Bells and Roosters

Day is breaking around 6am now and most mornings the temperature is right below 50 at that time.
I am still an early riser, but not ready to go out into the cold morning at 4:30am.

So I stay in bed for awhile and listen to the sounds around me. Depending upon the day there may still be a party happening and the sounds of the music float across town on the breeze, or maybe the lone bongo is playing far away in the distance, a dog barks next door, someone whistles softly out on the street, a horse goes clopping by. And if it is Sunday, the church bells call for mass and the roosters send messages to one another across the barrios.

The Long Walk

Buen dia.

It is 4 in the morning here in Alamos, Mexico, and after a late night with friends and fellow musicians, I am dragging myself from the warmth of a pile of quilts to go on a pilgrimage with my Mexicana amigas.

I was awake most of last night in fear of missing the meeting spot. Eager anticipation and fond memories of last year's walk also kept me from sleep.

The bells of our own Alamos church woke me at 3:00, calling to me slowly, beckoning me out into the cold.

The walk to the old silver mining town of La Aduana to visit the church there, begins a week of holy vows for some people who walk from all corners of Sonora to arrive by dawn on this morning. For others it means party for three days straight, with no work and no vows, punctuated with a lot of tequila.


It is the long walk that keeps me coming back.

Under a moon struck sky, my friends and I link arms as we make our way across the rock studded dirt arroyo. One of us will trip and fall, and arms will reach out to help. The language barrier is no longer noticeable as we attempt to converse in Spanish about children, parents, siblings and inevitably, our husbands. For much of the time we will walk quietly, thinking and wondering to ourselves, solving problems, not solving problems, and then, not thinking at all.

The air around us breathes with shooting stars and mysterious shadows dance across the sand. Along the way, several small fires light the path, their embers fleeing the heat, reaching out to the velvet sky.

For two hours we follow this seemingly never ending path, a path that has been followed before by many steps. We will breathe in a bountiful supply of cold air and relish this time of being together and yet, being alone.

At La Aduana, our faces glowing in the pink and golden sunrise, we sit in the church. Open to the elements of nature, Nuestra Senora de la Balvanera, is small and the wind gathers inside, bringing with it the tantalizing smells from the vendor's pots outside.

We sit quietly, nodding and then standing to kiss the cheeks of friends we see. We watch the long procession of people lay their flowers at the altar, cross themselves and kiss the statues of the Lady of Balvanera.

Back outside, on cobblestone streets we pause to watch La Danza del Venado, the Dance of the Deer, and listen to the mystifying notes of the rattles, flutes and guitars that accompany this ancient Yaqui Indian ritual.

Finally, after warming ourselves with cups of creamed corn, laden with butter and lime juice and hot sauce, we will slowly give up this magic, each of us returning to our homes, leaving a small, but significant amount of ourselves in La Aduana until next year.

A Different Little Panteon

Buen dia.
Finally got Senor to the IMSS clinic yesterday, after listening to him cough all night long.
Like a good little boy, he took his note with him, translated into Spanish in case he got sent to the doctor who speaks Spanish only..........ant bite, swollen foot, closed throat, fever, sweats, sleeping lots, not eating, no voice, coughing.

His little translation got him ten minutes in the Room with the Spanish speaking doctor, five boxes of medicine and a jar of liquid. After taking all of this twice yesterday and once this morning he is a new person. I am a happy person. And next time we will not wait so long for me to get happy.

Above is a photo of Levant Alcorn, the man the History Club altar was dedicated to this year. I won't repeat how the altar comes about. You can read that in the post before this one. However, below is a link to a marvelous interview that was done with him in 1989. It is really fascinating to learn how he ended up in Alamos.

And below is the altar. I meant for it to be very educational and included a lot of information about him that I had translated into Spanish. The Catrina was not part of the altar, but she adds a little more interest.

http://www.alamosportfolio.com/historyclub/Interviews_Conversations_Levant_Alcorn.htm




I went to the Panteon around 3pm on Wednesday and lit the candles on the graves we have adopted. The Panteon was just packed with people and I limited my picture taking. I seemed to know so many of the people sitting with their graves that I was not comfortable photographing anyone or any graves.

So I am going to show you photographs of different type of Panteon instead.

The local primary school children were asked to make small scale graves of their deceased relatives. They did this and I happened to be setting up the History Club altar on Tuesday, as the children brought in their altars to the museum. Several large groups of children each walked in over the course of an hour and each child took a turn placing their altar on the courtyard floor of the museum. They were so quiet, I could hear them breathing and the starched skirts of the little girls rustled as they walked. After the altars were placed they were given time to walk around and look at them and other than an occasional ooh and ahh, or other intake of breath, they were silent. It was obviously a moving experience for them.........










Equally as moving for me....................adios, linda lou

Jitomates!

Buen dia.

