Last Full Day Before Packing Up

Alebrije Market
Kaya awoke feeling nauseated so she and Mama decided to stay back for the day while Scott, Max, and Kelsey headed off to their last market experience in a little village to the south (San Martin). It is a town known for their alebrijes, which are finely carved, fantastical figures, that are ornately painted with detailed, geometric designs.

Fair Prices
We've been pricing these alebrijes for our entire stay and are hoping that they'll be cheaper in San Martin (where most are made) since we'd like to buy a few. They're not cheap but understand that they are all hand painted and do require intricate craftmanship- for the quality works, that is. There is definitely a difference between the quality and color choices of the various sculptors and paintors.
We have found overall that although bargaining is expected to some extent on all artisan purchases, for the most part, they are relatively standard around the city. We thought we were completely overcharged the first week for our lunch (first blog entry) but we have come to find out that for food- the price is what it is- whether you're a tourist or a local. We have carefully listened when Oaxacenos ask for prices and mostly noted that it's the same we were told. Whether it's the bus fare, the vegetables or fruit in the market, empanada ladies, or the elotes man selling his corn on a stick- it is what it is. For the artisan crafts, there is an expectation that you'll bring them down about a quarter of their quoted price but once you're there, it's fixed. When I was buying my hammock in the market, a Oaxacenan (speculation on my part- could have been Mexican tourist too) came by and was quoted a higher price than what the vendor had come down for me. The guy just smiled, said "gracias" and walked away.

Elotes
Elotes are ears of corn served up on a stick, smothered with mayonnaise, dipped in cheese crumbs and sprinkled with chile powder. Scott and I request them without all the fixings, and we inevitably get a strange look from the vendor. These pictures were actually copied off the web but are easily scenes we wee every day.

Smooches
There is a friendliness here that is warm and welcoming. Even among the political dissent and protests against the government, Oaxacenos do appreciate the tourist business and go out of their way to let us know they are glad we're here. They are patient with our Spanish and very curious about why we're here and why we have a daughter who speaks so well. Max, I'm sure is tired of all the spontaneous smooching from sweet little old ladies coming up from behind him, but soon enough, he'll be able to tell them that a hand shake and hug will do fine for him instead!

Last Thoughts Before Heading Home
One thing we have come to understand is that we love having a base here in Oaxaca and are hoping to be able to do this again sometime soon. Yes, there are thousands of other places (Spanish-speaking is obviously our preference) all over the globe but now that we know a bit about Oaxaca's layers and layers of pockets to explore, we have appreciated having a base and understanding these levels a bit deeper. We have been awed at all the activities around the city for children and regret not having investigated these opportunities more on the web before we came since a lot of the series of museum day camps were already full. There are also the mountains to explore and some incredible hiking up in the large state parks still to do. We have to leave as though we will one day be back and do all that is left undone- for there is still so much left unseen all over this region. It is so fun to have Kaya able to easily interact and make her way around with out much dependency on us. Next year, after a year of Spanish immersion, Max will be close. Neither one of them blinks an eye at being left at a workshop with other little Oaxacenos. Scott and I feel safe and feel like we are really getting to know this city. Kelsey, I think has learned a lot about the culture but still very apprehensive. Perhaps for a teenager trudging along with her two little cousins and overly excited aunt and uncle, it can be exasperating; but overall, I think she has enjoyed herself too. A month is long time to be away from home!

Graffiti Contest, Weaving Lecture, Tlacolula Market

Graffiti
While Kaya and Scott went to a workshop (in the gorgeous textile museum to the right) on the natural dying process, Kelsey, Abby and Max went to a graffiti contest. It started at around 10 am with giant wooden (particle board) allotted to each entrant. The prize was $300 and was sponsored by city. We spent about two hours under the only tree in the plaza watching about 15 entrants sketch and begin their masterpieces. Overheated and hungry, we headed for the empanada row and had our usual orders. By the time we headed back through the plaza, their creations were evolving and more detailed. Most of them had a political resistance theme to them. To quote Kelsey, "it was pretty cool".

Cochinillas
We met S and K back at the apartment. They said they had a detailed breakdown of how the cochinillas are used in the dyes.
As mentioned in another blog, these parasitic bugs on the prickly-pear cacti are used from everything from reds, to purples, to orange(depending on what else is added- lime juices, baking soda...). The three pictures on the right show the taking over of these bugs on the prickly pear cactus and the collecting and crushing of them for the dyes.


