Life in Oaxtepec

Today marks my first week in the mountains, be it in Mexico City or Morelos. Living at the same temperature as the trees almost turns me into a morning person. I say almost because 6am is still not my thing, but here, neither is 9:30am.

Today I had special motivation to get moving: the World Cup. Sadly Mexico lost to Uruguay, but, hey, we are still in the game! Not so for my Greek and South African friends.  Greece lost to Argentina and South Africa lost to France. I will say this, South Africa wins as well loved and impressive host to the world. Comments here both on and off the screen have been very positive.

After the game I headed to the local coffee house to give a virtual class. I had already ducked in yesterday to confirm they had Wifi. The screen was of course tuned to soccer, with only two other people. Everyone else was probably headed back to work or still mourning the loss at the bars and restaurants.

AM booze is just not me, World Cup or not. Instead I opted for a turkey croissandwich and coffee with jello for dessert. It’s much the same as what I order in Dallas, but entirely different. For starters, here my croissant was pressed and toasted like a Panini and filled with Manchego cheese, the likes of which are not easily found in a US café. Sides? Chips and jalapeños, of course. And that jello is made with milk and drizzled with mango sauce.

It was a bit warm today, so the coffee house shut its doors and turned on the AC... to a normal temperature! Can I just say how nice it is not to need a sweater in the summer? The virtual session went well. I was a bit concerned after reading several blog posts on poor Internet connection in Mexico. My experience was entirely normal, no issues with the connection whatsoever.

As the sun set, I wound my way back home, taking more pictures and lollygagging at every flower patch. Though it's not exactly intense exercise, it got warm after a while, so I jumped in the pool as soon as I got home.

The night couldn’t have ended better. For maybe three hours my uncle and I talked about history, culture, politics, and society. The best part for me is always the history. All my uncles are extremely well versed in national history, and the one I’m visiting is so passionate about it that his conversations play like a movie reel in my mind. It was nothing short of a history lesson and I loved it.

Cecina and Bugambilias

Ahhhh, a highly uneventful day. All this resting, light work, and reconnecting with Dallas via the Internet can get addictive. I miss actual hugs and kisses from my Dallas loved ones, but am grateful that casual conversation with my people isn’t either out of the question or ridiculously expensive. Yay for the web!

And yay for cecina! Vegetarians beware, I’m about to unabashedly wax rhapsodic about meat. Click on the play button only if you can accept that for some of us meat is poetry. 

One of the specialties of the state of Morelos is cecina, very thinly cut salted meat. It’s not dry like beef jerky, quite the contrary. Just imagine very thin, soft, salty beef. Combined with a bit of avocado, salsa, and our friend, the tortilla…. ohhhhh… its… um… uh... wait, I lost my train of thought.

So after my love affair with cecina, I went for a walk and took some pictures. There is no shortage of beauty in this place. Flowers burst from every nook and cranny. Tomorrow I'll take pictures of the bird of paradise collection in the back yard. And bugambilias (bougainbillea spectabilis) are as common as grass in these parts. They remind me of my grandparents. Their vacation homes were covered in these pink flowers.

With my ear buds in place and the radio tuned in to a local station, I strolled through the neighborhood. My only objective was to soaking in my new environment and to enjoy the sparks of familiarity that flashed like lightning bugs in my mind. Mission accomplished.

If Spring were a place... this is it.

Mexico City’s subway is amazing. We cut through what would have taken over an hour in maybe 20 minutes.  No traffic, no lights, no people tapping on the window selling gum. Fast and clean, all for the bargain price of three pesos. The time went by even faster with vendors and singers popping in an out. Admittedly, too many bad stories about the metro kept me a bit on edge, but it was in fact a great experience.

While in the past I’ve avoided the metro, I’ve often been on an interstate bus. The experience is almost always pleasant and comfortable. This time the trip from Mexico City to Morelos was great as well, though being filmed by the bus line’s private safety personnel for my safety was a little unsettling. Then again, security cameras do exactly that. I guess having a guard sweep past me with a camcorder caught me off guard.

There are always cheap snacks and beverages offered on board (sandwiches, coke, candy, chips, etc.). This time the vendor was not with us the whole way. Not a block away from the station, he was picked up and, after announcing to everyone that the funds for said snackage would support the strike (he worked for a different bus line), he walked up and down the aisle. Less than 10 minutes later, the bus dropped him in front of a Federal Police station. Now I know to buy right away or decide early on not to snack on the way.

Morelos is a great state with amazing views, delicious food, perfect spring climate, and truly friendly people. My family has been shuttling between the capital and Morelos my whole life (getting away from the swarms), so while it does not have the feel of home, there are sparks of the familiar. I arrived straight to the lienzo charro to watch a full day of charros, eat cowboy fodder and, yes, follow the World Cup on TV—the screens were doing double duty. 

The actual rodeo looks different and much smaller than I remember. It’s the same experience as going back to an old elementary school, walking in spaces that a small body once felt to be huge. I’m not much of a cowgirl, though I do like to ride. Hanging out at the lienzo charro is more than roping cattle, though. It’s an entire cultural experience that involves a lot of unpretentious laidback people hanging out, talking, watching, eating... enjoying a perfect lazy day with brief moments of excitement during death jumps. 