It is Senor's birthday and this afternoon we will make a trip into Navajoa. I hope to sneak a little cake into the shopping cart. I also hope he will feel well enough to grill a steak tonight.

He is still sleeping a lot and coughing, but his voice is stronger.
A friend in town gave him some tablets and told him that this is what he should take if he gets an ant bite. It is called Virlix. I researched it and it is just an antihistamine. Senor is not taking it, but something tells me Virlix is not what he would need if he ever gets another bite like that one.

Several months ago we found a jitomate (tomato) plant growing in a concrete crack outside the bedroom. Senor then found another and planted that one in a pot. Now we have two big leggy tomato plants that are already putting out. I hope these are heirloom tomatoes. The fruit has ruffled bottoms and tops. Aren't heirloom tomatoes usually ruffly?

The pop bottles are over the rebar because the water spigot for the house is right behind the plant. Did I remember to tell you we have a water leak somewhere under the concrete outside the fake kitchen and our current bedroom? So we have to keep the water turned off all the time. When we want water we have to reach in behind the jitomate and turn it on. I kept cutting myself on the rebar that Senor staked the plant with, so enter pop bottles on the tops of the rebar.


Below is the second plant.See the ruffles? maybe that's not what they are called. Ridges? Swirly things?
This morning I will be setting up the History Club altar for the Day of the Dead. Each year we dedicate a decorated altar to a foreigner who made a strong impact on the community and has since passed away.

This year's altar is dedicated to Levant Alcorn. He is the American who rediscovered Alamos, in the fifties, as it was in its ghost town stages. He was so enamored with this beautiful old colonial town even though it was practically deserted, that he decided to buy an old 'ruin' and repair it and make it livable. At that time few people were living in the community, but those who did had clear land and home titles to properties. Alcorn gave two thousand dollars to a Mexican family for his first ruin.

Before long, friends of Alcorn's and friends of friends came to do the same thing. Word began to spread in the United States about this quaint old cobblestone place up in the mountains, a place that was not very easy to get to, but one that was filled with mystery, charm and almost full abandon of glorious old colonial homes. As foreigners began to purchase ruins, Mexicano workers returned with their families and Alamos became a thriving community, much as it had been in the 1800's when it was one of the largest silver mining towns in the world. Old historical homes were restored to their original conditions and Mexican families with strong heritage began to return.

Today Alamos is a strong Mexican community with almost ten thousand residents. There are over four hundred foreign landowners here, although some never come to town, it is the winter season when many homeowners do return to enjoy the charm, the beauty and romance of the town. The forty or so of us who live here year round feel very fortunate to call this community our home.

So thanks to Mr. Alcorn, who in search of a little adventure, decided to travel into the mountains of Sonora so long ago, we are really able to be here.

When the altar is done, I will share the photos of Levant with you.

First, I am off on new old bike to the Panteon to finish painting one headstone. The cemetery has been filled with people working on grave sites, repairing them, painting them. They are very proud here in Alamos, of their ancestry.
Que le vaya bien! linda lou

King Ant Killer

Hola.

There is good news. Senor feels better.

Now here is the bad news story. He was stung by a nasty red and black ant one morning. In the beginning, after he depleted a vocabulary that should not be heard by any ears other than his own, it just hurt. He iced it immediately and I made him a baking soda paste.

Then it turned bright red. Then it swelled.
Then he went to sleep for hours and hours and I began to worry. He slept through dinner. He did not feel like getting up the next morning. But he did stay awake and said he was fine, just tired. He went back to sleep.

That afternoon he read for awhile. Then he went back to sleep and slept again through dinner. He did not have any interest in watching Monday Night Football on the computer.

The following day, he was very tired, but able to eat something and complain that the ant bite really did hurt, and he thought he was probably having a slight reaction to it. He ignored all my pleas to go over to the hospital to get checked out. He went to sleep again. In the afternoon he asked for a thermometer. One hundred and two....................... hospital, i said................no, he said...............yes, i said. Well, you know what happened. We did not go. But he agreed that if he still felt bad and had a temperature the following day, yes, he would go. He went back to sleep.

In the morning he could barely talk. Raspy and quiet, but temperature was gone.................... what's wrong with your voice, i asked.......................my throat swelled up during the night and now i can't speak, he whispered back.................good, lord, hospital, i said.....................no!....but if it is not better later today then i will go...........
It got better. Last night he ate well, but he lost a few pounds during this five day ordeal. Today he still has a raspy voice but he had a good lunch and it's Thursday, so he is over with the ladies playing bridge.

If you recall, I am the ant killer. I am the one who searches high and low for the nest, for the leaf cutter path, for the sugar ant hill, for the parasol hole. I am the one that goes out in the middle of the night with the powder and the flashlight because earlier I saw signs of something chomping on the lime tree. I am the executioner of any ant I see.

