The End

Our time in Morelia and Mexico is at an end. We mapped out route from Morelia to Laredo, Texas with yahoo maps and the drive took 12 hours. The toll highways (43, 45, 57) were great, particularly the 43 from Morelia to Salamanca. Thanks to everyone who visited our blog. Hope it was useful. Hasta luego! If you're looking for information regarding Morelia, check out the yahoo group Morelia Connect.

NaCo

NaCo (definition: Mexican slang for tacky) is a great clothing company. Their graphics are humorous to me and play on Mexican stereotypes. Estar Guars, roof dogs, ice cream guy, guey etc. Their main store is in DF in the barrio Condesa on Yautepec, just east of the main drag.

Grutas Tziranda

The Grutas Tziranda are a really interesting site. We were at the Monarch butterfly sanctuary and decided to stop by the caves on the way back to Morelia. They are located just south of Ciudad Hidalgo off Highway 15. If you are heading south, you will have to make a right onto a dirt road and follow that for several minutes. The caves were formed from thousands of years of runoff water and are primarily limestone. The composition varies a lot within the cave: fossilized roots, smooth limestone pearls and other strange looking formations. A guided tour takes about 20 minutes. It's a nice natural picnic site as well.

Costco Outlets

Ever wonder what happens to Costco items that are: a) discontinued, b) opened packaging, or c) damaged packaging. It appears they sell off these items to various vendors. These Costco "outlets" carry everything from appliances, food, furniture, clothing and electronics. There are two outlets that I know of. One is on Abasolo near Muniz and the other is on 20 de Noviembre just west of the Tu Plaza. The Abasolo location carries more clothing than 20 de Noviembre, although I've seen complete skateboards and golf balls for super cheap at the latter. Just remember that the inventory changes from day to day. Once it's gone, it's pretty much gone for good so drop in often to get the deals!

Skateboard Park

Morelia is about the farthest thing away from a good city for skating. You'd be pretty hard pressed to find smooth ground let alone good spots anywhere in the city. Surprisingly, the city of Morelia or some other government branch has allocated space for a skate park in Bosque Cuauhtemoc. Unfortunately, it's far from good. Pretty much all the obstacles are made of slippery plastic (similar to hockey rink boards but thicker). There are holes in the majority of the ramps, ledges that look like they ran out of building material, cracks all over the cement ground, nails and screws sticking out of everything. Skating, in general, is a difficult activity to do but it's even tougher when you have these other hazards to worry about. I give this park a rating of 1/10.

Tree

This poor tree in DF near the Zocalo is covered in gum.

Body Shop/Car Repair

At the Auto Lavado car wash on Av Ventura Puente 1543 (ph: 324-6443) is a great body shop. Our car had scratches and dents on the back bumper, a bit of a crunch above the left rear wheel well and some jackasses keyed half the length of our car on both sides. Mach Paint fixed everything. Pacheco was our contact there and he was very fast and did great work. The prices was excellent... half of what the Ford dealership on Madero quoted me. I highly recommend.