One last hot bath and then we say goodbye to Mexico.

So far, we have only been to smaller markets, but never to a weekly market, and that was about to change. It is Sunday and in Tlacolula, south of Oaxaca City, there is supposed to be a super beautiful and authentic Sunday market. So off we go. We are willing to drive another 20 km back. Mathias was busy thinking, "I hope it's worth it and I hope you, Caro, won't be disappointed" and no, we were not disappointed. We didn't expect such a huge and really beautiful market. There was everything from fruit and vegetables to craftsmanship and more. We strolled through the market among all the Mexicans. We bought fruits and vegetables and even meat. After about 3 hours we were pretty tired. We went back to the motorhome. We had chicken (pollo) from the market and then we continued north. For this night, we only needed a place to sleep, preferably in nature. We found a nice spot in nature. In the middle of the mountains. The main road passes by above us. The spot is not visible (so we thought). We made ourselves comfortable here. During dinner, a local passed by us on his bike. He looked interested. On his way back, we approached him and asked if we could stay overnight here. He was super nice and said yes. He said a lot more, but we didn't understand it. With a smile, he continued on his way.

We snuggled up in bed. We wanted to watch a movie when we heard a car. It stopped right next to us. Two minutes later, there was a knock on the door. It must have been around 9:00 PM. Mathias climbed out of bed and opened the door. Two men stood in front of us. They told us that they were police officers and they wanted to see our identification papers. Mathias asked them if they could first show us their identification papers since the two of them had neither a police vehicle nor a uniform. They couldn't identify themselves. Mathias was about to close the door when one of them held the door open. I, Caro, tried to divert and defuse the situation. The two men kept saying the same thing. Eventually, we understood it. It would be too dangerous to stay here. The place is visible from the road and we would be attacked and shot. They asked us to follow them to the village. It would be safer there. Phew, two men in the "night" who were supposed to be police officers but had no proof. Somehow Mathias suddenly packed everything up and we followed them. We agreed that if anything seemed suspicious, we would turn around and run away immediately. Ok. Here we go. In the end, we ended up at a church next to the town hall. The two of them said we could use the free WiFi and there would be water behind us. As strange as the situation was, it suddenly felt nice. Still a bit uncertain, we climbed back into bed when, 5 minutes later, there was another knock on the door. This time we didn't open the door. We raised the blind slightly and cautiously looked out the window. In front of us sat a man on a moped with his girlfriend on the back and wanted to sell us some pastries. Very entrepreneurial, but no thanks. We slept well and spent the whole next day watching people. We had come up with wild ideas about where we had ended up. We took a little walk. The mayor spoke to us and the man on the bike from the previous evening sat in front of the community center, grinning at us. Everything was strange. But in the end, we were convinced that it was all meant well.

After all the excitement, we now needed a "closed" place to spend the night. We wanted to go to a kind of botanical garden anyway - our destination was a cactus forest near Puebla. Quite expensive for Mexican standards, but really beautiful. We stood in the middle of it with our motorhome. We hiked among countless cacti and climbed lookout towers. We collected quartz and enjoyed the nature all to ourselves. The crowning glory was a magical sunset. We only stayed one night there, as we had seen everything by the next day.

We are now heading towards Mexico City. Not because we wanted to visit the city, but because we wanted to go to Popocatepetl. Before that, we stopped in Puebla. We had received a tip from other travelers to park directly at the police station. They said we would be very welcome there and would be safe. They actually greeted us like kings. They almost bent over backward to make room for us. Police vehicles were rearranged just so we could park there. We were invited to join them for dinner and breakfast and to use the showers in the building. They copied our identification papers as a kind of "check-in" and took a souvenir photo. They also asked us how long we wanted to stay. At that time, we were thinking of two nights. It was fine, even if we stayed for a month. Alright. In the end, it turned out to be four nights. We felt super safe. Super well taken care of. It definitely wasn't the quietest place, but it was the safest and closest for visiting the city.