Lunch and Dancing
This morning we decided to head off to the Tlacolula Monday market (one of the valley towns to the east). We had lunch at a little comedor that was grilling chicken. Bubbly couple- the husband had tiny rubber chickens hanging from his baseball hat. He was grilling about 20 chickens at a time on his triple spit as his wife served us each up a plate of beautiful breast meat, rice, coleslaw and cold frijoles. Ate it all up with tortillas. Of course there was another Guelaguetza fiesta with a procession in front of the main cathedral (see video below). I think we're starting to feel like we did in Alaska with "another bald eagle in the tree". While it's deeply traditional and awsome, after the 20th one, we aren't exactly snapping pictures anymore. Although this one did involved the ledgendary pineapple dancers , which we had only read about. S and I are learning to really appreciate the ubiquitous bands. They seem to be out performing everywhere.

Market
The Tlacolula market was huge but differed from a lot of the others we've been to because of its wide aisles. Made the wandering a bit less stressful. Bought some dinner supplies and lots of little baskets. Scott loaded up with a couple kilos of dried chilies for salsa.
Wormy Rice
Stopped by corner grocery man for some rice on the way home, only to find little worms in the bag. Scott and the children went back down for another bag but were dismayed to find them in each one (no, his wife didn't offer to return our 85 cents). They ventured out 5 more blocks for some wormless rice. Kelsey was disappointed I didn't finish cooking the worm-infested batch. For the worm-loving Oaxacans, might not have been so bad either. Felt guilty throwing it out.
Wall E
Watched a cute little bootleg movie tonight- Wall E. Kelsey actually stayed up for a few minutes after dinner but couldn't make the movie. Max, as usual made it just past halfway and fell asleep. I don't think he's ever seen a movie all the way through. Kaya is doing her usual thing and reading in their room with the light on well into the night. Vacation is all about going to bed late and waking up late (in our case, 7:30- yipee!) Actually should clarify that because S wakes up earlier than the two of us on a regular basis, he is very generous with letting me sleep in even later... I am almost catching up to Kelsey in terms of wake-up time. It's lovely.
It was Max's choice of videos this time and he appropriately picked one about a little trash-collecting robot. Max is constantly picking things off the street and pocketing them- straws, popcicle sticks, rusty wire pieces.... It can sometimes get gross but we have faith that he will be a recycler-extraodinaire like his grandfather. One day he will be creating and repairing beautiful machines with these treasures.

El Mercado Mas Grande de Oaxaca: Los Abastos

Kelsey, still recouping from a head cold and not feeling well stayed home with Scott today while Abby headed off the the Abastos market on the edge of town with the kids, in search of a hammock man she met on her last venture there. He'd promised her a deal on a swing but she wanted to mull it over. She's been trying to convince Scott that it belongs hanging from the ceiling in the living room.

The Los Abastos market is enormous. It spans about 10 city blocks, weaving in and out from vegetable sections, panederias, baskets, chiles and mole piles, stacks of live chickens and turkeys with their legs tied together, stalls filled with Chinese plastics and watches, sandals, parakeets in cages, carved wooded alebrijes, chapulines and televisions. The overwhelming two senses are the smells and sounds- the latter you can hear in the videos below as Abby follows the kids through the stalls. The music changes around every corner, with every vendor publicizing their wares. Even mobile vendors with their wares in baskets or on carts call out what they have as they pass by. The chocolate smells will alert you for aisles away that the grinders are nearby, churning out the fudge-like substance that serves as the base for either the hot chocolate or the mole. It is not the milk-chocolate that one is used to in the states- this is nutty and dark.

This market is easily Abby's favorite spot in Oaxaca- just milling through the aisles soaking in the all the senses.


About 2 block-size spaces are reserved for "comedores" - where families have set up tables around a kitchen area and serve everything from empanadas, enchilladas, tacitos dorados, and molotes (fried potato/sausage balls). For some reason, having a soda here is okay, even though we shun the stuff back home. I'm not entirely sure why that's the case since we carry our water bottles everywhere and aren't for lack of hydration- it's just a treat. So when I asked Max what the best part of the mercado was, it was not the little alebrijes he and Kaya have been buying up for their friends, not the wet kisses and smiles that old ladies leave with him as he passes by, not the pan dulces or standing up and sticking his head out the window on the bus rides, but rather the good ol' American Coke.

