My Dad's Trip to Mexico (Part Two)

 

(A continuation of my previous post in which I describe the trip my dad and I took in 1975)

 

 

After several days in Mexico City, we headed east in a rental car.  Back in those days there were very few four-lane highways in Mexico.  Most of our journeys were on two lane roads.

 

We went to Cholula, two hours from the capital.  Here I had attended the University of the Americas a couple years before.

 

 

 

Me at the campus of my old school

 

 

 

Dad in front of the Pyramid of Cholula

 

 

We went to the nearby town of Tlaxcala and spent a couple days with a family that I had met during my student days.

 

 

The beautiful Basilica of Ocotlán in Tlaxcala

 

We then continued eastward to the city of Jalapa, the capital of the state of Veracruz.  The wife of one of my Spanish professors in Ohio was originally from Jalapa, and we visited her family there.

 

 

 

Dad looking at the dahlias in the garden of a former coffee plantation outside of Jalapa.

 

 

Dad really enjoyed visiting these places that were off the typical tourist route, and he was really impressed with the warm hospitality that my friends showed us.  He didn't speak any Spanish, so I was kept busy acting as interpreter.

 

From Jalapa we made a long journey on twisting roads westward until we reached Taxco, an old, colonial, silver-mining town.  We wandered the cobblestone streets on foot, and visited some of the many silver shops.  Dad bought a silver ring with his birthstone, a ring which I still have and frequently wear.

 

 

 

Dad on the terrace of our cliff-side hotel in Taxco

 

 

He was impressed with the colonial architecture of Taxco, especially the ornate Church of Santa Prisca, built in the 1700s by a wealthy silver mine owner.

 

 

From Taxco we headed south to the resort city of Acapulco.  This was long before the modern four-lane highway that now runs to Acapulco. 

 

 

 

We stopped along the way to take pictures of the enormous cacti by the road.

 

 

Back in those days, places like Cancun and Ixtapa did not yet exist.  Acapulco was the most famous beach resort in the country.

 

 



 

We stayed at this high-rise hotel, Hotel Caleta, which back then was a very nice place.

 

 

 

Dad went parasailing while we were in Acapulco.  For him, it was no big deal, since he was a paratrooper in World War II.  He tried to convince me to go parasailing, but I was chicken.  I told him that I would just stay on the beach and take pictures of him.

 

We flew home from Acapulco.  It was a great experience for both of us, and I had a chance to show my father the Mexico that I had grown to love. 

 













My Dad's Trip to Mexico (Part One)

My very first trip to Mexico was way back in 1973 when I spent the winter quarter of my junior year of college at the University of the Americas.  From that time on I was "hooked" on Mexico, and I was eager to make a return trip.

In the summer of 1975, after I had completed my first year of teaching, I invited my father to go with me to Mexico.

We flew to Mexico City and spent several days there.  We saw all the typical tourist sights... Chapultepec Castle, the Anthropology Museum, the top of the Latin American Tower, and the historic center of the city.

Dad at the top of the Latin American Tower

 

 

 

Dad and a much younger (and much geekier) me in the Alameda Park

 

 

At the Anthropology Museum

Although Dad wasn't a "museum type of person", he was really impressed with the place.

 

We also had some experiences that the average tourist does not have.  On the plane to Mexico City we sat next to a Mexican lawyer who was returning home after a visit to the United States.  He and I were engaged in conversation for most of the flight.  The lawyer was afraid of flying and was very grateful that our conversation made the flight less stressful for him.  He gave us his phone number, and insisted on spending a day with us.  We made arrangements, and one morning he met us at our hotel.  He drove us to the ruins of Teotihuacan to the north of the city. 

 

 

 

The lawyer and my Dad at the ruins of Teotihuacan

 

 

After exploring the ruins, he treated us to lunch at a nearby restaurant located in a cave.

 

 

Another day we got together with Ariel, a friend of mine from the University of the Americas.  His family was from Chile, but they had moved to Mexico City some years before.  Ariel drove us to Izta-Popo National Park to see the snow covered volcanoes Iztaccíhuatl and Popocatépetl.

 

 

 

 

Dad and Ariel with snowy Popocatepetl in the background. 

The volcano has become active in recent years, and you are no longer allowed this close to the peak.  Ariel actually climbed up the snow line. 

 

Ariel and I kept in touch for a number of years after that, but unfortunately we have lost contact with each other.

 

After our stay in Mexico City, Dad rented a car, and we explored other parts of the country.  I had told him that we would not rent a car until we were ready to leave the city.  Once Dad saw the traffic in Mexico City, he understood what I was talking about.  We went back to the airport to pick up the car since it would be easier to head out of the city from there.  We managed to get out of Mexico City without too much trouble, and we were off on more adventures.







The Finished Product

This morning I completed my painting.  Here is the finished product...

The colors in the photograph are not quite correct.  Because of the light source, the right side looks a bit more yellowish.

If you look back at the earlier post in which I showed the photo that I used as the basis for the painting, you will notice that they are not exactly the same.  Artistic license... for the sake of my sanity, I simplified the jumble of houses and red tile roofs.

I am pretty satisfied with the way it turned out, and I hope that it will fetch some money in the charity auction later this month.

I'm Sick of Winter!

 

Even though March is a couple days away, winter is showing no signs of loosening its grip.  As I write this, the temperature is a chilly 4 degrees Fahrenheit.  Last night it was below zero, and tonight once again it is predicted to fall to -3 degrees.  On Sunday, we are expected to get three to five inches of snow. Here in Ohio, we usually can expect snow well into March and even occasionally in April, but by this time normally the temperatures are beginning to moderate, and there are breaks in the winter weather that give us hope for spring.   The long term forecast (which is really just a guess by meteorologists) says that we might reach the low forties on Tuesday and Wednesday... but with a rain / ice mix.  Yuck! Then the temperatures are supposed to drop below freezing again. 

Even though I missed out on five weeks of winter during my trip to Mexico, I am sick of this.  A friend asked me just yesterday, "Why did you bother to come home?"  Well, as enticing as an entire winter in Mexico sounds right now, there are things that have to be done at home.  So I will just have to put up with it until spring decides to arrive.

Half Way There

I put in several hours of work on my painting today, and the picture is about half way completed.  I should have no trouble finishing long before the charity auction on March 21st.

Progress on the Painting

After a couple days of work, my painting is progressing.  This is what it looks like so far...

Time to Get Painting

Each year when I return from my winter trip to Mexico, one of my projects is to paint a picture to donate to the spring auction for the local chapter of "Los Amigos de las Américas".  In the past the auction has been the first Saturday in April.  The date worked out well because it fell just before I would leave again to be in Mexico City for Alejandro's birthday.  When I looked at the calendar for 2015, I realized that this year the first Saturday in April is the day before Easter.  I doubted that they would have the auction on that date.  I was hoping that they would not schedule it for the following week.  I would still be able to do a painting ahead of time, but I would not be able to attend the event.  It's a very enjoyable evening to which I look forward, and several friends go with me.  They enjoy it too.  It's become a yearly tradition.

A couple days ago, I received an e-mail from "Los Amigos" informing me that the auction would be March 21st this year.  Wonderful!  I'll be able to attend, but I have to get started on the painting.  In past years I have done Mexican landscapes, but I decided that this year I would do a scene based on a photo I took on one of my trips to Spain.  I knew exactly which photo I would use.

This is a picture of Chinchón, a small town to the south of Madrid that I visited last September.  I like the way the trees in the foreground frame and divide the view of the town in the background, and I think that it will make a nice painting.  So, last night, I printed a copy of the picture, and this morning I began work on the painting.

I will keep you posted as the work progresses!