It's been a week of being led around by our taste buds. Trying to tick off as many local Mexican dishes as we possibly can before entering a new town and missing out on the opportunity, the food scene really does change that quickly here, while soaking up the goodwill and friendliness of the locals. Sinaloa has blended into Nayarit and our preconceptions, no matter how much we had tried to blinker them, of the potential for scary, drug fuelled violence are nowhere to be seen which is enlightening to see and makes us truly realise that 99% of the world's population are kind modest people going about their daily business while curious of fresh faces showing up. A routine of early starts followed by long lazy days has seen us trundling over the mainland, experiencing small town living and the hidden gems found mere kilometres from the main highway. Peaceful, tranquil villages filled with humble, inquisitive people.

It was another standard day of early cycling to get as far as we could before it became impossible to do anything but steam vegetables in the shade and grill meat in the sun. On approaching this "heat limit" we stumbled upon the town of Tecuala (seemingly the older brother of the previous town we'd stayed in) and set to looking for a place to stay, the first option we found on the highway. It looked a little suspect and the dodginess was confirmed when asking about the price. "It's 140 pesos for 4 hours...". Well, we should have guessed from the subtle touches, like the curtains over the car parking spaces, that this was not our kind of establishment. So we cruised into the town proper and found some cheap digs where we were allowed check in early and use their washing machines. Ideal! Ruth was suffering and so asked me to pop to the shops to get some lunch. I did so with only limited success after forgetting my face mask and so being limited in the shops I could enter then struggling to find coffee that wasn't the instant stuff (my Spanish isn't that bad so I guess it's just not a thing round here). The town was a bit of an odd one where some people seemed really nice yet others had this aggressive look about them as they stared us down. So we weren't quite sure what to make of it, taking the odd looks as curiosity rather than anything else, but it certainly had some pretty spots around the church and main square. We chilled, wrote blogs and cooked some quesadillas outside the hotel room to set us up for bed.

We had decided to take a break and stick around for another day to rest a little and hydrate some more while making some calls back home; in part to wish a very happy birthday to my sister Rachel! We were tempted to be super lazy and stick around the hotel all day but decided it would be shameful of us, so we went into town for lunch so Ruth could have a look around as well. It was prawn fishing season so they were on sale in abundance along with the other fish that makes it into the almost fishing village town, being so close to the shore. We therefore went to a little "lonchería" that specialised in seafood and had some "tostadas" of prawn and fish ceviche. It was pretty darn tasty and the lady that ran the place gave us some nice chat as well. Although it sounded to me like there was a bit of local rivalry going on as she kept saying the town just a mile or two away was super dangerous and we should avoid it at all costs, while at the same time seemingly suggesting that we should take the shortcut through that same town to get back onto the highway... We figured she was a bit crackers and so got the hell out of there before she repeated herself even more. Retreating back to the hotel room to record the podcast and watch some trashy soaps on TV, I say "we" but I really mean a certain lovely lady who happens to be accompanying me on this trip.

5am, rise and shine! This was great for us so we could get on the road early but not so great for the lady at reception who I accidentally awoke from her slumber when trying to get our milk from the fridge, which was in the same room as the front desk. The poor love took it pretty well though and after a bite to eat we were cruising down the road back past the love motel and on towards Tepic where we hoped to arrive in a couple of days. The morning's riding was uneventful as we cycled on the toll road past open artificial (I think) lakes until we found ourselves resting in the shade under an overpass. We had the idea of camping at a petrol station but to get there it looked like we'd have to go back on ourselves a little, however we realised that there was a little dirt track that would get us on the road we were hiding under and direct to the station! So we went for it, taking on the deep puddles that presented themselves with grit and bravery, Ruth grinning and bearing the soaking she got when falling into on of them! This was the moment when, we presume at least because we'd discover the damage later, her pannier split right open on one side. Another thing on the "fix me" list... Anyway, the pleasant town of Zomatlán was just there and looked like the ideal place to wait out the heat. We pitched up in the square, with its now familiar looking family of objects (the bandstand, the benches, the shop, the trees...) but this time surprised by the addition of a shy little pony hitched to a tree. The place was sleepy and quiet and the only person we stumbled upon enough to talk to was a guy from Tepic, passing through selling honey. He was a lovely man who put our prejudices about Tepic, we'd been told it wasn't the safest of places, aside and told us his life story for free: how hard it is in the Mexican prison system, the countless jobs he'd had, how he'd kept out of the way of the cartels and, of course, how he'd love to sell us some honey! After buying a little something from each of the four shops in town for lunches, snacks, dinner and breakfast we departed to a friendly wave from a family living at the entrance and showed our faces at the planned petrol station. Here we were asked if we were going to be staying there before we had the chance to ask ourselves! We played away the late afternoon with a deck of cards until their faces faded into the volcanic night air and the fireflies twinkled over the lawn behind the main building.

