I was in Maine for Easter week. When I said I was going back to Mexico, people would ask or exclaim about how exciting that was. Not so much. Living in another country is different from vacationing there. Mostly things go smoothly here but is more cumbersome than'home'. This time though, I arrived to no telephone, no Internet, no water, no food in the house and, worse yet, no coffee maker that worked!!
With irritation, my husband and I trudged to the center of town to buy a coffee maker.
It was a Saturday night. People were happy. Restaurants were busy. We stumbled around and saw a cafe with a table outside. Waiters matter. We collapsed. The waiter took care of us (which was much needed). He was so gracious and caring and funny and adept as in fine dining adept. We were grubby and grumpy. He turned us into appreciative pampered tourists. (And served phenomenal coffee to boot.)
We left holding hands. We walked up a side street and ran into a burro all dressed up in flowers. We saw a group of musicians gathering and so asked what was going on. We kidded and shared names and took photos of me with the tuba (why is tuba so popular in Mexico???).
They told us there was going to be a 'callejonada'. A Callejonada takes place when there is a celebration of some event--usually a wedding. After the ceremony the bride and groom and all the guests head out into the street and parade, drinking vodka and singing. So we waited and watched the procession leave the elegant restaurant, women maneuvering to stay upright in five inch heels on cobblestone streets. Glamour first!! The band said there were 12 Callejonadas that night in San Miguel. Wedding season. ('Callejon' means small alley street.)
Next we found a hip (without trying too hard) but low key place for tacos and enchiladas al pastor. Cheap. Building made of old windows mostly. Lots of hot sauces. Good music and beer. We had seriously forgotten how to be a tourist in San Miguel. We went home happy and hoping for water. (Nope,Monday, si Dios quierre. (God willing.)
Missed you! Somehow in my effort to swap my e-mail address used to subscribe to your blog I got shut off. I realized last week that I wasn't getting my weekly dose of Joyce. I resubscribed and then binge read to catch-up and today I got a fresh read. Thanks for sharing your life!
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