Travel Log with Cuddly Cacti

Today I am super excited to bring to you the first edition of a new travel series on the blog called Travel Log!  While I am in Italy traveling without a laptop, I have invited a few of my favorite blogging gals who also have been bitten by the wanderlust bug to share some of their favorite travel experiences with you guys!  So please welcome Dus of Cuddly Cacti, who will be sharing one of her beautiful trips to Mexico with you guys!

Hi everybody! I’m Dus, a life(style) blogger over at Cuddly Cacti, and owner and director of fair trade shop Mitla Moda. I’m passionate about eco-friendly living, social entrepreneurship, fair trade, community building, and cats. And coffee keeps me going.

What is a favorite or most interesting trip that you've taken and when did you go?

For my most interesting trip that I’ve taken, I’m actually going to combine two trips here, because on the first occasion, I actually got to visit both places at the same time, but then went back to each separately when two different friends later visited while I was living in Mexico for about a year. These two places are the regions of Oaxaca and Chiapas; it’s crazy to think how time has flown when I just looked down at the year and realized these trips were three years ago already! I’ve been really fortunate to travel more since, thanks to a crazy dosage of free standby flights (which means way more nights sleeping in airports than you’d imagine), but these trips still stand up as some of the most fun and interesting.

3.  What specific areas did you go to while there?

The first time, I went to both areas while a friend was visiting over the winter holidays, and that made me realize I had to go back to see more! We always traveled by overnight bus from Mexico City, so my basic game plan was usually the same - explore the main town the first, sleep-deprived day, and then head out to see the natural wonders the next day. In Oaxaca the must see spot is Hierve el Agua, and you can either take an all-day tour for probably about $25 that takes you to visit ruins, tour a micro mezcal factory, visit some small towns, and Hierve el Agua – which is the natural pools shown below. This is the best option if you’re pressed on time, but you won’t get to spend too much time at the pools. We also met some people in the hostel who took a taxi (for probably around the same price per person) to the pools in the morning and got picked up later, getting to spend most of the day relaxing in the serene spot.

In Chiapas, I recommend making San Cristobal de las Casas your home base for travel (skip Tuxtla) because that little town up in the hills is just gorgeous. Tour around town for a day, and then I highly recommend visiting Sumidero Canyon (seen below). If you have even more time, the options are limitless - you can take a little tour to visit surrounding towns and see gorgeous artisan work (make sure to purchase it from the artisans, not re-sellers, and at fair prices for all the time that goes into the work) or you can keep heading farther south to even more natural wondering in Mexico like the ruins in Palenque andAguas Azul (that link will take you to my post on the gorgeous places if you’d like to see more).

4.  For someone else thinking about traveling here, what were your top 2-3 favorite things that you did while there? 

In Oaxaca, my favorite things to do are exploring the small towns and natural wonders outside of the main city. I’d recommend booking a tour your first day there, and you’ll see all the hot spots, then you can see which, if any, you’d want to spend more time at the next day. And the same goes for in Chiapas, but Sumidero Canyon is definitely on the top of my list there!

5.  What do you like to wear while traveling? Any tips for looking cute but still being comfortable and mobile for a day of exploring?  If you have a favorite outfit or two that you wore while there I'd love to see!

As far as travel goes, I’m much more on the be super comfortable over super cute scale, but of course when you’re travelling you’re going to have tons of pictures too and don't want to dislike how you look in all of them. I like to pack light, so I’ll usually just wear leggings or really comfy, stetchy jeggings and tennis shoes on the bus, and then bring one more pair of pants, shorts, maybe one flowey skirt, a few shirts that’ll match with everything, sandals that would be fine getting drenched, and one extra pair of tennis shoes just in case, sometimes. I never accessorize much while travelling, so my “tips for looking cute while exploring” would I suppose be to wear a top you love, mine being some of my favorite ones handmade by artisans in Mexico, and then bottoms that match everything.

6.  Discovering new foods is one of my favorite parts about traveling! What was the best thing you ate while there?  Is this something that the area is known for?

Oh man, Southern Mexico is known for some seriously amazing food! But, it’s so hard for me to pass up a tacos al pastor, especially since we always happened across the most delicious ones for like 50 cents a pop. But I also remember some amazing pazole, and I do believe I tried a fried cricket, although it mostly just tasted like friend crunchiness, so I wouldn’t really recommend that. I highly recommend trying tons of different foods in Mexico, but probably not the street food unless you have a really tough stomach. Oh, but definitely do get the corn on a stick or cup from a street vendor and just pretend the vendor didn’t toss on a half cup of mayo because you’re on vacation.

7.  Lastly, What is your favorite memory from the trip?

It’s near impossible for me to pick just one favorite memory, but definitely travelling with some of my best friends made the trips a blast. I love when you can be all serious site seeing, but then spontaneously act like a goofball dancing around or something (being respectful of what you’re seeing and the surrounding cultures of course).

Thanks so much for having me Hannah and I can't wait to hear and see all about this amazing trip you're going on!!