In 1970, on my eighteenth birthday, I was in France for the very first time. Our high school sponsored a trip and my parents decided I should be the first one in our family to see Europe. I will never forget that wonderful experience. We stayed in a faded hotel in Montmartre that had big brass beds and worn claret-colored velvet drapes. I had my first alcoholic drink....my first date with a man from another country (England!)...I saw "Hair"...but,most importantly, I learned to love exploration.
It took a very long time for me to start traveling again. I didn't go to Europe again until 1988, when Ken and I honeymooned in England, Scotland and Wales. But after that, Ken and I began to see the world....most of the United States, Canada, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Morocco, Germany, Belgium, Holland, France, Spain, Costa Rica, Luxembourg, The Czech Republic, Hungary, The Slovak Republic, Ireland, Switzerland, and Mexico.
We came here for the first time on our tenth anniversary. After that, we couldn't stop. It was the people, mostly....their warmth, their way of welcoming us, their love of their children, their strong work ethic combined with their ability to have fun every single day. Surveys have found that Mexicans are the hardest working people in the world and second only to Puerto Ricans in "happiness".
Living here makes up for all those years when I was too frightened, or sad, or lonely to travel. With Ken, I have a traveling partner who shares all of my curiosity and willingness to try new adventures.
And so, for the second time in my life, I am celebrating my birthday in another country. I am alone for a while today, as Ken is in school here in Mexico City. Right now, I am at "The Green Corner" having the best pancakes in the world, with organic strawberry jam, freshly squeezed orange juice, and coffee. Later, Ken, our friend Juan, and I will celebrate at dinner. I will hear the lovely "Las Mananitas" instead of "Happy Birthday".
I wish I still had that shining dark hair, beautifully arched eyebrows, size 5 figure, and white linen suit I wore on my 18th birthday in France! But every day I am so thankful that I can walk all over this great city...that I still have the desire to learn and explore...and that hair dye and makeup were invented!
14 April 2011
08 April 2011
Folly on Economics
Where I live, you can walk way, way down to where the "rich" city is, or walk up just a little to a town that Jo Anne tells me is "poor". I guess I am in the middle! Jo Anne can't walk in the city with me, (she is too out of shape to go back up all the steps, she says) so we always go up just a little to the poor town. It has a lot of houses, and many stores. The stores sell water, soda, fruit, meat, fish, vegetables, and used clothes. You can have a haircut or you can get your car fixed. You can take aerobics outside or take guitar classes with boys. You can also buy any kind of candy or ice cream in the world. The houses are all different colors; bright blue, orange, red, yellow, pink, or purple. There are some cars, but most people walk and the kids ride their bikes. There is a bus that comes from the rich city to bring people back and forth.
There are about 1,000,000 dogs. You may not know this, but in my country most dogs live on the roof. I have a house with a deck that is like a roof, but has a railing. The dogs in town do not have railings. None of us ever jump off! We do not have crates! We have heard about crates and can't even imagine a life like that. We are very lucky in our country. In the poor town, everybody knows everybody else. The stores are in the front of peoples' houses, so they open and close at all different times. If a person needs something, the store will open up. There are also stands where people cook soup, tamales, coffee, and tacos. There are no seats or tables, but nobody minds. In the evening, everybody walks up and down the street. The mothers and fathers have one or two little boys or girls by the hand and a baby in their arms. Everyone stops and says how beautiful the babies are. The babies don't seem to cry, because they are always being held. People laugh a lot in the poor town. Music is always playing, but nobody yells "turn it down". The old people, who aren't good at walking anymore, sit on their front steps, or in a chair outside the door.
Jo Anne and I are not really stupid, and we know that having to make a living in the poor town is a lot different than being a retired older lady like her and a young, beautiful girl like me. If she wants to buy a big bottle of water, she always has the 11 pesos. We know that a lot of these people work very hard for little money. But, when they come home, they see their families and friends and they sure seem happy. We don't know what goes on inside their houses, but we sure do feel good walking down the street.
