Picnic on the Popo

Usually, I'm pretty much a homebody. I go to work, and I come home and I don't want to leave again. Usually, I'm a weekend shut-in. I like hanging out around my house and hate having to go anywhere. I just want to be home. But ever since I started those painting classes (a month ago) it seems that I have less and less time to be at home. My classes are two nights a week and each class is two hours long. I also accepted another teaching job which is supposedly only one night a week, but that means one night less that I get to stay home after my day job. And the last few weekends have been full of activities that normally don't come up, but the kinds of things you just can't say no to... sooooo, last Saturday, I was looking forward to a complete weekend at home without social interruptions for the first time in almost a month. And then the phone rang...

It turned out to be an old friend who was inviting me to drive up with their family and another family, to the Popocateptl Volcano and spend the day hiking and picnicking... They wanted to show off their VW Touareg 4-wheel-drive, and they insisted I come with them in that vehicle so as not to slow down the pace by following them in my trusty Eurovan camper or in Anto's combi camper... The Touareg only seats 5, and three seats were already occupied by Arto, Soco and Mosi, so that meant there was only room for Samo and me - which worked out fine, as the others had plans anyway...

Talk about wild rides!!! By the end of the trip up I was sure my bones had been re-arranged inside my body! Maybe those kinds of vehicles will climb anything, but only the driver feels that kind of sureness; I gotta remember to think twice next time before I say yes to going along for the ride!!! However, who am I to complain, when the place we arrived at was absolutely paradisiacal! What surprised me most was my own metamorphosis once we were there. I was straining at the leash, so to speak, wanting Arto to park somewhere so that I could get out of the vehicle and BE there! As soon as he finally did stop, I jumped out and started walking rapidly toward the sound of the water.

The others took long minutes to get out, survey the surroundings, discuss the options, but I was already trying to find a way to get down to the swollen gurgling stream that ran at the bottom of the ledge where we had parked.

They tried to call me back, but I was already out of earshot, so they ended up following me - those that dared - and we went down rocks and slopes and got to the water and took pictures galore...

There were all sorts of wild mushrooms growing along the banks - some with amazing colors!

At one point, Samo crossed over to the other side of the stream and I got him on the way back!

The stream grew in size but it became harder to find a way to follow it, and anyway, the rain - which had been a constant mistiness up until then, was turning into quite a heavy drizzle that made picture-taking risky, so we gave into the others above who were calling us back.

We got in the vehicles (two identical Touaregs except for the colors) and went up higher until we came to the midpoint of the volcano, where one can drive no further. There we stopped and, while the men unloaded the picnic stuff, we women and kids enjoyed a sneak quesadilla - how good they taste in the mountain air and grilled over a wood fire! And the women who made them and served them to us were absolutely gorgeous!!! I asked permission to take their pics, just so I would have a souvenir of those smiles!

Meanwhile, the men were busy setting out all the food they'd brought, which included at least 7 different cheeses, 3 or 4 different types of bread, salami, canadian bacon, turkey, olives, lots of wine, and grapes and apples to munch on... They'd found a good place among the picnic sites scattered along the side of the Park, which include benches, tables and a tile roof over your head, and just as they finished getting everything picnicky perfect and popped the cork of the first bottle, the rest of us surreptitiously finished our quesadillas and appeared to partake in this delicious smorgasbord!

We ate slowly, savoring all the sights, smells, and tastes, enjoying a last glass of wine all around as we waited out the rain. As its soft pitter-patter abated, we got back into the cars to drive over to a huge mountain meadow, where people stroll, hike, horseback ride, and eat...
Soon we heard the rippling of yet another gorging mountain stream...

We followed it as it twisted and turned, taking advantage of great picture moments, like this:

and the river gradually widened until we rounded a curve and there was the waterfall,

cascading down and spraying off a fine mist.... lovely, lovely...

Simply awesome!

There we took lots of pictures and stayed until we had drunk our fill of the beauty of Nature. Then it was time to walk back, stopping here and there for one last glimpse.

... or for a momentous pose!

or to highlight the colors and hues...

Though finally we did have to say good-bye and get into those 4-wheel-drives, and jiggle-joggle our way down the mountainside... and since by this time, the wine had made the drivers less cautious, there were quite a few "extreme sport" moments!!!

All's well that ends well, however, and we did make it home in one piece, and got an excellent night's sleep, and yesterday, as I was walking along the streets of the city looking for a building I needed to enter, I noticed that my legs hurt - and it dawned on me that all that climbing and romping around on the mountainside had taken its toll!!!

No matter! I'm ready for more of that any time you say!