# Made It To Orizaba - Anybody Here?



## Howler (Apr 22, 2013)

Hi Gang!!

We set out last Tuesday, the 16th amid worries about the rain from the hurricane & gulf "disturbance". It had juist started to rain as we left Oklahoma. The rain didn't affect us much NOB, in fact it was dry in most areas south of US 40. Spent the night in San Antonio (Quinta Inn), then on to Laredo. We were a little slow to get up & on our way as we had arrived after midnight in SA. We got to Laredo in time for a good look-around (memories) and settled on dinner at a place called the "China Roll". I've got to tell you - it became one of my favorite food memories! They specialize in sushi & sashimi rolls, with a surprise dessert I'd never tasted before. The flavors & combinations are what made it such a great experience. I'd highly recommend it if you find yourself in Laredo.

After another good night's sleep in Laredo at La Quinta Inn (I'm starting to like those guys!), we were surprised at the damage & flooding that happened in Oklahoma & North Texas from the rain... in everywhere we had been. It seems that was more dangerous than what we worried about running into in Mexico! After breakfast, we headed to the border early anticipating an easy jump over the border for all points south, being in the middle of the week. However... I hadn't counted on the "morning rush" crowd we found there. After being thoroughly inspected at the crossing - instead of at the interior point (as at Brownsville), we proceeded on to the office to get our vehicle permit & insurance. ¡Híjole! That's where the line was!

As we calmly took our place just outside the door, we eventually made it inside. While standing there, after about 15 minutes, I decided to go buy insurance (where there was no line), while my wife would keep our place. When I tried to step over the flexible lane I lost my balance & fell, cracking my head a good one in the process. I don't think I lost consciousness, but I remember looking up at a big stone column thinking "Thank God I didn't hit that!", but apparently I did. People from everywhere jumped to help me up, dust me off & ask if I was okay. What can I say, but that I was soooooo embarrassed! I had been using a cane the VA gave me, but I forgot it in San Antonio while loading up the morning before. Sheeesh!

What I thought were hospital volunteers cleaned the cut on the back of my head & made sure that I didn't have a concussion, then sat me down in a wheel chair. With that, they conducted me the rest of the way through the whole process, direct to the front of each line! I really didn't mean for it to happen that way - nor would I recommend it as a tactic, but it sure saved us a LOT of time! The young man explained that he was from a youth organization of volunteers doing public services while studying. He insisted & did wheel me all the way out to the parking lot before letting me go - and then didn't want to accept the $10 we gave him!

From there, the trip went quite well, considering the rain that began to hit us hard south of Monterrey. There were parts where we could hardly see a car-length ahead of us - and worse if driving anywhere near the many semi-trucks on the road with us. We made it all the way to Queretaro, where by then things had dried out nicely. We stayed overnight in the City Line Hotel - highly recommend it, too! It's the only one we've found in Mexico, so far, that included breakfast in the morning - and the security is GREAT!!

From Queretaro, it was an easy trip to Orizaba, avoiding DF from the north through the countryside of Tlaxcala & Puebla. The only place we ran into serious traffic (besides getting through Monterrey after a wrong turn), was in Puebla... LOTS of construction going on there. I can't recall seeing a sign when we passed into the state of Veracruz, but there was no mistaking the lush greenery & the mountain passes as we drove on. We arrived in Orizaba around 6pm while there was still some daylight left. What my wife thought was the "Hotel Mansion" was actually the "Hotel Mision"... a 4-star place she found on Expedia. Uh, yeah - it has been worth 4 stars from everything we've seen! My wife negotiated a tariff with them of about $1000 pesos a night, before we found out that World Vision, the organization she would be working with - picked up the tab for our lodging for our whole time here!

The room is great with a very comfortable bed - and quiet, even though it overlooks the street below. It has a nice cafeteria, but as in most places like it - it also has a very expensive menu. At least they offer free café de oya everyday! We spent the rest of the week relaxing & exploring the area. My wife has said that it could easily be Orizaba instead of Taxco or Xalapa for our retirement. The place has sure improved its image & cleaned up nicely over the past 20 or 30 years since we were here before. Orizaba is now very beautiful, it has a lot of history - and a wonderful climate to rival others of the best places in Mexico. Also, it is unusually flat for a high-country place, although the streets can still be a jumble to figure out when trying to drive.