There are about 1,000,000 dogs. You may not know this, but in my country most dogs live on the roof. I have a house with a deck that is like a roof, but has a railing. The dogs in town do not have railings. None of us ever jump off! We do not have crates! We have heard about crates and can't even imagine a life like that. We are very lucky in our country. In the poor town, everybody knows everybody else. The stores are in the front of peoples' houses, so they open and close at all different times. If a person needs something, the store will open up. There are also stands where people cook soup, tamales, coffee, and tacos. There are no seats or tables, but nobody minds. In the evening, everybody walks up and down the street. The mothers and fathers have one or two little boys or girls by the hand and a baby in their arms. Everyone stops and says how beautiful the babies are. The babies don't seem to cry, because they are always being held. People laugh a lot in the poor town. Music is always playing, but nobody yells "turn it down". The old people, who aren't good at walking anymore, sit on their front steps, or in a chair outside the door.
Jo Anne and I are not really stupid, and we know that having to make a living in the poor town is a lot different than being a retired older lady like her and a young, beautiful girl like me. If she wants to buy a big bottle of water, she always has the 11 pesos. We know that a lot of these people work very hard for little money. But, when they come home, they see their families and friends and they sure seem happy. We don't know what goes on inside their houses, but we sure do feel good walking down the street.
06 April 2011
This blog is getting in the way of fun!
I want to play rope with Jo Anne but all she wants to do is "blog". I guess that mean sitting and tapping on her computer. We just got back from our after supper walk. We went very far tonight because Jo anne wanted to see the donkeys. We only saw one man, riding his donkey very fast. He was probably going home to have his supper so he could walk his dog. I saw all my regular dog friends. Why am I the only one on a leash? I feel so stupid sometimes. Jo Anne says she is very tired because the noise here at night is worse than anyplace in the world. I sleep right through it until she wakes up and turns on the lights! I sleep next to her so she feels more calm when the noise wakes her.
Yesterday, she came back from Guanajuato all excited because she met two new friends. They went to the "Mummy Museum" together. Sounds boring to me...dead people who still have some clothes and hair. No dogs.
Today she came back with a lot of bags that said "Mega", which means "food" in Spanish, I think. I know she has a roast chicken somewhere...wish I could find it. She gave me something called "dog biscuits", which I have never had before. I wish I could describe them to you. They are crunchy and make my mouth very happy.
Tonight on our walk, a lot of boys I know were petting me and talking to Jo Anne in Spanish and she was trying very hard, but not getting the words right. The boys were nice, though, and didn't laugh until we walked away. People in Mexico have good manners. Jo Anne has made friends already in the little town that is up above us, called "Cerro de Quarto". It is not like Guanajuato at all! It has no pretty buildings, no churches, restaurants, museums, or flowers. It has a lot of little grocery stores where Jo Anne likes to buy her "aqua fria". Tonight, a man was selling fresh baked goods and she bought some of those, too.
Cerro de Quarto is on the top of the entire world. Across a valley, you can see a big building of stone. Jo Anne asked somebody what it was, because it is a ruin. A man told her it used to be one of the silver mines here. The silver mines are what made Guanajuato so rich and the buildings so beautiful. But now the mines are all closed, so Cerro de Quarto will never be beautiful. Jo Anne and I don't care. We like it up there better than down in Guanajuato. We like the children, who always want to pet me. We like the men on donkeys. We like the old ladies, who balance baskets on their heads. Everybody works hard in Cerro de Quarto. But that is how it is all over Mexico, Jo Anne says. I am glad. I like living in a country where people are friendly, work hard, and like to pet dogs!
Yesterday, she came back from Guanajuato all excited because she met two new friends. They went to the "Mummy Museum" together. Sounds boring to me...dead people who still have some clothes and hair. No dogs.
Today she came back with a lot of bags that said "Mega", which means "food" in Spanish, I think. I know she has a roast chicken somewhere...wish I could find it. She gave me something called "dog biscuits", which I have never had before. I wish I could describe them to you. They are crunchy and make my mouth very happy.
Tonight on our walk, a lot of boys I know were petting me and talking to Jo Anne in Spanish and she was trying very hard, but not getting the words right. The boys were nice, though, and didn't laugh until we walked away. People in Mexico have good manners. Jo Anne has made friends already in the little town that is up above us, called "Cerro de Quarto". It is not like Guanajuato at all! It has no pretty buildings, no churches, restaurants, museums, or flowers. It has a lot of little grocery stores where Jo Anne likes to buy her "aqua fria". Tonight, a man was selling fresh baked goods and she bought some of those, too.
