Headed South: March 2014

I never really thought that I would look forward to Lent. Pagan that I am, in my previous life, I never really even thought about Lent. But here....Lent is like the relief you feel when they stop jackhammering outside your window, like when you're told you can go home from the mammogram waiting room, like remembering that elusive word just when you think you're going senile. Not that Mardi Gras is not just heaps of fun -- because it is. It's just.....INTENSE. And now, Lent gives us all a chance to draw that breath, sleep in without the din of cahotes, and dwell on the beauty of spring in Ajijic. We know it is spring because the swallows are back, the jacaranda trees are a vibrant purple and there are three aisles of flip-flops on display at Walmart. With the subtlety of the change of seasons in our village, Walmart is usually the true indicator of where we are climatically. One day down vests, scarves and snow boots. The next flip-flops. See, it's spring.

This blog will be long on photos and short on text. The highlight of the week of Carnaval was the Carnaval parade. The Village People like this parade SO much that they do it twice -- both morning and evening of Fat Tuesday. The parade is the same both times but by evening a sizable number of people are falling off floats, shedding even more clothing and generally behaving badly. A number of Type A people manage to behave in that manner in the morning parade which is a bit startling (see photos).

Carnaval is a time of colorful figures on colorful floats.

It is also a time of strange & interesting creatures parading in the streets.

Part of the Carnaval tradition in Ajijic is throwing flour at the bystanders.

More colorful costumes on these individuals.

Even an angel gets involved in the Carnaval celebration.

These two characters chose to stand rather than sit on their thrones.

This character dwarfs all the others in the parade.

Only in Mexico at Carnaval! You know. WILDLY inappropriate. Where do they come up with these ideas?

Some of the local establishments use the parade to advertise.

Even Vino Blanco was recruited to appear in the Carnaval parade. He got a bath and is fluffy.

No Carnaval parade is complete without some scantily clad individuals. Of advanced age.....

This shows the lengths to which people will go to decorate the floats for Carnaval.

Not only are the floats colorful, but so are the people...

and the more colorful the better.

Tom of Tom's Bar is in the foreground as the cave men are chased by Tyrannosauras Rex approach. (A little creationist history here perhaps?)

Notice how Tom covers the top of his beer bottle with his thumb. (He must know what is coming next.)

The cavemen proceed to cover Tom in even more flour. (And you thought he was well covered before this.)

Despite being covered in flour Tom continues to protect his precious beer.

Now Tom is truly coated in flour, but still protecting his Dos Equis.

Even this jeep is creatively decorated for the parade.

This float looks like Chinese New Year met Carnaval...

as it can only in Ajijic.

There are strange characters....

and even stranger characters that all come out for Carnaval.

This being Ajijic, even the charros are represented in the parade.

This gentlemen was featured in the last blog dancing by the malecon while balancing a beer on his head. (He is still dancing even with his cane.)

The ubiquitous Tom joins in the dance.

This young charro can't wait until he can trade in his juice for a beer.

Our new friends Doug & Charlene obviously enjoyed the parade and also ended up covered in flour.
(All of the Carnaval photos were taken by Deirdre with photo editing by Michael, since Michael was occupied with The Lake Chapala Society business on that day.)

Our son Alex arrived just after the Carnaval parade and has been able to partake of the quiet and laid back aura of the Village. Only one field trip (he requested "rustic") was taken to a charming village called Comala. It is one of the "Pueblos Magicos". I will not insult you by providing a translation of the term. We spent an idyllic day sopping up the ambiance along with Margaritas and delicious tapas type food. Well, Michael was driving so no sopping for him.

The government building by the plaza in Comala.

The plaza is always the heart of any village or town in Mexico. It offers a place to gather and relax in the shade.

Even the colonnaded government building allows a shady area.

Looking into the plaza there is always a church very near the plaza...

and every church has a bell tower

Every plaza also has a bandstand with elaborate flourishes.

