From siesta to fiesta

After two nights turned into six in Calderitas, we backtracked to Chiapas and into the rain. Calderitas itself isn’t much to visit. This is one town that I’d describe as a “nice place to live, but I wouldn’t want to visit”–unless, of course, you don’t want to do much visiting at all, just relaxing in the sun and water and breeze. Oh, those warm breezes. They make you feel like you’re really going somewhere when you’re just standing still.

We had a fun potluck with the motley campground crew on what we intended to be our last night.

Unfortunately, I discovered an unfortunate thing that night.

Rain made the next two days driving days without much else. We were so relieved to arrive back at Rancho San Nicolas in San Cristobal. And what a surprise! The Tranquilos were there, and another couple with a sweet dog we’d met in Catemaco. The road is starting to feel like its own little society on wheels.

After a day of recharging, we drove over to Chiapa de Corzo for their big yearly festival. Hansel, my Chiapan roommate in Buenos Aires, told me about this event years ago and after seeing her photos dancing with the parachicos, I had to go. It was a sinuous drive to the town from San Cristobal, and after descending more than a mile in altitude, it was a lot warmer.

We’ve been to a few festivals so far in Mexico, and they all resemble a carnival–rides, food stands, ponies–with some little cultural intrigue on the side. This festival had the requisite games and kiddie roller coasters overtaking the main square, but the unique draw in this particular festival in this particular town is the dance of the parachicos. These come from a story of men dressing up like Europeans to cheer up a sick child. They parade in the streets, dancing and chanting. Most of Mexico is extremely colorful, but this was a rainbow explosion.

There is a night in the festival when men dress like women, too, in their beautiful flowered skirts and blouses, and let me tell you, they do a great job with their makeup.

There’s no camping in Chiapa de Corzo, but during our cursory exploration, we found a guy renting parking spaces in a dirt lot overlooking the river. It was the perfect spot to camp for the night, just a few blocks from all the action.

In the morning, we took a boat through the Canyon de Sumidero. It was a cold, fast, ride. I’m pretty sure our guide stopped to show us a fake crocodile that they’d planted to get better tips. Then we ran out of gas. Still, the canyon is nice. Maybe I would have enjoyed it more if it hadn’t been so cold.

More photos from the festival in Chiapa de Corzo. And, to close, our favorite game: Where’s Juan?

 
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