Yesterday when I was out up near the El Pipila monument, I looked over the valley, and noticed that there was some sort of structure on the facing hill. Later when I was home, I looked it up on Google maps and found that it was called Mirador de Rayas. It is a scenic overlook near the Mina de Rayas. I wasn’t able to find much on the internet about the structure.
This morning I got up and putzed around until 10am, when I headed out to the overlook. I followed Google’s directions until I came to the padlocked gate. I think it was the the back gate of a carpark, which is only opened when needed. I guess it was open when the Google scouts were out. As I turned back to the main road, I noticed that the trees flanking the alley were orange trees, but the fruit was too high for me to get at, so I settled for a photo.
I ignored the path Google had set me on, and went back to main drag and made my way past to the lady selling Champurrado. We went through the same sort of exchange as before, where she tried to dissuade me from buying the drink because it was no longer hot. I walked away with my drink, vowing to myself, that one morning I would get out earlier and make her happy by buying a hot beverage.
By the time I was sitting in a tiny park around the corner from the roundabout where the Champurrado lady had her stand, drinking my drink, Google had given in and decided to let me continue on from where I was, without redirecting me back to the back entrance of the carpark. I think that the little park was next to the front entrance of the same carpark. I guess I should have walked in to see if I could find the gate, which had thwarted my progress.
The walk up from my apartment to the Mirador de Rayas was quite steep. I took my time, stopping often to take photos. There were quite a few times that the sidewalk was totally overgrown and I had to walk in the road. That wasn’t a problem, because here everyone walks in the road. I once mentioned that jaywalking in Cuenca was a fine art. Here it is just business as usual. When a car needs more room, they sound their horn lightly and everyone moves over.
Every angle I saw the Mirador de Rayas from, as I approached made me want to take photos. I took 79 photos today, but only the best will be added to this post.
When it was time to head down again, Google wanted me to retrace my steps, but I decided that I would rather go down the other side of the hill, ending up in Centro.
When I arrived in Centro I went to the Hidalgo Market in search of a public restroom (sanitario público). It looked very clean, but I wasn’t able to enter since I didn’t have 6 pesos in coins to open the automatic gate. I continued walking to the Mega supermarket. There the restroom had an attendant, who made change. It was also only 5 pesos, and provided a portion of toilet paper. I had some in my pocket, but that was saved for another day.
I did some shopping before heading home. Since I wasn’t carrying very much, I took the opportunity to stop and buy a cup of roasted corn, calesquites mayo, cheese, and a salsa with lots of lime juice for 20 pesos. (Recently learned that these are called esquites.) I sat on a nearby planter enjoying my treat before resuming my walk home. I stopped one more time to pick up a ball of my favorite cheese at the taqueria near my place.
To learn more about the great food of Mexico click here to go to a blog post that says it better than I can.
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