My plan had been to ride to Jamiltepec today and Pinotepa Nacional tomorrow. I thought
about just staying here in Rio Grande an extra day but I'm getting low on cash and I need
to get to a town with an ATM. So I'll take the bus today to Pinotepa. That will put me a
day ahead of schedule in case I need another rest day. It does mean I'll miss market day in
Jamiltepec.
I found the station of the Estrella Blanca bus lines and left about 10:00. The fare
was 42 pesos and the driver charged me an extra 38 pesos for the bike ($7.20 total). Traffic
seemed heavier than the last couple days and the road is narrow and gets curvy as you approach
Pinotepa.
From the Pinotepa bus station to the center of town is about 3 km. With no breakfast,
riding even that was a little tiring. I'm in the Ma. del Carmen hotel. I think it's the same
as the "Carmon" in the guidebook - at least it seems to be in about the right location. It's
a nice room with air conditioning for 225 pesos ($20). It has hot water and the shower
actually has a door!
I had lunch at "Burger Bonny" down on the plaza. I figure if my stomach can handle a
greasy burger and fries it's back to normal. There's an American-style supermarket on the
NE corner of the plaza. I found some peanut butter, which is rare in Mexico. Also I
bought some jam that appears to be peach but is labeled chabacano rather than
durazno. [I checked my big dictionary when I got home. Chabacano is the
Mexican word for "apricot". In Chile and Argentina "apricot" is damasco and in the
rest of the Spanish-speaking world it is albaricoque.]
I went to a telephone larga distancia shop and was finally able to get through to Monica. She told me to be careful and drink lots of liquids.
Dinner was chicken mole at the Fonda Toñita.