Oaxaca to Texas and back again

8 hours after I got back from Zipolite, I was on my way to San Antonio, Texas. Mary Jane purchased 3 Arabian horses and 6 Miniature horses in Texas and we drove her van and trailer to Texas to pick them up. What a trip!
The 1st day we drove for 14 hours, through 7 states of Mexico. Mexico is really a beautiful country, with lush mountains and flora that change every few miles. We drove through acres of barrel cacti, forests of Joshua trees, and high mountain plains, that are farmed with mules and oxen.
The next morning we were up bright and early and hit the road again. We entered into the US at Reynosa, a smaller border town, where we hoped for an easy crossing. There was a long line to get across but the border guard was very nice and didn't subject us to a vehicle search! We arrived at our destination after only 12 hours in the van.
The next day, Mary Jane and I were joined by Bobby Ortiz, a texan horse trainer and friend of MJ's. The three of us spent the next day shopping for horse and people stuff, some things are hard to find here in Mexico. We also picked up 2 Miniature horse cart and harnesses. It's true, I'm going from driving Draft horses to driving Mini's, more on that in a later blog!
That evening we met my big brother for dinner. Turns out he had business in San Antonio and arranged to be there at the same time as me. It was great to see him, as I haven't seen any of my family since I came to Mexico. Of all things, we ate at a British Pub on the Riverwalk in San Antonio. It was very good, who would have thought you could get decent "bangers and mash" in Texas.
On our last day in Texas, we packed up the van and figured out how we where going to load the horses in the trailer. Mark, my brother, came to help us, which was greatly appreciated.
At 4 AM the next morning it was time to get up and head back to Mexico. Fine with me, Texas is not my kind of place. (Sorry, Tracy) We put the 3 Arabs in the front of the trailer and 5 of the Mini's in the back. We put the 6th Mini in the van with us and away we went. Bobby came with us to help with the new horses and some of our problem children here in Oaxaca.
When we got to the border, we had to have a broker take the horses across. For some reason, you can't do it yourself or if you do it takes forever. We unhitched the trailer and hitched it to his truck, took the Mini out of the van and put her in with everyone else. It felt very strange just handing them over like that. MJ, Bobby and I drove the van over, with no problem, and sat on the Mexican side waiting for the horses. The horses showed up about a half hour later and we unhitched and rehitched right on the side of the road in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico! We decided to leave the 6th Mini in the trailer, she seem much happier with her friends.
The three of us took turns driving and sleeping. We stopped every 4 hour to check on the horses, give them water and more hay. Every 8 hours we fed them a very wet bran mash to keep them hydrated and regular. MJ has done this trip before and found the horses do better if you just keep driving. All the books tell you to take them out of the trailer every 8 hours, can't believe everything you read! We drove straight through to Oaxaca, 33 hours. The horses did great! I think I got 1 hour sleep in 40, but who's counting.
Seriously folks, the horses were tired but fine when we got home. Humans, tired but also fine. We unloaded everyone and breathed a sigh of relief. Home again, home again, clippedy clop.

Zipolite

Oh my! I think I have discovered heaven!
Zipolite is a small town on the pacific coast of Oaxaca, it sits nestled in a beautiful cove formed by rocky hills on all sides. I spent 4 days playing in the ocean, walking the beach, drinking beer, etc, etc with my friend, Mario. I really felt that I was in a Corona commercial! What a wonderful way to spend the New Year.
The sand is perfect and the ocean is just the right temperature. All along the beach are small guest houses with bars and restaurants. Accommodations range from camping to a fabulous yoga retreat perched in the hills. The yoga retreat looks like the elf homes from the Lord of the Rings!
It's rather remote so getting there is an adventure in itself. I flew over from Oaxaca in a 10 seater plane. It's a 35 minute flight with 5 minute of terror thrown in! The views are spectacular, so well worth the scare factor. You then have an hour drive from the airport, I took a taxi, but you can also travel by bus. The other travel option is to take the bus all the way from Oaxaca City. The 1st class bus takes 10 hours, the 2nd class bus 6 hours and you get to listen to Mexican Techno music at full volume for all 6 hours, or the "express" bus, which is a 12 passenger Toyota van. The "express" bus takes 6 1/2 hours, but is the most comfy way to go.
I really think I could spend a lot more time in Zipolite and am looking into options on how to do just that.