Ready to Paint

When I made the move to Mexico City, one of the things I had shipped down was my artist's easel.  I set it up in the office.  The previous owner used the office as an exercise room, and there were plastic mats on the floor.  So, I don't have to worry about dripping paint on the carpet.  I had also brought tubes of acrylic paint, and I bought some more at the Sunday artists' market.  I cleared out the stuff left by the former owner from a cabinet in the office.  I am using that to store my painting supplies.  I bought a plastic tablecloth to cover the cabinet when I am painting.  On my recent trip to Ohio, I bought some canvas boards.  I forgot to buy a palette, but I am using a shallow Tupperware container.  I have a couple of yogurt containers for my brushes and water.  Everything is now set up to get back to painting again.

Since I took that photo, I actually began a painting that I will use for my Christmas card this year.  The picture is already half completed.  When I have finished, I will take it to a printer and have cards made.  I will make the cards out, and on my next trip to Ohio I will buy stamps and give the cards to a friend to mail after Thanksgiving.

A Taste of Veracruz

On Thursday afternoons, the cleaning lady comes to the apartment.  I get out of her way, leave the apartment, and, rather than cook, I go out for my afternoon dinner.  Last Thursday, I was looking at Google maps, searching for someplace different to eat.  I found a place that had very good reviews.  It's called "Fonda del Recuerdo", which translates loosely as "Inn of the Reminiscence".   It is located north of the Paseo de la Reforma, just a short walk from the Monument to Independence, on Río Lerma Street.  Although the menu includes a variety of Mexican dishes, the emphasis is on the cuisine of the state of Veracruz.

So, that was my destination on Thursday.  The sign says "Comida mexicana jarocha"... jarocha Mexican food.  "Jarocha" is a word referring to anyone or anything from the state of Veracruz.

I started off with a "gorda veracruzana".  I was expecting it to be something like a "gordita", which is rather small.  So, I was surprised when the waiter served me something that filled the dinner plate.

However, the "gorda" is inflated.  When I cut into it, it was hollow inside.  It's not as enormous as it first appears.  It is made of corn dough mixed with ground beans, and you are served tomato sauce and "crema" to spoon over it.  It was a very tasty appetizer.

I then had the Tarascan soup, which is similar to tortilla soup.  It's not a specialty of Veracruz since the Tarascan tribe comes from the west-central state of Michoacán.  It was, however, very good also.

For my main dish I had the "chile huasteco" which is a specialty of the Huasteca region of northern Veracruz.  The poblano pepper was stuffed with beans, cheese and plantain, and covered with a tomato sauce.  The contrast between sweet and savory flavors was very interesting and delicious.

After all that food, I really should not have ordered dessert, but I was tempted by something called "Delicia de guayaba"... guava delight.  It was similar to a cheesecake but made with a guava mousse.  With it I had "café de olla", coffee brewed with cinnamon and brown sugar and traditionally served in a clay mug.

Everything was delicious, and the service was also very friendly and attentive.  Sometime when Alejandro and I are along the Paseo de la Reforma, I will definitely have to take him there.

The Shorts Question

In my fifty years of traveling, I have never worn shorts in Mexico City.  It goes back to my first trip to Mexico, when I attended the University of the Americas during the winter quarter of my junior year.  At the orientation session for "gringo" students we were told, in no uncertain terms, that we should not wear shorts.  In those days, any male who still wore shorts after reaching adolescence was viewed as... uhm, shall we say, effeminate.  And a female who wore shorts was looked upon as a woman of dubious virtue.  Besides, in the high-altitude climate of Mexico City, where the temperature rarely reaches 80 degrees Fahrenheit, and evenings can be downright chilly, shorts are really not necessary.

However, in the last few years, I have gradually seen more residents wearing shorts.  It was mostly teenagers, twenty-somethings, and guys who were obviously on their way to the gym.  Except for clueless gringo tourists, you definitely didn't see anyone my age wearing shorts.

As I have written before, Mexico City has been experiencing a heat wave which I believe is unprecedented.  Since February 21st, we have had 71 days with temperatures of 80 or above. (Four of those days the thermometer hit 90.)  The majority of guys are still wearing long pants, but I am seeing more, even a few older men, wearing shorts.

