One day while walking to the Centro, I was thinking of all the things I love about San Miguel and the things I don't like---I call it the Light and Dark Sides of SMA. Let me elucidate. I love the beautiful and colorful old colonial buildings with their inner courtyards filled with tropical flora, the local small tiendas (shops for groceries, sundries and anything one would need)on nearly every street corner. I love the sounds of the church bells on the hour, passing the beautiful La Perroquia, at dusk as the lights come on. I call it the "wedding cake church" because of its fanciful baroque architecture, Most of all I love the gente, the people who are so kind and respectful, full of zest for life, and real. I love the music and all the fiestas in spite of the frequent and startling sounds of the firecrackers going off at all hours of the night.
And, I love my barrio, my neighborhood in the colonia of San Antonio. As I walk along the cobbled streets I now feel "at home" and can't express how much I love the sunshine and warmth. Gary and I often stroll home in the evenings as late as ten or ten-thirty in short sleeves. It's good to not feel the chill of Portland's winters. Si, there is much to love about San Miguel de Allende. (Read about"Mi Barrio" and see photos in the post titled "Mi Barrio")Oh, and let me not forget the favorite site I have seen everyday in March, the amazingly beautiful blooming jacaranda trees, flourishing purple against clear blue skies.
Now,for the "dark side" of San Miguel, just in case you should think that I am surely looking through rose colored glasses. I don't like the dog poop on the sidewalks, the rebar on the tops of many of the rooftops (even though I understand the reason for this is the lowering of the taxes for the people when the building appears not finished). I don't like the many holes in the streets where one can twist an ankle or break a leg. Again it's understandable. This is a four hundred year old city. The Mexicans are constantly working on the streets and trying to fill holes, improve the old sewer system and replace cobbles. Our Mexican friend, Maria Elena, who's an engineer for the city, said the "hole problem " is getting worse due to the people, who at night steal the metal plates off the utility meters in the streets and sidewalks, in order to sell the metal. It's a never ending problem, an economic one. Many people are poor and they will do whatever it takes for "dinero."
I don't like the small bits of garbage that's sometimes thrown carelessly in the streets, despite the every other day free garbage pick-up in San Miguel and the small trash bins attached to electric light poles along many of the main streets. Last Wednesday, the annual childrens Spring Parade, showed us there is a growing environmental consciousness, though, as children, all decked out in bumblebee, flower and bunny costumes, carried signs that said in Spanish, "Protect the Environment", "Recycle and Reuse" and other "green" messages. It may take a couple of generations to change the habits of the people.
I don't like that there are teens and kids languishing on the streets with no work and often joining gangs that spray grafiti on the lovely old buildings in certain neighborhoods; I don't like that they sometimes feel the only answer is that they flee to El Norte, the US, for "a better life" and then some die crossing over. It is up to the governments of both the US and Mexico to change our migration policies. We in the states need to put more pressure to find a better and more humane immigration policy and the Mexican government must do more to help its poorest of the poor.
Another thing I don't like is the number of poor old women, and young ones with children, sitting on the sidewalks with hands outstretched begging for just a little "moneda"(a few coins)for survival. I feel sad every time I pass them and, until recently, I always dug down in my pockets, to drop a few pesos into their hands. Recently I learned this is not a good idea. Many of these women from the "campo", the countryside, are being prostituted by men who bring them into town early in the morning in the back of pickups, along with "rented" children who have been drugged. We've always wondered why the children seem so passive and inert,willing to sit all day long in the laps or beside the women. Of course, what tears at our "gringo" hearts the most? ---poor women and children. Our Mexican friends and others who have lived here longer than us tell us to avoid giving and instead put pressure on the municiple governement to have the same policies they used to have, to fine and imprison the "pimps" who are preying on these ignorant women of the campo. Nobody seems to understand why that policy has not continued. Many of the poor people in the campo have farmland, but with the last few years drought and the competition from big agri-businesses, they find it hard still to grow enough and/or sell enough to make ends meet. They are enticed to try and earn more by street begging. Well, it's a complicated issue, but definitely a "dark side" of San Miguel.
But then there's always another bright side. One of those is the excellent medical and dental treatment here. Many of the ex-pats have purposely moved here because of the excellent care they can get at affordable prices. Well trained doctors (many educated in top rate institutions in the US) still make house calls. A friend of ours who had a bad case of food poisoning was given excellent care; his doctor came to the house and called each day until he was well. Gary and I have both had to have some dental work done here recently, and our new crowns cost us a third of what they would be in the states. In addition, my dentist, a woman, sent me daily emails from her iphone, to check on how I was doing and to make sure I didn't have any pain. When the final crown was put on and I walked out of her office, we hugged and I commented "In the US we usually don't hug our dentists!"
All and all, there are more bright sides to life in San Miguel than there are dark. We look forward to continuing our odyssey here in the following years that we are alive and well.
There is a cultural pre-disposition among Mexicans to like and,in fact,cherish older people. It is not unusual to see older Mexican or gringo women, being gently supported on the arm of a young Mexican girl or boy, helping their "abualita," or employer down the street, carrying her groceries or helping walk her dog. It's a culture with a proclivity for kindness and respect. Everything reported about violence in Mexico is not always true in all parts.
