MEXICO DAY #5 ...IGUALA, CHILPANCINGO and on to ACAPULCO!

We left TAXCO satisfied that we had a great time, a nice hotel, and a very picturesque time, however, we were also anxious to get over these never ending mountains, and on to the Pacific Ocean, in otherwords...ACAPULCO! Each mile we drove West, the air seemed to be warmer, and we were ready to see family! All of us were becoming a little travel weary by now, and it just seemed pleasant to get to the family and rest a bit. We found the MEX 95 Quota hyway, and headed WEST! But, before that, we had passed IGUALA, famous for its Gold, but as none of us are Gold lovers, (we prefer silver) we kept on going. Hours and hours later, and a few stops for potty in the middle of no-where....... we finally spied the HUGE Mexican Flag that flys high on a mountainside top. Its the Village of Chilpincingo. The capital of Guerrero Mexico....and a town of Indians, Indians, INDIANS. These short, brown, little people are everywhere, and I felt like a Giant Viking amongst them. This village is a sort of central gathering point for many surrounding villages in the mountains, including Chuys birthplace; Tlapa de Comonfort....a village about 8 hours into the mountains. The turn off from the main hyway to Tlapa is here at Chilpancingo. ...We didnt do that adventure, as they say it is currently too dangerous to risk the high mountain drive. Bandits stop your car and/or bus or whatever they can to rob you....... we decided that we didnt need that adventure, so we just visited the local bus depot where 6 years ago Chuy, Matthew and I had stopped and spent the night on the nice marble floor, sleeping with the local Indian vendors. That was quite the experience, but, back to year 2008.......... we stopped just long enough for a few pictures for Matthews sake, and lunch, and off again down the Hyway MEX 95...hoping to make Acapulco before nightfall. We had about 5 hours to go.

This is the huge Flag flown over Chilpancingo.

Abandonded houses overgrown with vines of sorts...... probably the owner is in jail for something is what Chuy told us....

The further south we drove, Chuy decided it was time to take out his trusty "enforcer". He was our constant body guard, interpreter, travel guide, historian, and general all around good guy!

During one of the "Quick" Imperitive potty stops, that inevitably follow lunch and a beer, Chuy spotted some type of what he thought was a rare type of bird? I guess he couldnt decide for sure? He did drop it..... NO, we didnt take it along! (It might have been a baby 500 song bird).
This is why you MUST have an extra roll of toilet paper along............. there isnt always a bano's around every corner, and even if there was, chances are there is NO toilet paper in them anyways....... so, you do what you have to do....right!

The hugest CACTUS we had seen for a while. The terrain will suddenly change around these mountains....and it did again, the closer we got to Acapulco.

This is for YOU MATTHEW!!! REMEMBER!!!!

Yes, we dared the local Taco stand, and Yes we did survive....we eyed it very carefully first though, without turning up our lip. Dont want to offend the natives ya know..... but, when your hungry, anything looks good.

I always vowed to return to the Chilpancingo Bus Depot...where 6 years ago, Chuy and my son Matthew and I had our first experience sleeping in a bus depot, with the local Indians that had come to town to take their wares to the village to sell. It was some experience...and that marble floor is shiny and beautiful, but HARD!......... Remember that Matt?
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Local Indians EVERYWHERE..................... they congregate here to catch a bus, to take their wares to other villages to sell..etc.

I am not sure about the look on their faces here, but I can guess it has to do with the lunch. I think we only took a few bites, and as politely as possible, said we were full, and pushed the plates away. It might have been the little baby with poopy droopy diapers that was sitting right near us, and staring at us the whole time....? Or the mange infested dog that kept wandering in the area, and waiting for one of us to drop a scrap...? Not sure which one was the deciding factor, but, we bought some bottled water, and headed out.

Off into the Sunset we found ourselves driving...and driving and driving. We tried to make it to Acapulco before dark, but we just didn't make it. The drive took at least 5 hours, and we passed a few toll spots to pay money to get to Acapulco. That is one of the draw backs... Between Cuernavaca to Acapulco you pass thru at least 4 times..and it costs at least $50.00 just to drive the Hyway. I guess they think you have alot of money if your going to the beach (Acapulco)...... 500+pesos is alot for a Mexican. We just kept going, and finally arrived ..... very beautiful sight.................... the road wound down and down and down right to Acapulco city. It was night, the lights were flashing on.....and being so near to Christmas, it was especially festive................but, we only wanted to get home and rest. We would go see the night life later................. Chuy, now where???? Chuy navigated us thru Downtown Acapulco, to the street that takes you to Pie de la Cuesta...about 10 min north of Acapulco. We found the neighborhood of Jardin Azteca, and parked the car........ picked out the luggage, and knocked on the door, greeted everyone, and flopped on the beds.......and you guessed it......SLEPT to the sound of ocean waves hitting the shores below. We had arrived!!!!!

More Adventures awaited us another day............................... G'night!