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Yes, Mexico, like all of life, has its negative sides. Mexican politeness can be a great frustration, particularly when asking directions. It's not culturally correct to answer with a straightforward, "I don't know!" My gringa accent can also be a frustration. I may think I'm getting my point across in Spanish when a salesclerk or waiter replies, "No hablo Ingles." The air pollution in Mexico City often reaches dangerous levels.
Several times I've returned from the capital city with a pesky case of bronchitis. Thinking back over my many trips south-of-the-border, first and foremost, I remember the wonderful human contacts that I have become accustomed to in Mexico.
My many artist, artisan, and business friends are key. Relationships that may have begun as commercial have blossomed into warm, lasting friendships. Excitement always comes from seeing talents develop, families grow, and know that my role as a kind of cultural ambassador enriches the lives of many!
On a trip to Metepec in the state of Mexico, I remember incredibly talented Juan Hernandez was beaming! An issue of Artes de Mexico was devoted to his pottery village, with his works prominently featured. Juan's miniatures have already won him many national prizes. Juan, barely into his twenties, appeared even more proud when he introduced us to his first born son--Dylan Rodriguez!
In Mexico City, I constantly giggle with papier-mache artist Joel Garcia. His ever present smile and wry comments are endearing. It takes little encouragement to spark Joel's creativity. His ability to translate a verbal concept into a three-dimensional object fascinates me. The skeleton and devil chairs he conceived to add to George Beylarian's famous collection of miniature chairs are but one example of his talent. ("Chairmania" George's delightful book cataloging his collection, is available at The Folk Tree.)
Dropping in at the unique hillside home and studio of fine artist, Juan Torres, in Capula, Michoac·n never fails to please. Juan is a true Renaissance man: one of his many experiments with the media is the development of copper relief sculptures. (I just had to buy one for myself!) Over the years, I've seen him experimenting in a multitude of media from clay to oils. Often Juan's artistic experiments turn into new ideas for the community of potters who are his neighbors--witness the proliferation of sculptural Posada-like skeleton figures made in Capula after models Juan developed more than ten years ago.
Hugs and kisses accompany my visits with Dolores Porras in Atzompa, Oaxaca. I call Dolores "the Picasso of Mexican Pottery". The variety of her design ideas never fail to amaze.
A cup of coffee shared with Angelica Vazquez and her Texas-born husband, John Kemner, at their hilltop home overlooking the Oaxaca Valley, always gets my admiration for her latest clay sculptures and the development of their mini-orchard.
An outstanding example of the creative spirit in Mexico is figural potter, Josefina Aguilar of Ocotlan, Oaxáca. A slight suggestion: "Could you make a ballet dancer, a prostitute, a scuba diver, a bather, a baseball team?" and Josefina will put her hand to a marvelous new series of clay figures with no two exactly alike!
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It is great to see the development of talent in the younger generation of woodcarvers (i.e. Susano Morales, Leonardo and Fernando Espinal, Efaristo Hernandez, and Moises and Armando Jimenez). Each of these artisans has developed his own unique style--easily identifiable. There is no mass production among these carvers.
I'll long treasure breakfasts at the magnificent home of Galeria de Oaxáca's Nancy Mayagoitia. Her collection of contemporary Mexican art, as one might expect, is incredible. Talking to Nancy about her many serious involvements with important local causes always fills me with awe.
Of course, I go to Mexico to shop! I'm a confirmed Flea Market-Garage Sale addict. In Mexico, Guadalajara is my favorite "junking" hangout. The Mexican word "chacharas" describe the treasures I seek. They are often covered with layers of old paint, dust, grime, rust, or who knows what. The places I go to find these treasures are often stacked knee-deep with junk. Cleanliness and order are not a priority with the dealers. But the hunt's the thrill!
Take the yard of a man named Cuco. A mean goose wanders the premises along with a variety of chickens, dogs, cats and children. Under a stack of well-weathered wood I once found an old wooden carved carnival-ride horse covered with many layers of paint. I always find bowls of oak, lovingly repaired with used sardine cans. There are old milagros, often covered with rust because they are left out in the rain. Used dance masks magically appear out of old trunks. I never know what I'll find.
