Yolanda’s bit
The Ferrocarril joins Chihuahua (south of Texas) with the Pacific ocean. Originally it started being an ordinary train service but as soon as it started to be frequented by gringos, not as a means of transport but for pleasure, locals realized what a gold mine they had stepped on and became a major touristy attraction. The magnificent sights you come across during the journey deserve it.

A twelve hour journey that traverses the Barrranca del Cobre (Copper Canyon), four times larger than Arizona's Grand Canyon. It is breathtaking if not very fast. It gives you the feeling of crossing the dangerous Canyon on an eighteen century's vapor train, and you keep watching out for feathered Indians.

We got to Chihuahua three hours later than expected. We were delayed (we had to stop and wait on the rails) by an accident that took place the day before in which a train same as ours went off the rails. One death: the driver. At some point of the traject, we were three trains on two rails so that took some backtracking and waiting too. We were only allowed fifteen minutes stop when we got to the top of the canyon to get out of the train and admire the sights. You had to make the choice between looking and sighing or grabbing something to eat from the local stalls set up at this exact spot waiting for hungry tourists to come off the train. We did both in a hurry under the screams of the train conductor who was already prodding us to get on the bus after only ten minutes out.

Chihuahua. 9pm. We shared a cab with two girls and were dropped at Hotel San Juan in the middle of the night. There was a row of guys conspicuously waiting outside this red neon lighted hotel that looked like a whorehouse. At the reception a local regular drunkard was trying to give us (specially to the gringuito Miles) a hard time while checking in. After beers spilled and making use of my not-so-friendly Spanish, we were able to disappear to our room.

There was a Pancho Villa Museum which we visited and learned a bit about La Revolucion in Mexico and there were also lots of cowboy boots shops. Ummmh, tempting.
At 1445m we were starting to feel the altitude.