Beverage graphics in Mexico are some of the best!

Mexico has some of the best graphics when it comes to their beverages.

Walking around the market in Oaxaca and I came upon such a nice lady that was more than happy to pose for me.  I could not have choreographed this any better if I had tried.  The colors in her outfit with the turquoise enamel pot were just so colorful against the Coca-Cola graphic behind her.  When I returned the next year with one of my groups, I brought her a copy of this photo and she was so excited to receive it.

Driving back into San Cristobal de Las Casa from visiting the small villages of Zinacantan and San Juan Chamula up in the highlands, I shot this as I was at the wheel passing by.  

 These are tiles making up the Coca-Cola sign in the Guadalupe area in San Miguel de Allende.

When traveling around Chiapas with my friend Esther in 2016, we were driving from San Cristobal de Las Casas to Palenque.  We stopped at a comedor for a bite to eat and there were 4 big Corona trucks in the parking lot.  I am sure these drivers thought, what are these gringas doing in the middle of no where eating at this roadside comedor.  They were very polite and we all wished each other, "buen provecho".

After leaving San Cristobal de Las Casas on our way to Palanque, we stopped to take some photos of the countryside and a gorgeous waterfall.  This Coca-Cola graphic was painted on the side of a little road side stall.  Has a bit of Andy Warhol to it.

Indio cerveza, a crisp amber lager that I had at a restaurant on the main plaza in Guanajuato.  Made by Bohemia, it's a very refreshing beer on a hot day.

Salud!

Spring Brings Rainbow Colors!

It is so beautiful out and I love how the trees are popping with color and the garden is coming alive.  With that in mind, I thought I would share some of my colorful photos from Mexico that just scream COLOR.

March in San Miguel de Allende during Easter time.  These streamers adorned the whole length of the street.

The Mexican woven mesh bags hanging in the market in San Miguel de Allende.  The perfect bag to have when you have bought too much and need something sturdy and light weight to carry your loot.

 Embroidered table cloths in the Friday market in Patzcuaro in the state of Michoacan.

I just adore how this Band B in Patzcuaro took the paper mache dolls and created a design with them in their foyer.  Very clever.

I was over in Uruapan for their big Tiangus Artesanal over Palm Sunday and this lady had the most colorful satin ribbons in her hair.

Hand-painted gourds used for drinking tequila, tepache or mezcal from the Friday market in Octolan, Oaxaca.

Gerber Daises in the market

and mylar balloons in the jardin in San Miguel de Allende.

Hand-made flowers sold by a little vendor by the Monjas church in San Miguel de Allende.

Hand-woven heavy duty plastic bags,

a variety of spices in the 20 de Noviember market in Oaxaca.

And glass beads sold at one stall that are worn for carnival and other celebrations.

Candles in La Soledad Church in Oaxaca.

How can you not be happy when surrounded by such color!  Happy Spring everyone.

 

The Mexican Cook Book from the 1970's , written and photographed by George and Inger Wallace is a real gem

