cloud city, mexico

The drive from Melaque to San Miguel de Allende is a pleasant drive.

Well, at least a pleasant -- and long -- drive.  About eight hours or so.  That means an early start is always important.  I try to be out the gate by 6 AM.

That departure time works when I do not have a head cold and a snoot full of Nyquil.  As I had on Tuesday morning.  Instead, I headed out the gate at the more-civilized hour of 8:30 -- and with well-lit roads.

I have repeatedly sung the praises of Mexico's cuotas -- the well-designed roads where you are far more likely to see Audis and Ferraris than Beverly Hillbillies trucks.  Fortunately, most of the road between Melaque and San Miguel de Allende is toll road.  If not, I would probably have a three-day trip instead of an eight-hour one.

But, like everything in Mexico, the cuotas are not perfect -- in at least two ways.

The first is a matter of maintenance.  The rainy season has played havoc with the road surface.  There are series of potholes that look like no-man's land between the trenches in the First World War. 

You would think all of the drivers had been beset with Saint Vitus Dance in their attempt to save their suspensions.  I was concerned that the cuotas were going to become as bad as California's freeways.

The second concern involves the number of miles (mind you, these are miles for which I have already paid a toll) that are reduced to one lane to accomodate hundreds of road workers trying to repair problem number one above.

Even though traffic is reduced to the speed of the lowest common denominator, I am pleased that Mexico has decided not to suffer the Californication of their road system.  Money here is actually being spent to improve the common weal.

The countryside along the entire trip was as green as any Amazon jungle -- and sprinkled with spots of wild flowers.  I would have stopped to share the view with you.  But stopping on the cuota is always problemaric.

I did stop on the final leg of my drive.  On a little country road.  I could not resist what I was find so amazing about the highlands.  Clouds.  Especially in the afternoon when the sunlight accents their depth.

I used my new camera.  The image on my screen is stunning.  I can see the subtle shadows in each of the clouds. 

Something happens, though, when I upload the photograph to eBlogger.  Either the software is compressing the image or something is being stripped out.

Of course, it could be me.  I am just learning how to be comfortable with all of the new options on the camera.

We will just have to learn together.