From White Sands to Saguaro

I'll be honest, whenever the word Roswell comes to my mind, I directly connect it to aliens and UFOs, so I was expecting a whole lot more alien related places and decor all around. The street lights are adorned with cute alien eyes and McDonald's went all the way architecture wise with its spaceship structure. But I guess that I was hopeful that the whole place lived up to perpetuate the buzz around the 1947 'incident'.Sometimes things don't live up to your expectations, and I generally tend to underestimate them so I don't get disappointed. And after my disenchantment with Roswell, White Sands National Monument was wonderful and so much more than I could have ever imagined!Surrounded by mountains that peek from afar rise the fairest dunes. And where the soil is plane, the minerals of which it is composed of, with the casual help of some water pools, reflect all that is possible to see like if it was a flawless mirror.After some hanging around the desert, we went towards Tucson, Arizona. We arrived at sunset and we couldn't have chosen any better time. No wonder most of the car plates have purple mountains and cactuses with a sunset behind them. That purple is really there. We went to Saguaro National Park to watch the sun slowly hide behind those mountains and though there were some clouds in the sky, I can tell you that it was one of the most amazing things I've seen in my life. I was so sad that our photos taken with a phone could't even capture half of the mystic and all the vibrant colours graciously moving towards dusk.The day after we explored Saguaro National Park further more. All those huge cactuses that already made part of my imaginary turned real and there are thousands of them, everywhere, with their arms twirling around their bodies and rising up to the sky.We wanted to end our day in Salvation Mountain, in Southern California, so we decided to cross the border to Mexico. To do that we passed by the Sonoran Desert National Monument and through Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, which are really worth exploring.

After crossing the border easily to Sonoyta, Mexico, we started our 2 hour drive up to San Luis Rio Colorado. In the middle of the way we got a flat tire, the road was super hot and I was a tiny bit scared. There was desert all around us and we hadn't seen any gas station or business since we left Sonoyta. The weirdest thing was that on the week before I was talking to Luis about how to change a tire. We couldn't have been faster but this huge truck stopped (this is where I thought about all the ways I had to defend myself). Against all the horror movie scenes going through my mind that included an alone couple/woman in the middle of a deserted road, the guy was actually super nice. He took our flat tire to check if it was possible to fix it right there and as we were talking to him, a police car stopped as well. My hyperactive imagination resumed the thoughts I was having before, only this time with nasty cops. Ultimately, they only wanted to check if everything was ok and they were actually really nice.

In some parts of the way it was possible to see a wall dividing both countries which made me think about how difficult it must be for Mexican illegal immigrants to engage in such an adverse path. It took us some time to cross back to the US again, as there were tons of cars doing just the same. As always in this trip, everything went smoothly and after a tiny bit we drove from Arizona to California.<3

Extremadura Blossoms

Spain has always been my favourite destination for small holidays. For us it's easy to get there by car and because the language is different we start feeling we're really on holidays from the moment we cross the border. This time we decided to explore a province called Extremadura, which is located next to the border with Portugal and is on the north of Andalucia.All the secondary roads are filled with amazing views. There's so much nature blooming all around at this time of year! The meadows are bursting with vibrant colours and there are animals wandering around, living their blissful lives. For me, as you may have noticed, it's not enough to enjoy the view from afar, I have to feel it and embrace it as close as I can, I have to explore. I like to get off the main road, jump a few fences, if needed, and absorve all the textures and the colours, all the feelings.We visited Merida, which is a lovely city with a lot of history. It has so many roman buildings. My favourite is the roman theatre, with all the columns, the statues and that warm terracota tone that is ever so ancient and mystical. There's also an aqueduct, which is very impressive too. The city itself is lovely and there are so many little shops with all the typical Spanish products. All villages in Spain (just like in Portugal) have their own fort or castle, so there's always a fairytale vibe all around.Every time I've been in Spain, since I was a little baby (and my family went to Spain at least once a year) I've seen these billboards but never had I ever taken a photograph next to them! These bulls are deeply routed in the Spanish culture since the 1950's. The brand Osborne created them to advertise their 'Brandy de Jerez'. In 1994 the EU decided upon the removal of all alcoholic beverage advertisement on roadsides but the 14m tall bulls already belonged to Spain's landscape and to the aesthetic and culture of the country and hence they were turned into public domain.At the end of this day we headed towards Trujillo. I'm not able to express how much fulfilling  it is to be in Spain during springtime. The weather is so warm and the days are huge in this part of the country because they have Spain's timezone but they are in the western side of the country, so the sun sets super late (like at 9:30pm).Next stop: Trujillo. <3

Hola Mexico!

Luis and I arrived in Cancún at lunch time and as soon as we picked our super cheap rental car we started driving towards Valladolid. We didn't take the highway, so we got to drive in a road that connects little villages. And what a road! We drove through the wonderful jungle and met the people from those pueblos, who are actual Mayans (some of them don't even speak Spanish)! We saw the most amazing pink sunset and took our time absorbing little things that crossed our path, from Mexican red rump tarantulas to amazing birds (Altamira Oriole) and their hanging nests.Just a bit before we got to our destination we found a village that was having a traditional popular party. We had dinner there and that was where our gastronomic journey began! Maybe because we were the tallest ones over there, there were a few people staring at us. I guess they're not very used to having tourists attending their parties. Mayans speak really low, so apart from the music you could almost hear the crickets. Everybody was warm and beautiful in their own way. Women were all wearing the famous Yucatan traditional dresses, blouses and skirts embroidered with amazing flowers, which I'll forever be in love with.Valladolid is a very cute little city, with a stunning tiny park (La Mestiza) in front of the church (San Gervacio). It was late when we arrived so most things were already closed. We took a stroll around and came across Coqui Coqui's perfume shop and hat shop (they also have a restaurant and hotels, where I would stay if I go back, for sure). Both shops are amazingly decorated and made me want to live there without even knowing their products!The next morning we visited Chichen Itza, which is much more than a big Mayan pyramid! It is a city, a civilisation, there are so many thing to see and to feel over there. It's so mystical and beautiful. By the way, if you're thinking about buying cool souvenirs, don't miss the opportunity to bargain.One thing that amazes me is how Mexicans use colours! They are surely not afraid of them and they write on the walls to publicise a vast extent of things, from Coca-Cola to the next parties in town.  We stopped for lunch in a village and we ate a mix of amazing food! Don't be afraid with the looks of the Loncherias, the more simple and humble the place looks, the better the food will be. Everything is so fresh and tasty! Imagine how hysterical I got when I learnt that every meal should be accompanied by Agua de Jamaica or Horchata (two of my favourite beverages in the world).We decided to drive around and found these pink salines. They're the first pink ones I saw in real life, and what made them even more special were the flamingos in the lake nearby, in Dzemul. As if pink lakes and flamingos weren't enough, we were able to see some pretty cool pelicans in Progresso.After this we got in the car and started driving towards Merida, our next stop. <3