Pepe buys entire households! Some of the treasures I've found at his house are old photographs, '30s buttons, beads, and jewelry, celluloid dolls, etc., etc. He always has thirty to fifty boxes filled with ephemera. Two hours of searching through his boxes is par for the course. I love every minute of it.
Also in Guadalajara, there's a flea market on Sundays on Avenida Mexico. Here, after ten A.M., I look for old jewelry, religious artifacts and bric-a-brac. The street markets on Thursday and Sunday in Tonal· are great places to find bargains in the pottery and other crafts that are made locally.
When I'm in Mexico City, I get started early Saturday morning at the flea market in the Zona Rosa. Sunday mornings I start out at 7:30 at La Lagunilla. It's amazing what treasures are to be found.
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I love to eat well
and always do that in Mexico. No trip to Oaxáca would be complete
without a visit to Teotitlan del Valle, and the Sopa de Chipil (fresh
corn soup) at Restaurant Tlamanalli is a must. Abigail Mendoza, the multi-talented
genius of the restaurant, is not only a world class chef, but she is one
of her village's most accomplished tapestry weavers.
In Oaxáca, I sample the many moles at El Naranjo, and oh, those home-made desserts! I often make a dinner of the Sopa Azteca at the Hosteria del Alcalá. Lunch at El Laurel for the outstanding salads is always enjoyable.
No trip to Patzcuaro would be complete without several breakfasts (oh! those hot bolillo rolls) and drowned-in-garlic pescado blanco (whitefish) at the Camino Real restaurant, located in a Pemex gasoline station! Another favorite, Restaurant Campestre Aleman, near Tocuaro, Michoacán, is great for baked stuffed trout, grown in the restaurant's ponds.
In Guadalajara, I never miss El Pargo's lunch of Camaron Sarandeada (broiled, marinated shrimp) I get a kick out of the young Mexican chefs doing their imitation of Japanese Tepanyaki wizardry, while being waited on by senoritas in kimono at Suehiro Restaurant.
I think breakfast is my favorite meal in Mexico. Almost anywhere the fresh fruit: pineapple, papaya and melon are succulent. Many brunches are incredible. Villa Montana in Morelia is very elegant and features regional specialties such as tamales with bits of fresh corn (uchepos). Other favorite brunches are at the Mansion de Cupatitzio in Uruapan, Hotel Quinta Real in Guadalajara and the Crowne Plaza's Cafe Miro in Mexico City.
I guess you can get the picture! Viva México!
Excerpted and updated from issue #49 (Spring, 1996) of Las Notícías, The Folk Tree's newsletter. Interested in receiving Las Notícías, our newsletter? The cost is $10.00 for five issues, generally a year's worth.
In Oaxáca, I sample the many moles at El Naranjo, and oh, those home-made desserts! I often make a dinner of the Sopa Azteca at the Hosteria del Alcalá. Lunch at El Laurel for the outstanding salads is always enjoyable.
No trip to Patzcuaro would be complete without several breakfasts (oh! those hot bolillo rolls) and drowned-in-garlic pescado blanco (whitefish) at the Camino Real restaurant, located in a Pemex gasoline station! Another favorite, Restaurant Campestre Aleman, near Tocuaro, Michoacán, is great for baked stuffed trout, grown in the restaurant's ponds.
In Guadalajara, I never miss El Pargo's lunch of Camaron Sarandeada (broiled, marinated shrimp) I get a kick out of the young Mexican chefs doing their imitation of Japanese Tepanyaki wizardry, while being waited on by senoritas in kimono at Suehiro Restaurant.
I think breakfast is my favorite meal in Mexico. Almost anywhere the fresh fruit: pineapple, papaya and melon are succulent. Many brunches are incredible. Villa Montana in Morelia is very elegant and features regional specialties such as tamales with bits of fresh corn (uchepos). Other favorite brunches are at the Mansion de Cupatitzio in Uruapan, Hotel Quinta Real in Guadalajara and the Crowne Plaza's Cafe Miro in Mexico City.
I guess you can get the picture! Viva México!
Excerpted and updated from issue #49 (Spring, 1996) of Las Notícías, The Folk Tree's newsletter. Interested in receiving Las Notícías, our newsletter? The cost is $10.00 for five issues, generally a year's worth.
