Over the holiday, we hosted family here at la casa de once once. We have had a few friends visit here and there, but this was the first time we have hosted more than a couple people over several days. My mom, stepdad, aunt and uncle visited for about a week over Christmas and it was so lovely to have them. The weather was pretty iffy – chilly and cloudy – but we got a few nice clear days. I warned everyone before they arrived that the pace here is really slow, but we needed a few adventures to break up the day-in/day-out relaxing. So one morning we packed up the cars and headed towards La Paz to El Triunfo.

A cute little old mining town a few kilometers off the main highway, it is establishing itself as a great little roadside attraction boasting quaint restaurants, historical sights and a museum. The vibe is what I would describe as a bit yuppie, but a fun little town to visit nonetheless.

Our first stop was for lunch at El mesón de Carlota. Only open around 6 months, we were all very excited about the food. Beautiful empanadas, exquisitely hand-made flour tortillas and excellent chilaquiles. This place is a bit more rustic than the posh restaurants in the town proper, but well worth the visit.

After lunch, we wandered around town, checked out the very modest mission, took a walking tour of the old silver mine and said “hi!” to the burro blanco at the top of the hill. Apparently, you can tour the old mine tunnels, but you put your name/number in and wait for them to contact you. We passed on that and headed into town to have a beer at a local restaurant, listened to some live music and took in the sights in the square before heading back to Pescadero.