My wife's project got off to a great start, yesterday. She'll be really busy with that for the rest of the week while I continue to explore around & see what else there is to Orizaba. She has already asked me to see what I can find about available real estate here, so I'll be on the lookout! I was wondering if there are any Expats from the forum living here that might like to meet up...?? Give me a holler or shoot me an email & we'll try to set something up!

In the meantime, I'm off to find a dentist for a good deep cleaning at a very shallow price, compared to doing it in the US. My wife had a bad case of bronchitis before the trip & was still coughing a lot. Imagine this in the US... we found a doctor at 6pm with no waiting line for a consult of $25 pesos, who then walked with us to the farmacia next door to make sure we got the right medication at the best price!! Yeah, I hope to find the same kind of thing with a dentist here...! I also want to explore around the Iron Palace - Eiffel's other great work after the tower in Paris... yes, that Eiffel! He had designed a prefabricated building of iron plates that was purchased then sent to Orizaba to be assembled. It served as the government admin building for a long time, before they built another, bigger (and more ornate) one elsewhere. Now the palace is home to several museums & tourist info shops with a beautiful park surrounding it.

Take care, hope all is well with the rest of you!!


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

We don´t live in Orizaba although we considered it or Fortin de La Fores as home sites a few years ago and stayed in Fortin to explore the área at that time. An attractive small urban región and I would agree - more attractive as a retirement spot than densly crowded Taxco or Xalapa with its chip-chipi. However, as we got to know the Orizaba área better we realizd it was beset by substantial amounts of rain and fog because of its location at the foot of the escarpment climbing up to the 8,000 foot Puebla High Plateau. The Gulf coastal plain east of Orizaba and Cordoba delivers lots of moist air from the sea to the región which backs up against that escarpment so the weather can be a bit unsettled. We drive through there on our way from Lake Chapala to San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas several times a year and upon our first visit a few years ago were wowed by the beautiful weather whne we first arrived but upon numerous re.visits noted that recurring rain and fog with some chilly days in the winter. Still, it´s a nice town and a good place to retire but the area´s climate could never be compared to the splendid climate at 5,000 foot Lake Chapala. Now, San Cristóbal at 7,000 feet is subject to the same weather variances brought on by the Gulf of Mexico and can also get downright cold Winter or summer. Nice town.though.

I hope you enjoy your stay in Orizaba - a vey pleasant town in a spectacular setting. We´ll be heading to San Cristóbal in a few weeks from Lake Chapala and look forward to spending the night in Orizaba as usual with our mutts in a fun hotel there which we live and takes dogs.


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## Howler (Apr 22, 2013)

Hound Dog said:


> I hope you enjoy your stay in Orizaba - a very pleasant town in a spectacular setting. We´ll be heading to San Cristóbal in a few weeks from Lake Chapala and look forward to spending the night in Orizaba as usual with our mutts in a fun hotel there which we live and takes dogs.


My wife's project is going very well, she made the purchases for the materials today & they'll haul it all in by mule tomorrow to start construction. There should be lots of pictures on her Facebook page (Felisa Hilbert). I know what you mean about the weather here, referring to the fog, rain & cold... but one thing that wins out with my wife is how close it is to her family (in Martinez de la Torre) without actually being there - and close enough to the port without the heat & humidity. No decisions yet about where we'll live in the future, we want to take that one very slow as we go. Another thing about here in Orizaba is that it's also nice to be able to turn off the A/C at night & open the doors/windows. Got some chipi-chipi tonight, should be nice & fresh tomorrow.

Sorry we won't be here when you come through, but hopefully there will be more opportunities in the future. The hotel we are in (Hotel Mision) was named "Hotel Camino Real" last year. It seems a whole bunch of them underwent name changes since last year when some franchisors came to town. Take care & be safe - we'll be trying to do the same!


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## Azuledos (Jan 21, 2010)

We are just east of you in Fortín de las Flores, and perhaps there will be an opportunity to meet up before you leave. We do love Orizaba (which has a weather pattern matching that of Xalapa), but opted for the slightly warmer/drier climate a short distance downslope. The small town environment in Fortín suits us better, and being situated between Orizaba (25 min away, we usually take the old "libre" highway) and Córdoba (12 min) provides all the services/shopping one needs. There are a few other US expats here, and we have occasional get-togethers. 

PM us if you'll have time to drive over, and dine with us. We'll give you directions, phone number &email info.

Dan & Carmen


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