We really liked Puebla. It had hardly any Mexican flair but a lot of Spanish flair instead. Many colorful houses and a lot of tiles. That's what Puebla is famous for. We felt very comfortable in the city and used the time there to take care of a few things. In the evenings, when the sun wasn't burning so much, we strolled through the streets. Mathias took the opportunity to go to the hairdresser and Caro, the opportunity to lose a denture. We were a bit nervous as we looked for a dentist. We ended up at a dentist in a backyard. The equipment was older than Mathias and I combined. The dentist didn't speak English and our Spanish was not enough for communication. With gestures, feet, and the phone as a translator, the dentist and I managed to communicate, and in the end, I had my denture back in my mouth. She was completely exhausted and super relieved and hugged me tightly goodbye. I felt well taken care of from the beginning and trusted her. She was super committed and explained everything in detail. After the treatment, we were allowed to walk around the backyard for a while and took a goodbye photo. I paid 600 pesos, about 25 euros. An exciting and beautiful experience, despite the circumstances, which showed how often less is also enough. Although we also know that this treatment is not affordable for everyone.

To say goodbye to Puebla, we visited a bakery with delicious croissants and now we set off for the volcano. We said goodbye to our police station and were very excited because none of us had ever seen or experienced a volcano before.

The drive towards Popo was already exciting. We could see Popo and Itza pretty quickly. Our destination was a parking space at an altitude of about 3000 meters between the two volcanoes. We had read that the approach could be difficult, but our 4x4 motorhome (not) would manage it. We drove and drove. Popo was steaming. The landscape was a great sight. At some point, the road ended. The road was a kind of highway that leads directly to Mexico City. Volcanic ash covered the ground and swirled around us. It was still okay. But it changed after about 2 km. We felt like we were driving at 10 km/h. Firstly, because the potholes were getting bigger and bigger, and secondly, because we were really afraid of getting stuck. We are known to be very good at that, especially where nobody is around. This road was chosen for this, in case that might happen. Every now and then, cars came towards us, but few and all with all-wheel drive. Mathias really wanted to go all the way. But our route was still humane. The worst with narrow mountain roads and steep inclines was yet to come. We drove about 20 km and then realized that we would not reach the place. Sadly, we turned back. But we still had lunch at the "foot" of Popo. We collected volcanic rocks and Mathias even claimed to smell the volcano. Oh, that would have been so great.

Now we had no plan about where to go next. Everything felt like a long way off and it was already 3:00 PM. Thank God we had Google Maps and as it is often the case, this route planner has the best routes (not really). We had no idea how and where we were driving, but we definitely drove the longest and worst route. We probably set a checkbox for off-road somewhere. But in the end, we ended up where we wanted to be, at a lake somewhere northeast of Mexico City - San Felipe Hidalgo. Only the employee on site was Mexican. Otherwise, it had a European feel. We spent 4 nights at our little lake, including a playground. To our delight, a small fiesta took place right when we arrived. Anyone who knows Mexico knows that it cannot and must not be quiet. Ok. We hoped for the best. It was actually bearable and the rest of the days were pleasantly quiet.

We also used the days to do some work. Had a few customer meetings and mostly did nothing. By nothing, we mainly mean playing and painting, crafting and romping around. During a little walk around the lake, we became a tourist attraction and Mathias could have gotten married again. We were strolling along when four girls followed us. Nancy, Kylie, Karin, and Kate. All four came from a party in the village and wanted to get some fresh air, and that's how they discovered us, or rather Mathias. They approached us and we told them that we were from Germany and traveling. They were very interested and wanted to take a photo with us. When we positioned ourselves, I only saw in the corner of my eye that Nancy was mainly interested in a picture with Mathias and actually took one in which only the two of them were visible. I had to smile and so did Mathias. As quick as Nancy had taken a photo of her new friend, we couldn't believe it. Somehow a very funny situation. Another funny story from San Felipe Hidalgo was the gas station that wasn't a gas station. We were standing at the said lake, including the dam, and saw a sign. Something about gas was written on it. We thought that maybe Pemex (oil company) had drilled something here and that's why the sign had something to do with it. In the end, this sign told us that the lake is a gossip for fireflies. Luciagas means firefly in Spanish. In the village, we could find several drawings and references to it. We even found a hint about it in the app we used to find the place. So one can't say that traveling doesn't make you smarter, we also like to learn.

