichi, I've been able to sample the local (and very smooth) bacanora.  As I understand it, tequila (Jalisco), sotol (Chihuahua) and bacanora (Sonora) are all essentially mescal (i.e. distilled from agave).  Other than aging and purity, the differences are like the terroir differences between Syrah grapes grown in California or Arizona.

Highway 2 travels through beautiful open grasslands, back over the Sierra Madre (less daunting this far north), past Agua Prieta (just across the border from Douglas, Arizona), and into Cananea, a busy copper-mining town, where an early 1900's miners' rebellion contributed to the 1910-20 Mexican revolution. 

We made an early start Monday, leisurely picking our way down the beautiful Rio Sonora valley.  The Rio Sonora was the route of explorers and missionaries, who left a string of 17th century towns and churches.  Juan DeAnza (famous to those of us who grew up in Riverside) founded what is now San Francisco, California, was buried in Arizpe.  You can still see his bones through a glass panel in the church floor. Arizpe was once the capital of northwestern colonial Mexico, which included Arizona and New Mexico.

We settled in for two nights at La Posada del Rio in Banamichi, just across the plaza from where Linda Ronstadt's Mexican grandparents were married.  Not only are these easily the swankiest and most charming accommodations we've had in some time, other than a couple of long-term guests who are consulting with the local silver mine, we are the only guests.  I am writing this from the rooftop patio, with views of mountains to the east and fields to the west.  In Banamichi we see as many horses as cars.  Both move at a leisurely pace.

Today we headed south to picnic at Agua Caliente near Aconchi. A lovely spot where scalding spring water is directed into pools of various degrees of heat.  The pools were clean and inviting, and we were the only people enjoying them.  Great birdwatching too!

After leaving Banamichi tomorrow, we'll likely be camping for the rest of our trip, mostly in San Felipe and points south, and this may be my last postcard until we get home March 24.  Be well, and consider visiting northern Mexico.  If you can handle sometimes iffy accommodations, there's much to see and experience.  We'll be back!

Love, Toni 

Photos:
Late afternoon Mata Otiz
Late afternoon Paquime
Curious roadrunner Paquime (today we saw five roadrunners!)
Early morning Paquime
Church in Arizpe
Church in Banamichi
Early morning vultures in Banamichi (there were hundreds, mostly Turkey Vultures, some Black Vultures)
Banamichi street scene
San Felipe de Jesus from Cerro de la Cruz (260 steps)
High water Sonora river crossing to San Felipe de Jesus
Canyon Wren at Agua Caliente
Mary in agua caliente
Red-tailed Hawk near San Felipe de Jesus

Postcard from Mata Ortiz- March 7, 2015

We loved Alamos,  enough to look into the possibility of renting a casita some winter.  Seems to be doable and affordable, and that's as far as we got. 

Monday we set out for the Sierra Madre Occidental.  It's now Friday afternoon, and what a week it has been.  We are currently in the small town of Mata Ortiz (south of Casas Grandes, Chihuahua), staying at a small posada, with just five guest rooms.  $64 a night, including three meals!

We pulled into town just after dark, and were guided here by a gentleman who heard me making inquiries of the clueless liqor store clerk.  "Sigueme," he said, then guided us through the dark streets, and hooked us up with Lallo, the owner.  Just in time for enchiladas.

From Alamos, we drove back through Navojoa and Ciudad Obregon, then headed north towards San Nicolas and highway 16.   It was a paved road, but a bad paved road.  100 miles (5 hours) of continuous washtub-sized potholes, recent landslides, steep mountain grades, and rain. We reached Highway 16 at dusk, and broke our rules by driving the final hour to Yecora in the dark.  The van's wimpy headlights were not an asset.

It was raining when we checked into our less-than-basic hotel and raining when we left. The highlight of our visit to Yecora was an amazing bowl of albondigas soup at a little restaurant barely heated by wood-burning stove.  From Yecora we drove over the crest of the sierras to Basaseachic.  Despite the steady rain, the occasional views were fantastic.

Basaseachic was worth the drive.  Although this is normally the dry season for the falls, the rain made for a spectacular display.  We got soaked (by rain, not the falls) at the first viewpoint, then retreated a half mile to Rancho San Lorenzo where we set up camp for the night.  We hunkered down, and despite freezing temperatures and 2+ inches of rain,  had a good afternoon and night.

