Day of the Dead: It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Expect  a lot more photos from me in the following weeks, as this is my third time to celebrate Noche de Muertos (or, alternately known as Dia de Muertos, De de Los Muertos, Day of the Dead) and I LOVE IT.

Today I went to the Mercado Jamaica — Mexico City’s gargantuan flower market — to pick up some zempasúchitl (marigolds) and the brain coral-like flores de terciopelo (cockscombs?)  Total cost: 30 pesos, or about $2.20. Check out this great photo slideshow to get an idea of show sprawling this mercado is.

When I got home, I made 5 bouquets from the two big bundles of flowers, including the centerpiece to my ofrenda, or altar:

You know you live in Mexico when you have spare calaveritas (mini sugar skulls) in the pantry, and whip them out for the altar.

Each marigold bloom is huge. I bought the type with more shredded like petals, but they have many varieties for sale. This weekend the flowers will bedeck altars, the cemeteries, and the entrances to peoples' homes, a way to welcome and guide back their dead loved ones.

I had two quesadillas at the mercado after buying my flowers. One had huitlacoche (corn fungus -- it's delicious!) and the other, continuing with the flower theme, was stuffed with squash blossoms.

These exquisite flores de terciopelo look great juxtaposed next to orange. Fuchsia and orange: so Mexican.

Of course, Halloween is popular here, too. Costumes and themed pinatas were for sale, like this witch, who waited on a bench while her owner had lunch.

The Little Miracle on My Patio

On our Mexico City apartment patio, we have several geraniums, two weird succulent plants, and a very productive chili pepper plant.

Those are the survivors, anyway. We’ve managed to kill a few plants, too.

Amazingly, a week or so ago, I noticed a little green sprout in one of the cast-off pots that I had shoved into the corner and forgotten about. I had no idea what the little sprout was (it’s growing in a pot that used to contain basil), but surmised it was a weed that had shown up because the rainy season meant it was getting watered frequently.

But now, it doesn’t look so weed-like:

Anyone know what flower this is?

Adios, Rainy Season

The Ironic Corn Stalk in Parque Mexico

I am fortunate enough to live adjacent to Parque Mexico, one of the prettiest parks in Mexico City. I’ve sung its praises many times here, from the big fat banana flowers to the shabby beauty of the fountains to the cute signs posted on tree trunks.

The park is maintained by a giant fleet of workers who sweep the sidewalks and keep the plants/trees healthy. On the weekends, it’s insanely crowded with families and dog owners.

A few months ago, though, I spotted a strange sight: A gangly little stalk of corn. I thought that it was funny — was it a silly joke, to see if it would survive? Or something more meaningful, a historical statement on what was likely growing in the park’s area 300 years ago? Or a political statement that anyone who can live near the park can afford corn during a time of severe (and panic-inducing) drought when so many can’t?

I thought someone would uproot the corn stalk by now, or that it would wither away. But no, it’s gotten huge — all by its lonesome — and is now sprouting a little ear of corn.

I’d love to know who planted it, and why:

A Trip Down Insurgentes (‘World’s Longest Avenue’) in Mexico City

To get to UNAM, the gigantic university in the southern part of our city, we drove down Insurgentes (en-sir-hen-tess), which is according to Wikipedia, “the longest avenue in Mexico City and said to be the longest in the world.” It’s an avenue we’re very familiar with, because it’s one of the few straightforward ways to get out of the city — it links up to the toll road to Cuernavaca (and eventually, Acapulco). Meaning, even panicked gueros can navigate it.

Nicely, it’s not just for car traffic, though; Brendan commutes to work via the Insurgentes Metrobus. The bus line is new, created a few years ago by devoting the inner lanes only to bus traffic. There are stations about every two blocks, making it super-easy to navigate Insurgentes on foot, too. And when we need to visit Wal-Mart (more often than we like), we head north on Insurgentes a few stops.

Because I was riding in the back-seat of an open-air car, I decided to take a few photos on Sunday:

The World Trade Center is a behemoth building, home to many offices and major conventions. There's a restaurant on top that we need to visit.

