"Place where the arrows are made to hunt deer"
Carved wood door portraying the hunting of deer
This is Nahuatl for the name of a little town we visited last weekend called Mazamitla.
(Nahuatl has been spoken in Central Mexico since at least the 7th century AD as the language of the Aztecs.)
We drove to the west end of the lake and around the southern part of it and then turned to drive up, uP, UP into the mountains.
This town is so pretty and is a popular destination for people of Guadalajara to spend their weekends. If you come to visit Lake Chapala then you really should plan a visit to Mazamitla.
What makes it so pretty?
Pine forests in mountains, cascading waterfalls, fresh mountain air, deer peeking at you, fresh cheeses, wineries.
A “pack” of 6 families went up a couple Fridays ago with vans loaded with excited kiddos, lots of yummy food, extra blankets, games, bikes, and prepared for a nice time together. No tvs or electronic toys. It was fun to be unplugged -except for the fully functioning kitchens. We had 3 cabins next to each other.
A couple highlights…
Ready to hit the road
Deciding who sleeps in which of the 3 houses
The kids each creating their own masterpieces
Carlton cooking pancakes that double as a psychology experiment
"OK guys, what do you see?"
Hmmm... Looks like the USS Enterprise
Pancakes that double as an inkblot test
Mikee and I escaped for a nice walk to the little square
True story: there were 10yr olds zipping around with little 2yr old kiddos on these
Pink Pink Pink Pink...
Raquel is givng Katie and me a lesson on how to take pictures of yourself
Cristina and Wendy on their way to service
Heading to town- kids, dogs, bikes, van. What a motley group!
The crew
To get to the town plaza you head towards the church
Mexicans are very social and family oriented. People smile and enjoy life. That shows up in the way life revolves around simple pleasures. The town square or plaza is always an entertaining place. It is the center of town and the center of activity. We found an appliance shop owned by Witnesses and found out where the meetings are. In town you will find kids playing, old people hanging out, musicians, all sorts of things for sale, burros, little spots to dance, military guys…
Do we look like we fit right in?
We had so many little kiddos on this trip that they all start to blend in together. Kiddos everywhere. They all had so much fun. Check out the transformation of Carmen and Quinn into Yazmin and Isabella…
Our friends Darren and Wendy have been up here several times. Darren “knows a guy” who brought us around to see some sights. This included ZIP-LINING!
Austin and Selena were definitely wanting to go. He’s done it before and LOVED it and Selena wants to do anything she thinks is scary and a big kid would do. India was a little more hesitant. But she signed up too!
First we had to all get on the bus. No windows. Hard seats. Zipping through curving mountain roads. It was like a roller coaster on it’s own. (that is why Selena rode with her hands in the air -she loves coasters) We visited a deer ranch and a waterfall and a winery where they make blackberry wine. But the highlight for our kiddos was the zip-line. The trickiest part was a little bridge we had to cross that was in mostly good shape but very wobbly and all there is to hold on to was a cable. The zip-line itself was a nice easy ride. As soon as she came into the platform, Ginger Kitty was ready to go again.
First stop- a deer ranch
These deer a larger and more fuzzy than the deer of New England
Fun to feed them
Oh no... the deepest hole ever
"Oh how I love to go up in a swing. Up in the air so blue..."
This way to the waterfall
A steep and winding trail
Sitting on a tree that grew across the path
La Cascada
Finally! We get suited up to zip zip zip
First we have to cross this wobbly bridge about 30 feet up in the air
If she could make it across then the zip line would be the easy part
Selena couldn't even reach the line and had to hold Mikee's hand
There goes Austin
Ginger Kitty couldn't stop grinning all the way down
What a brave little YaYa
Enjoying the ride
A fun exciting tiring day
The guys playing on the terrace
Everyone had their turn to wear the "wig of shame"
The girls danced and danced and danced
We really enjoyed our visit to Mazamitla. It is a charming town and we were with lots of fun people and we ate delicious food and we popped back into the plaza for one more visit before heading home.
Riding home through the mountains
We drive around the bend and the lake appears
Sweeping view of the lake
Thanks for sharing, Camille. Next time I may just have to go!
yes indeed!!!
Enjoyed the vacation, thanks.
Words can not even describe how much I loved reading this post. Smiles all over again! <3
It was crazy at work for a while, so I just got to catch up with your posts. Ginger Kitty has gotten so big, I think you should just call her Ginger Cat from now on! And India and Austin have gotten even more beautiful and handsome! (If that was possible!) You take beautiful pictures everywhere you go! I love seeing them! Glad to see you are all enjoying yourselves down there! Miss you!
I look so fat in all those pictures…
enjoy your vacations!!