There was a bus tour going to Guadalajara, Tonala, and Tlaquepaque over two days so we signed up.
Dan, who organized the tour runs a travel agency, is a Brit. He has lived here for eighteen years and is married to a Mexican lady. He is a Mexican citizen and speaks perfect Spanish.
We had to meet the bus in the main square at 8 am. An ungodly hour but we have to make a few sacrifices if we want to have fun. I was told by Pat to get a coffee as she was bringing some Bailey’s. Me being obedient, complied but remembering my experience in Belgium was very carful pouring it into my cup. It was odd because as I started to pour we went over a bump and I really had to steady myself.
It was a about a five hour drive to Guadalajara and we got there in the early afternoon. We checked into the hotel and settled in. There was a tour of the downtown with a local guide named Ofilia. She was very knowledgable and we had a great tour.
We went to the main square and saw a state government building with some amazing murals. Then we went to see the cathedral. My biggest impression was the beggars at the door. Because when we went inside they had a coin operated machine to light up an electric candle. I think that money would be better used for the poor, but of course it will be used for the good of God.
Click to enlarge the gallery photos.
As I’m writing I’m thinking I may have to break it into several blogs as we saw and experienced so much that I can’t imagine doing it in a five hundred words. I try to keep it at five hundred as I don’t want anyone falling asleep in the middle.
We were told by Mike about an LED store just up the street from the hotel so we went to investigate. I was blown away by the prices. We could buy a four foot LED strip light for 33 pesos about $2.23. I didn’t believe the prices until we spoke to Dan and he confirmed that indeed that was the price. We will remember this for future visits.
Click to enlarge the gallery photos.
That evening we went to a restaurant recommended by Dan. It was somewhat expensive so a few of our company got up and left. We decided to tough it out. Rosalie and I shared a meal and the bill still came to seventy bucks. We had shared a bottle of wine with another lady and that alone cost $40. Expensive, but another experience we wouldn’t have had.
The bus we went in was a full-size luxury bus and there were only nineteen of us. This is important as we will see in the next blog. The driver was Jesus and he was great. He had quite a few challenges as the downtown area was under construction for the new metro line under the city.
Guadalajara is the second largest city in Mexico.