Having An Adventure....

 

South of San Miguel, out in the campo, over bridges and through a dark and dusty tunnel is a little village that is well known for a having a very old, very large tree.

For some time I have been meaning to visit and take some pictures, yesterday I did just that.

Before I tell you about my visit, let me share the picture I finally made.

 

Sabino de la Huerta

 

The enjoyment you get out of life is not simply a matter of what happens to you , but more a matter of your reaction to what happens to you. For more years than I can remember, whenever Shannon and I took a wrong turn, we wouldn't say we were lost, we would say we were "having an adventure"

Many years ago, when we first moved to Patzcuaro, and my Spanish was more textbook that typical usage, I was heading into town on some errand. Our neighbor, a charming Mexican lady, was heading to town also so I gave her a lift. Keep in mind that I was new, the roads were new to me, and my neighbor and I were new to each other. Surprise, surprise! I took a wrong turn. Me being a person of habit, turn to my passenger and say in Spanish that we were going to have an "aventura " . 

Little did I know that in addition to my intended meaning, in Spanish for that word  also meant a "romantic affair". Lucky for me she had a good sense of humor.

 

 

So, back to yesterday. While driving out to visit the tree with my friend Emma, I took a wrong turn, and a new adventure begins.

Enter Don Cruz and his family! They, like many in the area  are basket weavers, as we sit and chat, his nephew is busily demonstrating their craft.

 

The nephew of the clan, nimble fingers at work

In addition to baskets, Don Cruz likes to weave a story or too, perhaps some of them are tall tales even.

He is a man who has honed his story telling over many decades , as he talks , his hands dance more than those of his nephew weaving baskets. His voice rises, falls and skips around the words. He tells of the time he first traveled to a beach, for the sole purpose of seeing the girls there that he has heard so much about.  We learn about his time picking oranges north of the border when there was an immigration raid. Many ran and were caught, he just climbed the tree and hid there. As he explained to me “ I was comfortable, in the shade, plus with the oranges I had both food and drink.  I find his Spanish very challenging, some of his stories I miss points and details but I hesitate to break the spell by interrupting.

 

85 years, a million stories

If you get a chance to meet Don Cruz, ask to hear his story about the governor and the pistol, or maybe the one about the Spaniard and the girl from Reynosa, or of the time he met Stirling Dickinson, trust me, you will not regret it!

Almost as much fun was watching his kindly wife watch us as she listened to the stories for the umpteenth time, a wry smile bubbling up as she anticipated a punch line or a twist in the story approaching, bursting into laughter with us in spite of knowing all the endings.

True love is laughing at the same story a hundred times!

I truly enjoyed visiting the tree and getting the picture that I have wanted for some time, but I know I will value my visit with Don Cruz much longer than the picture I took that day.

Maybe you might like to share your “wrong turn “ story in the comments, I would love to hear it!

A New Friend!

I was writing a post on Facebook to talk about a moment I had today. I realized I haven't blogged about these sorts of things because they seemed too small to be a post.

Then I realized that just because I don't have a lot to say doesn't mean it is not worth sharing.
So hopefully this attitude with jumpstart by blogging again.

Paper Mache

Today I was taking pictures to go into the San Miguel newspaper to promote the Hidden Workshops tour.  These tours help pay for the kids programs at the library. Got to visit with some fun and amazing artisans.

Peek-A-Boo

At the paper mache place, I am lining up my shot, and a little face peeks through the doorway, all wide eyed curiosity with a timid smile. A few words, a little laugh and a new connection is made.

It only takes a moment to make and new friend, and I made one today.

A New Friend

Any day that ends with one more friend than it started with, is a good day.

It is not too late, you can go out right now and make a new friend.
Trust me, you will be glad you did!

Wanna Live in Michoacán?

I have recently helped a friend of mine put together a couple of websites for some properties she has for sale.
Her main property is in Patzcuaro.

http://www.patzcuaro-real-estate.com

And her beach property on the Michoacán coast.