The morning cycle was yet another uninteresting affair of petrol station hopping! The next one down the road had a bit more going on around, sitting as it was at the base on the huge hill that drives up into the city of Tepic it was a good trucker stop. We were desperate for some shade and a refreshing drink so we pulled off at the first place along here and set up camp for the day. We chilled and continued the card game saga we'd started the night before while have a few electrolite drinks straight from the fridge. This was the moment when we were first surprised by the generosity of the locals and truckers that frequented the place. A dude we had not even talked to at all just pitched up and dropped 50 pesos on our table without saying anything. We were a little shocked and, while thanking him, asked the obvious "why" question to which his reply was simply "for the drinks" before disappearing off onto the highway. It seemed a bit too generous given we hadn't even chatted before this point but we eventually figured he must have seen us cycling along earlier in the day and been impressed. Well with this there was nothing for it but to try some more prawns, and the smell emanating from some garlic smothered beasts the table next to us had ordered had already sealed the deal. The plate was huge and, once we'd finished, another randomer offered to buy us some more! We were more prepared this time and managed to chat to him a little and explain that we were already stuffed. What lovely people! It seemed nice enough to stick around until dark, tucking into a few bevvies while Mariachis plied their trade around and things got a little rowdy (although rather disturbingly everyone drove out of the place... how far some of them made it before crashing into a verge we can't tell you!). We found a taco stall a little further down for dinner and soaked up the stories from Carlos, the owner, a guy who it seemed had lived a rather full life travelling the world, smuggling drugs, getting imprisoned, sleeping with lots of beautiful women, earning plenty of money before spending it all. Given these stories we didn't mind so much when he refused to let us pay for the tacos, very nearly putting and end to a day of serious generosity! The final act was from the guys at the previous restaurant who let us pitch the tent there and get some rest for the rather daunting task of climbing a nearly 1 km high mountain the next day.

So it was, The Hill. What kept us going up its steep sides was the promise of cool mountain air being luxuriously breathed in by the folk of Tepic. The ascent wasn't as bad as suspected and we made it in good time after starting around 6 am and fuelling ourselves with banana bread from the restaurant we'd camped at. On the way we bumped into a couple who put things into perspective for us, they were Mexican, living between Nevada and Mexico, and were travelling by car to their home town having left Las Vegas only a couple of days before, only two days! We'd passed near Las Vegas about 6 months previously and it really seemed like a world away... Maybe they were pushing the car too hard though as they were only stopped there able to chat because the car was overheating. Anyhow, we made it to a campsite in the city and met the lovely Fidel who removed all our stress with his soothing conversation, showing us round the place with its plantain trees, lime tree and abundant shade! We'd heard from the honey seller a few days before that we should try the stuffed chillies and so lunch was an easy decision from a little takeaway place nearby. Chillies stuffed with cheese in a lovely stock, mmmm! This was turning into quite the culinary cycle tour, gastronomic tourism at its best. Lazing round for the rest of the day and getting an early sleep was just what the doctor ordered after such a strenuous climb and early start.

A day off! The first of two as we had ourselves a real weekend this week and continued following the scent trail laid out before us by Mexican food. This was the news of the day as our search for lunch led us strangely to a lady's front room! From here she sold home cooked tacos, enchiladas, tostadas, sopes and pozole with quite a good deal of success I might add given the number of hungry looking locals coming and going. We chatted to one nice elderly chap who told us all about his avocado plantation and how he would sell his harvest to Spain, small world. Most people were taking away but we sat in her living room and tucked into all she had to offer, a rather strange feeling I must add. Kind of like being at home yet having someone bring you food all the time, if only life could be more like that! After we took a stroll to help the food go down, only to top it off with some ice creams that we found at a street stall selling exotic flavours like "cajeta". Well, all those tasty treats just about finished us off for the day which we saw out with some beers in the campsite. A toast to Nayarit and its cuisine.

We ended the week with a single desire... We'd spent our entire time in Mexico so far seeing signs for "Menudo Domingo" which is some meal that's traditional to have on a Sunday. The problem is that we see them on every day of the week apart from Sunday! So today we decided to end this sad run and go hunt ourselves down a menudo. We took a combi, which is a minibus, into the centre of the city and had a little peek about the cathedral, where of course there was a service on which we sneaked into briefly, the surrounding streets and the square. It was all very pleasant and we found a place in the market where we could try out this speciality but, as naive foreigners, we thought we'd come back a bit later for lunch and instead had a beer and meandered the streets a little more. Whoops! By the time we got back to the market everything was closing down and we panicked past the people sweeping up their stalls to the place we had set our sights on previously. Sadly they were all about to head off home... But out the corner of our eyes we spotted another one right next door and they were still serving for a bit longer, get in! The lovely lady explained roughly what it was (pigs trotters and tripe in a stock, it was lovely but understandably not for everyone) and that you sprinkle over some mint, chilli powder, oregano and lime to flavour. Curious as to why the place was closing down we found out that it's eaten only for breakfast (although more of a brunch as apparently 12 o'clock still counts). So next time we know! We picked up some stuff for a salad from those venders lagging a little behind still putting away their fares and headed back to base camp for dinner and a rest, feeling this well rounded of a successful week of tour.