August 1, 2020

Parks in Tepoztlán

Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico. Soccer field in Colonia San Jose. Photo by author

Parks are outdoor public recreation areas. There are several types in Tepoztlán, and we'll not cover all of them here. Many have mixed uses.

Every town in Mexico has its central plaza, known as a "zocalo." Here is the Tepoztlán Zocalo.

Parque Nacional el Tepozteco, the national park, is very large and has many trails. I've covered these in numerous other articles. One that I like is the Deer Sanctuary.

There is a large Boy Scout camp a few blocks from where I live, in the outskirts of town. That one requires an article by itself. I'll feature it in the near future. Another huge one is Camomila, a YMCA site that is away from the town center but on a main street. I'll feature that one in an article coming out next month, September 5.

Colonia Xilotepetl

The town is sectioned into different neighborhoods called "colonias." Each has its own church, fiestas, and governance. In this article on parks, I am dividing it by colonias.

Xilo (short for Xilotepetl) is where I live, and there are two parks here. The closest to me is a steep uphill walk of five minutes.

Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico. The rides in a park in Colonia Xilotepetl. Photos by author

Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico. Views from the park in Xilo. This park accumulates a lot of trash, as in the upper right photo. Photos by author

Now I'll show you another park in my neighborhood that is a ten minute walk down the steep hill. Like many parks in town, it features a soccer field. Here they are called "campos de futbol."

Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico. The Xilo futbol field with a game in progress. Photos by author

Here is a short video clip of the same field during down time. There is no game here but instead some families relaxing. Note the communal corn field in the background.

Colonia San Jose

This park is the closest to the center of town. It has many features besides the two futbol fields: an indoor gym, rides for kids, and a basketball court. It's on a major street on both sides. In the video, the first two slides are of the northside and the rest of the south side of the street.

Colonia Ixcatapec

This park is also on a main street but much further from the town center. It is smaller than all of the rest and has rides for kids and exercise equipment for adults.

Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico. Park in Colonia Ixcatepec. Rides for the kids. Photo by author

Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico. Park in Colonia Ixcatepec. Exercise equipment for adults. Photo by author

Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico. A sign near the park in Ixcatepec. Photo by author

Colonia Tesoro

I used to live in Colonia Tesorso, at the edge of Tepoztlán. The translation of this name is "treasure." It is rumored that Cortez buried treasure in the mountains nearby. But I think the wilderness is the real treasure.

A public van took me to the end of the line where I got off to film this park, a mix of exercise machines and kids rides. There is also a basketball court, as you can see in the video below.

Colonia Xolatlaco

Here is video showing a park that is also away from the town center. It features two very large futbol fields, a basketball court and a park within the park with benches and rides for the kids.

Addendum

Don't forget to tune in next month when I cover the very large park on a main street leaving town. It is the YMCA camp, Camomila.

Please take the opportunity to check out my new writings:

1. Letters From Mexico: Part One, People and Places

This is an ebook compiled from past articles here.

2. Better Living in Mexico: How Chance and Choice Changed My Life

This is a memoir to be in both paperback and ebook formats.

You can get either or both emailed as a PDF file by request.

All I ask in return is that you make comments positive and/or negative and write a review on Amazon when they publish. I am a self-publisher and would very much appreciate your help in this daunting endeavor.

Comments

Please email me your comments: [email protected]

I will post them here with your first name unless you ask to be anon.

Interesting.  Different from the garden/cultivated parks I pictured. Thanks for sending.

--Maria Espinosa

Thanks for your comment, Maria. How did you picture them?

--Don Karp