The Patzcuaro town library, housed in a 16th century temple. Man, the book selection is meager. Access to amazing libraries in just about any town is one of the biggest things we Americans take for granted. The children’s book section in our bus absolutely blows away this town of 50,000+ people. But it is still certainly better than nothing, and that setting and that mural make up for a lot.
The streets of Patzcuaro.
Playing hide-and-seek in Plaza Grande. I asked Lowe if he was peeking when Mama took this picture and he told me, “I had to see where you guys were hiding, or I won’t know where you are.” Perfectly logical.
Lowe and Ouest both point the bat to centerfield before ripping a line-drive up the middle.
The docks for Lake Patzcuaro are just down the road. We grabbed a boat ride out to Isla de Janitzio, an island out in the middle of the lake famous for butterfly-net fishermen and a 120′ high statue of José María Morelos, an independence hero. It’s a nice way to spend a day, especially as there are zero tourists around here at this time of year.
Lowe wants to know when we’re going to buy another boat. I think he’d even be cool with one of these things just chugging around the lake day after day.
Life on this island seems like an incredibly difficult way to live. There were very few, if any, signs of prosperity.
Inside the statue Lowe decided to take off at a run up the stairs. Ali about had a heart-attack. Notice the string below the bottom railing on the stairs—I don’t want to think about what happened for them to decide that they needed that. We wound our way to the top and found an observation area in the statue’s fist, with tiny windows placed about six feet off the ground. Not exactly the greatest place to get an overview of the island. Back down below there was a playground for the kids, and beer stands for the adults, so it was all good in the end.
Spending the day out there was nice. There were very few people and we were able to just wander around quietly, exploring the hills. By the end of the day we were all beat.
19 Comments on “Isla de Janitzio”
Looks like a peaceful island. Great photos. Glad there were no more flying dogs.
I know what you’re saying about tourist. Here in Marmaris, Turkey the population goes from 30,000 to 250,000 seemingly overnight. We have enjoyed both seasons but for different reasons of course.
Does anyone else think Lowe looks exactly like Pat hanging out of that boat?
Yes – like he is checking to see if water is coming out the side, wondering if the engine is okay? 🙂
I would suspect instant analog film would be expensive these days.
These guys are charging 40 or 50 pesos for a picture. About three bucks. No idea what film costs, but I imagine it’s a chunk of that.
Boy, your photos sure blow me away. That’s a whole lot of awesome going on.
Really enjoying these posts on the Patzcuaro area, and I love how you see things differently from us. Really interesting new angles. Thanks
Thanks, Mariah. I’ve enjoyed your photos as well.
Those nets are HUGE! Must have been pretty impressive seeing them in action.
Continue to appreciate the perspective you give on Mexico. I’ve never had any interest in visiting down south until reading your blog and Drive Nacho Drive. Would definitely love to see at least a bit of it, but I don’t think we’re cut out to be permanent overlanders.
No need to make it a permanent trip, just make A trip.
The way you guys are seeing Mexico is really the best way in my mind. You take the time to see the details, experience the culture in all respects, and also are imparting a good vibe to the residents (opposite to the way some tourists make themselves unwelcome – but for the income of course).
Must be hard for Ouest to mangle that mango with all the teeth she has missing! Love your photos and can’t wait to move to Mexico! Only 7 more weeks!
It is. She ends up with mango juice all over the side of her face from trying to eat with just those side teeth. Congrats on the big move.
Great pics! What is the weather there? Is it cooler than the coast? Do you have a favorite city? I have a friend who lived in Patzcuaro and loved it, but then moved to Bucerias. I think tho she loved being on the ocean, she missed Patzcuaro…
It’s beautiful, 80 during the day, 55 at night. Patzcuaro is actually up at about 7,000 feet elevation, so yeah, quite a bit cooler than the coast. And I totally understand your friend’s dilemma—just today I said to Ali that it is too bad this town isn’t on the coast. I really like it here, but I’d miss the ocean too much.
P & A
what’s that guy doing wearing a jacket when its 80 degrees out ?
are the colors so outlandishly bright as what is seen, or is your camera capabilities that sweet – along with the master eye ?
fd
You see that every day in Mexico. For some of us 70 degrees is cause for shorts and flip-flops, for others it’s cause for three layers of sweaters and a blanket. The buses here are all running around town with all of their windows up.
As for the colors, except for the side view of the boat these pictures are more or less untouched. This is Mexico.
Believe it or not the boat ride on that lake can get real cool. we didn’t bring coats and we froze coming back (and this was in March)
Gorgeous island. Gorgeous photos. The shot of the single fisher with the net is breathtaking. Sigh…viva la Mexico.