. . . . and apparently, I am. yup, we went horseback riding on some mountain trails above oaxaca.
as we said earlier, mary jane and bobby, who own the guest house where we are staying also own a horse ranch and, even though horseback riding was not on our bucket list, we added it and crossed it off all in one day. pretty darn efficient if you ask me. it was really quite remarkable. first, that we did it at all . . . second, it was a great time! the countryside is really beautiful, and third we enjoyed it so much . . . would definitely do it again.
rancho pitaya . . . named for the dragonfruit cacti that line the back (top) of the property . . . is only about 15 kms outside of the city, and here we see the more typical, north american thought of, mexican country way of life . . . the motto being ‘ if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it . . . and the farmers move their goods and themselves around on horse (or donkey) drawn carts. we saw a few of these on the last stretch of road coming onto the ranch property.
now, you are probably thinking the horse would take one look at me and say “no way buddy . . . you’re not climbing on my back” . . . you know, in horsey talk. but, it seemed I won her heart . . . with a handful of alfalfa, which is local grown and fresh cut from one of the many farms adjacent to the ranch. if I had known about this trick with girls I would have had way more fun in high school . . . who knew?
after quick instructions on getting on . . . apparently mounting on either side is ok, the more common left side mount doesn’t matter to all horses, especially if you’re not carrying swords on your belt . . . and a lesson on knowing how to start, turn and stop the horse, we were assigned our mounts. . . nellie on centurion, charlie on samba, and our riding mate, michael on mambo. i never did find the signal lights though. of course, everyone just climbed on their horses and their feet fit nicely into the stirrups . . . mine had to be lowered until we were almost out of room to drop them further. just another reminder of my failed dream to become a jockey. and, we were on our way.
looking out over the valley, blocking out the pueblo’s below, i couldn’t help but picture myself as john wayne’s companion in search of renegade indians. after i said so . . . everyone took a turn at spotting the likely apache lookout around the next bend in the trail.
we saw so many different types of cactus and other plants on our ride. . . it really does not do the countryside justice when you blast past in a car on the highway. one type of cactus, columnar, which grows straight and tall is often used as fence posts in the area because when you cut it down and replant it to make a fence it just takes root and happily grows in its new location. there is not much wildlife in the area . . . some coyotes and iguanas but bobby, our guide, says he has never seen a rattlesnake in the area.
after the ride we enjoyed some lemonade on the porch and viewed the newly constructed guest houses. all the structures on the property are constructed of brick, which are made right here on the ranch. they use horse manure, dirt and water to make the bricks and along with some decorative stones, also all from the property and hills around, the result is beautiful buildings, which stay cool in the summer heat, and blend in with the natural habitat.
when we got back to town we hung around the pool for the afternoon and then headed to the zocalo for supper. the mexicans are such festive and social people . . . there is always something going on at the park. tonight it was a display of thai kick boxing which drew a number of spectators to one end of the square as well as the usual eating, drinking and family fun. we went to a restaurant on the second floor of a corner building with large arched floor to ceiling window openings on two walls, giving a full view of the park below, where we enjoyed a delicious fish filet dinner. afterwards we strolled through the stalls selling jewellery and clothes . . . are you starting to get the feeling that I’m just here on a three week shopping trip?? . . . and ended the evening with a cappachino at one of our favorite cafes.
as we said earlier, mary jane and bobby, who own the guest house where we are staying also own a horse ranch and, even though horseback riding was not on our bucket list, we added it and crossed it off all in one day. pretty darn efficient if you ask me. it was really quite remarkable. first, that we did it at all . . . second, it was a great time! the countryside is really beautiful, and third we enjoyed it so much . . . would definitely do it again.
rancho pitaya . . . named for the dragonfruit cacti that line the back (top) of the property . . . is only about 15 kms outside of the city, and here we see the more typical, north american thought of, mexican country way of life . . . the motto being ‘ if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it . . . and the farmers move their goods and themselves around on horse (or donkey) drawn carts. we saw a few of these on the last stretch of road coming onto the ranch property.
now, you are probably thinking the horse would take one look at me and say “no way buddy . . . you’re not climbing on my back” . . . you know, in horsey talk. but, it seemed I won her heart . . . with a handful of alfalfa, which is local grown and fresh cut from one of the many farms adjacent to the ranch. if I had known about this trick with girls I would have had way more fun in high school . . . who knew?
after quick instructions on getting on . . . apparently mounting on either side is ok, the more common left side mount doesn’t matter to all horses, especially if you’re not carrying swords on your belt . . . and a lesson on knowing how to start, turn and stop the horse, we were assigned our mounts. . . nellie on centurion, charlie on samba, and our riding mate, michael on mambo. i never did find the signal lights though. of course, everyone just climbed on their horses and their feet fit nicely into the stirrups . . . mine had to be lowered until we were almost out of room to drop them further. just another reminder of my failed dream to become a jockey. and, we were on our way.
looking out over the valley, blocking out the pueblo’s below, i couldn’t help but picture myself as john wayne’s companion in search of renegade indians. after i said so . . . everyone took a turn at spotting the likely apache lookout around the next bend in the trail.
we saw so many different types of cactus and other plants on our ride. . . it really does not do the countryside justice when you blast past in a car on the highway. one type of cactus, columnar, which grows straight and tall is often used as fence posts in the area because when you cut it down and replant it to make a fence it just takes root and happily grows in its new location. there is not much wildlife in the area . . . some coyotes and iguanas but bobby, our guide, says he has never seen a rattlesnake in the area.
after the ride we enjoyed some lemonade on the porch and viewed the newly constructed guest houses. all the structures on the property are constructed of brick, which are made right here on the ranch. they use horse manure, dirt and water to make the bricks and along with some decorative stones, also all from the property and hills around, the result is beautiful buildings, which stay cool in the summer heat, and blend in with the natural habitat.
when we got back to town we hung around the pool for the afternoon and then headed to the zocalo for supper. the mexicans are such festive and social people . . . there is always something going on at the park. tonight it was a display of thai kick boxing which drew a number of spectators to one end of the square as well as the usual eating, drinking and family fun. we went to a restaurant on the second floor of a corner building with large arched floor to ceiling window openings on two walls, giving a full view of the park below, where we enjoyed a delicious fish filet dinner. afterwards we strolled through the stalls selling jewellery and clothes . . . are you starting to get the feeling that I’m just here on a three week shopping trip?? . . . and ended the evening with a cappachino at one of our favorite cafes.
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