We now headed north after five days/four nights. Originally, we wanted to visit Mexico City, but somehow we didn't want to. So, we postponed it for next time. We continued driving through the state of Hidalgo. The home of our Mexican friend whom we had met in "our" restaurant on the Pacific coast. She told us about the beautiful nature and hot springs that we absolutely had to visit. We got lost in the mountains in a small town called Min. de Chico, near Pachuca. Very nice little town. The streets were as wide as sidewalks and the incline was enormous. Of course, the navigation led us right into the town. We realized that we were not in the right place. Our tires or rather the brakes were smoking. Thankfully, we didn't have to go further down, but back up the mountain. I was really uncomfortable with the brakes smoking. Mathias, on the other hand, was calm as ever. So, we drove all the way back, turned the right way, and ended up where we wanted to be in El Chico National Park. Again, at a lake. Well, let's say at a larger puddle. Our hope here was rain. It actually looked like it that evening. fog hung over the lake. It was about 15 degrees outside and it was gray. Yeah, were we actually going to get bad weather after more than three months? No, of course not. It was really cold at night (8 degrees), but warm during the day. Not hot, but not cold either. We used the mountains for hiking. On our way, we encountered sheep and donkeys. Again, we had the feeling of being in Europe rather than in Mexico. Thankfully, there were still some palm trees here and there.

The area was huge and it is probably very busy here in the summer. There were picnic areas with a small playground everywhere. A zipline went over the puddle. On the second hike, we climbed a platform built on a mountain, and here too, there was a zipline. Mathias really wanted to try it, but both lines were "not" yet operational. After four nights, we had seen everything here too and moved on. We wanted to go swimming.

Our journey now took us to the hot springs, the Grutas Tolantongo. Earlier than planned. Actually, we wanted to avoid going there on a weekend. But well, it won't be that bad. So, we ended up there on a Friday afternoon. Before we could drive down the hill, we had to pass through a gate. We were disinfected and they even wanted to spray inside our motorhome. We were able to prevent this, however. Freshly sanitized, we were allowed to continue. The descent was quite steep and curvy, but our motorhome handled it well. Once we reached the bottom, we paid until Monday and looked for a spot. It was already quite crowded, but it was also well spread out on the very large grounds. We were even able to park right by the river after a short discussion. We had a great spot. We were happy. Of course, we put on our bathing suits and looked for an entry point into the warm river. It had bathtub temperature and was blue/white. Due to the minerals and lime in the stones. Lovely. The river and the waterfall are fed by a spring somewhere in the mountains near a volcano. That's why the river and the waterfall are warm. The higher you climb/walk, the warmer it gets. On that Friday, we walked all the way to the waterfall and the gruta. A cave filled with water. It had temperatures of over 30 degrees, both the water and the air. People squeezed through. With a rope, you could climb up a mountain to go even deeper into the cave. I stopped at some point because it was too much for me. Mathias dragged W. along with him. But she had already said at the beginning that she was afraid, so the two of them just stood on the aforementioned mountain and couldn't come back because more and more people were coming. Thankfully, one of the employees stood in the water and blocked the way for the two of them, so W. and Mathias were able to walk back towards the exit. W. had had enough at that point. But we still wanted to go to the grotto. So, one after the other held the child on their arm and the other swam a bit. "Well, we can come back tomorrow or the day after," we said... So, we walked back along the river to the motorhome. We jumped into the water at a few spots. Back at the motorhome, we had dinner outside by the river and later Mathias and I even sat outside for a while and enjoyed the evening.

