The Day of the Holy Kings

           

Christmas is in full swing here until January 6 because today, Ephiphany, is a big affair and a school holiday for the kids who line up in the park by the hundreds for a piece of Rosca de reyes, a wreath shaped fruity baked bread. Imagine an oval of sliced bread 200 feet wide -- that's about 800 feet of cake arranged on tables with a gazillion kids waiting for a piece. Some pieces of cake contain a ceramic or plastic figure of the baby Jesus.

I'd forgotten all about the day when the three wise men were supposed to have visited Jesus. I asked a young woman what was going on this morning and she gave her friend a kind of "who is this bozo" look. Christmas carols filled the air yet again and I had to pinch myself that we hadn't stumbled into a time warp. So Mexican children receive Christmas and Ephiphany presents.

All last weekend the Zocalo was packed with people lining up to ice skate -- or mostly stumble and fall on an ice rink or tube down two story ice slides. Even in Mexico, Santa comes from the land of ice and snow.  

           These four guys are hanging on for dear life to the rink's edge.

                     

              

               

             Disney is alive and well here.

     
 

The Arabe is stacked pork layered with onions and herbs and often grilled next to charcoal or a gas flame. Another type, The Pastor, is marinated pork, cilantro and pineapple.

               

                     The Pastor

The Biblioteca Palafoxiana library

The Biblioteca Palafoxiana library is an eye opener because the books date back to the 1500s. It was founded in 1646, was the first public library in colonial Mexico, often considered the first in the Americas and has more than 41,000 books and manuscripts from the 15th to the 20th century. In 2005, it was listed on UNESCO's Memory of the World Register.

                  Walls of ancient books.

In 1646, the bishop of Puebla donated 5,000 of his own books and manuscripts to the Colegio de San Juan on the condition that they be made available to the general public. About one hundred years later the current library was built and more books added including those confiscated from the Jesuits when they were expelled in 1767. This is an earthquake zone and so old buildings like the library have suffered and been restored.

                 

                  

                                            A 1600s book.

                    

                    Stacks from floor to high ceiling.

                 

                     

  As the guide said, this is history's internet -- a rotating wheel to place the documents you are reading.

                           

                                  Ancient entrance door.

Tomorrow Susan and Alan leave for Nelson through LA and Spokane. We have a few more days to explore at a more leisurely pace. Life has been very, very active these last three weeks! More pics to follow. I hope all is well where you are.

 

Waving Goodbye to Oaxaca

Bob bought  "Luxury" level tickets for our five hour bus ride from Oaxaca to Puebla. I think he knew the last 10 hour ride had just about done us in. We told the kids we were riding the "chicken bus" and so they were surprised at the large seats, nice bathrooms and leg room. Appreciation comes with a struggle.

There's so much excitement in the Mexican air at Christmas with families visiting from all over the country. In February, when we were last here, children were in school and parents working. We haven't yet met any tourists from Canada, the US or Europe.

The pics below are from our last day in Oaxaca. But I have to apologize for not including grasshoppers for your New Year's dinner. The ones below are flavoured with chile and I ate one! Maybe one day when we aren't eating beef and pork anymore, we'll be crunching on bugs. Yum.

      

               The legs kind of hang on your lips.

         

                              New Years in the air.

           

                               The  motley crew.

                       

                                    Hanging moon.

                      

             A spiffy roof to protect the government palace courtyard.

                     

                            

                          Getting all shined up for his lover.

                     

                                          How water is heated.

    

      

     

                     An intense game.

                   

                      Greenery  and colour everywhere.

               

   

   

The woman who was selling these flowers asked for money for the photo. I put a coin into the cup in her hand which turned out to be her cup of juice. I was a little embarrassed but also a little miffed that she'd asked for a handout.

                                          Feeding pigeons in the Zocalo.

               

                                           

                                                                      

          

           Always music in the park.

          Making tortillas.

           

         

                Mixing the corn flour.

         

                      Kneading it on an ancient stone.

                    

     

      The blue metal gadget flattens the dough.

           

                        Then it's cooked on a gas griddle.

                              

  The hotel we arrived at late last night, the one we'll thankfully leave tomorrow, is sketchy at best with a strong smell of sewer gas in the bathrooms and a few other unpleasant surprises. We kind of gulped when we saw it but since it was booked for two nights we made the most of our day outdoors. I said to Alan this morning. "How was the room?" "We didn't unpack," he said.

See you tomorrow in our new abode. Bob and I are staying in Puebla for six days. Sus and Alan for four.

Bye for now.

      

                      

  

  

     

 

New Years in Oaxaca on Steroids

New Years Eve revellers started firing off mini rockets and sizzler firecrackers around eleven in the cathedral square and there was no escaping them. They'd charge up high into the air or shoot out horizontally aiming right for you. You had to jump and dash away.

They'd start off in one direction, then do an about face zig zagging into another or shoot around under your feet. Hundreds and hundreds of them. The noise was deafening. Fun -- scary and amazing there were no shut downs. Susan, Alan, Max and Kai were right in there playing their part. 

We had our New Years' dinner in the market. Long benches and tables and very short on elegance. But I was over ruled and wasn't feeling too frisky because I'd tripped on the 2 1/2 inch drop entering our room and gone flying just before dinner. Hadn't even had time for a sip of wine. Clumsy me. Arnica, tensors and ice helped a lot and I should be as good as new in a few days.

Susan et al visited the textile villages and ruins outside the city today, the areas you would have seen in my blog two years ago. Bob and I museum hopped today and loved the absense of street vendors and hawkers who were probably at home nursing hangovers.

I've taken four hours of Spanish lessons at the same school as two years ago. Our casa is at the opposite end of town this time and I swear I walked 55 blocks both days during the two days of classes. Bob and I are doing our best to keep up with the rest of the family and are glad we've seen a few of the outlying areas already.  Here are some treats for your new year:

                    

                          A hammock to relax in.

                      

                      Yummy meat for a feast.

                        

                  Or perhaps something more enticing.

                  

                     You'll want some veggies.

                    

               

                                       And fruit.

                

                         

             Oaxaca is famous for chocolate from the cacao bean.

                  

                   

                     This worker is grinding and drying the beans.

                             Mexican art and architecture to inspire you.

                                   

                                

                              

                             

                           

              

                         

                         

        

                              Old wall construction.

                  

                    

           

             Nature's art

            

        And a few more hammocks in case you are sleepy.

      Tomorrow afternoon we take a five hour bus ride to Puebla, a lovely city north of here. We're all well and always noticing the diiferent ways people live in other countries.

 It's fun at home while eating breakfast at our kitchen table to imagine street vendors here peeling fruit for workers to grab on their way to work or to cruise around Asian countries in my mind and see workers out in their fields in the early morning. I wonder what they would think if they could see us relaxing with coffee before heading out.

I'll send family photos -- hopefully today.  Be well.