This property sold, so I have removed the link

Have a look if you might be interested, or pass it on to anyone you think might.
Thanks!

Art Vs Graffiti–Muros en Blanco

Perhaps the flowers in the Jacaranda Tree are feeling a little jealous!

We just had an event close to our home here in San Miguel de Allende. You can find more about then on their facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/murosenblanco.distritodearte.7

Here is how it was described in an email that informed me of the event.

Friday, March 22 and Saturday March 23, Colonia Guadalupe will host 22 artists (7 local and 15 visiting from around Mexico) to paint 13 walls on 3 streets! (Maria Felix, Margarito Ledesma, Julian Carrillo)  The future will bring internationally known artists from all over Latin America.  We will have the best-of-the-best Guadalupe street vendors and a high-energy, festive atmosphere.  Watching a mural come to life from beginning to the finish is a fascinating process!! 

This a wonderful alternative to tagging , these murals are OUTSTANDING! If you get a change to check it out it is in Colinia Quadalupe. Well worth the trip when you are in town.

It is also very close to our favorite new restaurant. I think you may have seen Shannon’s post on it recently.
I will be meeting  a friend there Friday in order to have nother look. If you beat me to Hanses, please leave a porkchop for me!

Rich colors!

Equipped with a large number of colors, and sometime a “gas mask” sort of unit, the 30 artist when to work.
I took pictures for a number of days in order to record the progress on the pieces.
I how posted 3 of my favorite pictures, but if want to see more, I have also made a video of the pictures you can check out on the bottom of the page.

Perhaps this is the corn goddess!

Please feel free to share the video and the post, I would love to get this great project the attention it deserves.


Street Art Festival - San Miguel from Todd McIntosh on Vimeo.


Share the post, share the video, lets get a buzz going!

Viagra and Valentines

 

We are in the season of love… and marketing

Very much like it was north of the border, here Valentines day involves love and romance, and also a time to advertise things aimed at the lovely couples looking to add a special something to the day. Generally these items fall into three categories. Flowers, jewelry or a romantic evening of fine food and wine at the restaurant of your choice.

Here in San Miguel the advertising I have been seeing the most of is the romantic dinner variety, with packages for starry eyed couples running from $100 pesos to $850 peso per person. So far, not too different from north of the border except it is perhaps a little more economical.

Now, what are the differences between the Valentines days I have had in Canada, and the ones in Mexico. In Mexico Vanetines day is usually called  "Día del Amor y la Amistad" which translates as “Day of love and friendship”. This I find this quite charming.

 

Sildenafil ,That is Viagra Don’t You Know!

This year I noticed another difference I hadn't noticed before. While passing a Farmacia Similares ,a generic pharmacy, I noticed a Valentines promotion. On February 14th only, you buy 3 Viagra, you will get one for free! The added bonus is that down here, you don’t even need a prescription! After I finished laughing, I had to get a picture of it to share with you. Sadly the young lady behind the counter declined to pose beside the ad.

So, tell me,  what are you up to for your Valentines day? (no pun intended)

 

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The BIG Birthday Bash

Caballero with Flag

This week started with one of the biggest birthday parties in town. 244 years ago, Ignacio Allende, namesake of the town and one of the leaders of the revolution was born. This requires a major parade topped off with fireworks at the end of the evening.

Ready for the Charreada!

In Mexico I have found that parades have 4 required parts

1. Large numbers of school kids , preferable with drums, often with bugles!
2. Flags.
3. Well dressed horses with well dressed riders.
4. Marching, marching and more marching.

Sadly , by the time I got to the parade and into position I had missed the marching kids. Usually each group of kids have their own flag representing their school or group. I wasn’t sad to miss their version of “battle of the bands” as each group of drums and horns plays a different piece within feet of the next group.

Send in the Cavalry!  (Or the Rurales actually)

This time there were even more horses than usual with the addition of the Rurales, which is a part time militia that I wasn’t familiar with until seeing them in the parade.

Guess what , more marching!

Ghillie suit or cousin IT from the Adams Family???