It is Saturday morning, 7:30 AM, and I, Caro, couldn't sleep anymore. There was already quite a bustle on the grounds. I opened the door and climbed back into bed. No less than 5 minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Several employees, who were friendly but very determined, asked us to park in the outer corner on the other side. Right next to the wall and the exit. Mathias tried to negotiate, but no chance. We had to move. The spot was shit times ten. Not only was it stupid because we were no longer by the river, but also because there was no sun for our solar panels on the roof. No, we didn't want that. After all, we had paid until Monday evening, and that was not a small amount. We weighed the pros and cons and then parked again. We still weren't by the river, but at least not right by the wall with wall view and no sun. Instead, we were in the middle with sun on the roof. About an hour later, we understood why we had to move. It got crowded, even more crowded, and then the most crowded. Actually, all of Mexico had decided to spend the weekend at Tolantogo with us. Several cars parked next to us. Tents were set up on our left and right. People with coolers, grills, chairs, tables, benches, speakers, and more were everywhere. And there was not even an inch of space between the tents. The campfires were burning "inside" the tents and around them. No one cared. The air was full of smoke from the grill, campfire, and more. People were lying and standing in the river, waterfall, cave, and grotto. There were still a few pools, about 15 or so, and even there, it was crowded but never so crowded that you or your neighbor couldn't jump in anymore. At least we were all "deloused". Somehow, it was a crazy experience, but also interesting. Quiet hours were from 11:00 PM, and in fact, everyone adhered to them. But we woke up the next morning with the smell of grills and campfires. Some people left the Grutas in the evening, others in the morning, and still others (like us) stayed. It was already a bit less crowded on Sunday, but still very full. It was actually the most beautiful on Monday after 2:00 PM. The spot where we were became visible and free again. We could see the river again, and it became quiet. We enjoyed all the days, with or without people, at this place. We got to know other campers and exchanged information about the "best" and "safest" border crossing. Sandra and Rudi, he is German-American, recommended Piedras Negras to us and told us about an incident involving a cartel in Laredo last Monday. That was where we originally wanted to go to the border or at least nearby. Of course, we didn't know what had happened in Laredo. We googled it afterwards and were a bit shocked. Ok, so we followed their recommendation instead. But this meant driving about 100 km more.

We left the Grutas late on Monday evening and slept on the mountain. There was a strong wind, and we were exposed. So we parked in the middle of the night and sought shelter against a house wall. Very early in the morning, the noise started with trucks, buses, and Co. A really enchanting night. Our plan was to quickly drive through the north of Mexico to the US border. We wanted to take 14 days for it and, above all, find at least one super nice last spot. Two weeks turned into one week. We didn't find a last nice spot. Among other reasons, because we didn't want to withdraw money again, and we wouldn't have been able to pay for the northern spots with the pesos we had left. So we slept at gas stations, more or less loudly. We drove a lot, very much, and for a very long time, and suddenly we were there. In Piedras Negras, we drove to the border crossing - or so we thought. For inexplicable reasons, we were not allowed to use that one. We were redirected to another one. So we drove there. The Mexican border officials were not interested in us at all. This meant that we no longer have an exit stamp. There were a few more vehicles at the US checkpoint, and when it was our turn, our lane was closed behind us. Ok. We were asked where we were going and if we had any goods/food that were not allowed to be imported. We had heard from travelers that fruits and vegetables were included. Ironically, we had planned more days for the drive to the border and therefore also had plenty of fruits and vegetables with us. Since we thought, "... they won't take away a fruit salad from us", we made a huge pot of fruit salad in the morning. Mathias and I ate as much as we could, and we planned to eat the rest the next day. Nope. The officials threw it away. Our consideration was a bit stupid, but it could have worked. Instead, they let us keep some cheese. They disposed of eggs, fruits, and vegetables. Nobody was interested in the 10 kg of mussels and other seafood. The employees were very nice, and the inspection of the motorhome was also quick. The longest part of this border crossing was the waiting time for the stamp. The stamp employee had disappeared, so we waited and waited. After he finally showed up, the fingerprint scanner didn't work, and the payment function was on a break too. So we waited again, actually only for the card reader. Nobody was interested in our fingerprints anymore.

And now? We were in the USA.

Oh Mexico, we will miss you. A country we hardly knew anything about. A country so many people warned us about. A country that enchanted us from the very first moment. A country so versatile, beautiful, and friendly. A country where people have little but give a lot. A country that carries so much history and character. A country known for its corruption and yet openly deals with it, although it is a global issue. We don't condone it, but to conceal and pretend that other countries don't do it is, in our eyes, an even greater crime. We have seen so many different animals. We hiked in the jungle, climbed pyramids, and saw howler monkeys swinging above our heads. We swam in the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, lagoons, waterfalls, the Pacific Ocean, and hot springs. We sweated more than ever before in our lives. We met people from all over the world and experienced Mexican culture. We observed parrots, turtles, and crocodiles. We had pelicans at our breakfast table. We never felt like we were being looked at strangely or unwelcome. We have never eaten such good mangoes, pineapples, and just such good food in general. We enjoyed our time and wholeheartedly recommend Mexico. We are not done with this amazing country and definitely want to come back. There is still so much to discover - Baja California, Mexico City, Día de los Muertos, seeing friends again, experiencing the jungle in the rainy season, whale watching, and much more. Mexico, thank you for this beautiful time.