He sponsored the world’s best surrealist artists like Salvador Dalí and René Magritte, then in the 1940s he acquired land deep in the Mexican jungle in San Luis Potosi state to build his own surrealist garden. He fed his surrealism ambition back then, and now without realizing it he feeds local people of the mountainous town Xilitla (read hilitla) with the benefit of tourism activities from his garden.

People of this town speak highly of him, British poet and sculptor Edward James, as his garden, known as Las Pozas (the Pools in English), has gained popularity over the last five years as Xilitla’s foremost tourist attraction.

The garden’s beauty has attracted international artists too, such as Australian music group Empire of the Sun, which shot its We are the People music video here, and Nicole Scherzinger, who serenely played her piano here for her “Try with Me” clip.

It was 10 a.m., only an hour after its opening time, yet there was a long queue to buy entrance tickets to the garden. The visitors who lined up in single file on the road may have been entertained by vendors on the roadside, who sold food, drinks and souvenirs. Queuing felt a little uncomfortable under the bright sunlight and with the exhaust fumes emitted by passing vehicles.

I learned at the ticket box that the 32-hectare park could hold up to 800 people, each of whom paid an admission fee of 50 Mexican pesos (US$2.35). I was given a blue rubber hand band with a tracking chip in case I got lost in the massive garden, I guess, which then was scanned at the entry and exit points.

There were two directions to take from the foyer: to the right was the closest to the garden and to the left the closest to the pools. I went right to take the dry trail first.

James did not name his sculptures, none of them was functional, some were not perfectly done, but they have marked patterns and forms, such as flowers, stairs, spears and arcs. His surrealist flower has become a symbol of this town and you may find it in the main square and several corners of Xilitla.

The first figurine after taking the right trail looked like a ring-shaped gate, but when I observed it properly, it was actually a teapot gate. I felt like I was shrinking like Alice as I passed through the giant teapot. My imagination of Wonderland was enhanced by giant flower effigies on both sides of the trail.
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The garden’s beauty has attracted international artists too, such as Australian music group Empire of the Sun and Nicole Scherzinger

I hiked a little to find a hidden corner made of pillars and arcs. I turned onto another trail, climbed some more and then viewed an open three-story building with stairs and pillars. I made several stops to take pictures of peculiar forms along the way until I recognized a pattern of the French symbol of royalty, the fleur-de-lis, at the verge of a bridge.

There was one building after another, some had two levels, some had two and a half and some had three. All were unconfined and had different stories to tell, or rather, different senses to interpret.

The journey led me to the main square where three trails converged, although one was a dead-end. Elderly visitors rested here for a while, while the young were busy taking pictures with the big emblematic flower statuette. I chose to climb the highest construction there for a higher view of the square. And then I followed the trail that I had not yet taken.

I started to hear the sound of crashing water. The trail was not long, although there were several blind alleys before reaching the pool. In spite of this, I enjoyed stumbling upon the dead-ends because they were adorned with different statues. It was like hitting upon secret corners. In some spots, there were colorful butterflies, and my favorite one was a butterfly with transparent wings.

I finally reached where the source of the sound was. A waterfall cascaded down to a pool where people refreshed themselves from the heat of the sun. The sloped land caused the water to flow down like a river. James did not let this part slip away from his surrealistic creation. He built a bandstand, stairs, boat-shaped statue, aqueduct, pillars and other abstract figures to make the waterfall look exotic.

I could not measure the exact depth of the green, cold-water pool, but it was safe enough for youngsters to jump into from a 2-meter-high rock. The pool was a shallow bowl shape and had a rocky bottom. Those who could not swim bathed in the shallow part, and many señoritas in bikinis only posed for pictures there.

Parents preferred to let their children swim in the slow current river downhill where the water had turned crystal clear.

There was no changing room in the area, but traversing the trail to the exit gate, or to another entrance, took long enough to allow your clothes to dry. Before reaching the exit, I got lost in the jungle and found a solitary small waterfall and other bridges and buildings. The way out was near when I reached a busy, rustic open-air restaurant. It was the only restaurant in the garden. Having a cold drink there could be a gratifying way to end your stroll through the stones, leaves and water.
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GETTING TO XILITLA

The town is an eight-hour drive north from Mexico City. There is no direct public transportation route between the two locations and it is therefore necessary to get to Ciudad de Valles, Leon, Queretaro or San Luis Potosi and look for direct transportation to Xilitla.

The closest airport is in Tampico, which receives flights from Houston, Monterrey and Mexico City. There is a direct transportation service available from Tampico that will get you there in five hours.

If you wish to travel by land from the United States, several companies in Brownsville, Texas, offer overland tours to Xilitla that take eight to nine hours.

WHERE TO STAY

Xilitla does not have any four- or five-star hotels. Some recommendations are:

Posada El Castillo, the house where Edward James stayed, which is architecturally beautiful and you may sleep in the room that James stayed in

Puerta del Cielo, which is modern and has a balcony in every room, giving a private view of the town

Casa Caracol, the closest to the garden, is perfect for nature lovers. It has tepees.

WHAT AND WHERE TO EAT

Local delight: Zacahuil, a giant corn dough cooked with chili and chicken or pork, wrapped in banana leaf and baked for 12 hours in clay oven.

Indonesian taste: Starfruit and jackfruit are easy to find here. Try jackfruit sorbet.

Don’t look for these food items in a restaurant. Go out and get them on the street!

Fancy restaurants:

El Museo, serving pasta, salad and signature cuisine

Querreque, a terrace restaurant with an amazing view serves delicious Mexican food at affordable prices. I ate here twice

Ambar, also a terrace restaurant that serves tasty Italian food in big portions.

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