So, to wrap it up, the adventures go on and they are Muy Bueno!
We will spend our last four days in Mexico, in Guanoguato, a lovely neighboring colonial town. Then, on March 31st, we wing home from the airport in Leon, just a half hour from there. We will be back to our Portland casa by late Saturday night, March 31st, ready for Spring!
Hope you are all well and healthy and we look forward to making contact with friends and family once we are settled back into our Portland routine. Felize Primavera---Happy Spring!
Hasta luego,
Sher
Monday, April 16, 2012
Mi Barrio
Dear amigos,
It's going to be hard to leave my neighborhood, mi barrio. This past week I have loved talking to the shopkeepers, my haircutting neighbor, Sandy, who cuts Gary's and my hair for 30 pesos ($2.50 once a month). We'll miss our grocer, Antonio,and the old man, who stops with his burro every couple of weeks and calls out "suelo", soil. Most houses in San Miguel do not have yards with gardens, but instead these old, colonial homes come with courtyards, patios and terraces where people delight in creating their "potted gardens"---thus, the "dirt man". Yolanda, the flower lady will be missed, also. I've enjoyed her tap on the door every Friday with her arms filled with fresh flowers. It's fun to buy a bouquet to adorn our small casa before guests come for dinner or margaritas on the weekend at the low cost of 20-40 pesos ($1.50-3.50). Such a deal!
I love the children I hear each day, practicing with their marching band in the corner school yard, or running out at the close of the day to play in the beautiful old square at the end of our street in front of our neighborhood 16th century church. Two old guys sell them sherbet and ice cream at the square, and I stop to talk with them on my way to and fro. There is much to love and delight one in this quarter of town, called "Colonia San Antonio." Like other barrios, we even have our patron Saint, a sculpture of Saint Anthony, gracing a corner fountain. Visiting artists often come and set up their easels in the street to do some "plein air" painting, and local musicians strum their guitars in the plaza. Young lovers snuggle on the old ornate iron benches under the trees.
Yes, it's going to be hard to say "Adios" to our barrio when we leave, but we know we will be back. Hope you enjoy a peek at a few photos of"mi barrio."
Maybe next year some of our friends and family will join us here. Hasta luego!
It's going to be hard to leave my neighborhood, mi barrio. This past week I have loved talking to the shopkeepers, my haircutting neighbor, Sandy, who cuts Gary's and my hair for 30 pesos ($2.50 once a month). We'll miss our grocer, Antonio,and the old man, who stops with his burro every couple of weeks and calls out "suelo", soil. Most houses in San Miguel do not have yards with gardens, but instead these old, colonial homes come with courtyards, patios and terraces where people delight in creating their "potted gardens"---thus, the "dirt man". Yolanda, the flower lady will be missed, also. I've enjoyed her tap on the door every Friday with her arms filled with fresh flowers. It's fun to buy a bouquet to adorn our small casa before guests come for dinner or margaritas on the weekend at the low cost of 20-40 pesos ($1.50-3.50). Such a deal!
I love the children I hear each day, practicing with their marching band in the corner school yard, or running out at the close of the day to play in the beautiful old square at the end of our street in front of our neighborhood 16th century church. Two old guys sell them sherbet and ice cream at the square, and I stop to talk with them on my way to and fro. There is much to love and delight one in this quarter of town, called "Colonia San Antonio." Like other barrios, we even have our patron Saint, a sculpture of Saint Anthony, gracing a corner fountain. Visiting artists often come and set up their easels in the street to do some "plein air" painting, and local musicians strum their guitars in the plaza. Young lovers snuggle on the old ornate iron benches under the trees.
Yes, it's going to be hard to say "Adios" to our barrio when we leave, but we know we will be back. Hope you enjoy a peek at a few photos of"mi barrio."
Maybe next year some of our friends and family will join us here. Hasta luego!
Friday, March 23, 2012
Winding Down our San Miguel Stay (Forgive the late post)
Hola Amigos,
We are winding down our stay in San Miguel and feel sad we are leaving though it will be wonderful to see family back in the states. As you can tell by the lack of recent posts, we have had a very fun but busy month since I last wrote. Our activities with new and old friends, yoga classes, an encaustic workshop with a fine artist here, movies, my Spanish conversation group, the Cuba dance festival, and my presentation on EcoViva and our work in El Salvador, have filled my time---it's all been fun and stimulating. Gary has completed a couple more carved birds and enjoys the Global Justice programs at the bibliotecha.
We saw an excellent film at the Theatro Santa Ana at the Bibliotech that I highly recommend:. It brought back memories of our 2006 trip to Bolivia where we learned about the Water War of 2002. Though the film is a fictional story of filmmakers making a film about the Spanish conquistadores' exploitation of the native peoples, it coincides with the actual current day exploits of multinational corporations and the privatization of water. It's moving and educational. We've actually seen many wonderful documentaries and other films while down here. One of the groups supporting young girls, raising money for educational scholarships for them, had a fun and successful fundraiser the night of the Academy Awards. Guests walked the red carpet like the stars and then sat down outside on big patios at a B&B which was once a famous bordello in San Miguel. We watched the broadcast of the award ceremony on two big screens while being served wine and hors d'oeuvres by roving young waiters. They raised $2000 which will help young Mexican girl. The following week we were able to see several of the winning films.