I had good luck getting advantageous view points to get some good pictures of the parade. Being tall helps, but being lucky helped also.

Starbuck’s unintended climbing wall

Kids love parades but tend to be much shorter that I , but they did not let that get in their way. A little initiative and some thankfully strong bolts gave more than a few kids a clear view of the show. This was a not uncommon sight throughout the parade route.

Castillo in progress

After the parade,  the building of the Castillos begins, the giant fireworks displays that are used to finish off the festivities.  I guess these were to be the candles on the birthday cake so to speak. I made sure to bundle up against the evening chill, and get a good viewpoint. The fireworks did not disappoint!

Happy Birthday Ignacio!

What Colour Were Your Panties?

Happy New Years all!
My New Years involved a quiet night at home with my sweetie, then a quick zip out right after midnight to get some pictures of the fireworks over the Plaza. The fireworks here can typically run 20 to 30 minutes so I should be able to get 10-15 minutes of taking pictures. Sadly for me, the new mayor has different budget priorities, and the fireworks ended at 12:06, about a second after I got the camera and tripod setup. I hope this isn't an indication of the way my timing is going to go for the coming year. LOL

I hope you had a great night on New Years and weren’t in to much pain the next day.
Our New Years day involved a get together at a friend's home that included making a few new friends, eating some great food and enjoying a drink or two ( BTW Thanks Terry and Michelle, we had a great time!).

We were having a conversation about New Years tradition. I told about when I was a young fellow, a Scottish tradition we had in our household had me going outside the house to be the first person over the threshold with a piece of coal right after midnight chimed.

We chatted about the traditions here in Mexico. Having 12 grapes, and eating one for each chime of the bell at midnight to get your New Years wish. Then I asked a question that seemed to throw a few people, as it was about a tradition that most there had not heard of. “What colour were your panties?”

So, what are you looking for this year, Love or Luxury?

Starting in mid December, you will see in the major stores, large displays of red panties and yellow panties. By the end of December you can find them in most stores that carry clothing. The photo above was of a display hanging in the doorway of a store in El Centro.

The tradition involves a woman buying a new pair of underwear to ring in the New Year. There are two items of importance. They must be new, and their colour indicates what they are wishing for from the upcoming year. Red is for love, and yellow is for prosperity. Sometimes they even have dollar bills printed on the yellow panties!

I have also heard that green is for health, and white is for peace, but for some reason they never seem to show up in the store displays, hmmmm, I wonder what that says about our priorities?
So, what colour were your panties?

No Room at the INN

Wow, people love to visit San Miguel.
There is a great deal of activity here in San Miguel over the holidays.
Tonight is New Years Eve and I think everyone has decided to celebrate it here.

I popped into town today to get some pictures of the mounted police that they like to trot out for weekends and holidays.  Trot out, get it! Sorry !

Mexican Mountie!

The main plaza is packed, as you can see. Then they proceeded to start  building a stage for this evenings festivities, very organized.

Packed!

I have been impressed with how well they have been dealing with ALL the traffic, and when I say traffic, I don’t just mean cars, you have to add bikes , scooters donkeys, horses, and horse drawn carriages. Even then they come up with traffic you wouldn’t expect.

Traffic

For example, below is a picture I took a little before 9 AM this morning out a window facing the rear of our home,  now that is a unique way to jump a traffic jam!

Arriving in Style!

I hope to catch some photos this evening to share with you later.

Have a safe and happy New Year!!!

Christmas Lights and Sights, San Miguel de Allende

The other night I went for a walk around the Jardin in San Miguel with my camera to catch some of the colour and sights of the season. I would like to share that with you, no write-up this time, just a few pictures.

The Christmas tree in between the Parroquia and the clock tower that gives Calle Relox it name.

Poinsettias glowing white against the backdrop of green turned almost black by the lateness of the hour

Cars slowly driving by though light strewn streets

Please have a very happy holiday, where ever you are!

Calendars & New Kid on the Blog!