In the morning, we took advantage of a brief break in the storm, and walked down to two viewpoints.  The canyon was particularly beautiful due to pour-overs and little waterfalls everywhere we looked. The big waterfall was huge, with for a brief moment, a double rainbow.  As we hiked back up the well-constructed trail, it began to sleet.  A brief cafecita with rancho caretaker Eliasar, and we were on our way down the Chihuahua side of the sierras, then north to the logging town of Madera. 

This was a beautiful drive through high ranchland that looks a lot like Yavapai County.  After a chilly night in a Madera hotel room with a tiny propane heater, we headed to Cuaranta Casas, one of many ruins in the canyons around Madera and Casas Grandes.  As we understand it (ask us more tomorrow, after we visit the museum at Paquime), the people who occupied these caves and Paquime are closely tied with the Mogollon and Anasazi cultures.  Although they are now well-protected (visitors must be accompanied by a guide), the caves are terribly looted, making it hard for archaeologists to get the data they need.

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The supposedly two-hour drive Cuaranta Casas to Mata Ortiz took us four.  This is a village of potters who combine ancient and modern designs with beautiful results.  It seems everyone is a potter, and you can't walk down the street or even out your door without being invited into someone's home to view their pots.  As we are not in the market for pots, this feels a bit awkward to us.  So far we have been too busy to accept the invitations.  Tomorrow we will visit some potters, making it clear we are only looking, before leaving for Paquime and Casas Grandes Viejo.

Today we drove an hour and a half to Cueva de la Olla, a cave with dwellings and a huge bowl-like granary. This is something we have never seen before.

It's time for Toby's walk, and we've been told there is cell phone reception on the hill.  Enjoy the photos.

Love, Toni

Postcard from Alamos- March 1, 2015

Mary and I are off again, once again in Mexico, with Toby and the van. We left Prescott February 21, and expect to arrive home on the 24th.  Our planned route is Tucson, San Carlos, Alamos, Yecora, Basaseachic, Madera, Casas Grandes, Banamichi, Caborca, Gonzaga Bay, San Felipe, home. 

So far, so wonderful.  This comes to you from Alamos, where we have been since Thursday.  We leave Monday, heading up into the Sierra Madre Occidental just as a storm blows in.  Per Weather Underground, we'll get plenty of rain (maybe even snow!) no matter we find ourselves.  So more lodging, less camping, and we'll be wearing all those just-in-case warm things.

In Tucson, we had a fun weekend visit with Hal and Liz Kingslein, friends from our recent trip to Vietnam. Monday we crossed the border at Nogales. After acquiring visas and a vehicle importation permit at Kilometer 21, we headed south to San Carlos, and set up "camp" in the carport of Bill and Katie Kluchko's casita.

Highlights of San Carlos were the views,  Napule canyon, the Estero El Soldado, and the great food and conversation served up by our hosts.

Thursday morning we drove through Ciudad Obregon and Navajoa (home of the Martin factory that made Mary's backpacker guitar!) to Alamos, an old town in the foothills of the Sierra Madre.  From the 1700's through the early 1900's, the Alamos area was one of the richest silver mining districts in the world, and was for some time, the capital of Sonora.  After the mining ended, the town shrank, and the old colonial mansions fell into disrepair.  These lovely old buildings are now mostly restored and owned by wealthy Americans.

We are staying in a little casita at a place called El Pedregal.  Our hosts David and Jennifer McKay lead birding trips all over Mexico. If you're interested, check out Solipaso on the web.

In Alamos, we have enjoyed relaxing at El Pedregal, walking the cobblestone streets, morning birding outings (one guided), taking in the weekly Home & Garden Tour, and driving back roads with skimpy directions. This morning's search was for the sewage ponds (agua negra), generally a great place to spot birds. 

When the ponds weren't where they should  have been, all the ranch families hurrying to mass understood my questions. I didn't catch the finer nuances of their very helpful answers. I got clues like arroyo, huerta,  and finca, but didn't put them together right.  Kind of like the Sunday puzzle.  After three conversations, and three turnarounds, we found the ponds.  This always happens when I'm a bit lost  in Mexico, and is for me, one of the enjoyable and memorable parts of most trips.

That's it for now.  Although we've had great WiFi so far, I'm guessing we won't have it again until next week, when we reach La Posada del Rio in Banamichi.  Until then, we'll be in the Sierra Madre, on both the Sonora and Chihuahua sides, watching for birds and topas, swerving around potholes, and trying to stay dry.