A few weeks ago we ate here, Restaurante Los Guajolotes ("turkeys" in Nahuatl), where they roast entire turkeys. I had a delish Thanksgiving-like platter of white turkey breast, gravy and mashed potatoes. I think the more notable thing, though, is their logo: A plucked turkey in a waiter's suit, jauntily carrying a cooked turkey on a tray.

Murals are one of the more delightful sights around the city, including along Insurgentes. This one was, I think, flanks a shopping mall. These are images of ancient deities of the Aztecs.

The same mural (the image above is over on the right, sort of.)

The World Trade Center may be the biggest, but there are lots of other skyscrapers along the way.

And, as with everywhere in Mexico, there are vendors and things for sale the entire way. Desperate for a bottle of water, or maybe a pinwheel (or four)? No hay problema!

Insurgentes also bisects UNAM. The Olympic Stadium is on your right as you drive south. Hard to miss, too.

Photos: We Visit Latin America’s Largest University, UNAM

The soccer stadium (go Pumas!) is also the '68 Olympic stadium.

Jesica, one of my good friends here in Mexico City, happens to be a tour guide with a degree in art history. Meaning, when you hang out with her, you not only have fun, you get smarter. A few days ago, I  mentioned that we hadn’t yet visited UNAM, Mexico City’s enormous university (the biggest in Latin America, and perhaps the world). The campus is in the south of the city, and itself is the size of a small city. So, she said, vaminos. And we did so today, turning it into a little mini-road trip in her convertible Tracker.

We attended the Orquestra Sinfonica de Mineria (the symphony — and I loved it. Does this mean I’m getting old?) at Sala Nezahualcóyotl, had lunch at the famed Azul y Oro (named after the colors of UNAM, blue and gold), then walked around a sculpture garden that contained — to my glee — lots of nature, and well, sculptures by Sebastian.

Jesica and Brendan hike down to the big blue M.

I was actually entertained during the entire symphony. It's really quite amazing.

It was one of those typically perfect days. 365 days a year, it rocks.

A bee doing what she does best.

"I'm a fat lizard sunbathing."

A poblano pepper stuffed with spicy pork and fruit, covered in a walnut cream sauce, and doused with pomegranate seeds. It's a rough life.

A Mondrian-style home sits behind a pesero.

What Is the World Coming to? (or Joy Discovers Justin Bieber)

I flipped on MTV just now to to try and keep up with what the kids are listening to these days.

Apparently, this is either a pre-pubescent teen boy or a twee lesbian rapper. Either way, it’s creepy and I feel officially old and completely mystified by the younger generation.

Just Call Me a Copper Snob

Before I visited the Mexican town of Santa Clara del Cobre in Michoacan a few weeks ago, I knew nada about copper (aka cobre en espanol). We didn’t own any copper – except for the cable that hooks the washer/dryer up to the gas lines.

Then, we visited. And went a little hog-wild, buying plates, dishware, jewelry (not enough – only two bracelets) and a serving bowl.

Copper cookware is supposed to be the chef's ultimate, because of how it conducts heat.

Copper comes in different colors, depending on the chemicals used in the finishing process. This serving bowl looks like wood.

These plates are ubiquitous in Patzcuaro restaurants; they sort of mimic placemats....

...when used like this. I didn't realize my serving bowl (above two photos) would match so well with the dishware, a gift from my mother-in-law.

This $2 bracelet really jazzes up an outfit.

This spree was helped by the fact that we eloped, and never got (nor wanted) any of the fancy wedding gifts most couples get. While in Mexico, we’ve managed to upgrade our home decor substantially from rickety Ikea furniture to, in some cases, original creations (or at least things you can’t find in the U.S.).

When I first moved here, I went a little crazy buying cute knickknacks you can find at most art-themed mercados. I was taken in by the bright colors of Mexico. With time, and lots of shopping experience, though, I’ve come to love the more muted art here (I think I need to do a separate blog post on those purchases), mostly made of dark wood. The copper matches perfectly.

