San Cristobal, Sourthern MEXICO

I arrived safely in the old town of San Cristobal after an 8 hour bus-longboat-bus trip from Flores (GUATEMALA) to Palenque (MEXICO) and then a 5 hour trip through beautiful mountain scenery to San Cristobal.

San Cristobal de Las Casa is a town of only 121,000 people, but truly rich in culture and traditions. In the surrounding valleys, several small indigenous communities, all with their own distinct clothing and other traditions, is a feast to the senses. I visited the villages of San Juan Chamula and San Lorenzo Zinacantan. The latter is generally regarded as the less sinful of the two, as Chamula allows men to have up to 8 wives (if they can afford the dowries), they sacrifice live chickens in the church, they drink a lot of Tequila and Mezcal, and they are lazy and dirty. Talking about the local church (next to the zocale, or main square of the town) ...an amazing place indeed with tens of statues of saints, hundreds of candles burning everywhere on the floors while people sit around the candles and pray out loud. Holy leaders perform rituals and as I said...often chickens are slaughtered right there on the floor. A weird experience indeed. Ouch!

Hey, the fact that Chamula is the bad town is what the guide told us....and to be honest, Chamula village have a lot of strange things going on. The local markets in Chamula was totally a sensory overload -- an amazing place indeed. Don't take any pictures of most people, especially the community leaders, as it sure will land you in jail, or your film confiscated. However, for a few dollars, some, only some, residents will do a quick pose. The belief is that a picture steals a soul...unless you pay of course, then its alright (but only for some people).

Saw the Sunday morning court in session at the zocale (open air) where the well dressed community leaders (about 30 of them) listen to disputes and decide who gets punished. Anyone found guilty goes for maximum 72 hours to the open jail (also near zocale) so everybody can see who`s been bad...and when they get out of jail they do a few months community service...as policemen...no kidding. So ALL policemen are former inmates. Weird!

San Cristobal and area was indeed one of the most bizarre and amazing experiences I have ever had!