This morning Senor was out early copy catting me, looking for ant holes, hills, nest, pathways, any signs he could find. When he found them he poured the borax and water mixture on or into their home. This is a mixture he keeps for an occasional spray on the varro blancos. Little critters get their feet in it and then rub it on their face and then, they fall over dead. Senor decided that if it could work on little winged critters, then why wouldn't it work on ants. So far he is working on two nests and he hopes it will at least drive them farther out into the yard and hopefully, out of the yard. He is a dedicated man.

I am happy that he is well enough to begin such a crusade. I think I should have called the clinic and asked them to send a doctor over and now that we know Senor obviously has had an allergic reaction to an ant bite, should it happen again, that is exactly what I will be doing. House calls are a highly accepted practice here in Alamos and I will not hesitate.

Before the ant attack, lights went in under the portal roof and they glow in the evening with soft yellow bulbs. This beautiful iron one which is larger and different from the others marks the center of the portal. There will be four more lights going to the north once that end of the portal is completed.






We also took the tarps off the couches and are now able to sit out and enjoy the evenings again. It looks pretty primitive, but one of these days I will dress it up and do a photo shoot. The roof does not completely cover the sitting area, so it is almost impossible to keep the area clean. I need to add a rug, some flowers, a table runner. You get the picture. The important thing is Cookies like it.............



So I am thinking that I have been dethroned and am no longer the Queen Ant Killer. There is now a King Ant Killer who is convinced he can and will do away with them.
And all it took was one little bite.
Oh, me, oh, my, siesta calls my name......linda lou.

GEM, Gringo in Mexico

Buenas tardes!

We returned home on Tuesday and are settling back in to some gorgeous autumn weather and the golden glow of the afternoon sun as it falls even farther to the south.

For those of you who might recall that we would then be making a second turn around trip from Mazatlan to Alamos and back with our son, Ian, he was not able to make it. This works fine because one round trip here and back was enough. I am not sure we could have done two. We hope to see him in the new year, maybe for FAOT.

We did so many wonderful things with KD and the novio. It was great fun. One of the special events that occurred during the week was meeting GEM, Gringo in Mexico, and attending a callejoneada led by La Estudiantina.

If you are not familiar with GEM, he is a fun loving gringo who travels around Mexico, enjoying himself immensely as he fights bulls, eats grasshoppers and bares his body on nude beaches. He does a terrific job of promoting all the wonderful and exciting things this country has to offer, all the while being filmed by Televista, the Mexico television company. GEM is then seen in over forty countries by satellite.

KD and novio and I were walking near our street and suddenly, there was GEM, whose real name is Robert. We received an introduction from the promotional assistant and a personal invitation to a callejoneada the following night.

A callejoneada is a street procession that winds its way through narrow streets and alleyways while being led by La Estudiantina. A group of students dressed in thirteenth century Spanish costume, La Estuduantina plays a variety of musical instruments and sings traditional songs.
They are very dramatic, mysterious and extremely good musicians and singers. Usually when they arrive, it is from a dark alley and their entrance can be breath taking, their cloaks swaying in the breeze, the serious looks upon their faces.

In the photo below I managed to walk behind them on their entrance from a narrow street near the church. The ribbons signify their order in the troupe.




Below is GEM.



The curator of the museum introduced him and the crowd went wild. In the you tube clip below you can see that evening's event. There are several times where KD and I are in the clip, especially around the three minute mark. I don't know Robert Kalish who made the you tube, but he did a great job of capturing the excitement of the crowd.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vUcMZrCBZA

The burro follows the callejoneada and carries bottles of red wine in the plastic bins.





I think seeing La Estudiantina perform is one of my favorite events in Alamos, and I hope you enjoy seeing the photos and the Kalish you tube. I don't know what satellite network GEM comes on in the states but I am sure if you want to see the episode of his visit to Alamos, you can find it.

Senor is playing bridge and talkzone cut off my twilight zone. They said either pay up for new episodes or you can just listen to ring a ding girl over and over again. I thought, okay, looking for something new to do now on bridge day.....................siesta is my answer.

We are Busy Hanging Out

Hola, buen dia, a quick post to let you know we are busy hanging out.
We had a lot of adventures in Mazatlan and have been back in Alamos for a week. Manana we return for a few more adventures on Stone Island. The area had received a lot of rain and the road in and out was tricky in new old car which rides low to the ground. We hope the water is gone when we are once again on the Stone Island road tomorrow. On the other hand the hurricane could have sent new rain that way and the puddles may be deeper.

The photo above is of the beautiful coconut plantations on the island, hundreds of acres of palms.




Below KD and novio are trekking up the walkway to the Mirador in Alamos.


Not much time, we have a lot to do. Hope everyone is well. I will post again next week!
Que tengas un buen dia! linda lou