high fog in the highlands

I would have liked to tell you about a golden sunrise over the highlands of Chiapas. But no, after my 13-hour bus ride, I stood at the bus station in the city of San Cristobal de las Casas on Friday morning at 10°C (7°C in Berlin at the same time!) wearing shorts and couldn't believe it. The sky was more than cloudy. Didn't I just rave about the tropical temperatures, palm trees, beach, and sea the day before...

While all travelers recommended San Cristobal to me, they failed to mention how cold it was. The city is located at an altitude of 2100 meters, similar to Mexico City. Even in summer, it can cool down to 3°C here at night.

In the afternoon, the sky cleared up, the high-altitude sun prevailed, and the sky gleamed beautifully blue.

I quickly found connections in the Iguana Hostel. Many friendly travelers, mostly refugees from the Netherlands due to the Corona pandemic, as well as Belgians, British, Swedes, Danes... the united Europe.

The common topic that everyone could agree on here was 'food poisoning'. Stomach problems, diarrhea, and vomiting seemed to be the order of the day without exception. Was it the water, the altitude, the food, or, in my opinion, one of the wildest theories, the fault of Coca Cola? Allegedly, the company deliberately contaminates the tap water to increase sales of its bottled water... For lunch, I had tacos with mushrooms and rice water with cinnamon. Both agreed with me.

In the evening, we all sat together in blankets in the courtyard, like a big shared apartment. Then we went to two pubs and went to bed.

...

And under the category 'Do something every day that scares you': On Thursday, I drank blue Gatorade for the first time... absolutely not my thing!