Michoacan

Michoacan is known as a "hot spot", it's where a lot of "mafia" activity has been recorded. Because of that there was only one bus station that had a bus going to Ciudad Hidalgo, michoacan. I guess all the other bus lines stopped their sevices after 30 buses where robbed at gun point. Did that scare me? Not as much as the sun does.

On my way to C. Hidalgo I noticed something familiar... Pines! there was pine trees around and the topography started turning green. There was grass, trees, it was a forest! I pretended I was driving through north california/Oregon... then the mexican houses started showing up and my day dream broke.

I finally got to C. Hidalgo and My friend Mayra and her dad picked me up from the bus station. I was expecting to see "Mafiosos" walking around with guns having intense conversations but all I saw was an old lady asking where the nearest bathroom was. I was quite happy to put a face to the name. Mayra and I share a lot of the same history. We where both little when we where taken to the U.S. She was named after her dad, her last name is the same as my moms... list goes on.

Mayra and I spent our days walking to the plaza and trying different foods. I had a Churro stuffed with chocolate syrup! I also tried brain tacos... they where good. There was something called "Corundas" which is like an inside out tamale. Mayra is also pregnant, so we looked around for baby clothes and maternity clothes for her. I was able to got an ultrasound, I saw her baby moving around it was awesome. Her birthday rolled around while I was there and we got to eat cake! I got to eat a lot during this trip actually...

Other than walking around I spent a good two weeks working on my letter. With help of my headphones blasting white noise and my friend Tom I managed to finish the letter in two weeks. Mayra's husband was due for a visit so I had to leave. His flight got delayed and we ended up staying in Morelia for a day. Morelia is the Capital of Michoacan, They had a nice mall and we where super excited about being there! I even had McDonald's for the first time in months. It was the most delicious thing ever. Who knows when I will be able to have a "big mac" again. I guess that's a good thing for my weight but it has now become a comfort food for me. That's going to be a problem when I get back home.

I loved staying with Mayra, It was like staying with a sister that I actually got along with. We cried, laughed, complained about our situation together. Sadly, I had to come back to my reality. I took a bus to Guadalajara and a new adventure began...

I'm still not home yet... I'm currently in Tepic, Nayarit. Stay tuned for pictures of the Indigenous people and other fun stuff.


What I have learned:

... I will no longer listen to people who say a place is dangerous. It's dangerous everywhere. Be armed with common sense.