Morelia

We were really on a mission to get to the Monarchs now. The 450 km drive to Morelia still took over 6 hours on the toll road.

Driving out of Puebla we saw smoke puffing out of the volcano. For the first time in weeks we actually saw other riders, but unfortunately on all 3 occasions they were on the other side of the toll road. We all did wave madly at each other of course.

Morelia is known as the pink city because of all the buildings made from pink marble. Our hotel was very near the center and only a block from the artisan and sweets market.

The city was really gearing up for the holidays. The Zocalo is all decorated with lights and a huge tree.

The Cathedral here is massive and we did visit it several times.

We walked the length of the city past the famous fountains, the aquaduct, and the massive city park. It is quite an experience to see the pilgrims crawling on their knees towards the church of the Guadaloupe. There was a party atmosphere with food stalls, games, and many places selling pieces of sugar cane.

We met for dinner with our BMW friends Diana and Fred from Mexico City as they were in town as part of their tour of the pueblos magico.

We were so excited to meet back up with our friends Garry and Ivonne. We had driven 1500 km back to go to see the Monarchs with them. An added treat was to meet Garry’s brother Cliff who had come to visit from Britain. At lunch we had Tortas that were as big as your head. They lasted for lunch the next day too. We took a tour by bus of the city and then enjoyed a few beers in a cafe on the square.