Ixtlan de Juarez — Day Trip For Trout and then some

On a Sunday (April 13th, 2008) we traveled by bus with travel author Geri Anderson to Ixtlan de Juarez to eat trout.  Very close to Ixtlan (and on the way) we passed the village of San Pedro Guelatao where Benito Juarez was born and tended sheep before ”fleeing” to Oaxaca, Oaxaca.  You can read a nice article about San Pedro Guelatao at – 

http://ayni-oaxaca.blogspot.com/2008/01/ixtlan-de-juarez.html

 

We walked the last few blocks into the community of Ixtlan de Juarez and viewed the church of Saint Thomas.  In the preceding cited blog, you can read the following description of the building –

 

“Juarez had been baptized in Ixtlan’s parish church, the Templo de Santo Tomas Apostol. Its construction had begun around 1640, and its date of completion 1721 was inscribed on an arch inside the main door” — Rinda Payne.

 

Both the inside and outside of the building were very impressive.  Here are a couple of photos.

 

Side View of Temple of Thomas, the Apostle

 

The Clock Tower

The Front Gate to the Church Court Yard

From the Front Gate of the church yard, we walked a short distance into the community to visit the tourist center/displays and find a taxi to take us to the trout farm.  Near the taxi stand a lot of chickens were getting ready for their “last supper!”  See next photo.  

Chicken Dinner Anyone?

 We found our taxi, but one must be clear to the driver that you are interested in going to the trout farm and not the memorial to the Zapotec warriors who defeated the invading Aztecs located far above the community high on the mountains.  See next two photos.

View of Memorial to Warriors

Close Up of Defending Warriors Memorial

After some confusion, we communicated to the driver that we wanted to go to the trout farm which meant a short but difficult trip up a steep road.  Next photo.

The Steep Road to the Trout Farm

We made it by taxi but had to walk up the last 100 feet or so because the taxi filled with “mas grande” gringos couldn’t pull up the last hill.  We used our brief stop just short of the restaurant to look at some animals that were probably for children to enjoy.  See next photo.

Geri Anderson Being Eyeballed

We made it to the restaurant under our own foot power and had a great meal of farm raised trout.  Naturally, we were their only customers, but the “staff” appeared delighted to be our hosts.  Even with the rain, we had a pretty nice view of the community below.  See next photos.

MsSardo Contemplates Eating Fish Heads

The View From the Restaurant; New College Campus Below

While the day was not over because the ride back in the back of a pickup was yet to come, I shall leave you with a photo of the owner who “magically” showed up to take us back to town AND a video of fish ponds and a mass inside of the temple of James, the apostle.  Enjoy.

Owner Appears in Mud Below to Transport Us

Geri Anderson emailed me yesterday and said she has new plans to take many more people to the trout farm soon.  It looks like she has arranged for the handsome owner to be available to answer questions and perhaps tell the story about the battle against the Aztecs in 1486.  You can read “the rest of the story” by going to the following blog –

http://porfinoaxaca.blogspot.com/2007/12/journey-to-ixtlan.html

And now you know why the restaurant is called “Cauchirindoo” and that Geri isn’t the only person who thinks the owner is one “HANDSOME” senor ;-0

Silversard, Genuine-Tourist, reporting from Baraboo, WI, USA