FREE ADMISSION

Walk the Malecon at dawn and listen to thousands of birds wakening
while the sun breaks over the surrounding volcanoes.

Take one of those 100 or so lancha boat rides  across Laguna
Catemaco, that every other person on the Malecon yells at you to take.

Accept an offer to eat a Tegogolo cocktail from one of the curb side
vendors and check if they beat Viagra. (PS - the sauce allegedly kills
all bugs).

Get a limpia (spiritual cleaning) - Unless you´re serious about trying
the "real" thing with one of those brujos  that dozens of shills promote,
stick to Nanciyaga and its Disney world limpia.

Visit a brujo and take lots of photos - they hate that.
Give a brujo a Gringo limpia - they really hate that.

Buy one of those plastic wrapped popsicles (percheronas) and cool
down.

Pretend you want to rent an apartment and climb Catemaco´s tallest
building and photograph some great scenes.

Take bets on which artifact around the Catemaco central plaza was
really only sculptured a few years ago.

Count birds! There are almost 600 species in Los Tuxtlas.
That will keep you busy for a while.

Reflect on your inner values inside the Basilica de la Virgen del
Carmen, then stuff yourself on a mojarra empapelada at Melmar´s
restaurant across the street.

Shudder at the many snakes from Los Tuxtlas, displayed at El Teterete.

Rent a kayak or paddle boat and see Catemaco from offshore.

Rent a horse and climb into the hills overlooking Laguna Catemaco.

Stop by Catemaco´s "Casa de Cultura" and see if it has any.

Eat a rabbit at the eatery on the Catemaco carretera.

Find some of the unique statues hidden around Catemaco.

Count shoe stores in Catemaco, and buy some plastic sandals for your
next stop´s bathroom.

Buy a bunch of fresh flowers from one of the vendors in front of the
big church and place them where everyone else drops them - you
never know when you need HER help in Mexico.

Watch the sun set and your Margarita melt at one of the many
lake front restaurant / bars.

Take some photos of the beautiful older wooden homes of Catemaco
and send them home pretending you live there.

Pay a taxi driver to take you to the "Plaza de Toros"  and write an
internet article if you find it.

Walk the Malecon and its trail to Espagoya,  marvel at the many lava
flows that tried to fill in Laguna Catemaco a few hundred years ago,
then grab a table at Gorrel´s, admire the almost extinct turtle drawings
and eat whatever is fresh.

Walk a little further and step down to the cave at El Tegal, where the
virgin appeared once, and old timers still worship Chalchiuhtlicue, the
ancient Aztec water goddess, who protects the local fishing folk.

Get your palm read by a hungaro ( that´s a Mexican gypsy, who
mostly came over from Hungary), and watch your belongings.

Let off some steam in a local temazcal (sweat lodge / sauna).
Allegedly it cures anything. The local trick is to get smeared head to
toe with Tuxtlas mud.

Count how many of those tiny shrimp really fit into a shrimp cocktail
and order another one.

Get a big rise from asking someone about a trip to the top of one of
the volcanoes.

Pretend you are an ecologist and have someone show you  the few
remaining big trees still remaining in Catemaco city.

Watch a cigar being made in San Andres, then smoke a giant puro and
eat a big steak at the Montepio restaurant.

Drive anywhere and turn onto a dirt road and see where it leads you.
You´ll be astounded and so will your car.

Take a hike - anywhere you walk is an eye opener, whether a hovel
with people, a pugnacious iguana, a never before seen plant, or
breathtaking vistas.
Things to do in Catemaco