Cerro de Quarto is on the top of the entire world. Across a valley, you can see a big building of stone. Jo Anne asked somebody what it was, because it is a ruin. A man told her it used to be one of the silver mines here. The silver mines are what made Guanajuato so rich and the buildings so beautiful. But now the mines are all closed, so Cerro de Quarto will never be beautiful. Jo Anne and I don't care. We like it up there better than down in Guanajuato. We like the children, who always want to pet me. We like the men on donkeys. We like the old ladies, who balance baskets on their heads. Everybody works hard in Cerro de Quarto. But that is how it is all over Mexico, Jo Anne says. I am glad. I like living in a country where people are friendly, work hard, and like to pet dogs!
05 April 2011
My new friend, Jo Anne
Hello! My name is Folly, and I am almost one. Everyone says "hi girl!", so I guess I am a girl. They also say "good girl, pretty girl, and good dog." I live high on a hill overlooking Guanajuato. I am used to it, but when people climb up the hill, like my new friend Jo Anne, they are sweating and breathing hard. Not me! I am used to it. My mom and dad took their clothes and left. Jo Anne brought her clothes and is staying in my house. Hmmm...I have four floors here...the top is a yoga studio with a bed and bathtub and deck. Below that is a big kitchen, a living room and dining room table and my big deck where I can sit and see the whole city. Below that is the bedroom and a big bathroom, with all pretty blue and white tile and my fountain that I drink from. Below that is dad's office room and another kitchen.
Jo Anne is out of breath a lot. But she knows I love my walks, so we go on two a day, one in the morning before it gets too hot, and one in the evening, when it is a little cooler. Jo Anne walks me UP 64 steps to get to a flat place to walk. If you think 64 sounds bad, you should see how many steps it would take to come from the city to my house! Straight up! Higher than I can count.
Some of the reasons I like Jo Anne are: she gives me belly rubs and ear scratches; she brought me a little toy and plays with me; she likes me to sleep with her in bed; she gives me charcoal grilled chicken and tonight she is giving me grilled pork!
My mom and dad explained Guanajuato to her and she leaves me every day, for four hours, to go there. So far, she has gone to the Basilica, the big garden, the beautiful theatre, the mercado (where she bought a very corny shirt that says "Guanajuato, Mexico" on the front...as if she didn't look enough like a tourist....), and today she went to the Mummy Museum. She told me she met two nice women near a church, took their picture, and they became friends. That is how it is in Mexico, as I have tried to show her. She and the two friends went in the mummy museum together, which is good because these mummies are scary! The dirt or air here preserved them perfectly...even their clothes and hair and eyelashes.
Last night, Jo Anne tried to make ear plugs from toilet paper and put her underpants around her head because she thought it was noisy. Well, there is a lot of music here, plus lots of the dogs like to bark to each other at night, plus the roosters crow, the donkeys bray, and people talk.
Right now, I am lying at her feet, showing her that I would like either a belly rub or my supper...well, actually BOTH. I do not like the computer. It makes people forget about me. But I just made a little noise, saying "let's have supper!" So we will!
Jo Anne is out of breath a lot. But she knows I love my walks, so we go on two a day, one in the morning before it gets too hot, and one in the evening, when it is a little cooler. Jo Anne walks me UP 64 steps to get to a flat place to walk. If you think 64 sounds bad, you should see how many steps it would take to come from the city to my house! Straight up! Higher than I can count.
Some of the reasons I like Jo Anne are: she gives me belly rubs and ear scratches; she brought me a little toy and plays with me; she likes me to sleep with her in bed; she gives me charcoal grilled chicken and tonight she is giving me grilled pork!
My mom and dad explained Guanajuato to her and she leaves me every day, for four hours, to go there. So far, she has gone to the Basilica, the big garden, the beautiful theatre, the mercado (where she bought a very corny shirt that says "Guanajuato, Mexico" on the front...as if she didn't look enough like a tourist....), and today she went to the Mummy Museum. She told me she met two nice women near a church, took their picture, and they became friends. That is how it is in Mexico, as I have tried to show her. She and the two friends went in the mummy museum together, which is good because these mummies are scary! The dirt or air here preserved them perfectly...even their clothes and hair and eyelashes.
Last night, Jo Anne tried to make ear plugs from toilet paper and put her underpants around her head because she thought it was noisy. Well, there is a lot of music here, plus lots of the dogs like to bark to each other at night, plus the roosters crow, the donkeys bray, and people talk.
Right now, I am lying at her feet, showing her that I would like either a belly rub or my supper...well, actually BOTH. I do not like the computer. It makes people forget about me. But I just made a little noise, saying "let's have supper!" So we will!
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