Army & Police swarm town for drug lords

Trip Start Feb 09, 2008

106

122

Trip End Dec 26, 2008

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Flag of Mexico Jerez De Garcia, Zacatecas, Mexico
Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Today I came to have a look around Jerez, a small colonial town out in the country, 57 kilometres west of Zacatecas. I decided to try and hitch as the main road that loops around, and above the outskirts of Zacatecas was only a five minute walk up a steep hill beyond Hotel Posada Sta Cecilia. Within five minutes of waiting while admiring the fine views over Zacatecas, a pleasant family pulled over in their people carrier to offer me a ride around town to the road that leads off to Jerez. The family consisted of three generations – Arturo and Norma, their daughter Eua, her husband Jose and their baby son, Jesus. Within a minute of them dropping me off, Arthur pulled over to offer me a ride the rest of the way. He was a jolly old chap and was a great laugh to practice my Spanish on. Remarkably he had 13 children and only one was a boy, and that was the final one! On arrival in to Jerez we were greeted by the army and police officers everywhere, many of which were wearing balaclavas. The car and Arthur were searched thoroughly and he was questioned on why he was here. Venturing further in to town I soon realised that what was happening was pretty serious as heavily armed police and army officers, all wearing balaclava's were on every other corner across town.

Accommodation

If you have the time then I highly recommend spending at least a night in Jerez so that you can really appreciate the town and its surroundings. I came across two excellent budget friendly guest houses with good rates, and wish now that I had spent longer here.

Hotel Posada Sta. Cecilia, Constitucion No. 4, Tel: 01 (494) 9452412. This centrally located budget hotel had a dozen or so great value rooms with cable TV. Its cheerful colourful interior, with nicely furnished rooms, welcoming staff and excellent rates make it worth spending a night. Their current rates were 200 + 250 Peso for 1 or 2 persons, but they immediately knocked 50 Peso off when I asked for a bit of discount. It’s impossible to pick a fault at these prices.

Hotel Del Santuario, Santuario No. 27, Tel: 01 (494) 9456194. This small hotel with only eight rooms was another excellent budget place to stay. The cheerful looking en-suite rooms are spacious, clean and comfortable and come with cable TV, plenty of furniture and reading lamps. Their current rates are 150, 200, 250 +300 Peso for 1, 2, 3 or 4 persons. Excellent value for money!