CUMPLEANOS DE JAVIER

Thursday was Javier's birthday. And what a birthday it was!

In the morning Aurora, Javier and I went out to breakfast. The place Javier had wanted to go wasn't open yet so we went to his second choice, a chocolate bar where Javier and I had tamales with chocolate salsa. We had a lovely long conversation about our families' histories and agreed we needed to write about them because our families' histories are imbedded important events in the histories of our countries.

That night we met on the roof top terrace bar of the Hotel Aspetia which is owned by Aurora's friend Inez -- actually it is officially owned by her oldest son, Javier (another Javier) and a partner, but Inez runs it. It is one of my favorite places in Queretaro with a spectacular view of the historic center of the city especially at sunset and after when the churches are all illuminated. The group was Aurora, Javier, and their son Santiago, his wife Carla and daughter, Sophia and Inez's younger son, Santiago (another Santiago), his girlfriend, and her older son, Javier. Inez joined us a little later after a hair appointment. We drank vino tinto and ate little specialty pizzas they are known for. While there, we learned that their hotel had just won "Hotel of the Year". As the night went on and bottles of wine were emptied, my spanish got better and better. I understood most of a conversation about the organic vegetable growing business that Javier (Inez's Javier) had started in Celaya.



Eventually Ceci's (remember my first Spanish teacher from Tequisquiapan) oldest son arrived with the producer and director and others he works in Mexico City. They are in Queretaro recording the sound track for a movie they have been working on for five years. It will be called "Tequila", and it is about an old Mexican legend. Aurora and I looked at each other and said "My god, these big shots are babies!" They all looked to be in their 20s, or maybe in their 30s. We felt like "dinosaurios ---- ok, dinosarios borrachos". With 2 or 3 glasses of wine, I can even joke in Spanish.

We began to talk about leaving, because it was after nine and Sophia had school the next day. But Javier (Inez's Javier) invited us all to spend the night in the hotel. We at first graciously declined because our homes were within 4 or 5 blocks of the hotel. But Javier wouldn't hear of it. He brought up 3 sets of keys -- a room for Santiago and his family, a room for Aurora and Javier and a room for me! So we stayed, drank more wine and finally were shown to our VERY luxurious hotel rooms. I watched part of a movie until I fell asleep and didn't wake up until 9:30 because the room was so dark and quiet because of the heavy wooden shutters that protected the windows.

What an experience!! A night, gratis, in Mexico's "Hotel of the Year" --- 5 blocks from my own home!!

EN MEDIO DE NADA

Last Saturday I went with Aurora, Javier and Sophia to a birthday party for Guadelupe. Guadelupe is Francisco Coronel's partner. In the fall, I wrote about visiting their workshop where they make whimsical figures from papier mache.

The party was to be in a pueblo called Tecojote beween Queretaro and Tequisquiapan, and somehow I had imagined it was going to be in a community building or in someone's house or something. However, I do miss a lot of information because I don't understand a lot of what gets spoken between people. We drove to Tequis first because Javier had some errand to do there. Then we headed back to Tecojote following a map that Aurora had . We drove through the very quiet little pueblo on very bumpy streets and then headed out into the desert -- well, officially it's semi-desert. We found one landmark, a "bordo", a small reservoir of water, and followed the dirt road which got more and more difficult. Finally, Aurora and Javier decided we had taken the wrong turn, so we headed back. As we arrived back at the bordo, they saw another car heading the way we had come, and in the car were very good friends of Francisco's, so we headed back again the way we came and finally arrived at our destination.

Francisco and Guadelupe had bought a piece of land, "terreno", about 3 hectares, I think they said, which was quite a good sized area. They had cleared a lot of the area and planted trees and different kinds of cacti, dug a small bordo and started construction of a house. They have a wonderful vision of what this place will be for them -- a weekend retreat from their workshop in Queretaro. They will use solar panels for electricidad and collect rain in the bordo and rain barrels. Water is the big problem out there. They have done an incredible amount of work already, and you can get an idea of how wonderful it will be.

For the fiesta, they had set up some shelters from the sun which was muy, muy fuerte! And they had arranged for their neighbor to make carnitas -- a whole pig, cut up and boiled in oil in a big vat. There was also frijoles, arroz, nopales, papas, guacamole, tortillas and salsa...... and, of course, tequila. Que rico!! Kikey came also -- though they sent someone to Tecojote to meet her and lead her to the place. Also Mario and Edita whom I had met at my opening. It was a lovely party and we didn't leave until sundown - el puesto del sol.