On March 21st, Gary and I presented our own program at the Bibliotecha, sponsored by the Center for Global Justice, about our work in El Salvador through the NGO we support, EcoViva. We had a really nice turn-out and were very pleased, as many expressed an interest in joining us on an Empowerment Tour to El Salvador next year, and also wanted to help support EcoViva's good work. It took some time preparing the power point presentation but I had a great helper, Mark Saunders, as my tech guide. He's the author of a new and very funny book "Nobody Knows the Spanish I Speak" and also 30 plays which have been produced on and off Broadway. We met him and his wife Arlene a month ago at the writers conference. We learned they are former Portlanders who moved down here to live permanently two years ago. They love it, and their big poodle, Duke, does, too. Mark has a wonderful sense of humor and we have enjoyed getting to know them both. They will be back in Portland for a visit in April and he will be having a book signing party. I'd like to invite you all, who live in Portland, to come. Will send out a save the date notice soon.
We leave here on March 27th to spend four days in the charming town of Guanajuato, about an hour from here. It's nearer the airport in Leon so we will take advantage of that as we wing our way back to Portland, on March 31st. Hope you've enjoyed adventures with Sher. Stay tuned for future blogs, about Guanajuato, my novel, and life back in Portland. Hasta luego!
We are winding down our stay in San Miguel and feel sad we are leaving though it will be wonderful to see family back in the states. As you can tell by the lack of recent posts, we have had a very fun but busy month since I last wrote. Our activities with new and old friends, yoga classes, an encaustic workshop with a fine artist here, movies, my Spanish conversation group, the Cuba dance festival, and my presentation on EcoViva and our work in El Salvador, have filled my time---it's all been fun and stimulating. Gary has completed a couple more carved birds and enjoys the Global Justice programs at the bibliotecha.
We saw an excellent film at the Theatro Santa Ana at the Bibliotech that I highly recommend:
On March 21st, Gary and I presented our own program at the Bibliotecha, sponsored by the Center for Global Justice, about our work in El Salvador through the NGO we support, EcoViva. We had a really nice turn-out and were very pleased, as many expressed an interest in joining us on an Empowerment Tour to El Salvador next year, and also wanted to help support EcoViva's good work. It took some time preparing the power point presentation but I had a great helper, Mark Saunders, as my tech guide. He's the author of a new and very funny book "Nobody Knows the Spanish I Speak" and also 30 plays which have been produced on and off Broadway. We met him and his wife Arlene a month ago at the writers conference. We learned they are former Portlanders who moved down here to live permanently two years ago. They love it, and their big poodle, Duke, does, too. Mark has a wonderful sense of humor and we have enjoyed getting to know them both. They will be back in Portland for a visit in April and he will be having a book signing party. I'd like to invite you all, who live in Portland, to come. Will send out a save the date notice soon.
We leave here on March 27th to spend four days in the charming town of Guanajuato, about an hour from here. It's nearer the airport in Leon so we will take advantage of that as we wing our way back to Portland, on March 31st. Hope you've enjoyed adventures with Sher. Stay tuned for future blogs, about Guanajuato, my novel, and life back in Portland. Hasta luego!
Thursday, March 1, 2012
On the Path of the Monarch
See my slideshow. Clicking on photos will show the captions. Enjoy!
Still catching my breath from the writers conference, Gary and I packed up our suitcase two days later, and headed to Michoacan with the local Audabon group to visit the Monarchs, literally, butterflies without borders. These beautiful mariposas make their annual migration, traveling up to 3,000 miles to and from Northeastern Canada to the same over-wintering sight in the central Mexican highlands. This phenomenon, which includes three to four generations in one year intrigues scientists and laymen alike, who have not been able to unravel the mystery of how they do it or know to do it, always coming back to the same places. Today, like so many other species, these magnificent butterflies, with little nectar from the milkweed flowers they depend on due to industrial agriculture, and compromised sources of water, are being greatly challenged. More and more of their winter habitat is being destroyed by illegal logging in Rosario Reserve of Michoacan. It’s a complex issue as the poor people living there need to sell the wood for their livelihood. Of course, climate change is also profoundly affecting the butterflies. We have included many photos and hope you all have a chance to see the Monarchs someday, before they are gone from these once even more densely butterfly populated sights in Mexico.
Still catching my breath from the writers conference, Gary and I packed up our suitcase two days later, and headed to Michoacan with the local Audabon group to visit the Monarchs, literally, butterflies without borders. These beautiful mariposas make their annual migration, traveling up to 3,000 miles to and from Northeastern Canada to the same over-wintering sight in the central Mexican highlands. This phenomenon, which includes three to four generations in one year intrigues scientists and laymen alike, who have not been able to unravel the mystery of how they do it or know to do it, always coming back to the same places. Today, like so many other species, these magnificent butterflies, with little nectar from the milkweed flowers they depend on due to industrial agriculture, and compromised sources of water, are being greatly challenged. More and more of their winter habitat is being destroyed by illegal logging in Rosario Reserve of Michoacan. It’s a complex issue as the poor people living there need to sell the wood for their livelihood. Of course, climate change is also profoundly affecting the butterflies. We have included many photos and hope you all have a chance to see the Monarchs someday, before they are gone from these once even more densely butterfly populated sights in Mexico.