So, we bought a lot, but not the pot.

In one of the stores we visited, Brendan and I both spotted a large copper pot from across the room; it seemed like a little beam of light was illuminating only it. We clustered around it, and spent several long minutes trying to decide if the price was worth it. After all, it was bedecked with a ribbon, indicating it had won an award in last year’s concurso, a copper artisans competition. (The category, we later found out, was for artists 15 and younger. Yes, a young joven designed the pot!)

Ultimately, we decided, no – we were just beginning our vacation across Michoacan, and the pot would seriously hinder the space in our rental car.

Then, we came home. And thought/chatted about the pot so much we went back to Santa Clara last weekend and bought it. It’s now sitting next to my desk, as we decide what to do with it (that’s the hard part).

I think it’s also time to name it, maybe Clara, para Sta. Clara.

Clara without sunshine shining down on her.

Clara in the sunshine, looking less moody.

[Friends Lesley/Crayton came with us the second time, and ended up buying a large, original artwork, too -- of a more modern sort ]

Come With Me to Patzcuaro, Michoacan

So, I’ve got a new favorite place in Mexico: Patzcuaro, in the state of Michoacan. It’s about a 4 to 5 hour drive west of Mexico City, located just south of Morelia, the capital of Michoacan (which is supposed to be lovely, too, but we didn’t have time to visit).

Normally, I’m a beach girl and most of my favorite Mexican places involve the ocean and the creatures that inhabit within. But Patzcuaro takes the cake for:

1. Best little Mexican town, for architecture

I’ve been to a lot of “colonial era” cities in Mexico, meaning they were built soon after the conquest and still have a lot of traditional and very old Spanish architecture. They’re adorable, by and large, but after you’ve visited a few, they do start to look all the same (what’s that? Another Italian Coffee Company in a historic hacienda building? Great). Not with Patzcuaro, with its supremely maintained architecture. It’s also relatively flat, so it’s not a killer city to walk around, like equally cute but incredibly steep Taxco. We stayed at squee-worthy La Casa Encantada, which, btw, has half-off their room rates through July, so get it while it’s cheap.

Every street in Patzcuaro looks like this.

Our room at La Casa Encantada (included a kitchen).

2. Best little Mexican town, for arts and crafts

Patzcuaro and its nearby small towns operate under a unique system set up by a Spanish priest hundreds of years ago. He taught the local indigenous communities to individually specialize in specific trades, a practice that exists today. Many of these crafts are for sale in the stores that line Patzcuaro’s main plaza, but it’s also fun to get out and explore the actual towns where the products are made.

In Santa Clara del Cobre, as just one example, you can find copper galore:

At the National Copper Museum

More shopping:

Pottery for sale in Tzintzuntzan -- which means 'place of the hummingbirds' in Purepecha.

3. Best climate, ever?

Simply driving around the countryside is gorgeous. It’s hilly, green, and because of the elevation, not too hot, and not too cold. I’ve heard Michoacan contains many areas considered “most hospitable to human life” and you really feel it when you’re there, because you don’t want to leave.

Blue skies, green trees, the open road...

4. Fantastic bodies of water nearby!

Rare for Mexico, this is a lake-filled region. The most popular is Lago de Patzcuaro, which contains several islands, all swarmed by visitors come Day of the Dead, especially Isla Janitzio. Instead of visting it, we took an off-the-beaten-path tour of two other islands, Pacanda and Yunuen, where the indigenous Purepecha people live.

After spotting a sign for "eco-turistico" stuff, we turned left and headed to shore.

Gregorio talked us into a boat tour, and we visited two islands. We were the only people out.

It was so quiet here we almost heard our brains thinking.

(If you’re interested in a very unique lodging experience on Pacanda, contact Gregorio Campos who operates tours of the island and has new cabanas on the island, too, at 43-4104-2511. He’s already booked for Day of the Dead but the rest of the year he’s less busy.)

