Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Sleeping in, Dreaming and OMG what are we doing?

Feb 24

We slept in until 8:30…yum. We had our usual Sunday breakfast of Ron’s Dutch Baby; this one made with fresh pears. We read until noon then headed out to enjoy more art on the self-guided open studio tour. We are so impressed with the quality of art available in this small community but there has been an art school here since the late 1930s. We spent a long time at the shop that had a print we spied yesterday. We got a quote on matting and framing but were not able to get a shipping quote. More information is needed before making a commitment. I looked at the print ‘Nocturnas’ for a long time. It is a scene with women each holding a slice of watermelon on her head. One part of the print didn’t ‘read’ right. I just couldn’t make sense of it. We will return tomorrow because the salesperson gave us a print out of the quote and when I looked at it later the price had been left off. I will ask for an explanation of the part of the print that doesn’t make sense to me.

Afterward, we were able to visit a few more studios, have a quick lunch, visit the last day of a weekend craft fair then go see The Wife at the Pocket Theater. The movie theater is small, hence ‘pocket theater’. It was completely full with an extra chair added to accommodate the overflow. We came home and decided to go out for dinner but several places we considered were closed. Many restaurants serve breakfast and lunch only and others close on Sunday so the choices are more limited. We tried a new place. I ordered tostadas and it came with 10 huge shrimp. The salad was not good but the shrimp were delicious. Ron’s meal got a similar review. That was a one-time only visit.
Our host has a large TV screen so we indulged and watched the Oscars for our evening entertainment, getting to bed past midnight.

Feb 25
Today our neighborhood homeless man started his shouting quite early. It was light out but traffic had not started so it was probably 6:30 or 7:00. Fortunately, he roams so after a while he went somewhere further away and we went back to sleep…another sleep-in day for us. I woke up around 8:20 and came downstairs and Ron woke up shortly after.

Today we hope to make a decision about the print and plan any more excursions before we leave lovely San Miguel early on Thursday to fly to Oaxaca. I need to do a little shopping to get some garbage bags for the next tenant and a few food items.

Our day ended up fairly full. We decided we wanted to explore real estate here, going beyond looking online. Most of the realty websites are not easy to use. Ron called a realtor, gave her some specifics of what we would like, price range etc. We will look at houses on Tues and Wed to get a feel for the market here. Her family has been here a long time; her mother was one of the founders of Fabrika La Aurora and her father brokered the deal for the Rosewood Hotel, a high end large colonial hotel. No immediate plans to buy but we are curious about the possibility.

After speaking with her, we went to the shop with the print we liked and I got clarity on the part of the print I couldn’t understand.  We decided to buy it unframed. After framing and shipping the cost would be more than triple.

While there we struck up a conversation with an artist who moved here from Nova Scotia. She loved our print so we told her there was a similar one by the same artist. We told her our story about when we were first married, we gave each other very practical gifts on our anniversary, like a shirt or blouse. After a few years Ron’s mother, Sonia, said ‘You two are so boring’. We looked at each other and had to agree with her. From that point on we would pick out an artwork each anniversary and managed to build a decent collection after 33 years of marriage. The woman from Nova Scotia loved the story. As the staff at the store was writing up our order, she called her husband over to consider two pieces she wanted to buy and looked over to us and said, ‘Great idea, I am taking care of two anniversaries now’ and the four of us laughed. She bought the other print by the same artist as ours.


Next, we tried out a new to us restaurant. The
setting couldn’t have been more serene or more photogenic. The building had been an administrative and storehouse building for the Catholic church in the 1800s. At the time the church required a tithe of 10% in either cash or crop harvest, hence the storehouse. The center courtyard was planted with trees, ferns, ground covers and flowers. It was lush and so cool with all the greenery.

The covered walks next to the building had columns and arches. Grinding stones were beautifully arranged in the garden as were sculptures, a koi pond, and a small fountain. I regret we didn’t go here when we had guests. We each had a salad; I couldn’t finish my curried chicken salad with papaya and mixed greens. Ron enjoyed spinach beet salad with goat cheese. 
















Next stop was Juan’s Café where we got a copy of The Favorite. Ron has seen it but I haven’t and since the lead got the best actress award last night, I wanted to see it. Afterward, we went to the centro store where I got butter, garbage bags and Kleenex. Surely this is my last time to go to the grocery store.

