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times, which must have once been very beautiful, rose almost ghostlike in the
direction of an ascending slope at the side of the village square. Now I could
also see women looking out of their huts, venturing to examine the strangers.
In their long, white dresses, adorned with red borders, and with their long
braids of blue-black hair, they offered a picturesque sight.
We-were fed by an old Mazatec woman, who directed a young cook and two
helpers. She lived in one of the typical Mazatec huts. These are simply
rectangular structures with thatched gabled roofs and walls of wooden poles
joined together, windowless, the chinks between the wooden poles offering
sufficient opportunity to look out. In the middle of the hut, on the stamped
clay floor, was an elevated, open fireplace, built up out of dried clay or
made of stones. The smoke escaped through large openings in the walls under
the two ends of the roof. Bast mats that lay in a corner or along the walls
served as beds. The huts were shared with the domestic animals, as well as
black swine, turkeys, and chickens. There was roasted chicken to eat, black
beans, and also, in place of bread, tortittas, a type of cornmeal pancake that
is baked on the hot stone slab of the hearth. Beer and tequila, an Agave
liquor, were served.
Next morning our troop formed for the ride through the Sierra Mazateca. Mules
and guides were engaged from the horsekeeper of the village. Guadelupe, the
Mazatec familiar with the route, took charge of guiding the lead animal.
Gordon, Irmgard, my wife, and I were stationed on our mules in the middle.
Teodosio and Pedro, called Chico, two young fellows who trotted along barefoot
beside the two mules laden with our baggage, brought up the rear.
It took some time to get accustomed to the hard wooden saddles. Then, however,
this mode of locomotion proved to be the most ideal type of travel that I know
of. The mules followed the leader, single file, at a steady pace. They
required no direction at all by the rider. With surprising dexterity, they
sought out the best spots along the almost impassable, partly rocky, partly
marshy paths, which led through thickets and streams or onto precipitous
slopes. Relieved of all travel cares, we could devote all our attention to the
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