The Road to San Quintin

Today was a great day!  First of all, I am beginning to learn about the fine art of trading and selling in Mexico.  Two small used TV's that we brought with us equaled two nights in a hotel and the labor cost to change our brake pads!  Que chido!  I'm definitely not in Los Angeles anymore. 

We headed out of Ensenada in early afternoon and starting making our way south down Highway 1, 167 Kilometers (104 miles) to San Quintin.  One of my joys on this trip is seeing the way Mexico is beginning to decorate for Christmas.  Here's a storefront I captured from the car on the drive out of town.

The road to San Quintin is a two-lane, well paved road that is quite curvy and winds through wine country and agricultural land, reminiscent of the central coast of California.  It alternates between mountains and valleys, and I was taken by the beauty of the cactus fields that glimmered in the afternoon sun.....

and the beauty of the mountains....

I am constantly entertained by the signs I find when I travel.  This one is good advice, I thought:

And this one touched my heart:

We arrived in San Quintin , checked into the Hotel Urupan (our favorite here), and had enough time before dark to have new brake pads put on the car.  Here's a picture of me helping by holding the light while our mechanic changed the pads.  I loved this experience, because it was such a simple, primitive set-up, yet totally effective.  It is in this simplicity, and in the genuine warmth and beauty of the people here, that I am beginning to breathe and relax.

Buenas noches,
Linda