This seaside city is an explosion of colourful flowers, seafood, and humidity.
I went during Semana Santa, so there were lots of visitors, and a lot of the locals had left. Some streets were busy, then I'd turn down another street and it would feel like a deserted town. It feels so quiet and spacious here compared to DF.
AA has a home in all corners of the globe.
Playa Villa del Mar on the hazy afternoon that greeted my arrival.
A certain DF local claims this product is a universal cure-all.
Lots of these elevated trash-holders outside of neighbourhood homes:
Downtown Veracruz reminded me a lot of Puerto Vallarta's shops.
I walked by it the first time. Is
this the Zocalo? So small, so quiet?
In DF people sell tacos de canastas, but in Veracruz they sell volovanes.
I came across a little parade downtown. The people in the lead were carrying a large wooden cross, and several dozen followers with colourful umbrellas for protection from the sun trailed behind.
There's a lot of history in Veracruz. It's "provided Mexico's main gateway to the outside world for 400 years," including invaders, pirates, and rulers.
"Today, Veracruz is an important deep-water port, handling exports, manufacturing and petrochemical industries."
Now, for a touristy thing. I hopped aboard a lanchero, but I had to take my shoes off (and wade through the Gulf of Mexico!) to get into the boat.
The first part of the 'tour' was a viewing of the Isla de Sacrificios. You know, the place used for "Totonac human sacrifice and later used as a leprosy colony."
And it gets better.
Tropical fishies!!! Hanging out right beside the island in the clear shallow waters.
I think everyone was really enjoying the trip. Especially the guy with the beer and mysterious scar. Knife wound in Tepito?
Up next, Cancuncito. It's a sandbar close to the Isla which is "touted as the best beach in Veracruz with light sand and clear water." It's not very long, but it's full with people and lancheros.
We spent 40 minutes swimming, or in my case wading around in, the sandbar waters.
Back to land. Well worth the 140 pesos :)
Up until 1880, Veracruz was a walled city. Baluarte de Santiago, "the only surviving fort of nine, was built in 1526 beside what was then the waterfront."
That's old.
I had brunch in a little Mexican restaurant. Huevos a la Mexicana and freshly squeezed orange juice. The waiter kept calling me his "reina." Maybe I ordered the secret dish which revealed my true identity.
This is a lechero from the Gran Cafe de la Parroquia - a Veracruz "icon."
My espresso arrived in a tall glass along with the sugar. Really? That's not what I was expecting for milk coffee. Moments later a man appeared with a silver (for lack of a better word) kettle and poured milk into my glass. That's more what I had in mind. Delicious!
(but not finger-friendly in a hot glass)The waiter asked where I was from. The second accent-picker-upper of the day. (The first was a museum/sights commission guy.) The guy in DF where I buy fruit juice from thought I was from Argentina.
Some vendors don't need to pay rent - they carry their wares wherever they go. In the heat, too.
The Pemex building:
You never know what you'll find on a stroll in a new town.
A family stroll along the malecon.
The unwanted, left to the mercy of the sun and other passerby.
A beached man enjoying the waves.
Random people sleeping in the street.
Random cling-on, clinging on...
Corona beach party under the sun:
They aren't hiring fat or pot-bellied waiters :(
My last-minute trip to Veracruz was practically a miracle. I booked my bus tickets and made my hotel reservation the day before. I got the very last seat on the bus back in the time and day I chose. 3 days, 2 nights was perfect for what I wanted to see and do.
In the late afternoon I took the Metrobus to San Angel in the south for some unfinished business. I've already been in the area, but I was suffering from heat exhaustion the previous time and I wasn't able to see one last place - Frida and Diego's studio.
