The snaking road was silver in the morning sun. It was a perfect day for riding a motorcycle. And the moment we got going, the miles ticked away under the wheels. “Feels good to be back on the bikes, eh Jase?” I uttered down the helmet’s intercom enjoying the normalcy of a moving life. And in my mind’s eye agreeing with Robyn Yong who said, “We travel not to escape life but for life not to escape us”. “Yahp,” came Jason’s response.
Rainbow bright Pachuca
Next stop: Las Pozas in the municipality of Xilitla (pronounced Hil-lit-la), in San Luis Potosi. Passing through Pachuca, the sweep of the hills became greater than before and they soon dominated everything else except the sky, which seemed wider. These were old mountains. They’d been nurtured by sun and rain. They were not about anarchy or grandeur, like the more photogenic ranges. These mountains threw a smooth shadow—their crags didn’t imply the gnash of continental plates. They were evenly bearded with lush trees. And they cut modest half-moons out of the sky.
Pachuca’s plethora of colour
Finding Finca Santa Monica saw us come face-to-face with the campground attendant. He casually informed us that camping happened to be the same price as a cabina, 500 pesos which is on a par with £20 ($30 USD). What, for a tent on your soggy field with no hot water or WiFi? He had an odious face—a beetled brow, small eyes with bags beneath them. A blunt, brutal face. I looked down and saw his toenails. Horrible yellowing shards of rock. It stirred my dislike of this old goat with his phoney authority. His trousers were stained and shirt was strained across his chest. Every button doing its duty, I mused.
Las Pozas is like no other place, it’s unique and beautiful.
Still, as a neophyte if not ludite speaker of Spanish, I conveyed the unaffordability of both offerings with more body language than verbal. There was an unmistakable glazed artificiality to this man, our would-be-fleecer. The price came down to 100 pesos per night (around £4 or $6 USD). Just like that. Much more like it. I understood the particular sort of blatant audacity inspired by mankind’s need to spin the straw into gold but we also had to make tight ends meet.
After hopping over some gestures of gratitude, skipping a game of tennis in the adjacent courts we jumped straight into Las Pozas instead, “the [natural] pools”, half a mile down the stony tract.
Getting lost in Edward’s secret garden is a must.
The story started with a man named Edward James. A Scotsman who was born in 1907, son of a North American railroad magnate and British aristocrat. Edward grew up in a world of wealth and privilege. Being very young, he inherited two substantial fortunes: his father’s and uncle’s. Off he went to study literature at Oxford, where he identified himself with the avant-garde bohemian world that appealed to him most.
Las Pozas is boundlessly mystical as it is magical.
He became a philanthropist whose laudable actions aided various beneficiaries, along with seated inclination to poetry and the fine arts. Edward was a patron of René Magritte and Salvador Dalí, and later Leonora Carrington. In 1931 he married Tilly Losh, an Austrian dancer but by 1940, his marriage ended bitterly, distancing him from English high society. The United States was calling…
Otherworldly pretty
Having travelled initially, Edward arrived in Mexico four years later to visit an old friend in Cuernavaca. In the local Telegraph office, he met Plutarco Gastélum who became his partner-in-crime on the endless journey that would be the construction of the Sculpture Garden of Las Pozas. Uncle Edward became part of Plutarco and his wife Marina Llamazares’ family. Don Eduardo spilled his creativity and cash into Las Pozas, a garden of mystery that infinitely intertwines art with nature.
What’s through here, then?
Spread over a large piece of land, crossed by a cascading river and surrounded by thick jungle, Las Pozas conceals numerous gems made from concrete and local materials. “My strange unfinished building,” as Edward called it, which began its creation during the ‘50s. One story goes that when Edward was exploring the Huasteca Potosina, emerging from a river a cloud of butterflies enveloped him, immersed in colour and movement. He interpreted the occurrence as a sign of destiny, one of life’s undeniable callings.