Besides Patzcuaro, there are several other lakes that are supposed to be better for swimming — deeper, cleaner, etc.

All this, gleaned in just TWO DAYS I spent there! Suffice it to say, I’ll be back.

Mexico: A Country Obsessed with Walls and Fences

My favorite walls in Mexico are those that have flowers spilling over them.

In Mexico, most properties — especially houses — are hidden behind huge fences.

While I wish so much of Mexico wasn’t hidden, I understand this fence-me-in obsession on a homeowner level, perhaps because I grew up Texan? We like our personal property, and we like it private — unlike my in-laws’ neighborhood in Minnesota, where there are no backyard fences, which stunned me at first.

In Texas, though, most homeowners wouldn’t dream of fencing in their front yards. Yet in Mexico, the entire property is often ringed by a high wall, making homes of even modest means fortresses of stone and concrete.  The need to give in and build a wall is complicated, especially for American homeowners here who try to live here, sans walls.

For a country obsessed with walls, then, it follows that the walls are not merely practical forms of keeping the world out. They also become perfect space for art and advertising, easily erased and re-painted when the need strikes.

Street art in Mexico usually surfaces first on walls.

An ad for a music group's performance - "Alacranes" means scorpions.

Another music group's announcement.

Comex, a chain of paint stores, is as common as Starbucks is in Manhattan, for obvious reasons. Muted tones are not their specialty. Our apartment, for example, is painted in “Oaxaca Red,” “Gouda,” and “Tulum,”  courtesy of Comex. The bright colors help cover up the reality below — drab concrete (furnished by a similarly-named business in Mexico, Cemex.)

Who needs a sign when you can write it on the wall? This is probably Comex's Gouda color.

Of course, when you’re pondering cultural trends in Mexico, it doesn’t take long to find ancient references. Walls and wall art feature prominently among the sites of the Aztecs, Mayans, Olmecs, Toltecs….

A mural excavated from the ancient pyramids of Teotihuacan.

And walls — or at least the murals painted upon them — figure heavily in not-so-ancient history, as well.

Famed Mexican muralist Diego Rivera took inspiration from the ancient murals and the ancient people of Mexico. (Note: I'm not entirely sure this is one of Rivera's? There are so many good muralists in Mexico that I tend to get them all confused...and assume they're all Rivera.) Aren't her tattoos -- murals for the body -- gorgeous?

I have to wonder: This national obsession with walls is perhaps why there wasn’t a bigger outcry when the U.S. announced the building of the border fence?  Which I await eagerly to be torn down. Eagerly, folks. If only to save the South Texas/Northern Mexico flora and fauna. Obama? You’re in Mexico this week — want to announce you’re tearing down one of the dumbest creations of the 21st century?

_{Photos by Mark Hess and Bob Walsh}

I Neglected to Mention…

I wuz here:

Yes! I went to the BIGGEST concert of my life this week — Radiohead at ForoSol in Mexico City — 70,000 people strong. It was fantastic, and the crowd was awesome. They played some great songs, and this one was amazing live:

Radiohead’s “The Bends” was an album I listened to obsessively in college; it helped me study and remember things like what nephrons do and how to conjugate German verbs.

And, as I’ve already told Brendan about a dozen times, I had to produce a 15-minute television show my senior year of college for a class called, aptly, Television Production. I decided to do a show similar to Austin City Limits, and placed an ad in my college paper (where I worked, of course, as the news editor) for a band to star in my show (I billed it as a possible audition tape they could hand out to book gigs).

I picked a band that played Radiohead covers. How it went: After they play two songs on a softly lit sound stage, and end with “Karma Police,” the lights dim, the credits roll, starting with “Produced by: Joy Victory”… all the while the lead singer repeating “for a minute there, I lost myself, I lost myyyyseeeelffff” until the credits stopped. My classmates were speechless — it was flawless — unlike everyone else’s show that semester. *Patting self on back, still, after all these years*

I made an A. The key being that simplicity is always better.

(I wish I could unearth that VHS video, probably stored at my parents’ house.)

