Sunday, December 21, 2008

Chanukah 3rd Night – In Patzcuaro

We began our Road Trip yesterday morning. Husband and I had our expected tense verbal exchanges (always occurs when we are leaving for a trip) as we prepared for our 10 day journey but recovered once on the road. We had various map versions and books to provide all the clues to figure out the maze of roads.

I was talking with a man from Guadalajara last week about our trip and was telling him the road numbers (200, 15, etc.) for our planned route. He started laughing and kindly let me know that no Mexican would talk about road numbers – only the gringos! I did understand what he was saying. It is imperative to focus on names of cities and towns when navigating because road number signs are few and far between.

Husband and I were quite proud of ourselves. We got through Guadalajara and to Patzcuaro fairly well. The drive into Patzcuaro is just beautiful.

Our plan was to camp in Patzcuaro but Oldest Son is not feeling great and I had some work (needed internet) to do so we opted to stay at hotel in Patzcuaro. It is quaint, clean and only $81 USD. And warm! It is cold here.

We brought one of our Hanukkiah. What a gift – to kindle the lights of Chanukah and recite our 2 blessings in this lovely Colonial village nestled in the mountains and lakes of Mexico:

Barukh Atta Adonay Eloheynu Melekh Ha-olam Asher Kiddeshanu Be-mitsvotav Ve-tsivanu Lehadlik Ner Shel khanuka

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us by His commandments, and has commanded us to kindle the lights of Hanukkah.

Barukh Atta Adonay Eloheynu Melekh Ha-olam She-asa Nissim La-avoteynu Ba-yyamim Ha-hem Ba-zzman Ha-zze

Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the universe, who wrought miracles for our fathers in days of old, at this season.

6 comments:

Bob Mrotek said...

AM,
A note of caution. Take it easy with the kids on account of the altitude. The elevation of Pátzcuaro is 7100 feet and some of the other places on your itinerary are much higher. It takes two or three times much longer for your food to digest at these altitudes so don't eat too much at one sitting until they get used to it. Have a good time and please keep on posting. You have me on the edge of my seat :)

Theresa in Mèrida said...

One thing that I have learned about traveling in Mexico is to learn the names of towns surrounding your destination, even the ones which are beyond where you want to travel. We also keep a compass in our car (the poor person's GPS). Sometimes there is a exit marked with a place name that lies either beyond your destination or just before it, and if you are unaware you might get to explore parts of the country that you didn't intend to see that day.
regards,
Theresa

Nancy said...

Have a blast, Patzcuaro is one of my favorite places on earth. Their market is absolutely gorgeous.

But you're right, it can be cold!

Have fun.

Frankly Ronda said...

BM - thanks for the tip. So far so good but I was winded climbing today!

T - you said it - we have also learned that lesson well!

N - So far we also think it is great. We are very happy to have chosen to visit.

YayaOrchid said...

What a beautiful prayer!Shalom Adonai!

bordersaside said...

How exciting. I cant wait to hear of the whole tip. We are excited to go camping as soon as theres no baby in the belly. :)