The high plateau of central Mexico, known as the Mesa Central, is a landscape of dry grass, mesquite, nopal cactus and low volcanic hills, and the village of Noria de Angeles, in the state of Zacatecas, sits in the middle of it, about eight kilometres from Villa Gonzalez Ortega.
Villages like this were created by the silver economy of the colonial period. After the great strikes at Zacatecas in 1546, wagon roads and mule tracks spread across the plateau, and with them came ranches, haciendas, wells and chapels. Noria means a water wheel or a well, and in a place where rain is scarce, a well was a reason to settle. The church would have served the families of a hacienda and its farm workers, and many such temples were built in the eighteenth century from local stone or adobe, with a plain facade, a bell tower and a small dome. They matter in the landscape as landmarks and as the centres of the village's festivals, with fireworks, dancing and processions on the patron saint's day.
The ride is long, open and somewhat austere. Highways cross the plateau in long straight sections, with distant mountains and almost no trees, and the roads between the villages are narrower, with patches, potholes and cattle. The sky is wide and the sunsets are spectacular, but the air at two thousand metres is thin and dry, and the sun is strong at midday. Wind is constant. From June to September, afternoon thunderstorms can sweep across the plain, and in winter nights drop below freezing. Spring and autumn are the best times.
Villa Gonzalez Ortega, with six thousand people, has a few shops, eating places and a fuel station, and Estancia de Animas is smaller. Zacatecas, the capital, is far larger, and a better stop if you need services or a bed. Local food includes asado de boda, a spicy pork stew traditionally served at weddings, and cheese and sweets made from prickly pear, and cold beers in a shaded plaza make a good end to the day.