The Writing Life in San Miguel
See my slideshow. If you click on the individual photos you will get the captions.
Well, February sure flew by like a cat on fire---poor metaphor, but best for now. Paradoxically, I did a lot of writing but not on my blog. Now, I’m going to try to catch you up to date on my adventures in San Miguel de Allende.
Well, February sure flew by like a cat on fire---poor metaphor, but best for now. Paradoxically, I did a lot of writing but not on my blog. Now, I’m going to try to catch you up to date on my adventures in San Miguel de Allende.
The month began with my spending much of my time preparing for the 7th Annual International San Miguel Writers Conference. In between long hours of working on my novel, finishing the last three chapters and brushing up the first part, I was attending some great presentations such as two on writers who would be keynoting the conference, such as Margaret Atwood from Canada, Joy Harjo, native American poet and songwriter/musician. Also, on the program was Elena Poniatowska, one of Mexico's foremost journalists, writers and good will ambassadors now in her late eighties. I attended a play with characters straight from her books, all in Spanish. There was also a book group discussion on Margaret Atwood’s most recent dystopic, speculative fiction, The Year of the Flood. It was a great opportunity to delve into Atwood's ideas, which are dense with metaphor and meaning while describing a not too positive future for mankind and Earth. Fortunately the heavy nature of the topic is accented by her clever wit and puns.
While I was doing this, Gary was enjoying making new friends here, taking long walks with his camera, the results you will see in some of the photos documenting the wonders of San Miguel. He also did some sweet miniature bird carvings, enjoying the sun on our terrace and a chance to chip and carve away at the soft Mexican wood he found. We attended some films and talks together, mostly political in nature, presented by the excellent Center for Global Justice. A day in the "compo," visiting CEDESA, a small community demonstrating many projects on sustainable living, was a good counterpoint to our days in our colonial city with its hustle and bustle. CEDESA is a project started by a Catholic priest from Spain nearly fifty years ago when he was sent here by the Church. He quickly realized the poor peasants needed more than religion. Teaching them to read and write, he also helped them do sustainable agriculture, way before we all used that term, to feed their families. Now it is a demonstration community being used to help other composinos improve their production of food, save water (a precious resource here in the drought ridden central highlands), distill water through a hand-built solar system. As the local aquifer is lowering more and more every year, and getting closer to the bottom, they are discovering high levels of arsenic and fluoride, which have severe deleterious health effects. They have developed a very clever, low-cost, solar driven, distillation system which is helping to alleviate the heavy metals from their water. Newly developed wood burning stoves which conserve wood necessary to prepare their tortillas and other foods are also helping lower the rate of lung cancer in women and children while also saving the forests. The community prepared a delicious organic lunch for us and we enjoyed the educational benefits of the day immensely. It reminds us of our small communities in El Salvador that we support. I will be giving a presentation on Eco-Viva’s work there, on March 21st, an event being sponsored by Global Justice. More writing assignments, preparing the advertising and the presentation, which brings me back to my writing life.
A week before the conference, I met a former acquaintance who’s also a fine writer. She told me about the writing group, which had just met once, and encouraged me to participate. We had a wonderful mentor, a former writing instructor from the New School in New York and author of five books, fiction and non-fiction. I decided to join and enjoyed the camaraderie of four other writers and the fine suggestions of our mentor. I finally finished my last chapters of the novel and the final rewrites and polishing are in process, taking into account all that I learned in the conference’s intense workshops. Needless to say, the conference was fabulous with entertaining as well as stimulating activities to attend from morning ‘till night. Highlights were the keynote addresses, a wonderful one woman play, “That Dorothy Parker,” written and performed by award winning Carol Lampert, and the fun Mexican Fiesta held the third night of the conference. It was fun to meet so many talented writers from all parts of North and South America amongst the 218 participants. The San Miguel community was invited to many of the special events which filled the big Hotel Real de Minas’ ballroom which accommodated around 850 people. It was called “The Creative Crossroads of the Americas” and one could quickly ascertain why: it was truly a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic event. One woman,a Huichole Indian. wore her lovely traditional attire every day and was a colorful attendee we couldn’t miss. Lastly, our conference was bookended by two fabulous presentations: one, by Sharon Robinson, the writer and daughter of the famous baseball star, first to integrate baseball back in the late forties, the late Jackie Robinson. The other special guest speaker was Naomi Wolf noted political activist, writer and filmmaker. She premiered her documentary film, “The End of America,” and gave a follow-up lecture called “Protest 101.” Are you out of breath yet? Well, I was and am still recuperating from this provocative and fabulous conference.
Life continues to be a fascinating journey in San Miguel de Allende!
