Although tempted to stay another night in Oaxaca, we took Murakami's words of wisdom in What I Talk about when I Talk about Running and decided to leave the vibrant city when we still wanted to be there in hopes of going back one day. Murakami says to stop running while you are still enjoying it so you will want to run again. Great words to live by! A great author and someone I have come to love reading during this phase in life.
Although we left our room at 11:30am, we did not leave the city until 2. How does that happen? Knowing we have a lot of ups and plenty of mountains to cover before we hit the beach and the town of Puerto Escondido, we stocked up on snacks and dinners. The ride today was fairly simply, only covering maybe 35-40 miles. The sun was hot and our tans hit a new level, which is great because maybe, just maybe we won't stick out so much? Yes, that is a question. In these small towns, all eyes are on us.
The last town before our climb we were planning/hoping to find a hotel or place to stay. Upon riding up to Ayoquezco about 200 or so of the local townspeople, men and women included, had blockaded the road with buses, boulders and logs, and the majority of people were armed with machetes. Uhhhhh.....shit. All eyes turned on us as we slowly pushed our bikes into the crowd unsure if they would even let us pass. The crowd opened up once the town elders in white cowboy hats motioned us through (we also heard a few "andele, andele"). Without any towns up ahead, we were stuck. We pulled into the center of town and right away a young man asked if we spoke English. Phew, someone to help us and let us know the reason for the blockade. It turns there is a land dispute with another local town, which would also explain the pickup truck loaded with men and machine guns. The retaliation is a blockade preventing anyone from coming in or going out. It looks like tomorrow should be interesting.
Although we left our room at 11:30am, we did not leave the city until 2. How does that happen? Knowing we have a lot of ups and plenty of mountains to cover before we hit the beach and the town of Puerto Escondido, we stocked up on snacks and dinners. The ride today was fairly simply, only covering maybe 35-40 miles. The sun was hot and our tans hit a new level, which is great because maybe, just maybe we won't stick out so much? Yes, that is a question. In these small towns, all eyes are on us.
The last town before our climb we were planning/hoping to find a hotel or place to stay. Upon riding up to Ayoquezco about 200 or so of the local townspeople, men and women included, had blockaded the road with buses, boulders and logs, and the majority of people were armed with machetes. Uhhhhh.....shit. All eyes turned on us as we slowly pushed our bikes into the crowd unsure if they would even let us pass. The crowd opened up once the town elders in white cowboy hats motioned us through (we also heard a few "andele, andele"). Without any towns up ahead, we were stuck. We pulled into the center of town and right away a young man asked if we spoke English. Phew, someone to help us and let us know the reason for the blockade. It turns there is a land dispute with another local town, which would also explain the pickup truck loaded with men and machine guns. The retaliation is a blockade preventing anyone from coming in or going out. It looks like tomorrow should be interesting.
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