After resting at home, we will make a veggie dinner.

Feb 26
Another day to sleep in until 8:00. Today we viewed four houses in the SMA area with a real estate agent’s assistant. All four were interesting. One was too far away from town up a very steep road, and too far to walk to town. 







The next one needed a MAJOR upgrade and because it is in the heritage area there would be restrictions as to what could be done to upgrade the house. It was way more work than either of us was interested in having done. 










The third house was charming but it is what is known as a vertical house. Each of the three bedrooms was on a different floor. Access to the two upper floors was on outside stairs. 










A few blocks away outside centro was a gorgeous home with large rooms that was twice the size for the same price as the third house in the centro. Location, location, location! It was a very helpful day to see what is available, where the homes were located and how that influences the price.


Tomorrow we will see a couple more houses. We are flirting with living here. It will be at least a year probably before we are able to make the move.

We left at 12:30 and got home around 3:30. We had eaten a small sandwich around 11:30 because we were not sure when the person was coming but she was expected around noon. After we returned home, we decided to get a snack up the street at a small café. I got an Americano with cookies and Ron had a piece of carrot cake. We went away happy.

Tonight we went out to dinner at the restaurant where we had lunch yesterday. It is just as romantic and atmospheric at night. The garden had small lights strung in the trees to add to the ambiance.  I had a delicious Yucatan pork in a banana leaf dish and Ron had a Caribbean shrimp dish.  Our food was excellent.

We started packing today for our departure on Thursday. Nicolas will pick us up at 6:00 a.m. We are excited to discover Oaxaca. Everyone we have told that we are going there has said ’You will love it!’


Monday, February 25, 2019

Shopping, Good food, Guests leave, and the Art of San Antonio

Feb 21
Today was a super shopping day for Gary and Edmund. Ron wasn’t feeling up to par nor does he like shopping. So, we left him at home. We first walked downtown so I could exchange the shirt I had bought for Ron. I noticed a bleached-out spot on the back on the shirt when I unfolded it and fortunately the owner asked no questions and quickly exchanged the shirt.

We took a taxi from downtown to Fabrika La Aurora. This large arts/cultural center is housed in a former textile mill. We started at one end and ended the day at the other. There may have been a few galleries we skipped but we had fun popping into shops and galleries for hours. In between, we ate outside of a cute coffee shop on the patio under a tree.

Gary saw a beautiful textile made from imported merino wool in muted blue, brown, ochre, etc. But the size wasn’t right for a wall hanging and he didn’t need a bed covering. But he looked at it for a long time, touched it and tried to find a way to justify purchasing it. It just wasn’t right. I took them to a shop I had visited with Sandi and Bill and like me, they loved the shop. They got two ceramic shot glasses with a cacti motif.

We walked back to town and decided to pay for a sculpture they wanted to buy. It was too heavy to carry home without a backpack so the plan was to return the following day to pick it up. While in the shop they decided to take one more look at the wonderful textile shop next door that we have visited a couple of times. Gary said ‘I just want to make sure there isn’t something I may have missed’.  Sure enough, laying there on top of some cushion covers was a beautiful woven rectangular wool rug in muted grays, off white and light tans. We got home in the late afternoon and rested until time to go to Zumo, the lovely rooftop restaurant. Three of us ordered fish and found it to be lacking in the wow factor. Gary and Edmund repeated Sandi and Bill’s dessert order: Chocolate tamale. It is a rich chocolate cake with bubbling dark chocolate wrapped in a leaf.














Feb 22
Our first order of business after breakfast was to go to the small organic grocery to replenish our veggies. G and E wanted to come with us so off we went. Back at home, we put veggies away after soaking them in disinfectant. We headed to La Parada, the Peruvian restaurant and everyone LOVED their lunch. I had my favorite rice and seafood dish, Ron had tacu tacu again, Edmund had pork short ribs and Gary had what he described as ‘the best chicken sandwich of his life.’ No one had room for dessert. Gary and Edmund headed to town to fetch their sculpture and we headed home.
We had a late dinner outside by candlelight. I had made a zesty lime quinoa salad with black beans, celery, fennel root, red and orange bell peppers with lime dressing with olive oil, lime zest, and cumin. I also made a hearty green salad with blue cheese, pepitas, kale, butter lettuce, carrots, orange peppers, and purple cabbage with a balsamic and olive oil dressing. Ron made some delicious garlic butter bread.

