Road to La Garrucha, continued...

Back to the main story from a few days ago (the road to La Garrucha.) After another half an hour of dirt (at the end of 4 hours of driving), La Garrucha finally appeared and we turned into a little side road and found a locked gate and guard house with a man and a few kids hanging around. This time, however, there were no bandanas or ski masks and they seemed almost happy to have someone visit their remote outpost. Apparently it's a somewhat rare occurrence at La Garrucha. We were invited in to the guard house where they checked us in and didn't have to wait much more than an hour or so for a meeting with the Junta. The meeting with this masked group was somewhat different than the one at Oventic, less skeptical and perhaps more interested. (Or maybe, with the visit to Oventic, we're gaining some confidence in our story and plan.) After some back and forth, we were granted access to the grounds and were free to take photos as long as no people appeared in them (unfortunate, because without people, the camp seems rather bleak!) This camp was quieter, desolate almost. The buildings a little more rundown with many covered in faded murals. Not many children or teenagers, as we saw hanging around at Oventic. We learned from one of the residents that some people had even left the caracole, perhaps because they weren't happy there or because the government has been paying people to leave and join other, (government supported) communities that dot the countryside. La Garrucha, being remote from other villages and very remote from any cities, may be suffering from this fact… it's just difficult to live out here so isolated from the rest of society. Nevertheless, there was a school and church on the grounds and a communications shack, along with a number of other buildings for specific purposes, like a communal kitchen and a store (rustic, but functional), so signs of a well organized community were evident. In our discussion with the Zapatistas, the thing that they are most willing to talk about is the healthcare and education systems that they have developed and for now, those are the threads that we are following for the documentary. Without subtitles, I'm working from quick and dirty translations and the general vibe that is coming across in our conversations. The vibe is one of a strong, self-sufficient group of people, who are determined to forge their own way of life… to be autonomous. That word autonomy is frequently mentioned and is probably the best word to keep in mind when thinking about the Zapatistas.