Which was good, because on the highway back we saw multiple accidents probably caused by too many Margaritas. Well, actually one was caused by a tolvanera. As we were driving to Comala, we passed through a long area of dry lake bed (only water in the rainy season). We saw sign after sign that strongly suggested that we reduce our speed should we encounter a tolvanera. We opined on what that might be for several miles until the threat receded and we lost focus. On the return trip we found out the answer.

"Why look!" said Alex. "There is a dust devil." And there was. It was a little big for a dust devil but it was far away and we were very excited and intrigued. The sky was looking quite peculiar and there seemed to be a lot of dust in the air. It became quite clear that tolvaneras were dust storms replete with dust devils of some magnitude. By the end of the lake bed we had seen three (one of which was very large and looked like the smaller version of a tornado). A car had gone over the embankment and the signs made perfect sense at this point. (Since Michael was driving and we were on the high speed cuota, there are no pictures of the tolvaneras.)

We arrived at the casa in one piece and have been basking poolside and trying to catch up on the more boring, yet critical, aspects of life. Alex leaves Wednesday and Maggie and Bob arrive Friday. Always fun to see people come and always sad to see them go but we are lucky that we get to have so many people visit. Take care. Will blog again when something happens-- but remember, it's Lent. Could be a while.

It has only been a little more than two weeks since we last published the blog but I sit before the computer unable to remember where we left off. Part of the problem is that it took me two weeks from the end of the road trip to publish the blog on the trip. In the intervening two weeks, a tremendous amount occurred which I failed to document and now, as senility sets in, I seem to have lost the beginning of February. I will try my best.

We arrived back in town and one day later, Ginny and Gary arrived. And the day after that, Betsy and Fred arrived. With the New England contingent in town, the party began in earnest. Both couples were "returnees" so it was time to ratchet up the activities to provide new glimpses into village life. Gary and Ginny rented our old casita (at the house with the mirror over the bed) for the month and were treated to experiencing life in the '80s complete with decaying infrastructure. Climbing in windows when doors wouldn't unlock, the sudden delight of no hot water... Well, they've survived with the help of Margaritas, Becky and a sense of humor, and many of the photos in this blog are theirs. We sheltered Bets and Fred in our new casita for their 10 day sojourn.

Next to September, which seems to hold more Holidays than there are actual days in the month, the period from February through Easter is about the most frenetic period here. Christmas doesn't officially wrap until Candlemas on February 2nd and then it's one deep breath and you are into the Carnaval, Lent, Samana Santa (Easter) trajectory. This is coupled with the fact that it is "high season" when all the snowbirds arrive and every charity known to man throws shindigs to extract money (for good causes, of course) from the deep pocketed of the North.

First up on the agenda was the Art Walk Open Studios Tour which featured artists of all variants splayed out amidst about fifty houses, B&Bs and stores. It was great. Walk, see art, eat, see art, drink, see art, buy art, eat... you get the picture. When you consider the number of venues, with multiple artists per venue, you begin to get an idea of the number of artists that live in Ajijic. Very cool.

And, as you may remember, those frisky Sayacas have started their weekly parades throughout town every Sunday until Fat Tuesday. (See blog from a year ago as to the derivation of the sayacas). As I write this (February 28th) they are gearing up for the last, most massive flour assault which will occur on Fat Tuesday. While unruly, the sayacas have a very strict code on pelting people. Boys under 18 are inundated with flour, girls under 18 are sprinkled, gringos get flour and confetti (still getting it out of our sheets) and older Mexicans are left alone. Rules count.

The sayacas dance to the music from the band.

One of the sayacas tries to dress to impress. Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.

There is also an "old man" sayaca. Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.

The bags and purses carry the flour to be thrown at the spectators.

Note the bare midriff sported by the sayaca in the middle background.

The charros follow the sayacas and the band. Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.

