Mezcala Island

Thursday, February 12

Birds, fishing boats, a beautiful sunrise over the lake, a large deserted play ground, tennis courts, ball fields, old patios, party halls and vacation homes. That’s what I see as I take my morning walk. At one time, when this place was built, it must have seemed like paradise. Then the lake deteriorated and there were less recreation possibilities. The grounds and buildings need a lot of work.
Signs of Mexican tourists coming here are still here. But they only come during the Christmas and Easter week and sometimes on a long weekend. Now all we see is a few North Americans.

Today we’re heading for Mezcala Island, where the ruins of an old prison from the early 1800s can be seen.
It’s a good hour drive from Jocotepec, through the village of Ajijic and Chapala.
There is so much to see and we definitely want to spend more time checking things out next week. Once we are past Chapala there is less civilization and more country. Here and there is a development in the mountains with some beautiful homes.
The town of Mezcala is not much. It does not even have a service station. Just when Ramiro realizes that he’s low on gas.We inquire and are told that there is a gas station right by the Coca Cola sign. We see the Coca sign, but no gas station.
We ask again and are assured again, that this is where you buy gas. The only thing is that you buy it in a old water or juice container and fill your own tank with it. We’ll see how long the car runs on this fluid.
We find the boat lounge and inquire about the ride tot he island. “200 Pesos an 20 minute ride, 80 minutes on the island and back again”. That sounds good to us.
Once we reach the island we are being “checked in” by the police. They guard the island and do nothing but sit around.

Mezcala Island is a few kilometers southeast of Mezcala on the northern shore of Lake Chapala. It is also known as El Presidio. From 1812-1816, a small band of rebels held off the Spanish army and navy against overwhelming odds. Tired of the humiliation the Spanish finally negotiated a peaceful surrender with the insurgents. The island then became a Spanish prison for many years.

It's rumored that there existed indigenous structures and hieroglyphics on the island before the fortifications were built but all traces disappeared with the construction. There are tours to the island from both Mezcala and Chapala-


They are in the process of restoring some of the buildings and there are dozens of workers on the island. All young men who do very hard work. They have to carry bags of sand by hand to the top of the island where it is being mixed with cement.
As we wonder around freely, we take pictures of all the structures. Later I see a sign that it is forbidden to take pictures. I put my camera away and exchange it for my GPS. Yes, there is a cache on the island. We have to walk all the way to the south end and find it after turning over several rocks. We’re only the second finder.
It’s way past our lunch time as we’re back on the main land again and leave the boat. We decide to drive to Chapala, where we are somewhat familiar and have lunch at the lake side in the sun.
The Sangria tastes excellent. Unfortunately the shrimp stuffed peppers we order are battered and deep fried. We feed the batter to the birds who seem to like it.
Before we drive back we walk along the market, where we see anything from dollar store trinkets to tequila drinks and artifacts. We stop at Soriana for some more groceries. In Jocotepec there are only small stores and it is a good idea to stock up on some Supermarket items while we can.
Mom is pooped and spends the rest of the evening on the couch. We enjoy a quiet evening and treat ourselves to walnut ice cream and Dutch Advocaat (egg liqueur) and a movie.
We better take it easy tomorrow or Mom will need a vacation when she returns to Holland.