As a kid I loved coming to Oaxtepec, Morelos. It’s one of those heavenly places where mangos are pulled of trees in your yard and lemons procured from the neighbor’s, almost everyone has a swimming pool, and crime is just a random word in the dictionary. A walk through the neighborhood is filled with hummingbirds, bugambilias, roses, old trees, and beautiful homes. And I love the textures here—no fence or building façade is the same. Even the roads are pretty.

Supper might have been home-cooked were it not for broken refrigerator issues. But as you can probably guess by now, a busted fridge paves the way to street tacos!

Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)

You're a good soldier
Choosing your battles
Pick yourself up
And dust yourself off
Get back in the saddle

You're on the front line
Everyone's watching
You know it's serious
We are getting closer
This isn't over

The pressure is on
You feel it
But you got it all
Believe it

When you fall get up, oh oh
If you fall get up, eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
Cuz this is Africa
Tsamina mina, eh eh
Waka waka, eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
This time for Africa

Listen to your God
This is our motto
Your time to shine
Don't wait in line
Y vamos por todo

People are raising
Their expectations
Go on and feed them
This is your moment
No hesitations

Today's your day
I feel it
You paved the way
Believe it

If you get down get up, oh oh
When you get down get up, eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
This time for Africa
Tsamina mina, eh eh
Waka waka, eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
Anawa a a
Tsamina mina, eh eh
Waka waka, eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
This time for Africa

Awela Majoni Biggie Biggie Mama One A To Zet 
Athi sithi LaMajoni Biggie Biggie Mama From East To West 
Bathi . . . Waka Waka Ma Eh Eh Waka Waka Ma Eh Eh 
Zonke zizwe mazi buye
Cuz this is Africa

Voice: Tsamina mina, Anawa a a
       Tsamina mina
       Tsamina mina, Anawa a a

Tsamina mina, eh eh
Waka waka, eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
Anawa a a
Tsamina mina, eh eh
Waka waka, eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
This time for Africa

Django eh eh
Django eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
Anawa a a

Django eh eh
Django eh eh
Tsamina mina zangalewa
Anawa a a

(2x) This time for Africa
(2x) We're all Africa

Screens in Every Corner

Today I walked through a human swarm. Historical downtown is probably as beautiful as ever, but certainly hard to see in the sea of humanity that spilled out of every building, filling sidewalks and taking over the road. I hear many streets surrounding the central plaza close down on Sundays so people can walk and bike about freely. That sounds like exactly the way to hang out at the zócalo.

What I did see downtown were flags absolutely everywhere! And screens in every corner broadcasting—of course—the World Cup. In the textile establishment my mother-in-law and I went to, there were four screens for patrons… and almost everyone—staff and shoppers—were women. As we walked out the door, we caught snippets of conversations all centered on the World Cup, from everyone: men, women, children... I could swear even the stray dogs were commenting. Getting together in the US for games is nice, but it’s just more fun to watch when the whole country is excited!

After our errand downtown, we headed back to the neighborhood where we stopped in at the tianguis to order barbacoa for an upcoming celebration. That’s right, the best place to order truly amazing Mexican barbecue is not a restaurant or banquet hall, it’s the local open air market. And yes, there were TVs there, too, with long extension cords plugged into surrounding homes and businesses, all broadcasting the World Cup.

One of those TVs exercised its magnetic pull on a friend we’d been hoping to run into since our arrival. Let’s just call him Roaming Hippie. After two years without hearing from him, there he was with his hand crafted jewelry displayed, beer in hand, pasted to the screen.

It was a day of get-togethers. After hanging out with said Roaming Hippie, I took time to see family. Getting there was interesting, what with offensive driving being a way of life here. I’m fairly certain I closed my eyes half the trip, which gave me a lovely opportunity to more clearly see my entire life flash before my eyes. It was worth it, though. Being with family is always comforting. The kids are amazing. And for supper… street vendor tacos to go! Woo-hoo!

Walking Around Mexico City

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We walked ten kilometers today. It's always surprising to me how far I can walk when the terrain is visually interesting… and when it’s not a hundred degrees outside. If ever anyone wonders about the reach of US Business, just know that we were running errands to Home Depot and Walmart. I know, not at all exotic, but there was so much to see on the way (including an airplane-turned-library), so many cars to dodge, so many people everywhere; and we, of course, had a taco encounter.

We may have attempted to resist and keep walking past the man on the bicycle, but he was selling tacos de canasta. Who knows where he might ride off to! OK, there are other “basket taco” vendors, but they are on the go as well. What if we didn’t run into another one for weeks? So, with our excuse firmly in place, we feasted under a tree in front of the Casa de la Cultura.

After the long walk, we had yet another fabulous home-cooked meal followed by, of course, a nap. No longer am I the odd ball that sleeps during the day in a nation of non-nappers. Here napping is not lazy; it’s sacred. I feel so understood.

Evening errands took us to a friend’s house for a very laid back and pleasant visit. And yes, we ended up at the taco stand again. I’m sure the fascination will subside soon, but until then, we are happy to support local business. Hee hee hee.