Travel — Mexico

Not Our Lucky Day: Chignahuapan — Tlaxcala Zocalo

Day 3

As Christmas approached, the night sky was filled with the fireworks. Luckily, I’m not a light sleeper, so the noise didn’t bother me.

As my alarm rang, I woke up to the dark morning and frigid cold at 6 a.m.

Last night, we already had a plan for today: exploring Chignahuapan, Puebla State. Which takes one hour from Tlaxcala.

Before leaving, we head to the market to have breakfast. This market is closed, but some food kiosks are open.

We enter the kiosk with the sign Quesadillas and make an order.

It’s a family business with three tables with three or four chairs in each one. The father makes the masa (white ground corn dough), then puts the masa over the comal (a flat round griddle), and the daughter stirs the pot while the wife prepares our drink.

I bite into my quesadilla stuffed with Tinga de Pollo and stretchy Oaxaca cheese.

We’re gorged. Time to leave. My friend has been driving since our first-day trip, so I offered to drive this time.

“It’ll be my first time driving with left-hand steering,” I chuckle.

In Indonesia, we’re driving with right-hand steering.

My friend says, “Don’t worry, take it slow,” and I do my best.

And so, I settle into the driver’s seat, looking for the turn signal lever, which is located to the left of the steering wheel.

It feels like my first time learning to drive. Excited but nervous. Not taking much time, I feel confident.

Our first stop is Laguna Almoloya. The lake, with its clear water, is a perfect place to picnic and hang out. There are many pools with fish in them, and visitors can feed the fish. Fish food can be bought at the entrance for 10 pesos.

But what attracts us is a pool with alojote (axolotl). For those who don’t know, ajolote is a kind of salamander with a flat head, frilly gills, small eyes, a big smiley mouth, and long, tapering tails. They have various colors, but we only spot the black ones.

Although we’re ready to leave the lake, the lake seems not to be willing for us to go. Back at the car, we face a problem. The car’s starter button doesn’t work.

I start to panic, thinking I’ve done something wrong. My friend tried using the remote, and it works, but he still looks worried. We decide to go to the service center.

At the service center, the car is turned in for inspection. Yet, anxieties still persist. Until the reassuring news arrives — the car needs a mere software update, blah, blah, blah. I don’t get it, but at least I know it isn’t my fault. And my friend looks at ease.

The unexpected situation distracts us from our hunger, and the bright sky darkens.

We opt to not continue with our original plan: after going to the lake, we head to the Chignahuapan Zocalo.

The car is totally fine; things work well. We’re heading to the Tlaxcala Centro, which is adorned with beautiful lights and a grand Christmas tree.

It’s been a long day, with our stomachs scowling. We stop at a churro stall. And enjoy the Nutella-stuffed churros while strolling around the centro.

Thank you for reading this story ❤

See you tomorrow.