Copper Canyon Trip Day One

In contemplating a new way to travel I signed on for a bus tour of Copper Canyon in Chihuahua, Mexico. The tour began in Phoenix, but I was picked up at the Airport Marriott less than two miles from where I live. My friend Karen Keating deposited me with my luggage, passport, phone and camera at 8:30 Saturday morning. The bus was late getting in from Phoenix, and all the people in the lobby were more than ready to get started. I met two sisters from snow country who were visiting family in Tucson. They told me that the majority of travelers were basket weavers from California and Oregon. The seat assignments were taped under the overhead compartments above our seats. I had the whole back, three whole seats to myself at first. Then I met Maria who had a brace on her ankle and needed to elevate her foot on our backpacks which we placed on the floor for that purpose. We also counted the number and frequency of the toilet patrons for fun. My only hope was that I didn't get motion sickness that far back. Oh well, I was close to the facilities.

Our first stop, of all things, was Xavier del Bac Mission, less than two miles from where I live, in the opposite direction. At least we're on the road to Nogales, our border crossing. As you can see from the picture, they are doing more renovating at the Mission.

On our way down to Nogales, we had to fill out a form for a Mexican visa. I already have one good for six months stamped inside my passport, but Trafalgar wanted me to do another one. The tour guide Carlos collected our forms and our passports and took them to the officials. Meanwhile, we had to get off the bus, retrieve our lugged and put it through the xray machines and then reboard the bus. Next stop was Santa Ana where we had a great lunch served quickly and efficiently. Because of the late start in the morning and the long border crossing, we were naturally running late. We got into Hermosillo, the capitol of the state of Sonora, between four and five. Below is a government building that seemed worthy of a picture. This was on the square which was busy with residents and vendors.

I liked the way the waning sun caught the bell tower of the church. Below is a picture of Mary's side altar. One of my fellow travelers carried two camera around his neck and took pictures of everyone and everything. He is preparing a DVD for those of us who want one.

We finally got to San Carlos, our first stop. If you remember my previous postings, I was here last October. It was dark when we got in, so all we had time for was a welcome drink and dinner. The hotel accommodations at MarinaTerra were quite beautiful and right on the marina.