They might not have had many domesticated animals for work or for food, but 500 years ago, the ancient civilizations of Mexico were the only people in the world enjoying chocolate and chilies. Today, Oaxaca is renowned as the food capital of the country, and also famed for mezcal, a whisky-like spirit distilled from the same species of plant as tequila. I must say that I prefer mezcal though! We have spent two nights in this city, but were destined only to see i...

We started at the village of Benito Juarez in the south, and 3 days later have arrived nearly 1000m lower at Amatlán, following forest trails and an ancient trading route through a canyon. With butterflies, brightly coloured birds and lizards for company, this was a very pleasant hike. Our first night was spent in the tiny village of La Nevería, named after the snow and ice that sometimes halt the growing of crops, which is the main livelihood in t...

When we were asked at US and Mexican Customs if we were carrying food, our reply was "only Christmas pudding and mincemeat". At Helen's friend's home in Mexico City, we were treated like gods for bearing such gifts, and the kilo of mincemeat soon found its way out of my rucksack (at long last) and into pies. It's been great to enjoy a family Christmas in the middle of our travels, including two turkey dinners (one on Christmas Eve at a neighbour's house). It's ne...

Yes, you read right! They look like Cornish Pasties, and some even have traditional fillings like meat and potato, but others have Mexican fillings such as red mole and green mole - a chocolate and chili sauce pronounced mole-ay; so no, it isn't an underground animal! The pasties were actually brought to this area by miners from Cornwall, so we felt obliged to go down into one of the mines and have a look at the conditions in which they used to work, to extract ...

Relaxing in a pool of hot spring water in a subterranean dome, we watched the last rays of sunlight shining through a long tunnel that has been designed to align exactly with the Winter Solstice sun. The Mayan Baths were designed and built by a man from Connecticut who only opens them to a handful of people one night a month, so we were very privileged to have been able to visit on such a special evening. It's in an idyllic setting, and I drank my first ever tequ...