San Cristabel de las Casas

By the time we arrived at San Cristobel we were in need of a quiet day so we spent the day wandering around the town and through the market and catching up on emails etc. Had some great tacos, the following day we took a tour to some nearby indigenous villages. The first viallge we walked through the streets, as it was the day before mothers day in Mexico and the last school day of the week there were lots of celebrations for mothers day and people in their ceremonial costumes. It was very interesting to see the different generations of houses built in the in the different methods and materials. Our tour guide also explained to us the meaning behind the different styles of dress according to the status in the village. Everyone aspires to at one stage in their life be a 'holy' man in the village. These'holy' men have the responsibility og representing a saint for a year and take place in ceremonies etc for the time that they are 'holy'. The waiting list to be a 'holy' man can be anywhere between a year or two to 30-40 years, depending on the status of the saint they want to represent.

Colourful Markets in San Cristobel

After a walk around the village we went to the local church. Officially the church is catholic, but upon entering the church the appearance of it being catholic disappears. There are no pews in the church and the floors are covered with pine needles. There are people burning candles all over the place and a man comes around to scrape the ones that have burned down off the floor. People are sitting around in groups with coke and other soft drinks which are given as offerings to the gods as the sugar in the drinks give the gods strength.

One of the ornate Churches in San Cristobel

After a wander around the market held in the square in front of the church we headed to another village not far away to see a typical Mexican kitchen, and local women weaving.

Markets in small village

the 'Coca-cola' Church

Typical Mexican kitchen

corn of 4 colours