Finding my Zen in Edward’s secret garden
Several properties were acquired outside the town of Xilitla, after which Las Pozas was a constant source of work for the local people, over a period that spanned more than three decades. At times more than 150 people including carpenters, masons and gardeners poured their heart and soul in the creation of the garden.
The ethereal beauty is unmissable at Las Pozas
What started as a haven for Edward’s colossal orchid collection, and a home to exotic animals that he’d been given: deer, ocelots (dwarf leopards), snakes, flamingos and other birds—I was once given a goldfish—blossomed into this wild secret garden full of hidden nooks and crannies, majestic sculptures down striking dead ends and enchanting little spaces. All amid verdant rainforest. Hot and humid, my skin felt as slippery as the inside of an oyster; it didn’t take long before I found myself in the water clear and cold as virtue itself.
A watery heaven in Las Pozas’ heat and humidity
One minute you felt like Gene Kelly at the cascading pools, doing his waterlogged soft-shoe and singin’ in the rain, the next you became Aladdin upon climbing his middle eastern tower and then you slipped into Dorothy’s shoes, wide-eyed at the phantasm of Oz but terrified you’d never find your way home. Or never have another home to find one’s way to, but perhaps I’d waded in too deep. Or swallowed the red pill before falling down the rabbit hole…
Straight out of ‘Alice in Wonderland’
The shapes of the garden’s structures and sculptures were inspired by nature in the forest, flower heads, leaves and snake-like fauna. Akin to the Elven Kingdoms in Lord of the Rings. Purposely, some things were left incomplete, which made it look odd but all the more beautiful for its imperfections. I couldn’t help but think it’s what anyone might have done in Edward’s shoes; swopped a tired old life in high society for a shiny and exciting new one in Mexico.
Stepping into an Elven Kingdom (‘Lord of the Rings’)
Las Pozas is what happens when a Scotsman’s endless pot of pesos realises eccentricity with sweet madness. A tropical fairytale like no other: “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma,” as Churchill happened to so aptly put it in an unrelated speech.
Wow! Very well done. You both captured this place with pen and camera just as I would have seen and experienced it.
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Thanks John, that’s a real nice thing to say! L&J
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Magnificent!
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Epically amazing, como siempre amigos!
You raise the awesomeness bar every single time.
I dearly wish that Lima had something as magical & mysterious as this to offer.
It sounds like a veritable paradise, mixed with a shot of madness & eccentricity…
Stay awesome amigos, happy riding
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Thanks Johnny, just watched ‘The secret life of Edward James’ on YouTube…brilliant. L&J
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Cheers Mr Hunt!
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Never heard of this and I googled it immediately to find out where it was in Mexico. Your pics are amazing so mystic. When you see other people pictures of it, it does not show it the way you are telling it. Thank you for sharing.
regards Claudia from the Netherlands
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Thank you Claudia, we’ve just watched ‘The secret life of Edward James’ on YouTube…brilliant viewing. Would highly recommend if you’re at all intrigued by the man. L&J
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I could feel an instant visceral dislike towards the frightful fink of Finca Santa Monica. Your descriptions are so vivid that I feel that I’m meeting the people right alongside you! Interacting with the locals is one of my favourite parts of travelling, so you make my armchair travelling so much richer with your writing by describing the people. Who needs 3D glasses?!
The sculpture garden of Las Pozas is a place I’d never heard of. How do you find these places? Do you know they’re there beforehand?
Stay safe & be cool!
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Hi Lisa, great pictures and story as always. I thought it was Lara Croft, tomb raider at first!
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Amazing place and as always nice job describing it. Beautiful photos from Jason too.
I sent you guys e-mail through the contact page, did you get it?
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You are an absolutely mesmerizing writer. Beautiful descriptions. Have you published anything?
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Thank you very much Pamela, that’s very sweet of you to say. Yes, have published a few pieces during the trip. (https://twowheelednomad.com/lisas-adventure-travel-writing/) Kind regards L
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