Friday, January 27, 2012
Una Semana, A Week in San Miguel de Allende
Another wonderful week in San Miguel de Allende. Here's a few photos:
Si, it's been another amazing week in San Miguel de Allende beginning with last Friday night's walk through the main square, next to the Jardin ( garden in Spanish; in this case it's the main square), where lots of people were playing music and dancers in satirical costumes were performing to the beat of the music. On the other side of the Jardin were dancers in Aztec costumes performing to traditional drumming. We walked home dancing the the beat of the drums and marveling at all the visual stimuli of this magical city.
Saturday morning we walked over to the weekly Organic Market, where we learned we could buy wonderful organically grown veggies, herbs, grains and also cheese from our favorite cheese guy, Pedro.
I'll try to include photos of the outdoor market in next week's posting. I was so enthralled and busy buying foods for our luncheon, I forgot to take photos. On the way there we were stopped by the big parade celebrating the 243rd birthday of Ignacio Allende, the namesake of San Miguel and father of the Mexican Revolution in 1810. It was such a delight watching the parade of schoolchildren in their uniforms with their marching bands, the city officials, bomberos (firemen), local caballeros from the countryside and the lovely Señoritas chosen as queens for the day, that we could hardly tear ourselves away. We did our errands quickly and came back to our casa to finish our preparations for the luncheon we were having for our friends Francisca, and her daughter Maria Elena. Francisca and family have hosted us at their home for the past three years and I first met her when I studied Spanish here thirteen years ago. They are the family that invited us to celebrate the Dia de Las Tres Reyes that I described a couple of blogs ago. We wanted to reciprocate with a lunch for them. After a pleasant afternoon of mostly Spanish conversation, with me trying to translate for Gary, we learned from Maria Elena that there was to be a big concert performed by the Mexican Military Symphonic Orchestra and Chorus. It was to start at 6:00 at the main plaza. We arrived just as it began. The orchestra performed music from many Latin American countries, and the chorus sang the typical folk songs. They also used traditional ornaments of many of the countries, like the "cuatro" a fourstring guitar from Venezuela. It ended with one of the most beautiful firework displays we have even seen, hands down, shooting off fire and splendor above our heads and lighting up a big Buen 243rd Ignacio Allende sign across the plaza. Once again we forgot our camera, but it's imprinted in our minds and we can still hear the beautiful sonidas of the music.
On Sunday, our friend Luisa picked us up about noon and we drove out to Atontonilco, a small historical town about 35km from here on the road to Dolores Hildalgo. There we visited the amazing church,(see photos in slideshow), famous for its ornate interior frescoes and decoration, and unique sculptures, as well as for it's interesting architectural design. We wandered the open market, stopped for some quesadillas made with blue corn tortillas filled with cheese and mushrooms---um, muy richo. We had intended to go to Las Grutas, the hotsprings resort nearby but it was so crowded we all decided to head for another small village Luisa wanted to show us with hundreds of stalls filled with pottery, metal arts, furniture, mirrors and crafts. It was fun to peruse and we resisted buying anything, though, other than stopping for a Michalada, a special drink made with beer, tomatoe juice and lots of spices. Luisa and I shared one big one, but unfortunately, Gary had to forego the pleasure since he can't drink beer with his gluten allergy.
Tuesday I began my fun Spanish Conversation class with a great group of Canadians and North Americans, which I will be attending every Tuesday and Thursday for two hours. Our "maestro", Jose is a great leader and everyone joins in the stimulating conversation about the book we are all reading in Spanish, Cajas de Cartones by Francisco Jimenes. We often get sidetracked into other fascinating topics like comparing customs of different cultures, countries we have visited, issues like immigration, etc. I come out of the class, which is held in a favorite local cafe backroom, with my head all abuzz!
Gary had fun re-connecting with Roberto, a guy we met two years ago down here. They went out today on a photoshoot of "local color" (photos to be published in next week's blog).Roberto is a great dancer and the three of us are going dancing at the Parque Juarez this coming Sunday for the Festival of Candelaria. More on that later.
On Wednesday, we were invited to a dinner party by some Portlanders I met at an art workshop the previous week. Alice and her husband, Hal, a former doctor, turned painter, built a beautiful home down here nine years ago. It was a treat to see and we enjoyed the other couple attending as well. Brion is the curator of the Lilly Rare Book Library, one of the largest collections of rare books and documents in the world. It's located at the University of Indiana in Bloomington. His wife Linda, owns a fitness business and is a chic and delightful woman. The dinner table conversation included everything from rare books, to art, to our mutual travels, global politics, Obama's State of the Union speech and more. We lingered carrying on a stimulating dialogue, all surprised to look down at our watches and learn it was 11:00 o'clock. Not an atypical evening in San Miguel.
