I wanted to avoid the typical tourist spots in Mexico, so I headed inland to the Sierra Gorda Mountains, to Xilitla, a small town in San Luis Potosí near the Surrealist garden of Edward James.
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/7508923/02-road-to-xilitla-mexico.0.jpeg)
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/7508925/08-window-view-xilitla-mexico.0.jpeg)
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/7508933/10-sculptures-surreal-garden-xilitla-mexico.0.jpeg)
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/7508937/11-details-surreal-garden-xilitla-mexico.0.jpeg)
More commonly known as Las Pozas, the sculpture garden was created by the English poet and artist Edward James over 60 years ago while he was living in semi-exile in Mexico. What struck me the most was how the changing environment of the subtropical rainforest mixed harmoniously with the architecture created by a foreigner.
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/7508947/04-donkey-xilitla-mexico.0.jpeg)
:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/7508953/06-barber-xilitla-mexico.0.jpeg)
The journey through Mexico's 120 Highway was also very special; we passed by several charming and lost little towns like Tequisquiapan, Pinal de Amoles, and Jalpan de Serra. I will remember everything from this trip: Xilitla's magical essence, the kindness of the locals, and the beauty and nature in every corner.
Originally published by Fathom.
Photos by Luis Cárdenas.