Warning: objects may appear closer than they really are....
And so it was with climbing El Picacho in Teotitland del Valle on May 3, el Día de la Santa Cruz, the Day of the Holy Cross. El Picacho is both iconic and sacred, so it was an honor to follow in the footsteps of so many before us as we did our best to celebrate this tradition.
No matter what anyone says, it is a pretty good trek up to the top. It is steep in spots, depending on which path you follow, and the altitude makes it tougher... or maybe that is just me. There is also a race up the mountain and I think we saw the winner as he blazed past us near the top. He was flying.
It was hot and we were all sweating, but then, as we got higher, the cool winds engulfed us. It took about an hour and a half to reach the top.
Upon making it all the way up, we were greeted by people from the village who offered us horchata, agua de jamaica and tamales.
The mood was friendly and celebratory. A few cohetes, rockets with a loud boom.
The food and drink are a part of these folk's cargo, or community work and was carried up on burros.
There was a simple altar at the very top.
As we ate and drank, basked in the bright sun, we were surrounded by happy people.
There was much laughter in the air as the winds whipped across expansive vistas.
We recovered from the trek up and headed down, but not before drinking an incredibly cold beer that some young guys had carried up as a part of a little feast. They are living in the US now, but had returned to their village and this was just a part of doing it right. Tradition!
We heard that two of the crosses had been hit by lightning very recently. According to legend, the three crosses represent the ones found in Jerusalem. El Día de la Santa Cruz is also the day of the Albañiles (masons, construction workers) and little crosses appear on the roofs of all the new projects before the workers all go off and party. They know how to do it right, as well. Tradition!
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