We also attended two interesting, but sad, films on immigration this week sponsored by the local Global Justice committee I think I have told you about. Very good timeing for me as a theme in my novel is immigration and I could use some of the facts disclosed to include in my fictional story (more to come on that later). I'm nearing the finish line of the first draft, with the rewrites completed on the first half of what looks like will be a thirty chapter book. Any volunteer readers out there? On the subject of immigration, I had an interesting conversation with our substitute housekeeper today. Our regular housekeeper, Josafina, had to be away today for reasons I won't go into now. Christina shared with me her experiences "crossing over" six years ago to join her husband who was a documented worker in a Chicago restaurant. She could not get a Visa for a minimum of ten years so decided to join several other women from her community and try to "cross over". Her tale is harrowing and as she said it was "muy feo," an ugly and frightening experience. Stay tuned for details later in my novel. Her's is not the first story I have heard about how difficult it is for those seeking work in El Norte, undocumented workers our nation needs, the ones who pick our crops, work in homes and in restaurants, and live difficult lives away from their families if they even survive the trip North. Thousands have died in the desert or drowned in the canal south of San Diego over the past then years since the WALL has been built. Many of my Salvadoran friends have shared similar tales. It's enough to convince me to lobby for changes in our immigration laws. It becomes a moral question about our inhumanity to man. These are people so desperate to find work they will risk their lives. There's got to be a better policy. Try to see the documentary The 800Mile Wall. I believe you will want to change the policies of our governement vis-a-vis immigrantes, too!
Well, family and friends, I'm signing off. It's late and tomorrow is another day in San Miguel. We're staying home and taking it easy. Have to get prepared for our dancing on Sunday! We send our hopes that you are all well and happy and not suffering too much cold winter weather.
Si, it's been another amazing week in San Miguel de Allende beginning with last Friday night's walk through the main square, next to the Jardin ( garden in Spanish; in this case it's the main square), where lots of people were playing music and dancers in satirical costumes were performing to the beat of the music. On the other side of the Jardin were dancers in Aztec costumes performing to traditional drumming. We walked home dancing the the beat of the drums and marveling at all the visual stimuli of this magical city.
Saturday morning we walked over to the weekly Organic Market, where we learned we could buy wonderful organically grown veggies, herbs, grains and also cheese from our favorite cheese guy, Pedro.
I'll try to include photos of the outdoor market in next week's posting. I was so enthralled and busy buying foods for our luncheon, I forgot to take photos. On the way there we were stopped by the big parade celebrating the 243rd birthday of Ignacio Allende, the namesake of San Miguel and father of the Mexican Revolution in 1810. It was such a delight watching the parade of schoolchildren in their uniforms with their marching bands, the city officials, bomberos (firemen), local caballeros from the countryside and the lovely Señoritas chosen as queens for the day, that we could hardly tear ourselves away. We did our errands quickly and came back to our casa to finish our preparations for the luncheon we were having for our friends Francisca, and her daughter Maria Elena. Francisca and family have hosted us at their home for the past three years and I first met her when I studied Spanish here thirteen years ago. They are the family that invited us to celebrate the Dia de Las Tres Reyes that I described a couple of blogs ago. We wanted to reciprocate with a lunch for them. After a pleasant afternoon of mostly Spanish conversation, with me trying to translate for Gary, we learned from Maria Elena that there was to be a big concert performed by the Mexican Military Symphonic Orchestra and Chorus. It was to start at 6:00 at the main plaza. We arrived just as it began. The orchestra performed music from many Latin American countries, and the chorus sang the typical folk songs. They also used traditional ornaments of many of the countries, like the "cuatro" a fourstring guitar from Venezuela. It ended with one of the most beautiful firework displays we have even seen, hands down, shooting off fire and splendor above our heads and lighting up a big Buen 243rd Ignacio Allende sign across the plaza. Once again we forgot our camera, but it's imprinted in our minds and we can still hear the beautiful sonidas of the music.
On Sunday, our friend Luisa picked us up about noon and we drove out to Atontonilco, a small historical town about 35km from here on the road to Dolores Hildalgo. There we visited the amazing church,(see photos in slideshow), famous for its ornate interior frescoes and decoration, and unique sculptures, as well as for it's interesting architectural design. We wandered the open market, stopped for some quesadillas made with blue corn tortillas filled with cheese and mushrooms---um, muy richo. We had intended to go to Las Grutas, the hotsprings resort nearby but it was so crowded we all decided to head for another small village Luisa wanted to show us with hundreds of stalls filled with pottery, metal arts, furniture, mirrors and crafts. It was fun to peruse and we resisted buying anything, though, other than stopping for a Michalada, a special drink made with beer, tomatoe juice and lots of spices. Luisa and I shared one big one, but unfortunately, Gary had to forego the pleasure since he can't drink beer with his gluten allergy.
Tuesday I began my fun Spanish Conversation class with a great group of Canadians and North Americans, which I will be attending every Tuesday and Thursday for two hours. Our "maestro", Jose is a great leader and everyone joins in the stimulating conversation about the book we are all reading in Spanish, Cajas de Cartones by Francisco Jimenes. We often get sidetracked into other fascinating topics like comparing customs of different cultures, countries we have visited, issues like immigration, etc. I come out of the class, which is held in a favorite local cafe backroom, with my head all abuzz!
Gary had fun re-connecting with Roberto, a guy we met two years ago down here. They went out today on a photoshoot of "local color" (photos to be published in next week's blog).Roberto is a great dancer and the three of us are going dancing at the Parque Juarez this coming Sunday for the Festival of Candelaria. More on that later.
