Mayan Flyers

These Mayan performers climb to the top of the pole, wrap ropes around and around the pole, tie the other end of the ropes to themselves, then slowly descend to the plaza below. One member of the group remains seated at the top playing music while the others descend.

Note that we arrived the day before performances began. This pole, which must be at least 60 feet tall, was installed on the plaza the day before. They chipped a hole in the existing concrete plaza, inserted the pole, and mixed some cement to patch it up. Then they entrusted their lives to it!

Aztec Dancers

I gave some background on the celebrations in an earlier post. Here are some of the dancers who were participating. First there was parade that lasted at least two hours, with these and hundreds of other dancers performing along the whole route. They end up in a plaza near the cathedral, where some of the groups continued to dance for another couple of hours. This occurred all three days that we were in San Miguel de Allende. These performers are not looking for praise from the crowds of onlookers, they are truly passionate about what they’re doing.

Fireworks

Fireworks are very commonly used to celebrate here in Mexico. Here are photos of fireworks at the church in San Miguel de Allende. Some of the fireworks (like these) are designed to be a beautiful sight, and others are designed simply to produce a loud noise. The noise-making fireworks literally continued all through the night. Celebrations went on until at least 2 a.m., then started up again at 4 a.m.

Cowboy Church

Each town in Mexico has a patron saint, and they celebrate with a big festival every year on that saint’s designated day. The patron saint of San Miguel de Allende is the archangel Michael (San Miguel). We visited San Miguel de Allende on the weekend of their big celebration. The festivities include many things – fireworks, parades, various traditions, special masses, etc. In these photos, you’ll see a small sampling of those attending a special outdoor mass honoring the cowboys and their horses. Hundreds of cowboys filled the main plaza and all the nearby side streets while the priest performed a complete outdoor mass. It was quite a sight!

The Rose Vendor

We visited San Miguel de Allende this weekend, a colonial-era town a couple of hours to the northeast of us. It’s a town of amazing beauty, with its cobblestone streets, colorful buildings and the buzz of activity. I especially liked this one of a young girl taking a break from selling roses.

Rain

It’s hard to tell from the photo just how hard it was raining, but it was a downpour – nothing like the drizzle we usually see in the Bay Area. You can see that water is pouring from the downspouts – one nearby, and several others down the street pouring from the first and second floors.

You’ll also note the different architectural styles. Old, poorly maintained adobe immediately on the left; well-maintained adobes further down the street, and a few, much newer structures mixed in.

Coat of Arms

Zináparo is the name of the town we live in. The total population is around 2,000, most of whom live in the center of town on the other side of the highway from where we are (less than a mile away).

Here’s a photo of Zináparo’s coat of arms. Pottery like those pictured in the lower left were commonly produced and used here in the past; now you’ll mostly find containers made from plastic. Corn, in the lower right, grows abundantly; note the hills in the background behind the corn, reflecting the terrain here. At the top is a heron – the birds are common as are depictions of them.

The Church Building

I just like this photo of our town’s church. The building is estimated to be from the late 1500’s.

It’s traditional in this part of Mexico to neatly trim the trees into gumdrop shapes or squares. I like how the trees and church look together in this photo.

Earthquake #3

There was yet another earthquake today. This one measured 6.1 on the Richter scale. That doesn’t sound so bad when the previous two quakes were 8.1 and 7.1, but those of you who have experienced an earthquake know that even 6.1 is pretty strong!

Today’s quake was again far south of where we are located, so no impact here. Hopefully the big ones are done for now!

September 16

September 16 is Mexican Independence Day (Cinco de Mayo is a different holiday, celebrating victory over the French in a decisive battle). To celebrate, we went to a parade in town in the morning, then in the afternoon to a park where people were displaying their horses and holding informal races. We got a short ride on one of the horses!

Fresh Frijoles

Pinto beans are the most common type of beans used in our area of Mexico. Most often the beans are dried so they can be stored and used at a later time. The dry beans store well and are affordable, so you don’t often find canned beans. During harvest time, you can set aside some of the fresh beans for immediate use.

These are regular pinto beans, but instead of drying them, these were cooked soon after being picked from our aunt’s garden. They’re very similar in taste and texture to the dried version, but knowing how fresh they are adds to the experience and makes them taste great. Especially when served with avocado and fresh tomatillo salsa!

Fresh pintos, avocados and tomatillo salsa

New Roof

We discovered that the roof has some leaks in at least one area of the house. On day one we worked late into the evening removing the clay roof tiles…

Evening view on the first day of roof work

Then we cleaned up and reinstalled the tiles, thus the new roof looks a lot like the old:

But it’s what’s underneath that counts. A new layer of plywood and water-repelling roofing paper should enable this refreshed roof to last for many years to come. It was hard work, but a good sense of accomplishment. We only did the two rooms in the center of the photo; we’ll assess the others later.

Closeup of new plywood underlayment along with water-repelling roofing felt

Earthquake #2

September 19, 2017

There was another large earthquake today. Thankfully, it was not near us and did not impact us. The earthquake hit about 76 miles south of Mexico City. It did a lot of damage in Mexico City, but we are more than 300 miles away from where the earthquake hit, so we did not feel anything. Our prayers are with the many who were impacted.

Ants

These guys can devour all the leaves on a whole branch of a rose bush in one day. They also bite, but thankfully we haven’t gotten in their way yet!

Repairs

The house we are staying in is an old adobe, approximately 150 years old. There have been various additions and changes over the years, but overall it is well maintained and in good condition for its age.

Nonetheless, there are a few minor repairs we’re working on on the house. Starting with the foundation, where some of the old adobe is crumbling. Nothing major – just chipping away the loose stuff and then re-sealing it.

Traveling Photographer

Documenting our Adventures

Month: July 2019