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The journey today took me in a very different direction. Passing through the town of Comitan the road hugged the Guatemalan border all the way to the first of the several Montebello Lakes. Before I had hardly left San Cristobal, however, I was delivered to a cave system called Grutas de Rancho Nueve. Caves don't do much for me these days. They have to be pretty spectacular to grab my attention. Seen one stalagmite, seen em all etc. These caves rated as pretty average, although the female guide's wimpy whining voice was a treat as she described every shape in the cave. "Aqui tenemos la forma de una rana" etc.
      After a fairly hefty ride I arrived at a minor mayan site. Chinkultic was worthy of a 15 minute meander, but those of us who had seen the grandeur of Palenque were spoilt.

The weather was misty, cloudy, at times even rainy and the Montebello lakes were not really seen at their best. Even in these conditions though it was clear that the lakes could take on very special colours. The maples growing around the Ensueno lake gave that Place a special atmosphere.

It was of course New Year's Eve. I walked into the main square at around 10pm and there were a reasonable amount of people around. Stalls were selling kinds of foods, but as the time
approached midnight, the numbers thinned out. I walked home and must have been on the streets of San Cristobal somewhere as the new year happened. Oh well, nothing was going to compare with last year anyway.

New Year's Eve in San Cristobal