Bahia de la Luna, Pochutla, Oaxaca

After traveling on a bus all night, we arrived to the Bahia de la Luna resort very early on Monday morning.  Thank goodness we didn't have to wait for a specific check-in time.   This place was paradise in the middle of the jungle by the beach.  It was amazing.  I would have been happy spending an extra couple of days. Once we got our room, the kids changed into their swimming suits and rushed to the beach with Newel. I stayed in our room and did laundry.  We were running out of clean clothes.

Chef Coco's delicacies

After doing laundry, I got a chance to lounge around.  Ahhh, it was so relaxing. This place was so nice.  I was a bit unprepared for this place because I was expecting it to be like Acapulco, where you have vendors passing every 30 seconds selling you goodies.  This place was pretty much a private resort, so there were no vendors and I didn't bring enough snacks and treats.  So we had to buy all of our food at the hotel.  Luckily, it wasn't ridiculously priced. There was a chef named Chef Coco, who was a phenomenal cook.  Everything he made for dinner was delicious and he totally catered to our children by making them real pizza that wasn't served with ketchup or hot sauce.

Hermit crab races

Winner!

Both nights we were at Bahia de la Luna, the children who were there, had a hermit crab race.  There were so many hermit crabs, Arden was in heaven. I think Arden won both nights and he got home made ice cream.

Scary little scorpion

I know I write a lot about food...but the food here was wonderful.  Locumba, the day cook, made her own jellies and breads.  Pretty much all of the food was either made at the resort, like the fresh bread, drinks, jellies, or was bought locally.  I was loving it.  Chef Coco and I even had a conversation about cooking...grinding wheat, making whole wheat pizzas, growing gardens, how I made my own jam...it was fun. He totally spoiled us. I think Chef Coco made the experience at Bahia de la Luna even more pleasant.  The managers were okay...Chef Coco was definitely the friendly guy.

I thought this place was heavenly, but my only complaint would be that they should have provided air conditioning or stronger fans.  It was hard to fall asleep when you're covered in sweat.

Maya getting ready to flip

On the first night, the children had a little scare.  They were reminded that we were in the jungle and we had to be careful...that night we found a small scorpion hanging out on the mosquito net.  Newel killed it. However, my brave children got scared and slept on the same bed, together because they didn't want the scorpions to get them. We tried to explain to them how the mosquito net works, by keeping out critters, but they wouldn't hear it.  Around 1AM, both children crawled in bed with us.  Even though the bed was big enough for all of us to sleep in, it was too hot, so I left them with Newel, while I went to sleep on one of their beds.

Arden kayaking solo

The following morning was full of fun.  We tried to snorkel as a family.  We went swimming...we wore life jackets because it got deep really fast and sometimes the waves got big as well.  We also went kayaking.  Maya was the first to go with Newel and didn't like it very much after the kayak flipped and she went overboard.  Later in the day, she tried it again, but still didn't stay on too long.  Arden also went kayaking with Newel.  Arden did so well, later in the day, Newel let Arden go by himself...with Newel following him...just in case.

We spent part of the day lounging around, playing in the sand, and just spending time together. That night, there were no more scorpion incidents, so everyone slept in their own beds.

Loving the hammock

The following morning we left Bahia de la Luna on a super long (like 7 or 8 hours) van ride through the jungles of Oaxaca.  It was a super curvy road... thank goodness for the nausea pill.  The views were amazing...I just wish the driver wouldn't have made so many stops and would have driven faster.  We practically wasted a day.  Next time were taking a plane...even if it costs more...it's only a 45 minute trip...or something like that...

Our hut

Tuna egg rolls...amazing!

Our view from the hut

Homemade pizza., without ketchup

Chef Coco

Oaxaca City

Walking around

Once we arrived to Oaxaca, Newel began an extensive search for a hotel room somewhere in Oaxaca City.  After walking from hotel to hotel for two hours, calling on the phone, and searching on hoteles.com, we finally found a place to sleep. It was kind of expensive, but beggars can't be choosers.  It was also the last room available that night. We ended up having a great night sleep, so no complaints.

Maya waiting her turn

After we made ourselves at home in the hotel, we set off to Oaxaca City's zocalo.  It was full of life and happenings. By this time we were starving so we hit the market in search of traditional Oaxacan street food.  We found several stands selling tlayudas, which are enormous tortillas filled with all kind of good meats, salsas, and who knows what else.  I also had a rice drink that was out of this world.

Making Tlayudas

After our bellies were full, we walked around el zocalo.  We listened to various performers and checked out all of the overpriced traditional goods being sold.

Hotel Jump!

The following morning we got early and being Sunday, we went to sacrament meeting at church.  We met a lot of nice people in that ward.  Next door to the chapel was the Oaxaca temple.  We felt fortunate to be able to visit.  We try to emphasize the importance of temples to our children...even though we're not always as reverent as we should be.

Oaxaca Temple

After our visit to the temple, we ate lunch at the crappiest, slowest Burger King I've ever been to...however, the kids enjoyed having the play land to themselves.

Check out the garden!

We knew we wanted to see as much as we could of Oaxaca City, in a day, so we tried to hit the main distractions within the city.  So, we caught a taxi that took us to the top of a hill and dropped us off at the super busy ruins of Monte Alban.  These are supposed to be some of the best ruins around. When we first entered the grounds I thought, blah...but, as we kept walking, the city just kept getting bigger and interesting.  Perhaps because it was our first time there, we liked it a lot.

