San Cristobal de Las Casas

We were told by many people that the city of San Cristobal was not to be missed; a city full of cobblestone streets, remarkable churches and architecture, and local indigenous people dressed in colourful clothing at the markets and in the squares. We saw all of these things in San Cristobal, but found it to be a bit too touristy for us, with people constantly calling to you on the street or at restaurants trying to sell fruit, breads or artesanias (local arts and crafts). We were, however, lucky to be hosted by Warmshowers host Oscar, along with our Canadian cyclist friend Justin and another cyclist from Alaska, Birch. Once we arrived at Oscar's house, which he recently built but was planning to sell so he could head off travelling, we were engrossed in an animated conversation about travels and life in Mexico in general. We combined our various groceries and Oscar, also a trained chef, prepared a delicious pasta dinner paired with wine and more fun adventure chatter. While we explored the city and caught up on internety things the next day, Birch was on the lookout for a bike box, or at least the materials to make one. When we got back in the evening he was working away to turn a cereal display box - vivid green with some kind of female cereal superhero - into a bike box for his bus ride to Tulum and flight home. We enjoyed tacos with Oscar and Birch at Oscar's favourite taco stand, then headed to bed early to prepare for more climbing (and some downhill!) the next day.Read more