Bungalows Las Rosas

Don't forget your sunblock cream!

by flyingpig

I learned to my great dismay and pain that the sun in Cuernavaca can burn your skin in 2 hours as effectively as it does in Cancun. Don't forget to pack some sunblock and use it - or get "lobsterized" :)

Very typical and nice mexican town

by Srechko

"Nice town popular with mexican tourists"

I stayed here 2 days and I remember them as my "no english speaking" days - so it is a great place to practice spanish.

It was interesting for me too see a typical quite big mexican city whose visitors are mostly local tourists.

City is quite modern looking however it still has a beautiful colonial historical center where everything is going on.

"Huge market"

Exploring the market kept me busy for hours as I have never seen a bigger one in my life.

"Shopping - lots of it...."

It seems that shopping is activity number one here. There are millions of stores.....you can even legally buy all kinds of guns!

CLINCA DE OJOS IN THE CITY OF ETERNAL SPRING

by mtncorg

Each state in Mexico is sometime like visitng another country. There is so much variety in the land, people and culture. My trip to Cuernavaca was my eighth opportunity to participate in an eye clinic trip. As with all of the other trips, it was a very rewarding time.

Our team came from across the US: three eye doctors from Oregon, one from Arizon and one from Connecticut; six other people came from Elko, Nevada and one other from Connecticut. It is somewhat amazing to gather folks from such disparate areas - though easier, indeed with e-mail. From Portland, we flew down overnight to Mexico City through the travesty that LAX (Los Angeles airport) has become - I heartily recommend that anyone switching from a domestic flight within the US to an international one (or vice versa) to not fly through LAX. It is worth the extra money to fly through another airport for the moment. LAX was never a very user-friendly airport, but now, with newer security regulations in place, LAX is downright user-hostile.

At Benito Juarez International, in Mexico City, we were picked up by our host, the Lions Club president from Cuernavaca, who drove us over the 3100 meter pass separating the megalopolis that is the world's largest city, from the City of Eternal Spring, Cuernavaca.

A day to relax and dinner on the Zocalo across from the early 16th century Palacio de Cortes was an impressive start to another trip. A night of good sleep and a quick organization of both our team and the clinic the next morning at the clinic site - a local Catholic church in the neighboring community of Tres de Mayo.

We saw over 400 patients the first day, a testimony to the fine people on our own team and the many Mexicans who were helping us - whether with translation, directing people around the site, cooking our magnificent lunches or having done the preclinic work: the actual finding of people who were in need of our services.

There were a couple thousand pairs of glasses we had brought down and many of those were given out in the two days. Our Nevada and Connecticut people were responsible for this part of the clinic. Most had never worked with glasses before but they were not only willing but able to take on the challenges involved - along with invaluable help from our Mexican translators.

After a long and hard first day of clinic, our group splurged with some of our Mexican friends for a dinner at Las Mananitas - reportedly one of the best restaurants in Mexico. We had a very nice meal outside in the garden. It was a very nice wind-down to a long day. As I write this, it is hard to imagine such a perfect warm evening outside in the gardens while back here in Portland the November winds and rain howl.

A last day of clinic where over 300 patients were seen. Back-to-back days are exhausting for all concerned. We finished up early so some fo the team could tour around in Cuernavaca, while others did some shopping in the artesania shops abounding in Tres de Mayo.

The work was long and hard but our rewards were in the faces of our patients as they went home pleased with their new glasses, able to read or sew or simply, to see clearly, once again.

Our other rewards were in the friendships made - maybe fleeting or lasting - with our Mexican colleagues. Coming together so intimately, prejudicies are challenged and overturned. We are more similar than different. The renewals of humanness are indeed the addictive power behind my continued desire to take an active role in these trips. Muchas gracias a mis mexicanos equipos and thanks, as well, to my fellow team members from the US.