Arden found a bug

I want to say how proud I am of Arden and Maya.  We did so much on this day, and pretty much anytime we go on vacation, yet, they don't really complain, they don't get too tired, and they just go!  We are so lucky to have such adventurous children.


Even though there was a ton of people in Monte Alban, it was so big, it didn't feel overcrowded.  The part I enjoyed the most was when Maya and Arden saw two boys playing 'caballito' (horse) and then they started to do the same.  Arden was so cute carrying his sister on his back.  They had so much fun being silly and cute. I love those special moments when they are getting along so well.  

After our visit to Monte Alban, Newel taught Arden the art of shopping at a market and asking for lower prices.  Arden was very pleased to get a scorpion covered in amber.  Maya purchased a beautiful hat to protect her from the sun.  The man she purchased the hat from was the actual hat maker.

Caballito

On this trip, Grandma was so nice to send a big bag filled with Polly Pockets.  We were assigned the really fun and rewarding task of finding little girls who would like a Polly Pocket, but perhaps couldn't afford one.  We found several little girls and even a boy, to whom we were able to give them the dolls.  I thought Maya would have a hard time giving them away, but she didn't. I think it was easier for her to give the toys away, even though she really likes them, because she saw how happy it made those children.  I wished we would have had more toys to give away. Perhaps next time we go to Mexico we'll be better prepared.

Selecting the right hat

Donating Polly Pockets and dinner

Museum/convent/cathedral

Cricket appetizer

After our sweet hit in Monte Alban, we walked around the streets of Oaxaca City.  It was kind of tricky walking around Oaxaca City because we were carrying our bags and at times they became uncomfortable to haul around. One of our favorite sights was the cathedral/convent/museum.  Then, we hit a restaurant for some good food.  We ventured into eating 'chapulines', which are crickets.  They were chopped up and cooked in a sauce.  They were pretty good, but it's not something I'd eat all of the time.  However, I can say that I've done it.
After dinner, we headed to the amphitheater for a Guelaguetza performance.  Newel tried really hard to get tickets for this event, but it was sold out.  We were lucky, last minute, he was able to score some tickets in the paying section.  There was a non-paying section, but that was filled to the max.  Even at the paying section, we didn't sit in seats.  We sat in the wheelchair section on our bags.  The kids loved the performance.  It was a really great performance. It was the legend of a princess.
After the performance, we headed over to the bus station for an all night bus trip.  It wasn't as comfortable as the sweet ride we had into Oaxaca City, but we were glad to head over to the beach.

Puebla with Newel

We were so excited to see Newel again. Instead of meeting up in Cuernavaca, we decided to rendezvous in Puebla.  This gave the kids and me an opportunity to show Newel this amazing city and our vast knowledge of the city.  We stayed in the RH hotel which was not too far from all of the old downtown action.  We were so excited to see Newel again and we even arrived around the same time that afternoon.   That night we ate a typical Pueblan restaurant.  Newel had the amazing 3 moles and I had the chile enogadas that was created by some nuns in a Pueblan convent a long time ago.  The dish takes forever to make and it has a unique flavor.  Even though it was getting late, we headed over to the zocalo and people watched while the kids played with some light up toys...it was a very Mexican thing to do.

Walking on the fort's wall

The brave farmer uniform

The following morning we invited Newel's old missionary companion named Oropeza and his family over for brunch at the hotel.  That's where I found an amazing chicken crepe that I told the cook I must have the recipe...Yes, Grandma, apparently my posts are all about food =) I've made the crepe a couple of times, and it's been a hit every time.
Oropeza and his family were great and they took us to the Puebla Fort where the 5 de Mayo battle occurred...you know, the ones the Gringos always celebrate.  So we went to the actual fort where the battle was held.  This battle held off the fancy dressed French Army who were going across the country to Veracruz because they were planning on attacking the US, or something like that.  Anyways, the poor farmers dressed in their huaraches, machetes, and sun hats bravely fought off the French Army. Two years later, the French returned with reinforcements and kicked the Mexican Army's butt. But the Mexicans nor the Americans mention that part...only celebrate the good, right?

Cloud coverage on the back is el Popo volcano

The Fort also had a museum and across the street there was this great park with wooden floor, and an ice cream parlor. The place was pretty cool. The Oropezas also told us that Puebla is a pretty safe city to live in because a lot of the Narcos (drug lord) families live in Puebla, so it's neutral ground...Switzerland.

Oropeza and White

Symbol of Mexico

Later, the Oropeza family drove us to the CAPU which is the central bus station...it's like an airport, but with buses.  It's pretty organized and huge. Newel really wanted to ride in the lujo ADO Platino bus.  We each had super comfy seats that reclined almost completely back, with a foot rest, and we all had our own TV screens.  We were also sent off with a bag of goodies that had our choice of drink, mints, headphones, sleeping mask, and hand wipes.  It was quite fancy.  The movie, tv programs, and music selection was extensive.  It was truly a lujo ride.  Normally, we wouldn't travel in such luxury, but the next bus traveling to Oaxaca was like a 5 hour wait.

The wood park

The fancy bus

It was a good idea that we took that bus.  As we read the guidebook, it talked about the Guelaguetza, a big festival of dances (like a pow wow) that's held in Oaxaca for 2 weeks, which happened to be on the days we were traveling.  In the guidebook it said you needed to book your hotel six months in advance.  Once I read that, I got a bit worried, were we going to find a hotel room for the night, or sleep on the streets of Oaxaca?