The story continues from Jalapa

Villahermosa, La Venta Parque and Comalcalco Arqueologica Zona

This is Sat the 20^th of November 2004. I made it to Villahermosa safe and sound. I caught the bus at the station just in the nick of time. The ride overnight was less eventful and noisy than the past several nights. Just an observation, may of the busses travel overnight and the five times I had to take one was because there were no busses traveling by day to the destinations I was going. I arrived at 6:30 this a.m. I took a taxi to the hotel. I had to get a room at the Howard Johnson as there were no hostels here and they answered my e-mail. This is the most expensive of the whole trip, charging 60.00 per night. They put on some pretty fancy airs and had pretty fancy prices to go with them. They had bellboys, waiters in the cafe, doorman, etc including a desk staff that spoke passable English. I wasn't sure I could get a room before the check in time but they set me right up. My room was on the second floor and there was an elevator. So I am safe and sound as of today.

The trip on the bus overnight was 8 1/2 hours long. We left at 10 p.m. and arrived at 6:30 a.m. The bus was crowded until the first stop an hour into the journey. The lady next to me got off there and left me with two seats. Even though I had my poncho and pillow to cushion me, I felt like a screwed up pretzel not having enough room for my legs. Villahermosa is flat and hotter as it sits on the coastal plains of Tabasco state. I could feel the humid oppression as soon as I arrived. Almost like Texas in the humid season. When I got settled in the hotel, I showered and went down to their cafe buffet breakfast. It was good but overpriced. I went to the museum by taxi. I wandered through it, but even though it has some nice Olmec and Mayan pieces it was a bit run down and shabby. I felt bad that they didn't seem to have the money to make the place better. All signs were in Spanish. I felt weak in the knees and after I left the museum I sat down on a cement wall for a while to get my breath. My wrist hurt so bad I could hardly stand it. My hands were really stiff when I got off the bus. I took some Tylenol and went ahead and walked back to the hotel. It was only about 10 blocks. I walked along the riverside. The river was pretty dirty, but it had some sight seeing boats on it. The walk wasn't bad and I felt better when I got back to the hotel. I have a TV in the room and AC, but it makes so much noise I may not run it. I lay down and watched a movie in English, Yeah! After some rest I went down and had a pizza and fed the crusts to more pigeons. They sure are pigs. Well, just like the chickens, they want more, more, more. The whole section of about 10 blocks around the hotel was closed off to car traffic and the cobblestone streets were only used by foot traffic. Make it nice not to jump out of the way of cars. The blocks were filled with shops that had fancy shoes, fast food, department stores, appliance and camera stores, hair salons, boutique shops, fabric stores, restaurants, Internets, clothing stores computer schools, museums, farmacias (drugstores) and a few street vendors among others. They had T-shirts, knick-knacks and toys for the kids, ice cream and other things to eat. They had a McDonalds and Burger King. Well, assuming they couldn’t screw up a hamburger I tried one. Big mistake. The sauce was hot salsa. That was the last one I tried and stuck to vegetable pizzas. Some of the other hotels were located in the same historical area. Some were large like the Howard Johnson. Others were small and were only marked by small-labeled doorways between the shops that had hallways running toward the back of the building with stairs at the end. That looked pretty spooky, like something out of an old forties movie. Glad I didn't book at any of them. Just two blocks from that area was the river that I walked along from the museum. Tomorrow it will be my trip to La Venta Parque.

La Venta Parque:

I took a taxi to La Venta Parque. It sits along the river that makes several land masses almost islands. It is very close to the Gulf of Mexico. When I bought my ticket at the main gate and pushed the turnstile it was just like entering some of the entrances to zoos in the US. On the other side was like stepping into the jungle. The first area had spider monkeys in an enclosed pit. They all sat on the roof of their little house and chattered. Next from the monkeys were a couple of pelicans. I was really taken by the construction of the cement walkway area that had small stones embedded into it. It was really pretty. I walked around the rest of the zoo area, which had jaguars and other small native animals. One was a small spotted cat that shrieked and was very mean. The exhibits were well maintained and all the walkways were clean and well swept. They had a large bird enclosure that you could enter and see the birds up close. That is where the little black hen was. I never found out what she was. I continued beyond the animal houses and went through the museum area. The displays were interesting and I was able to get pictures of most of the things there. They had a pretty good layout and explanation of the Olmec culture. From there I started on the trail that houses the many statues. The man that designed and built the parque in the 1930’s was a man of true vision. The stone statues had to be brought from the site of La Venta to the parque area. He did this to protect them from the oil industry and the decay caused by the chemicals. Truly the parque was beautiful. The path ran along a tree and bush filled area and the statues were arranged in clearings along the way. The trees and bushes were planted to show the native species. There were Coti Mundi (an animal similar to a raccoon) running wild and would attack if they smelled any food on you they wanted for their lunch. I had a map of the grounds and was able to follow along in English as all the signs were in Spanish. I was taking my time and several times other tour lead groups passed me by. I was able to stand on the fringes and listen to what they had to say. It was interesting to note that each tour guide had his own slant on the history that didn’t always hold true to things I had studied in books. I didn’t interfere I just listened enough then wandered down the path and left them to their group. A number of the statues were so badly worn I couldn’t make any of the features out. It was helpful to have the guide explain what was carved and that helped me identify the piece. Some of them I didn’t take pictures of, as it was pointless. Further in the back of the parque was an enclosure of jaguars. They were magnificent. They had a swamp of alligators and several suspended bridges over the terrain. I came out close to the center of the park by the zoo where they had a huge Ceiba tree planted. When I was ready to go I asked some girls where I could find the Combi taxi to take me back to the hotel. They spoke some English and told me they were going right by there and would show me. I jumped into the taxi with them and they took me to the bus stand. I took a combi back to the hotel and wandered around the area by the hotel that evening. Tomorrow I will visit the ancient site of Comalcalco about an hour away.