Feb 23
Everyone got up a little earlier. Nicolas was coming by to pick up G and E for the airport at 11:00. I made scrambled eggs for Edmund and Ron while Gary and I had our usual breakfast. Nuria had been out all week due to hurting her ankle but was expected today so I started a load of sheets and towels to help her out. Ron took some time to view Gary’s photographs which were amazing. Gary has been taking painting classes and has developed a good eye for composition. We were impressed with his photos. Nicolas true to form showed up on time and after hugs and goodbyes off  G and E left for the airport, a 60-90 minute drive depending on traffic.


Ron and I went to the farmer’s market to get more veggies and fresh bread, probably our last shopping trip before leaving on Thursday for Oaxaca. On the spur of the moment, we decided to take part in the San Antonio (our neighborhood) Open Studio, an annual event. We visited 13 of the 47 open studios and saw some amazing artwork. Paintings, sculptures, jewelry, clothing, and prints. There was a wide range of skill but overall it was a fun and worthwhile effort.

At home, we dined on leftovers, what we call a ‘déjà vu’ dinner. It is quiet tonight with no guests. We had a great time with Gary and Edmund. We have been friends for a long time but we have never been on a vacation together and we all agreed it went well and that the best part of the experience was spending time together.


Thursday, February 21, 2019

Gary and Edmond arrive, the tours begin again, SMA shines on

Feb 16, 2019
We slept in since neither of us slept well. We went to another nearby crafts fair then bought some cheese at our little organic market and then popped into the Saturday farmers’ market for some fresh veggies. At home, we washed and soaked the veggies. A little after 1:00 we met a friend for lunch. Steve is a cousin of a good friend of ours in S OR. We met four years ago when we were considering moving here. He is still enthusiastic about living here even with all the changes. I told him I wasn’t sure but he pointed out how real estate prices will continue to grow here. He told us what he considered the positives and said there were few negatives. He felt my story about the angry woman on the street was a one-off incident and he has not experienced any negative encounters. Steve is a delightful man and we enjoyed our time with him.
We walked into centro and bought a copper vase we had been admiring and realized it would fit into our carry-on luggage, saving us shipping costs. We are waiting to buy the black pottery piece because the shipper gave us an estimate but never sent us the quote in writing which we want.
We came home and read, watered some plants and looked at real estate online. We have no immediate plans to buy down here but we really enjoy looking at real estate.

Feb 17
Ron made us his famous Dutch Baby for breakfast. We went to the market and came home. We went to a documentary on the Forests of the Yucatan peninsula which was one of a three-part series on Mexico aired on PBS. Part of the film focuses n the geology of the region and it was fascinating. Afterward, we walked across the street and had a great meal at Juan’s Café. Four years ago our friend Steve took us here for lunch so he reminded us where it was when we had lunch on Saturday. The menu had many tempting choices but I couldn’t resist the blue cheese salad with mangoes, apples, tomatoes, red onions and lettuce topped with mango dressing. Ron had chicken tostadas with chipotle sauce. Neither of us could finish our meal due to the generous servings.

We walked back past our place to the pocket theater which is showing academy nominated films and watched Cold War, a grim love story that took place during the 1940s-50s in Poland and Paris. On the way home, we came up behind a family on the sidewalk. We stepped off the curb to pass them because the elderly grandmother was in the lead and moving slowly. As we passed them, we greeted them with ‘buenas tardes’ and we got a response in perfect English ‘How are you?’ I stopped in my tracks and turned to the man and said ‘You speak perfect English’. A wonderful exchange ensued. The man was with his wife, his four daughters, and his mom and dad. I asked him how he was able to be surrounded by so many beautiful women which he liked hearing. We visited for several minutes, enjoying the experience.

 We came home and made grilled cheese and Portabella sandwiches with some fresh broccoli soup we had picked up at the market where the film was playing.

