Travel secret!!
OK, I’m not going to reveal all of the secret for obvious reasons. But here is part of it!
Plan less, listen more! There are clearly details that are beneficial to plan in advance. Basics! Flight, insurance, first night hotel, transportation from airport, general idea of my travel path…so forth. It takes time to get into a rhythm so minimizing details at the beginning while finding that travel rhythm is helpful.
Beyond that….I don’t plan very much. My plan unfolds as I travel. For example, I like to have reservations for the first night or two. I have a general idea of where I’m going but nothing rigid. If it’s a holiday or busy time of year…I book ahead! I spent hours walking around Luang Prabang in Laos looking for a room because it was Chinese New Year! I wasn’t aware of that! Caravans of Chinese going on holiday come down by the car load from China. It seemed like everything was book up! After a couple hours walking around looking, I found a room for two nights. Very basic but fine. I looked the next day and found a place run by a Japanese couple that friends recommended. Two days later, I moved into a most excellent place because I was flexible and continued exploring! And because their idea of hospitality was amazing!
Good news/bad news: had I known and booked ahead, I would have never found that place! Bad news, it simply took a bit longer to find a room but it was so amazing I stayed longer and really enjoyed myself!
The point is…I don’t like rigid plans because they limit my flexibility. Once I get into a travel rhythm, things always fall into place. I don’t know what my plans are from day to day but they always get clear! Here, in Oaxaca is a perfect example!
I didn’t have a booking until the day before I was traveling. I remembered the place I had stayed before. I wrote and asked if they had a room telling them I had been before. The response I receive: “Hi Larry!!!!!!!!!! Of course!😃😃”
And then, the first opportunity evolved! Making mole with Manuel’s mother using the recipe passed on from mother to daughter for who knows how long!
Be flexible! Listen! Adjust and adapt! Appreciate the little things that make travel so absolutely delightful and life enriching!
Would you like to go to.....#1?
Manuel asked if I would like to go to the old bakery? He explained that they are using the same oven that has been used for 150 years!
Visiting a bakery might seem like an odd thing to do here. There are panaderia’s/bakeries literally everywhere! In the market, on most streets, bread sold by street vendors and so forth. But, a bakery that has been in use for 150 years?? Absolutely!
We walked in and everyone greeted Manuel warmly, huge smiles, and welcoming smiles for us! we were invited to come on back, see the baking area, look into the oven, go to the next room where they prepare the buns. They do this every day! And it’s all family related people working there!
Walking down the street, we slow and turn into a doorway with no markings that it is a bakery. But there are people coming and going. Around a corner and we see what he is talking about, that’s the photo above!
The aroma filling the small space was amazing! They lift a small flap and show us the buns baking, 100 of them, for around 45 mintues, turned 4 times. In the next room, the buns being prepared. Not many but several different types. Then they offer samples. An amazingly friendly group of people! I bought several including one very light bun made with a bit of anise. Awesome with my morning coffee! Below are images from that experiene!
Would you like to go to....#2!
There is another place! I asked Manuel about coffee shops here. I brought my aeropress with me for the first time. It’s simple to use and clean and produces a really good tasting cup of coffee. And, it brings out more subtle flavors than regular coffee makers.
If you are interested in learning more about the aeropress, here you go: https://aeropress.com/products/aeropress-coffee-maker
And for use, there are huge variations in the way people recommend using this!! After much testing, I found a recipe from one of the aeropress competition’s world champions. It was so simple! Use 16 grams of coffee. Add hot water. Bloom it. Wait 1:30-2:00 minutes. Press! consistently good coffee results! If you are an experimenter, here are ideas for you: https://handground.com/grind/66-recipes-for-amazing-aeropress-coffee
My travelplan: buy local coffee and taste my way through Mexico. I’ve had some decent coffee from Guererro but I suspect it was ground too coarse. One shop was grinding coffee for me and their grinder wasn’t working properly so they gave it to me. Another shop in Guanajuato recommended a blend of their beans for me. So far, I’ve not had exceptional coffee. The blend was toooooo much French roast and I couldn’t taste much beyond that sharp smokiness. The coffee from the grinder not working properly…not much flavor. One other coffee shop in Queretaro was a very decent coffee. Nothing exceptional so far.
Miguel told me there is a roaster here he met who is using a 90-year-old roaster. He’s been making coffee for a long time. Would I like to go visit!? Absolutely!
So I met Paco. His green beans come from a family farm in Coatepec near Xalapa outside Heroica Vera Cruz! So we went for a visit. Another nondescript door as we walked along the sidewalk. No sign. But bright blue painting around the door way, same color as my kitchen door!
Inside, we met Paco! A huge fount of knowledge! He began helping the family pick beans when he was 5 and has really been helping with coffee since he was 10-years-old! Lots of coffee history. They ONLY harvest ripe beans so he explained harvest can continue over several months as beans continue to ripen.
His roaster, a 90-year-old machine originally set up to roast using wood fire but since converted to gas and electric. No dials or technology! Only Paco smelling, listening, looking, sensing…and knowing when the beans are ready! In December, his book on coffee will be published! His presence is simply delightful and happy and his knowledge of coffee amazing!
One more time, without planning but remaining open to possibilities, this amazing experience showed up for me!!!
And another note, diagonally across the street is a restaurant named VIPs. Green metal surfaces cover the stone protruding like ribs at equal spaces around the building. The bottom of these is information including “Paris France”. I asked and , yes, it was Eiffel’s who was involved with these!
Would you like to go....#3?
Two women arrived yesterday morning from Holland. On an overnight bus from Guadalajara, someone stole one of their backpacks. So they were in the process of filing reports, talking to police, etc. before arriving.
As thing settled down and we talked about things to see and experience here, Manual said, “I have another surprise!” I had not ideas this existed! No where was it written in any information I had seen about Puebla! During the war with the French, there were tunnels under the city used by the Mexican army! About 20 years ago during a highway project, a tunnel was discovered! Since then, part of the system has been updated and is open to the public!
Much of Mexico does not celebrate Cinco de Mayo! It is not an independence day like our July 4th weekend. It celebrates the victory of the Mexican army over the French. T, he Battle of Puebla took place on July 4, 1862. Here, it is a major celebration. What an experience that would be to visit here and experience it.
We walked across town, had picked a day with free admission, and descended into the tunnels. What an amazing experience to walk into this space of history!!
And now....??
Plans evolving!
Writing this morning. Saying good bye to friends leaving. Writing some more. And now, I don’t quite know what my plans are other than to go find a breakfast for lunch!
Later, I may go to Biblioteca Palafoxiana. Built in 1646, it’s a UNESCO site and recognized as the oldest library in the Americas!
Something will get clear and then it will flow!