Love, Toni

Photos (if you've been following us on Facebook, you've already seen most of these):
Liz, Mary, Hal, Tina, Stacey

Napule Canyon
Roseate Spoonbills
Katie and Mary
Toby
Bill and his boys
White Ibis
Casita at El Pedregal
Rufous-bellied Chachalacas
Female Elegant Trogan
Violet-crowned Hummingbird
18th century Alamos church
Streak-backed Oriole
Looking for agua negra
Amapa

Postcard from Sai Gon- January 8, 2015

It's 5 p.m.Thursday in Sai Gon.  Tomorrow we leave the hotel at 8:30 a.m.. 27 hours later, we'll be home. Because of the 14-hour time difference, it will still be Friday. Long day.

We will have spent three nights in Viet Nam's largest city. Take away the millions of motor bikes, the tropical climate and the relaxed atmosphere, and Sai Gon could almost be any big international city. 

Almost. Guessing Sai Gon would still feel pretty exotic if we hadn't already been in Viet Nam for over two weeks.

Although we saw the mandatory sites in our first few hours here- the cathedral, the post office, the opera house, the Continental Hotel, the War Remnants Museum, we spent two full days on trips out of Sai Gon. 

Yesterday we dipped into the Mekong Delta and learned a bit about the life of the people there. Visits to family workshops taught us how to make a different kind of rice paper, how to make Vietnamese fish sauce, and how to make something very like Rice Krispie Treats, including popping the rice in very hot sand.  We spent some time on a branch of the Mekong River, which starts in Tibet, and purchased fruit from the floating markets. On the way down we stopped at a type of cafe that offers a hammock to go with your weet iced coffee. These are called Ca Phe Vong. 

Today we visited the Cu Chi area, where we visited the tunnels at Ben Duoc and later had lunch with two former Viet Cong and the oldest man (91) in the village. The Viet Cong had an extensive multi-hundred kilometer network of tunnels. The tunnels we visited were used to stage and execute the 1968 Tet offensive, and at that time, sheltered 10,000 troops. The map in one of the photos is from an underground meeting room, and is the actual map used to plan the action.  Most everybody went through a short section of the highest level of tunnel, and a few of us duck-walked through a tunnel at the lowest level.

The main message the vets wanted to get across was that the war was over and they bore no animosity to the American people, including soldiers who fought in Cu Chi.  This message has been pretty consistent from north to south, and is reinforced by the way we are greeted wherever we go. People smile, wave, ask to have their photos taken with us.  It feels genuine.

This has been a pretty amazing trip, and we still have a lot to digest. For us, the best experiences are always people-to-people, and that's where OAT (Overseas Adventure Travel) shines. We enjoyed a surprising number of home visits, with people from different classes, and with different histories. Plus there were always completely unplanned, unscripted interactions with folks we met along the way. This level of interaction is something we could not have easily created for ourselves. 

If you plan to visit, allow time. Although Viet Nam looks small on the map, travel moves at the speed of a 100cc motor bike in traffic.  Thanks for travelling with us. 

Love, Toni 

A bit more from Da Lat- January 6, 2015

Da Lat is a popular summer retreat from the heat of Saigon, and, even for new construction, the architectural style is French colonial villa. Yesterday afternoon we took a short train ride from the art deco train station to the over-the-top Minh Phuoc Pagoda, which includes a dragon constructed from 10,000 beer bottles and an enormous bronze bell which can be rung to take your wish to the Buddha. We sent ours for the family of Lisa Trevor, our beloved sister in law, who will be buried today.

Postcard from Da Lat- January 5, 2015

Da Lat City is in the Central Highlands, at an elevation of 5,000 feet. It is the fruit, vegetable and flower capital of Viet Nam, and the only place where strawberries and artichokes are grown. The area is also the source of most of Viet Nam's wine and coffee. FYI, Viet Nam is the world's #2 coffee exporter.

Tomorrow we leave the hotel at 6:30 a.m. for our flight to Saigon, so this will be brief. Today's big outing was an agricultural tour of the Da Lat area. Stops included a flower greenhouse (there must be thousands of acres of greenhouses here), a coffee farm where we sampled weasel coffee, perhaps the most expensive coffee in the world (look it up!), and a silk factory, where we saw the process from worm to final product. The highlight was a tractor ride  to  a dusty K'ho Chil village. Look up the Montagnards, and their pre- and post-1975 history. That's it for tonight.

Love, Toni