Day 33 - Leaving Palenque yesterday I stopped for the night at a hostel on the road just outside of the ruins. They had beautiful thatched huts for rent (with mosquito netting over the beds) for 200 pesos ($16).

I walked down the road a few hundred meters to catch dinner at a restaurant nearby, which I thought was lucky since we were in the middle of nowhere and there didn't seem to be anything around. I was completely surprised and taken aback to find they had a large outdoor seating area, extensive menu, and full open air bar. Even a stage. It seemed like such an anachronism out there in the jungle. There were even a few groups of gringos sitting around eating. I use the term "gringos" to mean white, non-Latino people, though in what was to happen later they were all Europeans -- no Americans.

I sat and had a couple drinks, and as time passed more, and more, and MORE people showed up. Then a live band started setting up on the stage. Before I knew it (those margaritas were STRONG!) the place was completely packed, literally about two hundred people (all European/Australian gringos from what I could tell and what my waiter told me). The band was playing, tour agency booths were set up on the side, people were selling trinkets, etc. What was going ON?!? By this time I was really feeling it too. Around 11pm the band shut down, but the entertainment was far from over! Poi (dancing with flaming balls on chains) and fire-stick performers began in front of the crowd to a second band of bongo drum players. I caught a video here. Finally at midnight I walked back ("walked" being perhaps too generous a word) to my thatched hut up the road and crashed on the bed. So weird! The place was called El Panchan. And on a Tuesday night!

This morning I heading out of the hostel to reach San Cristobal de las Casas, at 7000' in the Chiapas mountains, by the end of the day. The road was winding through the mountains and just beautiful. Watch a video from the saddle of the motorcycle here.

I stopped at a swimming hole called Agua Azul on the way up. It was really nice, and a lot of people were enjoying the beautiful day there. I caught an hour or so of swimming and playing around, and then headed back up the mountain on the bike.

The last hour or so before reaching San Cristobal it started raining, pretty hard. This was the first rain I'd ridden through since entering Mexico. I was pretty nervous (and for good reason), but there wasn't anywhere to stop. I finally made it into town around an hour before sunset, completely soaked through (I hadn't stopped to put my waterproof liners on). Plus, I have been in over hundred degree temps the last couple weeks, and here it is in the mid 50's and raining. What a difference! I stopped at a large hotel and ended up getting the room for 200 pesos, down from the 590 pesos advertised on the wall. The guy agreed to it immediately, without hesitation. It must be their off season :)