On Wednesday, we were invited to a dinner party by some Portlanders I met at an art workshop the previous week. Alice and her husband, Hal, a former doctor, turned painter, built a beautiful home down here nine years ago. It was a treat to see and we enjoyed the other couple attending as well. Brion is the curator of the Lilly Rare Book Library, one of the largest collections of rare books and documents in the world. It's located at the University of Indiana in Bloomington. His wife Linda, owns a fitness business and is a chic and delightful woman. The dinner table conversation included everything from rare books, to art, to our mutual travels, global politics, Obama's State of the Union speech and more. We lingered carrying on a stimulating dialogue, all surprised to look down at our watches and learn it was 11:00 o'clock. Not an atypical evening in San Miguel.
We also attended two interesting, but sad, films on immigration this week sponsored by the local Global Justice committee I think I have told you about. Very good timeing for me as a theme in my novel is immigration and I could use some of the facts disclosed to include in my fictional story (more to come on that later). I'm nearing the finish line of the first draft, with the rewrites completed on the first half of what looks like will be a thirty chapter book. Any volunteer readers out there? On the subject of immigration, I had an interesting conversation with our substitute housekeeper today. Our regular housekeeper, Josafina, had to be away today for reasons I won't go into now. Christina shared with me her experiences "crossing over" six years ago to join her husband who was a documented worker in a Chicago restaurant. She could not get a Visa for a minimum of ten years so decided to join several other women from her community and try to "cross over". Her tale is harrowing and as she said it was "muy feo," an ugly and frightening experience. Stay tuned for details later in my novel. Her's is not the first story I have heard about how difficult it is for those seeking work in El Norte, undocumented workers our nation needs, the ones who pick our crops, work in homes and in restaurants, and live difficult lives away from their families if they even survive the trip North. Thousands have died in the desert or drowned in the canal south of San Diego over the past then years since the WALL has been built. Many of my Salvadoran friends have shared similar tales. It's enough to convince me to lobby for changes in our immigration laws. It becomes a moral question about our inhumanity to man. These are people so desperate to find work they will risk their lives. There's got to be a better policy. Try to see the documentary The 800Mile Wall. I believe you will want to change the policies of our governement vis-a-vis immigrantes, too!
Well, family and friends, I'm signing off. It's late and tomorrow is another day in San Miguel. We're staying home and taking it easy. Have to get prepared for our dancing on Sunday! We send our hopes that you are all well and happy and not suffering too much cold winter weather.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Daily Life in San Miguel de Allende
Here's our new slideshow of photos from San Miguel:
Hope you like them!
We can't believe we have been here almost three weeks. Finally recovered from my bout of San Miguel "gripe" (sore throat and congestion), I'm back into the swing of things full steam and enjoying every moment. The town still holds much charm for us, and we love the slower pace of life in Mexico. Our neighbors are friendly and it's great to start out on our jaunts into el centro greeted with "Hola," or "Buenos dios..."
Days begin with sounds: the doves cooing on our rooftop, the garbage man hitting metal on metal, like a pair of musical symbols. Garbage service here is free three days a week. We can hear the local school children walking by on their way to the Primeria (Elementary School) up the street and the rich timbre of church bells from San Antonio church just a short block away. There are different street noises for all the services: the water bottle delivery man blows a whistle, the gas guy bangs on the door to see if we need more propane and the local herrero(iron smith) calls out for scrap metal through his loudspeaker on his truck. Occasionally a man with a donkey comes by selling herbs. On Fridays we hear a loud tap on our metal front door downstairs around eleven o'clock. It's Yalanda, the flower seller. She carries a big basket filled with all sorts of beautiful fresh flowers. Last week I bought a bouquet of orange and pink lillies for 40 pesos (about $3). They're still adorning our coffee table in the.sala (our living room).
The Mexicans are entrepreneurial and the informal economy thrives while the formal one shows signs of slowing down. Restaurants seem more empty, real estate values have dropped considerably and food prices have gone up. While they are still cheaper for us than at home, it's hard on the Mexican families. Good jobs are getting more scarce.
The most joy for us comes from the simple pleasures of people watching. Yesterday, walking across the central plaza I watched a beautiful little girl chasing the pigeons. Each time she would sneak up on one of course it would take flight to her delight. She'd throw her hands up as if trying to sprout wings herself.
Both Gary and I are enjoying the many cultural offerings here. We have been attending the weekly lectures and film offerings of the Global Justice group. Last week it was a lecture entitled "The End of the Middle Class in America," presented by Jeff Faux, a nationally known economist. He has a new book coming out this summer The Servant Class. His talk was excellent though sobering as he presented his views on our economic downfall and what the future holds. Following on the film we saw the previous day, "The End of Suburbia" we felt a bit gloomy. The gloom was lifted by a night out dancing to a superb Salsa band with friends we met here two years ago. We attended a music concert which was a fundraiser for a local orphanage of abandoned young girls from 4 to 14 years of age run by some generous Catholic nuns. The gringo community has done much to raise awareness of their needs for books, art classes, and scholarships for continuing education. Sunday we hiked up in El Charco, the amazing Botanical Garden and Canyon where one can see flocks of migrating birds hanging out in the renewed wetland.