I bought this cookbook when I was in college right when it was published in 1971.  The recipes are straight forward,  somewhat elementary.  The authors traveled throughout Mexico and put together a collection of their favorite Mexican recipes and adapted them for the American kitchen.  Things have changed drastically in what ingredients one can find now verses back then.  But the thing I like best about this small cookbook is the photography.
First let me tell you a little about the George Wallace...  Born in San Francisco, he excelled in two completely different fields, speed skating and photography.  
He was the only American athlete to compete independently in the 1940 World Games (later known at the Olympics).  He won top medals in Latvia, competing in minus 40 degrees Celsius weather!
In 1939 he was invited by the Oslo Skating Club to train on their outdoor rink and that is where he met his future wife, Inger Dalhberg.  Fleeing Norway after the German occupation, they were fortunate to get the last available passage on the U.S. Manhattan.
Back in the states, he worked for his family's company, US Pipe Mfg..  
He was passionate about photography since the age of 12.  In the late 1940's, he was a full time student on a scholarship for two years under Ansel Adams, Minor White and Edward Weston.   He later became a professor of photography and created a simple hand calculator   to determine the best DOF, depth of field.  He had a knack for shooting from the hip which was useful when shooting in Mexico where the people were standoffish of having their photo taken for they believed the photograph would steal their spirit.  He would engage his subjects in friendly conversation which led to mutual respect which show in the images below.  You can see this in his photos, for many of his subjects have a smile on their face and a twinkle in their eyes. 
He shot with minimal equipment using natural light and sometimes a mini-tripod.
He invented the ExpoDisc.  This disc, like a lens, sets the white balance on the camera enabling the photographer to capture accurate color when clicking the shutter.  Good color and exposure saved the photographer tremendous time from having to make adjustments on the camera's settings and less time in the dark room.  
Most of his photographic archives were destroyed by a fire in 1989, but negatives and slides from Mexico and Norway were spared.
Enjoy some of the photographs below that I scanned from the cookbook along with the copy that accompanied the photo.

"This is one of the three large bands of musicians in Teotitlan del Valle, a Zapotec village in the state of Oaxaca.  These bands provide all the music for the local religious festivals and pageants."   Teotitlan del Valle is one of the villages that I take my group to and is renown for it weaving of rebozas and rugs.

"Their work in the fields caught up and the rainy season begun, mestizos from San Juan Chilateca wait for a ride to the nearby fiesta where they will earn extra money as professional musicians."

"Many men of nearby Santa Catarina Minas share work provided by stills hidden in remote barrancas of this desolate region.  From these stills comes the best mescal in all Mexico."

"Largest of all Indian markets of Mexico, the Oaxaca market is within a day's travel of every conceivable combination of soil, climate and topography, and therefore features an exotic and great variety of fruits and vegetables throughout the year."  And to this day, the market has not changed that much.

"Indians and mestizos alike converge on the large market on Saturdays.  They come from lonely huts in the hills and nearby villages to buy, sell and barter; and to enjoy the excitement of the market place."  The women today still wear their shiny black hair in a handsome braid and always wearing an apron and a reboza as they effortlessly balance their basket full of vegetables on their head. 

"These girls from San Felipe, A Zapotec village on the outskirts of Oaxaca, have just finished a part of their day's work.  Up long before dawn, they ground corn, made tortillas, ran barefoot to market with their wares loaded in baskets and sold hot, fresh tortillas to waiting customers."  I love these baskets and I buy one or two every time I am in Oaxaca. They are beautifully crafted.  Being pliable, I put one basket inside the other , pack my clothes in them and put the the baskets in my big duffle-shaped suitcase.  Back home, I use them for cloths hampers and waste baskets.

"On their way home from Mass, these women and children had been waiting in a small store for a momentary downpour to pass."  I have been there!  Some of the whiteout downpours in the state of Michoacan are unbelievable. 

"With methods as old as the Conquest itself, the women of Teotitlan de Valle spin yarn for woolen serapes for which their village is so famous."  A practice still done the in the old tradition.  And I have purchased the most beautifully woven serape that Ralph Lauren would have loved to showcase in his store.

"This vanilla bean farmer in Papantla, on the hot and humid Gulf Coast, prefers traditional Totonac dress for himself, but indulges in factory-made clothes for his children."

"This mestiza woman is one of many independent small businesswomen preparing and selling antojitos in the streets surrounding the huge Oaxaca market.   A scene very typical of today with the large clay comal used to cook the tortillas and the enamel pot probably filled with a salsa, freshly chopped nopales (cactus pads) or a mole...

