Daytrip to the ancient site of Tula, Hidalgo (Mexico)

Tula

It was sunny Monday morning when I headed out with intention to visit the ancient site of Tula, famous for its Toltec columns/statues. To get there I first went to the Autobuses de Norte bus station, from where I caught a bus to Tula. It was a nice scenic ride that lasted some hour and 45 minutes. The interplay of clouds making various intricate shape against the blue background of the sky made everything even nicer. Once we reached the town of Tula, I asked the driver which bus passes by the archaeological zone. He pointed it out, and I asked the driver in that one to drop me off once we are near. We reached that junction much sooner than I thought, but luckily the driver remembered. From that junction to the site there is some ten minutes walking. It was a nice walk towards the quietness of the archaeological site. I reached a place where locals were selling related items for a very good price, so I decided to buy some souvenirs here. One thing I regret though is not going inside the museum, which was right at the entrance. It closes at 5pm, like the site too, but I thought I will make it on time.

A trip to the ancient site of Xochicalco (from Tepoztlan)

At Xochicalco

The most significant ancient site in the state of Morelos is definitely UNESCO protected site Xochicalco. Getting there from Tepoztlan wasn’t very difficult, but it requires knowledge of basic Spanish. I first took a bus to Cuernavaca, a nearby town and another popular place in Morelos. In Cuernavaca the passengers were dropped off at one of the bus stations. From there I had to catch another bus to Temixco, which I did by hailing it on the road very close to the bus station where we were dropped off in Cuernavaca. On the bus to Temixco I asked the driver to drop me off at the place from where I have to wait for the bus that passes by the archaeological zone of Xochicalco (everyone in the area knows about this site, so you won’t have any trouble when asking for directions, especially if you ask drivers).

The bus driver dropped me off on the main road in Temixco, at the place where many people wait for buses. Someone there was collecting some kind of a fee from the drivers, and he knew exactly which bus I had to get on to. After some half an hour of waiting, the bus came and I was on the way to the ancient site of Xochicalco. The bus dropped me right in front of the entrance, but you need to buy a ticket in the museum, which is some 10 minutes walk away. Like many other museums in Mexico, this one too was top-notch, with very interesting artifacts, carved stones, and ancient pieces of art. After checking the museum, I headed towards the archaeological grounds.

Adventure in Tepoztlan, Morelos (Mexico)

View of Tepoztlan from my host’s house.

To get from Puebla to Tepoztlan I had to go to the main bus station in Puebla, and catching a bus to Cuautla, which takes some two hours or so. Once in Cuautla, I walked from what appeared to be the second class bus station, to the first class, which was pretty much in the same street, about 10 minutes walk away. There I waited some 30 minutes or so for the bus that passes by Tepoztlan.

I heard a lot about this interesting little town, one of the Mexican “pueblo magicos” (magic town) and how some interesting things are happening there on a frequent level, so I decided to include it in my itinerary. The plan was to stay there for three days.

From Cuautla it took some 40 minutes to reach Tepoztlan. From the bus station I took a taxi to where my host Matias is living. I got a good feeling about this town from the first moment; I just knew there is something very uplifting about it. Matias showed me my quarter, and said I can join him for lunch as soon as he finishes his work.

Failed attempt to reach Popocatepetl (Mount Popo) with public transport

Popocatepetl volcano (Mount Popo)

One of the places that attracted me to Puebla was Popocatepetl volcano, more commonly known as the Mount Popo. It was my wish to get as closer to it as possible. I heard that it is active and that I wouldn’t be able to hike it, but getting at least to a safe range is something I planned on doing. And on my last day in Puebla I headed out to do just that.

First I needed to catch a bus or colectivo to the city of Cholula, which I did. Once there, I took a colectivo to San Nicolas de los Ranchos. These were the instructions I was following that were given to me by the locals I’ve met in Cholula a few days earlier. Unfortunately, I still wasn’t close enough. I asked the driver how to get closer, and he told me that the only thing that remains for me is to stand by the road and hail another colectivo that would pass in that direction. And so I was standing on the outskirts of San Nicolas and waiting for the colectivo van, but as I didn’t see it, I decided to hitchhike. Unfortunately no-one stopped, but I persisted and waited for almost an hour.