Xilitla de mis amores

by Andrés Benavides (Mexico)

I didn't expect to find Mexico

It had been just four days since we left home and so many things had happened. I was sitting having a cup of coffee with Don Rogelio, the owner of the cabin where we had stayed. I watched in wonder the orange colors of the sky as the sun appeared through the treetops; the thick white mist penetrated the thick jungle, the singing of the birds began to be present and the wind, that beautiful wind that gave its morning freshness gently caressed my face making me stay in the here and now, I didn’t need more, in that moment I had everything. We had arrived in Xilitla a day earlier, it took about five hours to get to that magical town located on the highest part of a hill where there was no cell phone signal, it was incredible and almost improbable to my mind that in that wooded landscape it was found a lush jungle that kept in it a garden that to understand its majesty will have to meet the architectural designer, Sir Edward James and his psychedelic vision that gave rise to the most famous garden of the Huasteca Potosina. The streets of this town were gray, the colors of the small adobe houses seemed tired, dull, people walking in the street in typical folkloric outfits, with needlework typical of the region, did their morning activities as if a handful of other tourists did not matter in the landscape of that town surrounded by high hills, full of stories of those who preceded them and left that piece of heaven to their delight. We arrived at Don Rogelio's business, who rented us a small cabin with just three beds, wishing for us to stay comfortable, and gave us directions to reach Sir Edward’s garden. We walked for about 20 minutes along a small path that took us to the top of a hill, we chatted and joked about the events of the trip and how many times I had been about to seriously injure myself after falling a few times; Let's say that ecotourism was a very new activity for me, a city boy and I had not foreseen the right clothes or shoes for such an overwhelming adventure. From the top of that hill a world of possibilities opened before my eyes, I could see the entire town, enclosed by a wall of tall and lush trees. Right there, seeing how the jungle could easily swallow the town of Xilitla without a trace, I witnessed my own insignificance on this planet, and I was shocked and amazed at the same time. Within the garden a small waterfall made its way, tourists making their way one by one to soak up the crystal-clear waters of this private waterfall that Sir Edward James had built to his delight. We made our way through the wandering stone constructions seemingly meaningless of something that seemed to be a house, they seemed dotted by that piece of jungle, but that by themselves formed the puzzle of the majestic and picturesque garden with those SPECTACULAR views that have twilight without likewise, with the thick jungle waiting to be penetrated by curious tourists, surrounded by insects that completed the panorama with their incessant sounds and the characteristic fruit "platano-tuna" that only grows in that region shaking our sense of taste. The days were long and hot, the nights were cold and wet, after touring the garden and taking the corresponding photos, we decided to go out and have a famous coffee from that place complemented by the perpetual mist in its streets and the melancholy of its houses gave the appearance of having gone back in time. We bought a bottle of alcohol at a local store, that night we got drunk, smoked, laughed, cried, and played children's games as if no one saw us, as if nothing mattered. And then sitting there feeling the night before I realized that it takes only a cup of coffee and good friends to transform a magical place in the happiest place in the world. I never expected to find so much happiness in that place.