 

Hello all

for those of you who haven't found her yet, Shannon has started her own blog.
Please check it out and leave some kind words in the comments for her.

http://www.rat-race-refugee.com/

In addition she has been going through my photos and has put together calendars , mouse pads, mugs and such. Check out the links to the Calendars and pass them on!

If you want things in time for Christmas order now!

Keep tuned to this channel, in the new year, I will be making some major changes!!

 

Patzcuaro Calendar

A Year in Patzcuaro, Mexico Calendar by Mexico_Memento

 

 

San Miguel Calendar

A Year in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, Calendar by Mexico_Memento

Now and Then

 

Just a quick note today.

One of the things I love about the colonial highlands of Mexico, is you never really know what you are going to run into. Saturday morning, walking around with my camera, I round the corner of the Jardin in San Miguel and there sitting in front of a 300 plus year old church is an assemblage of 80 off road vehicles.

 

Contrasting Now and Then

Seems I have stumbled across the starting line for the Rally Raid Bajio 500, a cross country race running for 3 days in the area.  Me, I am just jealous of the parking spot they found. Parking can be a challenge here. LOL

 

The Best Parking Spot in San Miguel!

A Nave in Nurio

So, continuing  on our drive that we started last week. After leaving Pomacuarán, driving for less than ten kilometers we roll quietly into Nurio. The sign at the entrance to town is the only street sign there, as everyone in town already knows where everything is, and rarely does anyone else stop. Those that drive through truly do not know what they are missing.

The somewhat colorful entrance to Nurio!

Luckily it only takes a question or two of the locals to determine the location of the church. While it didn’t happen in this case, I have often found getting directions on the ground from locals in Mexico can be highly entertaining. It seems that culture is such that they don’t want to disappoint, so even if they don’t know what the appropriate directions are , they will come up with some for you anyway! In cases like this it is often helpful to ask a few people and see if there is a consensus of option. I admit I have often been tempted to pull up to a group of people in some out of the way village and ask if I am headed in the right direction for Acapulco!

Templo de Santiago Apóstol in  Nurio

 

The church sits behind one of the ubiquitous fig trees that seem so popular in so many of the town squares here. It is  more massive and weightier than the painted churches in Pomacuarán and Tupataro, significantly more imposing, a deep dusty peach color with streamers trailing out from the window above the door.

Rich Colors and Gold Leaf

The entrance, with deep  colors, make Nurio stand out from the other painted ceiling churches in the state. The rich enameled paint  and the gold leaf make the clear statement that this is a step beyond the typical folk art of the region.

Ceiling Detail

As we progress into the church, we can see that this is not just another day in Nurio, but a fiesta day, probably with the word “Saint” in the title. Elegant fabric drapes down from the ceiling to the sides of the church, with flowers everywhere including a mosaic of flower petals and other foliage running down the aisle in the center of the church. I am assuming that they don’t put this sort of show on for every visitor. but I could be wrong.

The Nave, All Dressed Up

Below is the photo I took of the sign by the church, with details in Spanish, English and Purépecha dating the painting in the church to 1639. Hey, if you have no idea what the difference is between a nave and a narthex, then check out this website for handy reference that helped explain some of the details for me.

Inside your Church

Painted in Pomacuarán

Welcome to Pomacuarán!

Today we are on the road to visit the church at Pomacuarán. Another back road adventure in the Mesa Purépecha of Michoacán. We found this village the first time we went to Cocucho to get the big pots that they are so famous for when we lived in Patzcuaro.

The Church at Pomacuarán

We arrive in the village, with the sky a dramatic blue contrasted with the clouds floating by at a leisurely pace. A great day to take pictures. Like many of these villages that lie off the beaten path, Spanish is a second language here, while most , if not all, speak Spanish, you hear a great deal of the Purepecha language throughout this region.
At the ”shoreline” so to speak, of Spanish and English, you get Spanglish, I wonder if there is a word for the combination of Spanish and Purepecha?

Pomacuarán Painted Ceilings, Reminiscent of Tupataro

Hey remember our visit to Tupataro? You can see that post here: The Church at Tupataro.