We have not looked at TV but once while here and that was to watch the last five minutes of the Super  Bowl. Tonight Ron discovered a PBS channel out of Seattle and we watch two episodes of Victoria while waiting for Gary and Edmund to arrive. At the stroke of midnight, the doorbell rang. We gave Gary and Edmund a quick tour of the house then said goodnight.

Feb 18
 We slept in until 7:30; I discovered Gary wandering around the patio when I came downstairs. He loves the house. After making coffee Edmund joined us on the patio. Today after breakfast we walked through the Instituto and the Juarez Parque then headed to the ATM to get pesos for G and E.






We continued on into centro to show them San Miguel’sbeautiful historic center. We stopped at the Bibliotecha and had lunch and poked around a few shops. Before coming home we stopped in a courtyard for a refreshing drink. I then took them through what is known as the Life Path and showed them the outside of the house we looked at last week. As we stood there talking about the house a woman stopped by and told us she was pretty sure she was going to buy the house. Once we got home we rested. Edmund was my sous chef making a great salad to go with our spaghetti dinner at home. Ron and Gary where taking pictures from the roof patio.



After dinner, we planned activities for the rest of the week.

Feb 19
Today I went with G and E to the botanical garden. They loved the arid plant life. Gary was taking photos throughout the three hours we were there. I went to the counter to ask the staff person to call a taxi for us. She said it would take at least 40 minutes due to a traffic accident on the freeway. I asked her to place our taxi order and we would get a drink in the ‘café’. I ordered the drinks and went back to the counter to pay our bill. I presented the kitchen staff person with the receipt and about that time G and E came up to say ‘our taxi is here’. I went back inside to see if I could get a refund since the staff person had not yet made our drinks. No luck. I think my lack of Spanish made it impossible for the staff person to understand what I was asking for. I let it go and we jumped into the cab, relieved that we didn’t have to wait.

Meanwhile, Ron had taken the morning to wander around town taking pictures. One of the things he likes to do is take pictures of local people in candid shots; mostly with his telephoto lens.









 






















Within minutes we ran into stopped traffic, bumper to bumper all the way into town. What is usually at 12-15 minute ride turned into a 45-minute traffic jam from hell. With two exceptions every street in each direction was jammed packed. I can only assume the freeway traffic accident forced all the cars off the freeway at least on one direction onto the streets of SMA. I have never seen anything like it. Our patient driver was a peach. No honking, no cussing, just a patient man. I kept texting Ron of our progress. I think it was almost 3:00 before we ate lunch at Hecho En Mexico. We got home and all of us rested, reading books, napping and relaxing. We were too tired to go out for dinner so we made an unplanned meal of scrambled cheese and red bell pepper eggs with toast and a fresh fruit salad. We dined by candlelight on the patio.

Feb 20
This morning I took G and E up to centro square so they could go on the Historic Tour that is a fundraiser for a non-profit that serves the needs of nearby village children. The woman who greeted them said the organization had purchased four vans that take doctors, dentists, and psychologists out to the villages to serve the needs of poor families. How wonderful and bravo!  The ex-pat organization of 31 people has been serving the rural community for 40+ years.

I came back home and asked Ron to go grocery shopping with me to help me carry things home. After putting the groceries away, we headed to a square in centro to get our shoes polished. The botanical garden’s dirt pathways had taken their toll on our shoes. Afterward, we went to Biblioteca to meet up with G and E. They called to tell us their tour ended up at a different place than usual so off we went to meet up and go to lunch. That took longer than expected as they had gotten confused about their location but we finally hooked up after several missteps. We ate at Juan’s Café in anticipation of going out for a nice meal tonight. When I called La Parada while we were having lunch, I discovered they did not have room for any reservations for dinner until next Wednesday! Dang, I made a Friday lunch reservation.

We went around the corner to visit a shop that has great textiles. I got a gift for a friend and a shirt for Ron. Ron departed as he wasn’t feeling well and G, E and I continued to pop into shops. After three or four I was flagging. I could not get to sleep last night and stayed up reading very late. I came home to find Ron upstairs in bed resting. I got him some cold water and let him rest.
I think when G and E return I will try to talk them into going out to a nice restaurant without us. I’ll stay here with Ron and make a simple salad or grilled sandwich for dinner.