I'm in Oaxaca but I don't have any photos to post yet.  I spent last night in Puebla which was halfway from San Miguel to Oaxaca.  In the bus station in Queretaro, I talked with a man who recommended a hotel for me in Puebla called San Agostino.  So, I went there straight from the bus station.  But, when I asked the man at the window if they had anything he said no.  Oh oh!  I asked him if he could recommend anything else and he noticed my consternation so he said he did have one room left and gave me the key so I could go look at it.  Well, it was pretty crummy but I didn't think I had a choice so I took it.  It cost less than $20.  At least it was clean. 

The town was packed with tourists from other parts of Mexico coming to Puebla for a three day weekend and some sort of religious thing.  There were women holding fake babies which seemed to have something to do with it.  I walked into town and asked at other hotels but all of them were booked up.  So, I felt lucky that I had found something.

Puebla is very pretty but a bit gritty.  It reminded me of Lisbon.  Lots of tiled buildings that are slightly faded.  It obvioulsy was a very grand city at one point.  Here's what it looked like:

(I stole these photos from someone else.)

So, I sat in the zocalo for a while trying to figure out what do to.  I had a margarita and goofed around on my computer looking for restaurants.  Here are a couple of pics I took while sitting there:

It felt like a major party.  Tons of families walking around and mimes and comics doing skits in the park in the middle of the zocalo.

I couldn't figure out where to eat so I just walked around.  I ended up going into a little place called Grandma's Kitchen and had a delicious dinner of cream of chayote soup, rice and pork in adobo with a lovely lemon tea.  It was so good and it only cost about $4.00.

I straggled back to my hovel and bought a little bottle on wine on the way.  I got into the room and had some wine and read a bit them went to bed early on my very hard bed.  As I was reading the electricity went out.

I woke up at about 6:00 and took a shower.  Or, tried to take a shower.  The bathroom had a spigot on the wall and that was the shower.  I turned on what I thought might be the hot water but it was cold.  I let it flow for a few minutes but it was still cold.  I tried the other one and it was even colder.  So, I went back to the first one.  After about 5 minutes it felt warm-ish.  I thought I could get wet but it was still sooo cold.  I waited and brushed my teeth standing there.  After another 5 minutes it felt warmer so I plunged in.  It got warmer.  Ah. 

I packed up and got a taxi to the bus station.  I was able to get a seat on a bus to Oaxaca leaving at 8:30.  Meanwhile, I had some breakfast in the bus station of delicious chicken enchiladas with green sauce.  Even food in the bus station is good.  It's crazy!

The ride took 4 hours.  Huge mountains in the distance the entire way.  One with snow on top, although it's not visible in the photo.

 

The closer to Oaxaca we got the greener and more fertile it looked.  We crossed over the sierra and headed down into the valley where Oaxaca is.  The bus broke down on the way but we got on another one that had parked behind us on the road and arrived in Oaxaca at 1 pm.  

My hotel is adorable and just perfect.  I went out for a coffee at a cool little coffee shop and came back to my room to chill for a bit.  Going out in a bit to explore and find somewhere for dinner.  Oaxaca has a wonderful vibe.  I'm in a normal neighborhood about 6 blocks from the center of town and it's very beautiful.  The houses are painted in bright colors and the people are friendly.  I love it here already.