Morelia Part 2

March 8 is International Women's Day and there was a special mercado (market) and other activities to mark the event.

We had lunch at a restaurant in the arcades that surround the central plaza.

Got a glimpse of the university's magnificent library.

We were attracted by Las Rosas, a music conservatory, temple (church) and garden.  The Domincan sisters established the complex in the mid-1700s as a convent school for girls.  

Not having done our homework, we almost walked away after viewing the conservatory without visiting the church.  What a loss that would have been!  When we stepped inside it literally took our breath away.  Three sides of the church consist of gold altarpieces.

The church entrance is at the side.  The rear of the chapel has a gold grill that was used to separate the nuns and their students from the rest of the congregation. 

Morelia Part 1

Our Lonely Planet Guide describes Morelia as "the coolest city you've never heard of".  I wouldn't doubt that. One thing it lacks is an RV park, so we took the bus from Patzcuaro.  RVs are not meant to travel through this city of about 600,000.  We once drove straight through, including the downtown, with the dubious assistance of our GPS.  It was not a happy adventure, but the 500-year-old architecture was so appealing we resolved to return deliberately some day.

The largest attraction downtown is the catedral (Spanish spelling) and it's a stunner.  It took over 100 years to build and saw a few changes in architectural design along the way.

Not well focused but look at that marble floor.

I worry about the confessionals.  Do you really kneel there, out in the open, and tell your sins to the priest who is safely ensconced in his cubicle?

We saw many churches in Morelia!

Altar draped in Lenten purple.

Patzcuaro

March 2012

This is one of our favourite Mexican towns, a Pueblo Magico.  It has history,culture, a busy market, the lakefront -- and a cosy little RV park right in town.

Happy Hour at Villa Patzcuaro.  There was a congenial mix of campers from the US and Canada.  Most of the Canadian rigs were from Quebec and as usual we overcame our language limitations to make new friends.  Jim had some great political conversations.  One woman had been an NDP candidate long, long before the Orange Crush.

Moving along

Sadly, it's still only the two of us.  We were offered a life companion to take with us and it was hard to say no.  Air Canada helped the decision by declining to allow a pet on our flight.

On our way to Patzcuaro we drove through an area that specializes in brick-making.  You can see both the quarries and the stacks of finished bricks in the yards.

This scene could be Canada in October -- see how the leaves have turned colour and are dropping.

Before reaching Patzcuaro we stopped at the famous craft markets of Quiroga.

This small chapel offered a cool break from the heat.  Note the unusual ceiling artwork.

Royal Wedding

Well, almost.  The couple may not have been of noble blood but the reception was held at a castle and we were there.  The castle is of recent construction and it sits on a hill near Hacienda Contreras.  The owner thoughtfully invited Sal and Barb and indicated that park guests would be welcome.  Other RVers have told us of being included in family celebrations during their travels in Mexico and we were thrilled to have this opportunity.

A pool, but no moat.

Jesus and Lupita, bride and groom

The girls in fancy dresses would have been flower girls.

That's what I call a wedding cake.

Interlopers.

This wedding -- March 3.  Our wedding anniversary is today, March 11.

Eating out

On our way home from mescal sampling we stopped in Valle de Juarez for lunch.  Restaurant meals in Mexico are unbelievably inexpensive.  Street food is practically free.  It's available on every corner, freshly prepared, flavourful, as spicy as you want -- and always fun to try.

The timing of meals is a bit different from home.  Mexicans don't tend to start their day as early as we do, and you'll see plenty of them having desayano (breakfast) in the cafes at 10:00 o'clock.  Comida or lunch is usually the biggest meal of the day and is eaten at 2:00 or later.  The concept of the 'light lunch' is a foreign one for sure.

On this occasion we chose a seafood restaurant that everyone enjoys for the great quality of the meals, the exceptional service and the generous portions.  Appetizers begin to appear as you are taking your seat and they keep coming -- tostados and salsa, fried potatoes, crisp raw veggies, quesadillas, bean dip, guacamole and more.  This was one of the few times I have seen Jim unable to do justice to his main course.

Hard to believe they were all drinking cervesas so soon after the mescal.

Love this painting on the restaurant wall.

Mountain-top charms

The mescal maker lives with his extended family in a lovely sky-high setting.  His son farms avocados on 75 hectares.

 Jesus invited us to relax in his cool and colourful living room, which is open to the outdoors.

I stole a shot of the kitchen.

Making mescal

Feb 29, 2012

Well, this was a day to remember.  We visited a 75-year-old man who is producing mescal using the same techniques and much of the same equipment as his father did before him.

We saw it all -- the fields where the plants grow, the enormous rock-lined pit where the plants are boiled, the stone grinder for crusher, fermentation beds, distiller, wooden troughs where the liquor runs off, collection vessels.

Rock bath at centre shown in close-up below

The mule had the day off

Fermentation vat

Mescal collects here and is filtered into vessels

Liquor runs along wooden trough

Of course we did some sampling.

Note the tree growing growing through the roof.

I found this definition of mescal, which says it all:

• a colorless alcoholic liquor of Mexico made from pulque or other fermented agave juice: it is lower in quality and rougher in taste than tequila