 

I do have a couple pairs of shorts here, tucked away in a drawer.  Last Wednesday, the temperature was 86, and I was on a Metrobus that was packed like a can of sardines.  By the time I got home, I was so tempted to change into shorts.  But I didn't.

Another Salsa

I have shown you how to make salsa in a "molcajete", a stone mortar and pestle.  Last week I decided to make a different salsa, one that did not require grinding by hand.  I took out one of my old Mexican cookbooks.  I have several, but this one is the most authentic, and the one I have used the most... and the pages stained with cooking oil and salsa prove it.  

The author of the book, Elisabeth Lambert Ortiz, was an Englishwoman who married a Mexican diplomat.  When they moved to Mexico City, she wanted to learn how to cook the cuisine of the country.  In the humorous introduction to the book, she tells of her efforts in a country where women of her social standing were expected to let the help do the shopping and cooking.  With her cookbook, published in 1967, she was one of the first to introduce audiences in the U.S. and Britain to genuine Mexican dishes.  

I turned to the chapter on salsas, and I decided to make "salsa de chile chipotle".  I chopped an onion and a clove of garlic, and sauteed them until tender.  I added 4 Roma tomatoes, skinned and chopped, and three canned chipotle peppers, chopped.  I realized that I don't have any measuring spoons here, so I guessed on 1/2 teaspoon of oregano and 1/2 teaspoon of sugar.  I added salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.  I let that cook gently for about 15 minutes.  And that is all there is to it.  I have another batch of homemade salsa.

Avian Visitors

I don't know what they are called in Spanish, but there is a species of birds here that seem to be a smaller version of the mourning doves that we have in Ohio.  I have often seen them in the trees outside the apartment.  Their mournful call, which gives the bird its name, is identical to what I was used to hearing in Ohio.  They are monogamous, and I almost always see them in pairs.

Yesterday, I noticed a pair of them perched on the narrow ledge of the window of my glassed-in balcony.  I went to get my camara, and they were still there.

I did a bit of research, and the habitat of the mourning dove extends down through Mexico.  The subspecies which lives in the eastern half of the U.S. is called Zenaida macroura carolinensis.  The range of another subspecies, Zenaida macroura marginella, extends all the way from western Canada to south central Mexico.  That's who my two visitors must be.

UPDATE - A reader from Mexico commented that he knows these birds as "tortolitas mexicanas".  I looked it up on Wikipedia, and although they are a member of the dove family, they belong to a separate genus from the mourning doves that we know in the United States. 

More Flowers

Here are some more photos from the Festival of Flowers that was held last weekend in the ritzy Mexico City neighborhood of Polanco.

I crossed over to the other side of Avenida Presidente Masaryk, often called the Rodeo Drive of Mexico City.  (You can tell by some of the store signs what a swank neighborhood this is.)

 

No, this store does not sell Lee Jeans.  It is a bookstore, and "Lee" means "Read!"

Even beyond the main shopping avenue of Masaryk, there were a number of stores and restaurants with floral displays.

The Festival of Flowers in Polanco is a spectacular event!

A Festival of Flowers

Polanco is one of Mexico City's most affluent neighborhoods.  Its principal street, Avenida Presidente Masaryk has been called the Rodeo Drive of Mexico City, and it is lined with exclusive designer shops.  It's really too ritzy for my taste, but I do enjoy coming to Polanco to see their annual Festival of Flowers. Throughout the district, businesses, especially those along Presidente Masaryk, are decked out with floral displays.

The festival was held last Thursday through Sunday, and on Friday I went there.  Here are some photos...

 

 

This archway leads off the avenue and into a courtyard of fancy stores and restaurants.

The name of the bistro in the background is rather appropriate for this neighborhood.

I am back on the avenue now.  There were lots of people who were there to see the flowers, and sometimes it was impossible to photograph the displays without sometimes including people who were posing for pictures.

BVVA, formerly Bancomer, is one of the major banks in Mexico.

The floral car outside of BVVA says, "Insure your auto."  Apparently, BVVA also has an insurance branch.

Banorte is another major chain of banks.  Unlike BBVA, which is Spanish-owned, Banorte is Mexican owned.

Their Polanco branch is always nicely decorated in the national colors of red and green for the festival.

Pineda Covalin is a Mexican designer.  The Polanco shop is always one of the best decorated stores in the festival.

I have only covered one side of the avenue.  There are more photos to come in the next post.