Heading for the Hills

We needed to get out of Acapulco, away from the frenetic crowds.  Before we left, we sat on the beach and watched numerous sting rays leaping out of the surf, reinforcing our decision not to swim there!  With many more slow Pacific coastline miles to cover, we found some quieter places to stay, including the edge of Laguna Manailtepic - a haven for birds and fishermen.

Our final stop along the Pacific coast was near Puerto Escondido, where we splashed out on a lovely campsite set amongst mango trees, a short walk from Zipolite beach - known as a top surfing destination and still a hippie hang-out - clothing optional, apparently.

Our journey North into Chiapas was broken by a slightly unusual overnight stay at the Hogar Infantil which both cares for and educates abandoned children, and rather strangely has a few RV spaces.  Now closer to the Guatamala border, the journey was also broken by numerous military checks, most of which involved answering questions about the girls, but one soldier was very interested in where we had come from and asked "hablas Ingles en Ingleterra?"  Given the big guns, we refrained from sarcasm, just nodded and smiled!

Eventually, we made our way up to San Cristobal de Las Casas, nearly 8,000ft above sea level and refreshingly cool.  We have all been suffering from our first cold since leaving Ottawa, and have spent a couple of days relaxing in this beautiful colonial city which is a centre for many indiginous people of the region.  Tomorrow we intend to take the slow, tortuous route to Palenque and visit our first Mayan ruins.