We had lunch a couple days ago (vegetable soup filled with potatos and choyotes (squashy, pear-shaped veggie)) with a woman called Nell but we couldn't find her today. I think it will take several summers of losing ourelves there to understand the lay-out of the Abastos. We ended up instead at the "Comedor de Cesi". Cesi herself was a very friendly Mama of two daughters who curiously watched Kaya and Max draw in their journals and cherish their sodas as they awaited their empanadas. Max copied the details of my "Fanta" label and Kaya drew the pile of squash flowers on the table that are cooked in the empanadas.


By this evening, Kelsey feeling well enough to suggest a game of cribbage and a trip to the Zocolo. She was giddy on her way there because it had been a full three days since her last visit to their wonderful benches. This is easily her favorite place in the city. The kids looked for their favorite crazy man, "Loco Paco", to no avail. They last spotted him (with his pants on this time) a couple days ago.

While Skyping Grandmom Mary today, Max felt his need to overcome his aversion to eating chapulines (fried crickets). He swallowed them down and requested no more, thank-you. He earned his "I ate chapulines" t-shirt.

Scott raved about a textile museum that he visited on his way back from the tamale fest yesterday so as everyone else enjoyed an ice cream in the park, I decided to check this place out. It was indeed a beautiful collection of international weaving, spanning several centuries. The classic zapotec design, which graces all the ancient ruins of the area, is incorporated into Spanish and then Moorish patterns. It's pretty amazing to see those same patterns in the classic Oaxacan patterns and those of Syria! The tapestries and textile bags and clothes hanging from the white-washed walls and ceilings were all numbered and were accompanied by a very informative guide book. It was as impressive as Scott had said and made me all the more grateful for the little rug purchase three weeks ago in this blog.

Every museum that we've visited here has been nothing short of impressive. Don't know how much government subsidies can be credited but there is an obvious professional appreciation for their arts. Not only has every museum we've been in been well-curated in impressive buildings, but they are informative and very child friendly. Every museum has a separate treasure hunt for the children.

Sad to be counting the days down here. Only five full days left.

Tejate and Tamales

There was a tejate and tamale "festival" yesterday in Oaxaca. You might recall that tejate is that chocolate corn drink that looks a big gross but tastes great - more on tejate. Scott took the kids to sample the offerings. Just when we got there we got two elotes - roasted corn with mayoneaise, cheese, and lime juice. The roasted corn looked so good and I recommended that the kids get only corn, but they insisted on the works. As for the tejate, it we tried several different ones. Bottom line - we had one superb tejate - rich with deep chocolate flavor, one mediocre one, and one not so good one.

The kids and I love the stuff but Abby is a bit grossed out by the fact that the women make it by mixing the paste with their hands and arm. See the video below to see this in action. Actually, after I took this video, I realized that she was making coconut tejate. There is tejate from cocoa beans and one from coconut. We also sampled tejate cake - very good.

We also sampled the tamales - we had mole with chicken, chepil (a sort of veggie), and dulce (scary pink ones that were sweet). We also bumped into the woman who was taking the weaving workshop when we went to Teotitlan del Valle to get our tapestry. We have bumped into her and Kaya's library teachers several times. Oaxaca is big but seems small.

We bought some tamales to take back to Abby. She and Kelsey stayed home - Abby did wash!
Note from Abby here:
"Wash" means two hours of scrubbing in a sink up on the roof deck with a bar of laundry soap. We are too cheap to pay $10 to have someone else run it through a washing machine. Gave me some appreciation to the under-appreciated washing machine at home. Was grateful the rain held off until evening. There was something extra special about putting on our clean clothes the next day.

Later that evening the kids and Scott went to the Oaxacan Textile Museum to see about workshops for the kids. There were no more scheduled for kids before we leave, but Scott was able to sign up for a wool dying workshop and they said I could bring Kaya. This will be showing us how to dye yarn with natural materials. Should be interesting. We did a quick tour of the museum to see the exhibit Mitla to Sumatra, an exposition of tapestries from around the world. It was gorgeous. The museum itself was beautiful and the tapestries were amazing.