What does the Tupataro have to do with todays trip? The uniquely Michoacán painted church ceiling, not that painted ceilings are uniquely Michoacán, just ask Michelangelo,  but the style of the painting is very traditional of the folk art here, or perhaps it just seems so to my untrained eye.

Ceiling Detail

So, as we have started to visit more churches with painted ceiling, our next stop will be the beautiful church in Nurio that has received attention from the World Monuments Fund, so check back next week for another painted ceiling.

Cold Facts on San Miguel de Allende.

Before we moved to San Miguel, we had visited here quite often.
Whenever we would talk about where we lived in Patzcuaro we would regularly hear..
”Patzcuaro…..It’s SOOOO COLD there”
Well , last week, no wait….
last month, no…..
okay, I started this post at the end of November. I have been very bad about keeping current, but that will be changing with the new year!!!!

We had a cold snap like nothing I had ever experienced in Patzcuaro.

What Jack Frost Touches, Dies!

Note the splash of green in the lower left where the larger tree shielded the smaller.

The temperature dropped to –8 Celsius and combined with the wind that night it made for some cold feet on the tile floor. But it also made for some very unhappy plants.

The tree in front of the house got the worst of it,  leaves turning brown and brittle.
Throughout the yard, plants are dead or dying back, to start over (hopefully) when the temperature permits.

I am already seeing some colour popping out amongst all the brown in the yard. I am taking this not as just a good sign for the garden, but perhaps an omen of the year to come and our new adventures in our new home!

Rebirth!

I Have a Mountain of Books!

 

One of the things that I really disliked about living in Mexico , when we first moved here, was the lack of book stores. I missed Chapters.  For those of you in the States, Chapters is Canada’s large chain book store.

I missed digging through piles of old books in used stores on Granville Street.
Sneaking out to Point Grey to see the latest science fiction in at the White Dwarf bookstore. Be careful not to trip over the basset hound wandering the store.

When we moved down here we brought a small trailer for our belongings. Well, for what was left of our belongings, as we sold, gave away or threw out 90 percent of our stuff. Just keeping clothes, computer, a few sentimental things and boxes and boxes of books.

When I got my kindle, I was very happy. I don't really buy hard copy books anymore.
But......
I still cant bring myself to get rid of all my old books. Old books are like old friends.

Right now I have boxes of books still to go through to pick which ones will go in the book cases of our new place. Yes, there are still some that I will be throwing away. Anyone want 6 books on how to use a 4 year out of date version of Photoshop? Let me know before the garbage truck gets here!!

Then this morning I came across this Canadian artist. Perhaps I should turn my old books into a new hobby!

So head on over to visit Guy Laramee, and be amazed, I know I was.

http://www.guylaramee.com

A San Miguel Morning

 

Hello Strangers, yes I am still alive. As we speed through fall and head towards winter, I am taking a moment to make a quick post. Life has been rather chaotic this year, but I hope to be back on track soon.

We have just moved to San Miguel, and while we are missing Patzcuaro , we are looking forward to new adventures.

 

The Morning Light

I am an early riser, and have been for a very long time. Mornings are magic, watching the village wake up. Refreshing walks with coffee in hand, while the sun, low in the sky, brings drama to the commonplace scenes.

Yesterday was one of those days. Let me share some of the pictures I took, it will be like we went on a walk together.

More Colour!

Part of Patzcuaro’s charm is the traditional uniform colour of all the buildings in town, but it is a nice change of pace to find different colours every place you look.
One of the houses even looked like Hobbits lived there, with a doorway that seemed a couple of feet too short for practical use.

Excuse Me is Frodo Home?

After wandering the back streets of San Miguel for a while, I make my way towards the main plaza. Today is Dia De La Revolución, so there is a great deal of activity everywhere.

What is a Parade Without Drums?

There seemed to be dozens of bands, each playing louder in an attempt to overshadow the others.

 

Feathers!

And of course, you have to have vibrant costumes and adorable kids!
So, how was your morning?

The Next Shirley Temple Busts a Move!