Barrio San Pedro, Part One

                         Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico. The church in Barrio San Pedro. Photo by author

In this continuing monthly series on neighborhoods of Tepoztlán, I feature one of my favorites, Barrio San Pedro. I lived there from 2007-2008, and enjoyed the relative coolness and proximity to the national forest and trails, while at the same time, only a half hour downhill walk to the center of Tepoztlán. And it was a comparatively quiet neighborhood.

This article will be in two parts. Part One covers mostly residential areas, while part two is more mountain trail oriented.

Here is a general map of Tepoztlán with San Perdo circled to show its location northwest of the town center (taken from this article):

                                                 Map of Tepoztlán shwoing loctaion of Barrio San Pedro.

In this article I have gathered photos and videos in San Pedro by first taking a combi (public transportation) from the center of Tepoztlán to Café Montaña at the outskirts of Barrio San Pedro, and then walking downhill (east), stopping off to visit the homes of a couple of friends. Here is a numbered map so that you can refer to the locations where the images were taken:

         Map of Barrio San Pedro with numbers corresponding to where I obtained images as shown below.

Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico. Left: The combi (vans subsidized for public transportation) station on Av Galena in the town center. Right: The combi I took to San Pedro. It ends in the small outlying village of Ocotes, past San Pedro. This is not numbered on the map, as it is located off of the bottom right of the map, on Av Galena.

The trip uphill goes up Av Galeana and then snakes its way to the highway. After about fifteen minutes of riding on the combi, I got off at the outskirts of San Pedro at Café Montaña.

1. Café Montaña

                                                         Colorful signs outside the Café tell what's going on.

                                                                                             Café entrance

 It's a small café, but there seems to be plenty of seating:

                                                                                Cafe Montaña seating       

2. Downhill from the Café                                      

Leaving the Café and heading back down the highway, one sees interesting homes and other sights.

Top left: a curve in the road; top right: construction; bottom left: a nice home just off the road; bottom right: the road continues straight down

Along this part of the road I saw some fury guardians.

                                                          Left: Coffee tree with beans at the side of the road;                                                                                                            right: road entering another neighborhood, Cedros (Cedars)

3. Flat Area

The next section of about a hundred yards is flat before the road goes downhill again. Here we find elegant-looking entrances to homes and a small grocery store.

                                                                       A small grocery (aborrotes) store

Location of Tepoztlán's monthly mercado trueque (barter market) where only trading is allowed, no cash or credit card purchases.

                               Elegant entrances adorn this flat section of the highway in Barrio San Pedro.

4. Down to the Callejón (Alley)

Now we are on the way to the long alley entering a friend's home.

        Left: I think these domes are cisterns containing water; right: a typical home along the highway

                                                More upscale homes-- left: a ranch-style; right: a nice gate

5. Callejón (Alley) to My Friend's Home

Safaya is a friend originally from Canada who rents a home across from the owner's house. Both have lovely gardens and are set way back from the noise of the main road.

                                 Long alley with friend's home at end--way back from the highway noises

                                                                     Dense vegetation along the alleyway

Entrances along the alleyway--left: the first one, on the right side of the alley; middle: second, on the left;                                                                         right: straight ahead to my friend's home

6. Outside Safaya's Home

This is a very homey yet beautiful bungaló surrounded by a variety of lovely plants.

                                                  The terrace wall and beyond with a large variety of plants

                                                      The garden with bushes, trees, herbs, and vegetables

7. Out the Callejón and Down the Highway

                                             The callejón reminds me of an old country road in New England.

                                                                  The highway curves further downhill

                                                          More beautiful gates along this section of the road

                                          Compare the castle back from the road with this more humble one

8. Calle Esperanza to Casa de La Vida Retreat Center

                                                       Calle Esperanza: street sign at entry and long view

                                                         Part of the street is lined with flowering shrubs

                                  Left: house with wall; middle: unfinished house; right: downward grade

                                                          Mt. Chalchi in the background, to the southwest.

9. Casa de la Vida

I met Anosha in 2007 when I was living near her in San Pedro and we've been friends since then with a lot of common interests. She got her own place in San Pedro to set up a retreat for cleansing. She borrowed on past experiences with design to create an incredibly beautiful center consisting of a large building and extensive property. Here is a video slide show I made, and here is her website.

Since I've provided documentation above, I'll not go into detail here, but will provide two photos I took on this expedition to illustrate the unique light coming through her doorways inside the house.

10. From Anosha's Place to the Church

The church is one block downhill from Casa de la Vida, Anosha's healing center. Next to it is a very small tienda (store) that sells basic aborrotes (groceries). 

The strawberry-colored wall on the left is part of Casa de La Vida, and the church is one block down

                                                                                  The San Pedro Church

                                                                          A little store next to the church