Being Sick, Mitla, and a Lazy Day

Kelsey has fallen ill. Not a stomach thing but more like a flu/cold type thing: sore throat, fatigue, etc. Yesterday, we headed to the Abastos market and upon arrival, Kelsey hit the nadir. She and Scott split off to head home. Before heading out they stopped by the pharmacy and upon the cousel of the pharmacist (not sure how credible) got some amoxicilin and throat lozenges. When they got home after a too-long bus ride and Kelsey crashed and slept for a couple hours. Abby and the kids came back from the market at about 5pm - Kelsey was getting worried.

Had a nice potato soup and bean tostadas for dinner. Scott has made two successful batches of salsa - one with Chile de Pasillo (a Oaxacan pepper) and Chiles Moritas. Both were flavorful and hot. The pepper have a nice smokey flavor. He will continue experimenting and buy a supply of peppers to take home.

Today, Kelsey and Abby stayed home for a lazy day and Scott took the kids to Mitla, an outlying village with ruins from the Zapatec era.  Click here for more on Mitla.  Mitla was having their Gueleguetza today, so they wanted to see that and the ruins. They headed out about 10 am and got a bus to Mitla. It was completely fully and Scott had to stand the whole way. It was not too bad but since the bus was to short for him to stand up fully, was a bit taxing on his back. Upon arriving to Mitla, Scott and the kids walked through town to get to the cathedral and ruins. Since it was about noon when they arrived, lunch was the first order of business - empanadas for Scott and flautas and soda for the kids. After eating, they headed to the church to check it out and found that part of the ruins were right outside the church, so we explored these.  

amazing to see the ruins juxtaposed with the church.

We then headed up the hill for the Gueleguetza. Mitla has a rag-tag stadium with a make shift wooden dance floor in the middle - basically plywood on the ground. But the location was stunning. It was perched on a hill outside of the village at the base of a much taller mountain. The location afforded great views onto the village and entire surrounding valley with moutains as the back drop. 

We got a good spot in the shade and watched several different dances from different regions. They were very similar to the ones we saw last night around the corner from our house. One thing that we may have mentioned is that at the Gueleguetza the dancers throw treats to the audience. Apparently Gueleguetza means offering, so in this tradition, the dancers "offer" things like bread and sweets to the audience. In a big crowd the chances of getting treats is pretty good and the kids scored pretty well. They got 3 bread rolls, a fried tortilla, a small basket, some tiny bags of what we think is coffee, and an apple.  The gift thing certainly keeps the kids - and the adults - interested in the dancing, because they know that when it is over they may get treats.  Taking cues from the other kids, Kaya unabashedly ran up to the dancers and begged for treats.  Judging from the amount she got, she was successful.

After the dancing, they hiked down to the market one last time and got some ice cream, actually it is more like sorbet.  We have been wanting to try this and finally did.  Scott got tuna and mango flavor.  Now I know you are thinking fish, but tuna is a fruit and its deep red color looks great as sorbet.  Max got vanilla (sort of cinnamony) and mango, and Kaya got vanilla and nut, which was very good.  We also stumbled upon a man selling rambutans.  Abby and her family have fond memories of rambutans from their time in Malaysia when Abby was about 2 and Becky was just born.  Scott picked up a half pound for Abby.

 

After that we were ready to grab a mototaxi - another thing we have yet to do - and go home.  We walked through the market one last time and stumbled upon the entrance to a bunch more ruins that we had not seen.  Scott had to pay $3.50 to get in and the kids were free.  Inside there were amazing structures with detailed Mitla motifs.  These are common motifs in Oaxaca and adorn clothing, advertising, and products.  Below are some examples of this style.

After exploring the runs and the kids playing castle (not a bad location for this), we looked for a mototaxi to head home.  Arrived home to a wonderful pot of veggie soup.  

More Protests and Dances- Viva La Guelaguetza!

Some scenes from yesterday- missed an entry but basically clear day in the city and Scott bought a molquejete (sp?) He is determined to replicate their delicious salsa.....
Our dinky little dictionary translates the word for a grinding mortar was "molinillo" or "mortero" but not according to the Oaxacenos.




