We made it out of Mexico City, people may have come to the conclusion from our previous blog that I wasn't that fond of MC - well you were right. The ride south to Taxco was sweet relief away from the smog and general decrepitude of the capital. Taxco was rumored to be picturesque and riddled with fantastic silver shops and restaurants but frankly I have heard it before so I was reserving judgement until we arrived.

Turns out the town is exactly as described, beautiful but ridiculously hilly which was a bit of a problem as we tried to track down our elusive hotel with huge packs. OK we achieved mission A and it was over to Rachelle for the prime objective - the purchase of large quantities of admittedly gorgeous silver jewellery. Taxco is the capital of the Mexican silver smiths so it would be foolish to leave without a few purchases. The next couple of days passed in a blur of avaricious shopkeepers and increasingly similar displays of unique silver items but we found our feet and started to smell the bull (particularly when people offered us free beer or wine a certain sign of a rip off). Net result - Rachelle has a few very nice new silver items and the silversmiths have a few Peso's in their pockets, everyone wins.

Of course Taxco isn't entirely jewellery based and as it seemed to have been designed by MC Escher I had a great time trying to work out where we were and how to get to point B (usually another store or if I was lucky a restaurant). I should really mention the lovely church and the main plaza before we move on but as we didn't even bother to go into the first (South America church fatigue) and the second was being systematically destroyed / rebuilt (couldn't tell which) I won't bother. The reality is that Taxco was exactly what I was looking for after the big city dullness of Mexico City. The people were very friendly although most of the time they were trying to sell us something, the town was interesting and bewildering at the same time. We had some good drinks and some great food and it brought me back from my miserable reaction to MC, viva Taxco.

Mexico is apparently a country of opposites, at least as far as I am concerned. I leave MC and find a town I really like in Taxco. Our next stop is famous Acapulco, coming from the UK I am not exactly sure what Acapulco is famous for except for the fact that I have known it's name as far back as I can remember. On the plus side the cliff divers were amazing dropping up to 38m into a very narrow channel, the sea front in the old town was fun with lots of Mexican families having beach time and the views across the harbour and the sea were gorgeous especially around sunset. On the negative side it was a bit run down and decrepit, the streets were back to the dirty smelly MC standard and the town centre seemed a little lifeless despite being full of people. Our hotel summed it up, desperately in need of some serious cash being spent, the room and especially the bathroom was a dump but we were two steps from a massive balcony overlooking the sea and the admittedly excellent taco shop we had dinner at.

So love it or hate it? No idea, bits of both as usual with Mexico. Every time I think I am getting a handle on the place a new location throws me back into confusion. Taxco has certainly put a good deal of credit in the bank and whatever Acapulco was it wasn't boring. So bon viajes chicos, hasta luego and back to the madness of our Mexican adventure.

Love A & R