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Tuesday, January 9, 2018

A beautiful day in Zacatecas, Mexico

The cold weather we experienced in the United States is nothing but a distant memory now. The sun is brilliantly warm, and the temperature is hovering around 20C (68F). Considering that we are at 8,000 ft in altitude, it is simply wonderful, and we are now into consistently beautiful Mexico weather for the next three months.

Today, the tour bus came to the RV parking area at the Baruk hotel where we are staying on the outskirts of Zacatecas, Mexico.

The RV park itself is not ideal... but it's the only game in town if you have a larger RV and you wish to explore the city.

I don't think anybody slept well. There is a train track running directly behind the hotel, and when a train goes by, it sounds like it is right outside your bedroom window! And then if that's not enough, there is a fairly busy trucking route right out front, and those guys aren't afraid to use their Jake brakes slowing down to get on the main highway.

 Our open air tour bus has arrived!

Gabriel, the owner of Caravanas de Mexico greets everybody on the bus.

We were introduced to Rosalio, our guide for the day, and Pepo, our driver. They took us on a curvy road up La Bufa Mountain where there was a beautiful view overlooking the city.

 A statue to the unknown soldiers of the Mexico Revolution.

A normal part of today's tour would have included a trip on the gondola running between the hills overlooking the city of Zacatecas. But unfortunately the teleferico is undergoing a overhaul after being operational for 35 years and it's not opening again until April. So hopefully next year!

Ruth and I were on it back in March of 2009

Beautiful view of Zacatecas.

Guess who?

Zoomed in on the old aquaduct and the bull ring (now a hotel).

The last time Ruth and I were at La Bufa was in November 2012. That's when we got mugged... our one and only bad experience in Mexico. You can read all about it here...


Next stop was the Mina El Eden.

This mine was operational from the 16th century until 1966. And apparently mining engineers have determined that there is still 40% of the original wealth still in the mountain. But in 1966, it was shut down in part due to the proximity of the growing city.

Now, it is a tourist mine. We were there in 2009, and it has changed quite a bit!

 Here's Barb and Mark, modeling their new hair nets! You have to wear a hard hat on top of that.

It costs 100 pesos ($6.75 CAD, $5.60 USD) to do the mine tour. Rosalio was our private guide.

It is tough to imagine the conditions in the old days.

At one point back in the late 1800's, there were over 1,000 men working in the mine here. Eight to twelve men per week died. 

 We have no idea.

At the end of the mine tour, there is a mineral exposition.

Wow!

Nature is amazing!

Outside the mine, our bus is waiting for us.

Touring Zacatecas.

Zacatecas isn't a normal "tourist" city, especially for tourists outside of Mexico. And yet, it's a really nice city to visit. Despite the fact that we got mugged there once!

Disappointed that we didn't get into the main cathedral.

That's the only drawback with doing these bus tours. There are good and bad points, but it's hard to get decent photos, and you don't get to see the inside of any buildings. Fortunately, we have a free day tomorrow, and I think some of us are going to head back downtown in taxis to wander around.

This is where we had lunch.

It was just a local buffet place, with a good variety of typical local food. I think everybody enjoyed their lunch.

The park where we waited for our bus after lunch.

"Hey, what are you drawing?"

A neat looking art structure!

We'll come back here tomorrow and get a better photo!

The old aqueduct.

We asked our tour guide if they could get permission to use the bus to take us all to Soriana to do some grocery shopping. There isn't a convenient place close to the RV Park, and Rosalio made some phone calls and got it all set up. He thought it was hilarious that we were all taking the tour bus to do some grocery shopping. Good guys, and they did it all on their own time. Pretty sure they were happy with their tips!

Back at the hotel RV parking area.
GPS 22.773499, -102.61952

Wednesday is a free day, and then Thursday we drive to Guanajuato.

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28 comments:

  1. Looks like a fun day. An interesting place as well. Continue to stay safe.

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    Replies
    1. It is a beautiful city and very interesting too!

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  2. We like the cut away touring bus. Nice that you can see the sky and tall buildings as you drive around.

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    1. The bus was fun, I don't think we have seen one quite like it before. Not too many tall buildings here though but it was sure nice to see all that blue sky. :-)

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  3. Beautiful city for sure. We would really enjoy the mine tour for sure. Wonderful day and wonderful weather.

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    1. Yes, it is a very pretty city. I am sure you guys would love it here. :-)

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  4. Replies
    1. And there are so many cities in Mexico like this one, they are all so beautiful in so many ways.

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  5. People always complain about the trains & air brake sin that hotel, but its certainly not the worst RV park in Mexico.

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    Replies
    1. It is actually a nice place other than the noise!

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  6. We typically use tour buses to get an idea of the city and then determine which parks and buildings we want to visit the next day. A good experience. The city looks very nice.

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    1. Yes, that is one advantage to having a tour bus and the other would be if you aren't physically able to do much walking, at least then you can still see a good portion of the sights. It is a very pretty city.

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  7. To bad about the teleferico being closed, it would have been a lot of fun for the folks. The tour bus to the grocery store is hilarious!

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    1. It's been closed for almost 2 years now. Things move slow in Mexico. The Eden mine is definitely worth a visit. There is a zip line on top of the hill. Nothing like the one at Copper Canyon, though. Zacetecas always reminds me of Barcelona.

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    2. Yes, it was a little disappointing but everyone still enjoyed themselves.

      Not sure how Zacatecas reminds you of Barcelona, we didn't think it did but maybe that is just us.

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  8. Interesting the way they built the wall outside the mine - with little pieces of rock holding the big rocks in place.

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  9. Great pics! I Had to use the earplugs at that place. This is where I received the education on truck braking. I had no idea they could be so loud!

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    1. I got used to it Cindy, and I did keep my windows closed. Mind you, I am a deep sleeper. I felt sorry for Tom & Nancy with their pop up camper, no soundproofing there.

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    2. Yep, the trucks were definitely worse than the trains! I didn't really notice it much the first night, I guess I must have just been really tired but we both sure noticed it after that.

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  10. I like walking the streets at night with all the lights.

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    1. We agree with you these cities are always so pretty at night. We will be doing that in Guanajuato. :-)

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  11. Leave it to you to think outside the box. A tour bus to go grocery shopping. What'll you come up with to top that! :cD

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    1. I am sure we were quite the sight driving into the parking lot of the grocery store.

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  12. Is Rosaleo still the charmer with the women? I wonder if marriage and having a kid has curbed him?

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  13. How were bathroom breaks arranged during the day tour especially on the mine tour?

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    1. There are bathroom facilities when you enter the mine, and again when you exit. There are always public bathrooms close by, but they usually cost between 3 to 5 pesos to use them.

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