"Refugio Masqueda Mercedes Chaves makes charcoal from the hardwood he gathers in the hills above Guanajuato, then hauls it down by burro to sell in the towns.  His strongly Spanish features are evidence of the harshness of the occupation that followed the Conquest of Mexico."  Don't you just love his name?  There were countless times when there would be a knock at our home in San Miguel de Allende with a man with similar looks and his burro loaded with firewood or bags of dirt for the garden.

"The timorous Tarahumaras only slip down from their primitive caves and huts to attend Mass, watch a Baptism or an occasional marriage ceremony, or seek medicine our counsel from the padre on his monthly visit.  He is the only outside they trust."  
Their way of life has not changes since the 1970's.  My next tour may involve taking the scenic train trip through the Copper Canyon where these interesting people live.  The Copper Canyon makes the Grand Canyon in Arizona look small in comparison.  


The Wallace's captured the warmth and spirit of the Mexican people and that is something I have experienced every time I have ventured out to explore some small village in the remote areas of Mexico.  Such gracious, friendly people.

The Mexican Cook Book is still available and I know you can find it on Amazon.  It's beautifully written, the recipes are easy and the photography is spectacular.

Continents Apart

One of my favorite artisan's, Tomasa Gonzales Sanchez, lives in Ocumicho in the mountains north-west of Uruapan in the state of Michoacan.  I have been collecting Tomasa's and the family's pieces for years and whenever I visit their home/workshop, I never leave empty handed.

I bought this candelabra decorated with naked men and women years ago and I just love it!  The artisans of Ocumicho have a wild imagination and often there is a devil or some kind of demon thrown into the mix.

My friend, Paco Cardenas who owns the best bakery (La Petit Four) in San Miguel de Allende, recently traveled to Oslo, Norway.  He spent some time at the magnificent Vigelano Museum and Park.  It is the world's largest sculpture park made by a single artist, Gustar Vigeland.  It consists of over 200 sculptures of his lifeworks.  This 17 meter high monolith has 36 figures on it.  

Check out their website: www.vigeland.museum.no/en/vigeland-park 

I know that the residents of Ocumicho have never ventured very far from their little village and I would guess that Vigeland never traveled to this remote spot in the state of Michoacan but the similarity of both these works is spectacular! 

Las Mercedes Restaurant in Guanajauto

Las Mercedes is a family run restaurant located in the outskirts of Guanajuato in a residential area where I take my group for comida when we tour Guanajuato. The cuisine is taken to a new level, traditional family recipes with a gourmet twist. This is the view from the front of the restaurant over looking the city.

Tony, Liz and Jan anxiously waiting for their special "house" cocktail!

Peggy & Rick, a couple that was on my October tour, enjoying the house cocktail. It is made with garambullo, juice from the berries of a cactus. After taking one sip after another, I came to the conclusion it was a cross between pomegranate juice and blueberries. A unique and distinctive flavor. But still not sure, so I think I will keep sipping.
One of three appetizers that we started with. "Mil Hojas de Nopal" - three layers of roasted nopales (small pads from the prickly pear cactus) with goat cheese, smoked salmon, sliced tomatoes & thin slices of red onion drizzled with essence of chile oil. So delicate and savory. The most delicate nopales are called "Lenguitas" or "little tongues."

"Envuelto de Chili Pasilla con Nata"

Home made flower tortilla filled with a marinated chili pasilla, black beans and a creamy nata sauce. The pasilla is a dried chili and when rehydrated, it has a sharp but rich flavor. The Nata is the thick skins that forms after scalding raw milk. A wonderful rich flavor.

"Chamorro Las Mercedes"

Talk about intense flavors! This tender pork shank was roasted for hours in a flavorful broth with herbs, tomatoes and black beans.

"Pollo con Mole Verde"

A tender and moist chicken breast served with a delicate pistachio mole and white rice. The desserts were to die for! Coconut ice cream with xoconostle (fruit from a variety of cacti), poached pear with home made cajeta sauce (above) and my favorite, a corn cake with nut flavored ice cream and garambullo coulis.

The force behind the cuisine!