I'm involved in a weekly Literary Sala which presents interesting readings by local authors, and recently, a Video presentation of interviews with the celebrated Canadian author, Margaret Atwood. She will be one of the keynote speakers at the upcoming 7th Annual San Miguel International Writers Conference to which I will be going in February. In preparation I have been trying to work a little each day on my novel and a couple of short stories, also. I'm really looking forward to hearing the other speakers as well: author, social critic and political activist, Naomi Wolfe, celebrated Mexican writer, Elena Poniatowska and well known Native American poet and musician, Joy Harjo. I will be taking several intensive writing workshops over the four days of the conference as well.
Gary is enjoying the lectures and films, photographing the interesting and beautiful street scenes and doing some of his woodcarving. He also brought his uke down and tries to practice a little a few times a week. Our friend, Luisa, a San Miguel resident for over twenty years has come over the past two Sundays to join us for dinner and then to watch the excellent Masterpiece theatre production of Downton Abbey, Part II. We were pleased to discover we have a large flat screen TV in our casita and cable access which allows us to watch PBS from Florida! What a luxery---we don't even have cable at home and this series has caught our fancy since we watched Part I last Fall. The acting is superb with a grand cast of characters and interesting historical references to pre and post World War I England.
So, you can see there is never a dull moment in San Miguel!
Hope you like them!
We can't believe we have been here almost three weeks. Finally recovered from my bout of San Miguel "gripe" (sore throat and congestion), I'm back into the swing of things full steam and enjoying every moment. The town still holds much charm for us, and we love the slower pace of life in Mexico. Our neighbors are friendly and it's great to start out on our jaunts into el centro greeted with "Hola," or "Buenos dios..."
Days begin with sounds: the doves cooing on our rooftop, the garbage man hitting metal on metal, like a pair of musical symbols. Garbage service here is free three days a week. We can hear the local school children walking by on their way to the Primeria (Elementary School) up the street and the rich timbre of church bells from San Antonio church just a short block away. There are different street noises for all the services: the water bottle delivery man blows a whistle, the gas guy bangs on the door to see if we need more propane and the local herrero(iron smith) calls out for scrap metal through his loudspeaker on his truck. Occasionally a man with a donkey comes by selling herbs. On Fridays we hear a loud tap on our metal front door downstairs around eleven o'clock. It's Yalanda, the flower seller. She carries a big basket filled with all sorts of beautiful fresh flowers. Last week I bought a bouquet of orange and pink lillies for 40 pesos (about $3). They're still adorning our coffee table in the.sala (our living room).
The Mexicans are entrepreneurial and the informal economy thrives while the formal one shows signs of slowing down. Restaurants seem more empty, real estate values have dropped considerably and food prices have gone up. While they are still cheaper for us than at home, it's hard on the Mexican families. Good jobs are getting more scarce.
The most joy for us comes from the simple pleasures of people watching. Yesterday, walking across the central plaza I watched a beautiful little girl chasing the pigeons. Each time she would sneak up on one of course it would take flight to her delight. She'd throw her hands up as if trying to sprout wings herself.
Both Gary and I are enjoying the many cultural offerings here. We have been attending the weekly lectures and film offerings of the Global Justice group. Last week it was a lecture entitled "The End of the Middle Class in America," presented by Jeff Faux, a nationally known economist. He has a new book coming out this summer The Servant Class. His talk was excellent though sobering as he presented his views on our economic downfall and what the future holds. Following on the film we saw the previous day, "The End of Suburbia" we felt a bit gloomy. The gloom was lifted by a night out dancing to a superb Salsa band with friends we met here two years ago. We attended a music concert which was a fundraiser for a local orphanage of abandoned young girls from 4 to 14 years of age run by some generous Catholic nuns. The gringo community has done much to raise awareness of their needs for books, art classes, and scholarships for continuing education. Sunday we hiked up in El Charco, the amazing Botanical Garden and Canyon where one can see flocks of migrating birds hanging out in the renewed wetland.
I'm involved in a weekly Literary Sala which presents interesting readings by local authors, and recently, a Video presentation of interviews with the celebrated Canadian author, Margaret Atwood. She will be one of the keynote speakers at the upcoming 7th Annual San Miguel International Writers Conference to which I will be going in February. In preparation I have been trying to work a little each day on my novel and a couple of short stories, also. I'm really looking forward to hearing the other speakers as well: author, social critic and political activist, Naomi Wolfe, celebrated Mexican writer, Elena Poniatowska and well known Native American poet and musician, Joy Harjo. I will be taking several intensive writing workshops over the four days of the conference as well.
Gary is enjoying the lectures and films, photographing the interesting and beautiful street scenes and doing some of his woodcarving. He also brought his uke down and tries to practice a little a few times a week. Our friend, Luisa, a San Miguel resident for over twenty years has come over the past two Sundays to join us for dinner and then to watch the excellent Masterpiece theatre production of Downton Abbey, Part II. We were pleased to discover we have a large flat screen TV in our casita and cable access which allows us to watch PBS from Florida! What a luxery---we don't even have cable at home and this series has caught our fancy since we watched Part I last Fall. The acting is superb with a grand cast of characters and interesting historical references to pre and post World War I England.
So, you can see there is never a dull moment in San Miguel!
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