From there on everything gets a little muddled as to sequence so I'll just hit on different events, throw in the pictures and be done with it. Organization and precision are overrated. We did a zillion things with Betsy and Fred and then they left. And then another Boston friend, Mary, arrived. And then it was the Chili Cookoff. This is Lakeside's largest fundraiser with the proceeds going to seven very worthwhile charities and it is lots of fun. Well attended, well lubricated with tequila and featuring chili cook offs, salsa cook offs and margarita brew offs. When you enter you pay a fee ($20 pesos -- less than $2 USD) and receive a glossy brochure which lists all the events by hour and day. None of them occur when they say they will. Some occur twice. Some not at all. Indigenous people dangle from poles, horses dance, girls dance, charros pose, people seek shade and buy seed pod earrings they don't need. It's great.

Two adorable senoritas at the Chili Cookoff. Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.

Entertainment at the Chili Cookoff. Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.

A dance with a horse & pretty senorita. Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.

How did HE end up at the Chili Cookoff? Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.

You are never too young to become a charro. Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.

A group of indigenous people from Vera Cruz came to demonstrate the art of "pole flying".

Los Voladores de Papantla involves five men on a platform. The man in the middle balances on the small platform & turns around as he plays the flute & beats on a drum.

The four men have a rope tied around their waist, which is wound around the pole as they fall back...

and begin to rotate upside down around the pole.

As they rotate the rope unwinds until they reach the ground.

Deirdre with our friend Mary taking a break at the Chili Cookoff.

Ribs were the order of the day at this food stand to support the Lakeside School for the Deaf.

People gather to eat, drink and watch the entertainment on the stage.

This charro has not one, but two cell phones attached to his belt on the right.

The charro tradition includes women in colorful dresses.

Expertise with the lariat is also part of the charro culture.

The Pelicans are back in town. They are here from about November to March. They are not the ones Americans think of. They are huge white birds with black tips on their wings. They fly in flocks, fish in flocks, hang out in flocks and pester the fishermen in flocks. Very social. They don't dive for fish either. They form a circle, close in on them and bam! Interesting to watch. We devoted some time to admiring them while watching human life swirl around us on the malecon in Chapala.

(Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.) More white pelicans are flocking to Chapala this year...

as some of the fishermen feed them fish scraps.

It was then time for a field trip. We packed up the Subaru and headed for Guachimontones. Yes, more pyramids but at least you don't have to climb them. And they are round which is both a contradiction in terms and interesting. They only found these like 30 years ago and they are still trying to piece together exactly who these folks were that inhabited them but they are getting there. We visited first about six years ago on our first trip to Guadalajara and they knew almost nothing then. Now there's a museum, video, paved parking. No more Indiana Jones feel but a lot more info. After trouncing around we decided that it was time, of course, to eat and drink.

The round pyramids of Guachimontones. Photo courtesy of Ginny Fox.

I had planned a lovely, elegant luncheon to be dallied over at the Hacienda del Carmen. I mean, really, everyone has to experience a Hacienda. And this one grows all it's own food, dates from 1580 something and is posh as hell. Of course it didn't work. We pulled up and there was a wedding, or some other equally boring event, consuming the entire hacienda. Overcome with disappointment, I turned to the others and said: "Damn. I guess this means we have to go to the snake restaurant." I probably could have positioned it better but I was reeling with remorse over not having checked out the hacienda situation in advance of the trip. "Snakes?" they said in unison. Well, on our first trip we had stopped at this lakeside restaurant which was wonderful and scenic and we had sat directly lakeside. Unfortunately, it must have been the water snake mating season or something because as I gazed serenely across the water I saw MULTIPLE (it would be debated how many) red/white/black snakes roiling the water (Phobias #5 -- snakes-- and #6 --possibility of being in water with icky things). Michael assured our guests that this was just one of my overblown, fear-laced remembrances and that it was nothing like that. Ha! Well, actually we didn't see any snakes this time. But I could make Ginny jump by just looking over her shoulder (next to the water) and doing a sharp breath intake. That was kind of fun. It was beautiful and the food was good.

