Sam's uncle Elías and aunt Paulina live in a beautiful ranch house in the green hills with views of snowcapped mountains. These mountains are called Colíma Volcanoes. Sam's cousins and nephews milk the family's cows every morning. I tried milking a cow, but I wasn't very good at it. I only got out two drops of milk!
The closest towns are Coalcomán and Villa Victoria. We spent Christmas with Tía Cande and her family in Coalcomán. We went to two nights of posada - a Mexican celebration for nine nights leading up to Christmas. Townspeople parade through the streets in Christmas costumes singing carols. Be sure to bring a mug so that you can sip on hot ponche - a drink like hot cider with lots of fruits, including guayaba (guava), piña (pineapple), and canela (cinnamon). Back at home, we had a delicious Noche Buena (Christmas Eve) feast at 11pm! Tía Cande and Prima Montse prepared grilled meats and sausages, fresh tortillas, frijoles refritos (refried beans), and volcanes ("volcanoes" tortillas with melted cheese).
After spending Christmas in Coalcomán, we headed back into the mountains for a few days. We enjoyed a delicious feast of carnitas (pulled pork) at Tía Chuy's house and met many more cousins, aunts, and uncles. There were over 50 people there that day! A band played Mexican tunes on violins, accordions, and guitars, and people danced to the music. Sam and I walked down to the aguacate (avocado) orchard with Tío Noe and saw where he grows about 200 avocado trees!
On the last day of the trip, we woke up early to help milk the cows.