A couple of evenings ago in the Zocolo, we stumbled into a giant protest march for the Guelaguetza festival. The city has "officialized" this two-week dance festival, charging an arm and a leg for tickets to the streams of shows up in the amphitheater. The people here feel that the authenticity of the regional dances is being cheapened by catering to tourists and foreigners, and ignoring the cultural element that is supposedly educating "la gente", who cannot even afford to go to the shows. They also protest the profits of the festival landing in the pockets of the government officials, instead of the dancers. Pueblos from around Oaxaca that are not involved with these official festival are having their own "Guelaguetza Popular"- staged for free at the stadium (not the fancy amphitheatre) and around the city. This version of the festival is sponsored by Appo (see their twirly ball coming down the march in the video below), which is the opposition movement against the current governor (effige in left photo?). The protesting is all peaceful and the Appo appears to be very friendly of the tourists, encouraging them to boycott the official Guelaguetza (which we have; happily attending anything for free). These are some scenes and videos of the packed Zocolo and the protest march, which ended in a wooden "castillo" of fireworks, accompanied by catchy, patriotic anthems. The backdrop to the fireworks on the castillo is the cathedral. It took about 10 minutes for the sparks at the bottom to Wind their way up to the top.


The "Justice to the Assassins" sign in one of the videos refers to two teachers that were killed in the violence a few years
ago during more fiery demonstrations that Appo won't forget.

We have been trying, unsuccessfully, to buy a CD of these anthems that are stuck in our heads... A click on the second fireworks video (below) will lock the tune in yours too.



As usual at some point in the day, some random person would ask to take a picture of the "guerita" (see right)....





This afternoon, as the daily dark clouds zoomed in from the north, we went around the block to the Jardin de San Francisco for some sampling of some more Guelaguetza dancing. The stage was at the end of a small artisan market and the setting very intimate for some serious whooping and shuffling. The rain poured down on the long tent as the dancers kicked, twirled and put each other down!






















The second videos below demonstrate some of this racy (read rated R for Spanish speakers) dissing between the couples. The audience roared hilariously but most of it went over our heads, except for some common curse words (thank-fully, I think that part went over the kids' heads too- their teachers wouldn't be too happy with that new vocabulary.) I missed video taping a "rooster mating dance" (yes, which also went over their heads......barely).








Walked home with our umbrellas to nurse a sick Kelsey who was watching one of the dollar videos from the many bootleg vendors, which are ubiquitous here. She got a little real history of the area mixed with some horror: "Tyranosaurus Rex Azteca"- about an Aztec- trained T-Rex that eats the conquistadors on command.
Too bad they didn't really have one- might not be speaking Spanish here. Of course, it's told from the point of view of Cortez as the hero in this pathetic story of good triumphing over the evil natives (except for a beautiful princess of course- there has to be a little love story) and their terrible beast..... All is not lost if she remembers how the Aztecs perished....

Saturday Oaxaca Market

Saturday is market day in Oaxaca city.  The huge Abastos market is about 5 times as big the market in the center of town.  Kelsey and Scott hopped on the bus to check it out and to get provisions.  Abby and the kids had a play date with Dyanna, Kaya's friend from school (more on that in the next entry).  The Abastos market is enormous:  aisle after aisle of just about anything and everything you can think of from turkeys to TVs.  Scott and Kelsey walked around to get oriented and to see what was available.  This proved useful but also a bit confusing, since they had no idea where they were at any one time, nor how to get out of the labyrinthian market.  Making navigating a bit more complicated was the fact that there was a meat market at every turn (see picture below - see pig head), so we wound our way through the market in a circuitous way, ultimately getting what we needed and getting out OK.  

We found lots of fresh veggies and fruits - tomatoes, cilantro, limes, grapes, bannanas, peppers.  Also got some bread.  We discovered a huge section of the market with Mexican arts and crafts.  Basically this is the section for the tourists.  They had everything we could possible want under one roof and along one long row:  baskets, alebrijes, clothes, pottery, etc.  Abby and Scott have been eyeing a molcajete, the stone grinding bowls for making salsa and guacamole.  Scott bought some chorizo to make those yummy potato and chorizo tacos.  Needless to say, Kelsey had to wait in a meat-free zone while Scott made the purchase.  Scott got a handsome molcajete and proceeded to ask around for how to make the local salsa.  Kelsey got an alejibre - a cool red dragon. She had been looking at some devil-like creatures but settled on a pretty nice dragon with big ears, wings, and a long red tail.

They headed back home to make some lunch.  Kelsey wanted to buy potatoes for potato salad and she got right to work boiling eggs and the spuds.  Scott had some eggs and chorizo - still not sure about whether he liked it or not.  He better, he bought a pound!  Scott also tried to make some salsa and had moderate success, though the hunt continues.

