Straight From The Burro's Mouth

Greetings everyone! This post very nearly got written while Emily and I were in Mexico, but the appeal of sitting on a sun-drenched patio with a book was far more appealing. We just returned yesterday from a wonderful five day trip around the colonial heartland.

Take every tiny little scrap of excitement I've expressed since our engagement a year ago and roll it into a big ball of sheer joy. Then multiply that by a thousand and you'll have some approximate idea of what I've been feeling since setting foot onto the hacienda.

Our taxi turned off the main road and finally stopped before the gates of a beautiful, rustic building that insistently yet quietly whispered of colonial times, wealthy silver barons and bandits fighting for independence. We were greeted by Ita, the owner's assistant. In a few minutes we had left our bags and travel weariness behind, strolling through the gorgeous property with margaritas in hand.

The layout is classic Mexico. To take advantage of the year-round gorgeous weather the center of the building is an open-air affair. In this case chairs and tables perfect for lounging and chatting on a warm afternoon are neatly tucked away in a carefully tended garden that seems a blend between cultivated elegance and the spontaneity of nature.

The outer edge of the building is of course where all the rooms are located. Each room has its own name and unique charm. The layout and decoration of each is different, but every one of them is fabulous. I won't try to describe any of them beyond that, but we took a fair number of pictures and will be sharing some of them soon!

The rest of the grounds are just as breathtaking as everything I've described thus far. There's two small swimming pools, though they're more suited to simply beating the heat than actual aquatic exercise, as well as a jacuzzi that is kept on round the clock. One of the rooms is devoted to a surprisingly complete gym. They have some standard machines, treadmills and bikes, along with weight machines for every exercise and muscle group I could think of. There's also a volleyball net and a large field next to the hacienda with soccer nets, though it's large enough to be used for any sport you can think of.

I've left one room in particular for the end, because that's going to segue into another topic altogether. The dining room is at once cozy and spacious, with a long table that promises many meals full of good food and good times. I think you can guess where I'm going next, but the food is absolutely spectacular. Most of the produce is grown on a garden at the hacienda, and it was quickly apparent that there's a whole lot of care going into every aspect of the meals.

During our time in Mexico we ate at some of the best restaurants in each town and none of them came close to equaling the food at the hacienda. Strolling through any town in the morning you're likely to catch the scent of fresh tortillas wafting through the air. If you've never had a fresh, homemade tortilla then I assure you, it's worth coming down for that alone. If you have, then I apologize for the spontaneous rumbles of hunger that this delicious foodstuff kindled.

Though we only had two meals at the hacienda, breakfast and dinner, both were the best meals we had during the whole trip. Dinner was chicken in a green mole sauce, accompanied by rice with strips of green peppers and fresh tortillas. This was preceded by a salad. To loosely quote Emily vis-a-vis the salad: "I don't think I've been this into a salad in a long time". Finally came a simple vanilla ice cream topped by some fresh fruits. The ice cream was obviously home made and completely shot down the claim that vanilla is a boring flavor.

Breakfast was huevos rancheros; eggs sunny side up atop a tortilla with a delicious red salsa, accompanied by an exceptionally fresh fruit salad. They also make fresh coffee every morning, imported from the Chiapas region of Mexico. Emily and I are both complete coffee lovers and their java was quite delicious, especially with the small creamers of steamed milk they provide.

In pretty much anything they do the hacienda excels at providing excellent service, with touches and considerations we'd never thought of. For example they have a secondary kitchen which is used primarily for cooking vegetarian/vegan meals as well as a set of cookware that has been kept completely kosher.