Anyway, enough of my brief moment of glory. Back to the concert — I also loved the opening act, the German techno-pioneers Kraftwerk. My favorite live song was the Tour de France. So beautiful.

(If you see Kraftwerk live, you’ll be signing “We…. Are….the Robots” with a German accent, for at least a week ).

What So Much of Mexico Really Looks Like

For all its natural beauty and amazing culture, Mexico is still a deeply impoverished country. People do the best they can, scraping together what work they can find. But there is no “American Dream” here — for a variety of complicated reasons, it is quite difficult to become a self-made man or woman in this country. If you’re born rich or poor, you’ll likely die that way — unless you immigrate to countries where people are given more freedoms to fight their way out of poverty.

When you leave Mexico City (or any of Mexico’s major cities) you quickly see a different reality. The countryside — once gorgeous — has been burned to clear land for crops, and many people live in simple cinderblock hovels, some with electricity and water, some without. The infrastructure has not been maintained, the roads are littered with deep potholes. People are standing on the side of the road, selling what they can.

My father-in-law — always an observant photographer — took these photos from our minivan as we left one giant oasis, Mexico City, for the small oasis of Malinalco. The two hour drive between the two locales is less idyllic, but beautiful in its own difficult way.

Churches are always the nicest buildings in the poor towns:

Many people still make their living off the earth:

Can You Help Him Find Love?

Even with the maldito typo, this one stopped me in my tracks. “Omg so cute,” I said out loud while walking my even cuter version.

“I’m looking for a girlfriend.”

Spotted today in Parque Mexico, a park known for its purebred dog populations, including Shih-Tzus. I haven’t yet met a shit-zu.

Mexico City: Surrealism on a Daily Scale

Salvador Dali said “I don’t do drugs. I am drugs.“

Mexico City could equally say the same. I’ve been here 17 months or so; I tend to forget how freaking weird the place is. Then, usually when I know I have visitors coming, I’ll start to look at the city with a fresh eye again, seeing it as they’ll see it.

Last night, on my two-minute walk to the gym, I encountered the following:

- A “flamboyant” young man in pink sunglasses and white denim jacket singing “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy?” in Spanish.

- A giant man precariously but stubbornly riding a tiny bicycle.

- A four-year-oldish girl playing with her mom on the stoop of her apartment in a t-shirt declaring “Soy Muneca” (I’m a doll).

- A Honda Civic for sale. The flyer posted in the car’s window said: “Se Vende. Soy GUAPA, no? y muchaaaa experiencia!” (For Sale. I’m hot, no?…and very experienced.)

Speaking of surreal. This is hilarious, but not exactly safe for viewing at work:

A First for Me: Going to the (Mexican) Circus

One of the cool things about having (and somehow keeping) friends in Mexico City is you get invited to do things you’d ordinarily never do as a tourist or alienated ex-pat. Case in point: Attend Circo Atayde Hermanos, a 120-year old circus in Mexico, with friend Richard, whose family owns the circus.

I suppose this is what an earthquake feels like?

Along with the usual circus acts (animals, namely: elephants, horses, camels and llamas) and trapeze artists/magicians/clowns, Circo Atayde had a nice Latino flair to it, like a guy on stilts dressed in drag as Carmen Miranda, and a slew of macho-yet-hairless Argentinian gaucho performers. A clown also did a dead-on impression of easy-to-mock but utterly fabulous Vicente Fernandez.

This gaucho looked like Star Trek's Captain Picard, and could lasso away a cigarette, meaning, yes: he was my favorite act of the night.

Richard asked us: So when was the last time you went to the circus? For him, it was literally last week — he goes all the time, since he has “circus privileges.” For me, though, I couldn’t recall. Besides daily life in Mexico, the most circus-like event I attended as an adult was probably the Moscow Cats Theater, where yes, cats perform, on stage. (As has been said by others before me: It was “30 minutes of tricks packed into 90 minutes.”)

The circus in Mexico, however, is quite the opposite — blink and you’ll miss something fun.