The ancient site of Comalcalco:

Comalcalco was set in the lush jungle foliage just beyond the dusty town of the same name. Seems strange the rest of the town was beat to death by traffic, cement and human feet and just down a long drive was this wonderful setting with huge pyramids nestled in mowed green grass surrounded by thick jungle trees.

I took a combi taxi to the site from Villahermosa. It was about an hour away from town. We passed many plots of land planted with bananas, oranges, cocoa beans, guavas and stands of bamboo. Rural houses had yards filled with chickens, goats and other meadows had Brahma cows. The rural area was very refreshing compared to the city. It was green and lots of trees lined both sides of the road. The combi taxi buzzed right along and passed anything that was going slower that it. Which was everything. He would honk and pass even if the oncoming traffic was close. I had to ignore it and he handled the driving just fine without me. The combi dropped me off at the center of town. I set the place to memory as I had to get back there then I was done visiting the site. I walked almost 2 miles before a city bus came by. I caught it and in two blocks the bus dropped me off at the entrance of the road that went to the site. I had another mile to walk to the site. Along each side of the road were residences. Some were ok, some were junky, and some were very fancy. Found the unfinished one in the picture. Thought of you, Linda, and wondered what it would take to finish it, what it would cost, and what I would do if I lived there. Nothing. So, scratch that idea. The site had a small museum, no pictures, of course. The buildings at the site were all built from molded flat bricks mortared together. It is the only one that has been found so far like it. It is Mayan origin although built so close to the ocean in the Olmec territory. The pictures speak for themselves so I won’t add anything else here.

I took the small bus back to town from the park, didn't have to walk that time. The taxi stand that was located in the center of town was only for local taxi's. I couldn’t find the combi taxi stand to Villahermosa and had to take a regular one back which cost me 35.00 American. Bummer. I did however manage to have a fairly decent conversation with the driver between, no Spanish/no English between us. Only sparse words and lots of hand signals. He was very nice and got a kick out of each time I saw chickens. I would point and tell him 'galina' and he would laugh. He drove me to the hotel in real good time. It was a nice exchange of cultures, but it still cost me 35.00.

The next day I was trying to get directions about what combi bus went to the bus station on the corner of the small plaza next to the hotel when a lady came up and helped me translate to the man in charge of the combis. When I found out what I wanted I walked up the street of the historical district. The lady followed me and stopped me. She said she was an English teacher that taught English to some students and was looking for someone to come to her class and help them practice their English by asking questions about America. I was really surprised. But thinking about it, the Universe was telling me this was a wonderful opportunity to connect with people in Mexico. I told her I was leaving in the morning, but if she could pick me up and bring me back to the hotel I would have time before my bus left. She said that would be great and the deal was made. I then continued with my mission of the day and walked up to the ADO bus station and bought my ticket for Campeche. I walked back to the hotel. The town was interesting. The streets were wider and the houses freshly plastered and painted. As I walked by some windows I could see into the interiors. The rooms were tiled and the furnishings sparse with mostly hard back wooden chairs, an occasional rocker, but never any stuffed couches. They were all very clean and tidy. There were tables, but I didn’t see many TV’s. The afternoon was hot and I was ready for the hotel after a long 10-block walk.

After I took a nap and watched a couple of movies, (my day off Linda) I got back into the groove again. I figured that may be my only hotel on the trip with a TV, I would take the opportunity. Besides a couple movie channels were in English. Toward evening I went back out and found a fast food place, Mc Donald’s and bought a hamburger and fries. At least they didn’t put hot sauce on it like the Burger King did the night before. I found a tee shirt in the crowded street and called it a night leaving the crowd of people to push and shove on the sidewalks. Not my cup to tea. A crowd is not my thing, nor is a lot of noise. It was pretty noisy the whole time I was there, but it was the downtown area. No choice in where the hotels are. At least the cobblestone streets were clean, as they had a whole crew of street cleaners busy cleaning up after everyone. Only saw a couple of beggars and not the type of street vendors that were in Mexico City. These had little carts and were set up on the sidewalk. I also delighted in the homemade Popsicles made from fresh fruit, and every time I saw one I just had to buy one to eat as I was walking around.

The next a. m. the lady met me as arranged and took me to her school. It was a type of leisure learning school that offered classes according to the time the students could take them around their work schedules. There were two students, one man, an accountant and a lady 26 that worked for a petroleum company (Universal Compression) with their home office in Houston. They were wonderful. Had many things to ask and I explained the differences I observed between Mexico and the U.S. After the class was over she took me back to the hotel and I caught my bus to Campeche.

The story continues in the section for Campeche.