Trip to Mexico
Eye of the Storm
Robbis Storm

Robbis and Miriam Storm recently returned from a trip to Real de Catorce, Mexico. Here, they stand inside one of the old mining buildings. Note how well ordinary buildings were constructed, said Storm. "I would have guessed this was an important church, but I would have been wrong."

Real de Catorce, Mexico -- The road stops here.

That's right -- When you step off the bus at the end of the one-way tunnel, you're literally at the end. To travel further, you have no choice but to find your own way or follow an ancient mule trail. The town sits 9,000 feet above sea level. Beyond the outskirts of town are the Sierra Madres, rough mountains that climb well above 10,000 feet.

If you're a history buff, when you drive the last half hour from Matehuala, you feel like you've traveled back across time.

These last bumpy 30 kilometers are paved with rocks set in by hand -- much like the famous cobblestone Appian Way, built by the Romans 300 years before Christ.

In fact, some of the locals will tell you that time stopped here 100 years ago. That's not really true, of course, but it was around 1910 when the silver mines closed.

A guide looks down on Real de Catorce from about 9,500 feet.

A century ago, this was one of the richest cities in the world. Real de Catorce sits on top of what was then the second largest silver mine in Mexico. It was a metropolis back then; 50,000 people called it home.

Now, the population is closer to 1,000. Most of this place is a ghost town filled with buildings that once were beautiful, but are now slowly decaying and falling down.

If this place is so isolated, why would you want to come here? What would entice you to make such an arduous journey?

For some it's the peace and quiet. When I visit a new city, I sometimes sit and listen to what I call the "music of the street."

Take the traffic noises. In a modern metropolis like New York you hear motors, brakes, horns, police whistles, and the occasional siren of an emergency vehicle. Here things are a bit different. Sure, your ears may pick up the occasional internal combustion engine, but more often than not, the most obvious traffic noise is the "clop" of unshod horses' hooves on the cobblestones.

Here are a few other sounds Miriam and I heard one morning over coffee: Chirps and chatter of cliff swallows. The church bell (every 15 minutes). Braying burros. Barking dogs. Laughing children. The "thunk" of a kicked soccer ball echoing down the narrow streets. Crowing roosters.

Guitar music of a blind street musician. Chanted prayers of pilgrims in the church. The rhythmic clink of metal on rock as workers repaired a cobblestone path.

Others come for the climate. We were here in the middle of August. Afternoon highs were in the low 70s and nighttime temperatures dropped into the 40s.

A very pleasant respite from the high humidity and searing heat of Central Texas.

Then there's the scenery.

The quality of sunlight here in high clear air is very different from that of lower altitudes. The light, the mountains, and the many picturesque ruins have drawn a number of movie directors. If you've watched such films as "Las Bandidas," "The Mexican," or the Humphrey Bogart classic, "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre," you're already familiar with this area.

And I always love the food -- almost anywhere I go in Mexico.

What I didn't realize about Real de Catorce is that many of the restaurants here are owned by Europeans. We ate German, Swiss, and Italian food as well as such local favorites as enchiladas potosinos (enchiladas in the style of San Luis Potosi) and huevos canastas (eggs fried in toast, served with spicy salsa.)

The food was tasty, to be sure, but quite frankly, we liked the coffee even better. Our favorite cafe was Esquina Chata, an Italianowned coffee house that served very good espresso along with pastel de abuela (Grandmother Cake) which they make with raisins, pinenuts and heavy cream in a pastry crust.

Real de Catorce is also a center for religious pilgrimages.

Every year several thousand Christians come here from all over Mexico to visit the Parish of the Immaculate Conception so they can offer prayers to the miraculous Saint Francis of Assisi, patron of the town.

The other pilgrims are Huichol Indians who make an annual 400- kilometer trek on foot to worship their traditional gods at the most sacred religious site -- the Cerro Quemado, where legend has it Tatewar í (Grandfather Fire) was born.

The Huicholes also search the desert for peyote cactus, which they consider their spiritual food.

I'll leave the vision-inducing peyote to others, but I know this is a town to which Miriam and I will probably return.

We were only here for three days. There's much more to see and learn. We'll be back.

A former Lampasan, Robbis Storm is a world traveler and restaurateur. He can be contacted via e-mail at RStorm453@aol.com.