The lake without any snakes (this time).

The white pelicans like this lake as well.

Despite our two (almost) years here, we are still neophytes about street food. I mean we eat it sometimes, but we don't really know what we are doing or eating (sometimes a good thing). Mostly it is delicious, cheap and we've never gotten sick but, come on, you can't live in ignorance forever. So... using Ginny and Gary as cover for our woeful lack of street food knowledge, we enticed Luzma to conduct a street food tour for us. We figured just Ajijic. But no. According to Luzma, street food central is to be found in Jocotopec (up the road a piece). And no, not at dinner or lunch. At 10 in the morning the best street food is to be found. See how ignorant we were. Jeez. I was forced to stay home (sob!) to wait for the tree men to rectify the situation of this one big tree throwing everything in it's arsenal (leaves, flowers, buds and these hideous little bulbous things) into our pool. They never showed. GRRR. But enough about me. So they set off to forage and forage they did. Tacos al vapor, fried pork, birreria (goat) and grilled tongue and cheek. Come on, you know it sounds good. When people rebelled against pork fried in pork lard as potentially lethal, it was explained that because it is PORK and it is FRIED in PORK it is fine -- if not wildly healthy. Since it was delicious, everyone accepted this explanation without quibbling. And they SWEAR the tongue and cheek were excellent. I'll try it...someday.

The first street food stop was for tacos al vapor (steamed tacos).

Adding shredded cabbage to our tacos al vapor.

Gary, Michael & Luzma examining the stainless steel container in which the pork is cooked in its fat.

The pork & pork skin cooking in its fat.

Your choice of condiments to add to your tacos with the pork & pork skin.

A satisfied customer.

Luzma, Michael & Gary ordering tacos with tongue & cheek. (All of the above photos courtesy of Ginny Fox.)

And then it was time for the kick off to Carnaval in Chapala. Faithful readers may remember the Parade which culminates in the burning of the Coffin of Ill Humor. Nobody knows what the coffin is about. We keep asking. I've gone so far as to Google it-- to no avail. And you can Google ANYTHING. No Wikipedia. If you know, please, please tell us. Anyway, it's there every year. They just stick it on a sidewalk, douse it with accelerant, torch it and let the small children and dogs play around it as embers drift into the trees in the midst of dry season. Of course, nothing bad happens. As Americans, we are obsessed about all the bad things that are bound to happen due to negligence, poor protocols, lack of regulations, indifference. The longer we spend here, without dire consequences ensuing from the general lackadaisical attitude of the populace, the more we realize that perhaps we have been just a little too tightly wound in our past life. Another digression. Well, it was all there. The food stalls, the half naked dancers, the giant Brahma bull, the federales in full battle dress. This year they had metal detectors but the sensors were set so high that only the baby strollers set them off. You never know about those babies. Now, having said that we worry too much, I must say that the Ferris Wheel honestly justified concern. It was big and it appeared to have been calibrated at the speed setting that would have been appropriate for, say, a roller coaster. You don't usually hear people scream on a Ferris Wheel. But, once again, nothing bad happened.

Who knew robots were part of Carnaval.

Shaking your booty is always part of Carnaval.

Getting your picture taken with a Brahma bull is part of Carnaval here.

The coffin of ill humor is subsumed by flames.

The stilt walkers sit down to take a load off.

Kids rides are also a major part of Carnaval here. (All of the above photos courtesy of Ginny Fox.)

Well, that's about it. There was more, much more, but I think we've run out of juice for now. There may be some photos that don't match with any text but, hey, you're imaginative. Just make up you own story about them. Mary is back in Boston and Ginny and Gary head out tomorrow. Come Wednesday our son Alex arrives for a weeks respite from the howling north winds and snow and, soon after, my Boston Spanish class pal Maggie and her husband drop in. Much fun so far and more to come. Take care. Stay warm. It's got to be almost over.......