Quantum Storytelling

Dalila and Miguel were sick. Dalila from the greasy gringas we ate at the restaurant the night before. Miguel was sick from partying too hard, I think. We didn’t do much in the morning. Later, Joe, Dalila, Jen, and I walked around town.

We climbed the church bell tower, where I took some pictures.

Then we went to the town library. It’s very small. They don’t have a lot of books. For some reason a lot of the old caballeros (cowboys) hang out on the steps of the library. I don’t think they hang around there for the books.

We went to Prieta’s for chile rellenos. If you don’t know what those are, hold on while I slap you. Ok. They’re bell peppers stuffed with cheese, and covered in a batter. The kids were watching a King Kong bootleg dubbed in Spanish.

Finally, we left to go to Saltito. Jen’s cousin Melissa came along, as did her other cousin Leslie. At the last minute, we couldn’t find the nephews. Samantha had to stay behind and wait for them at the house. They disappeared. I thought maybe they climbed the nearby mountain the adults had been talking about, that had a statue at the top. But we couldn’t be sure. We left without them.

Along the way we talked about volcanoes & Saltito. Saltito is an extinct volcano. A crater formed from a blast thousands of years ago. In the blown out caldera is a waterfall and lake. And a forest filled with twisted trees growing among the layers of loose volcanic rock. It’s a very interesting and beautiful place.

When we got there we discovered one of the three waterfalls had dried up in the last two years. Nobody wanted to climb down into the caldera with me, except Melissa. Made me glad we brought her along. I would have gone alone, but I went alone in 2004. It’s a little bit of a hike in and out of the caldera down a long, steep staircase. Glad we don’t need ropes!

Anyway, going down there with Melissa gave me a chance to practice Spanish because she doesn’t speak English. She took our video camera with.

Melissa and I made our way down, taking stills and video of the crazy rock wall sides formed when the volcano exploded eons ago.

We reached the bottom, where we got more stills and video of the ‘enchanted forest.’

We headed back towards the staircase leading up out of the crater, when we noticed a junked car through the trees that had been pushed over the edge of the cliff.

As we got to the steps, the rest of the group called us from the top of the crater. We ran up the staircase, taking several steps at a time. After one flight we were both winded and laughing–or trying to laugh, between gasps for air. The others kept yelling but we couldn’t respond for lack of breath. We ran til our lungs felt like they would explode. When we reached the top, I couldn’t breathe. Everyone was waiting in the car. I had to walk off my exhertion.

Then we got in the car. We stopped at La Constancia to see something called Manantial–natural springs not far from Saltito. The town of Constancia is beautiful. The volcanic soil and natural springs make everything lush, even in March when everything else is brown and dry.

On the way, the sun was setting behind the mountain, so I rolled down the window of the car and snapped a pic.

On the way back we stopped at a 500+ year old church. I got some interesting photos.

This old woman came buy and offered to let us into the church. The top of the altar is made of pure gold. This is common around Mexico. Gold sometimes lines bevels in the church walls and entrances.

After the church adventure, we climbed in the car again and headed back to town and the house. I think Jen’s cousins Melissa and Leslie had fun. Living in the small town of Villa Insurgentes, I don’t think they get out that much. All these interesting places nearby and they never go!

The kids were at the house. Sure enough, they had climbed the mountain to check out the statue. That’s why they were missing when we left for Saltito. Figures.

After we got home, we got ready for bed and put the movie Two For the Money playing on the laptop. Jen fell asleep. That’s ok, she didn’t miss much.