Saturday night was Noche de Luces - night of the lights.  Apparently this happens on the 15th or closest Saturday each month (though not sure).  It is sort of a huge party in the central historic district.  Museums stay open late and there are all sorts of cultural events - dancing, music, etc.  We headed to the Zocalo for a rhythmic gymnastics performance that was supposed to start at 5pm but never started.   The Zocalo was particularly hopping that night, swarming with people and crowded with vendors that are not usually there selling all sorts of stuff (mostly junk).  We have decided to give the kids an allowance so they can make some purchases on their own.  They were excited by their newly found purchasing power and Kaya wasted no time making her first buy.  You guessed it, a long, skinny balloon to throw around on the plaza.  We found out that if you get a hole in your balloon the vendors will tape it and blow it up again, extending the life nearly indefinitely.  In fact, last night we had to go before the balloons were popped, so we kept them with the intention of blowing them up later and extending the life of our 50 cent balloons.  

A huge crowd was forming on one end of the Zocalo and we realized that a parade signifying the beginning of Gueleguetza was coming toward and eventually to the Zocalo.  So we stayed put to wait for the procession to come to us.  We found a pretty good viewing spot - this is not hard give the short stature of most Oaxacans.  The procession began with two guys with little cows on their heads.  When they arrived they lit firecrackers and sparklers that were attached to their cow hats (see video below).  Then a long procession of delegations from surrounding villages passed by dancing and yelling - "¡Viva la Guelaguetza! ¡Viva Oaxaca!" An interesting thing we have observed is that at these sorts of events, men walk around with mezcal or other alcohol and they pass out shots.  Several of the delegations in the procession were handing out booze, maybe contributing to the hyper festive mood of the night.

Among the more interesting delegations were:   the devil dancers (a Kelsey favorite), which had devil masks, complete with horns, all dressed up in suits;  the rag dancers, which had head-to-toe costumes made of what seemed like rags; and the pineapple ladies - Kaya's favorite.

There are lots of gringo tourists here but I think many Oaxacans are still enamored of us, especially the kids.  Every once in a while a woman will stop in her tracks and reach out to touch the kids, stroke their face, and sometimes kiss them.  It is pretty cute.  They call "gueros", presumably "white."  But they call the kids "little white."  This does not seem to be pejorative, but it grates a bit, sort of like "toubab", which is what Malians call white people.   But last night was especially interesting.  As we were throwing the baloons around, a man walked up and asked if he could take a picture of his son with Kaya.  We said sure (thinking that we are gawking at them and admiring their culture; the least we could do is pose for a few pictures) and Kaya stood next to this little Oaxacan boy smiling awkwardly.  A little while later a group of Oaxacans walked by and said - "what a handsome boy."  Then, as if they could not help themselves, the women came up and touched Max's face, kissed him, and asked him to kiss them.  Max, normally pretty shy, obliged, smooching them on the cheek.  Then they asked if they could snap some photos with Max.  They put two young girls on each side of him and he put his arms around them.  It was as if Max was a celebrity.  

Max was a bit nonplussed by the whole thing and commented afterwards that maybe they wanted to take his picture because he was wearing his cool long-board shorts bathing suit. 

Shortly after the photo shoot, we say a vendor whom we have seen around.  He has only one leg and sells little knit pouches.  We called him over and bought a couple, his name is Godofredo (like Godfried).  He showed us how he knits them, I guess to show their authenticity as homemade - see below.

After our experience in El Magote, when the young girls gave us bracelets, we decided to bring some little gifts to give out.  We brought our origami book (that Pat our babysitter gave the kids - it is a great book and we are having tons of fun learning all the shapes!) and have been making cranes - we tell people they are "pajaros de paz" - peace birds.  So, after Max's photo shoot, we gave the little girls some peace cranes.  We have gotten a mix of reactions from Oaxacan children when we give them out.  Some kids flat our reject our advances, others reach out with glee to take possession of the little birds.   

We forgot to mention that amidst most of the above, it was raining.  It rains frequently in Oaxaca this time of year, but usually it brings cool winds and cools things off.  Not that it is too hot, but the sun can be very hot - 5,000 ft above sea level and closer to the equator that home.  So, we walked around in the rain taking in the Noche de Luces.  Fireworks were scheduled for 11pm but even on the best of days the Anders family cannot make it that late.  So, we headed home about 9:00 pm to get some rest.