Sarah: Hermosillo, Mexico - Quick impressions
Trip Start
Dec 27, 2007
1
4
80
Trip End
Dec 28, 2008
Hermosillo,
Mexico
Sunday, January 6, 2008
So, weīve had about 5 days in Mexico so far and itīs been great. Very dusty because weīve been in the Sonoran Desert for most of it. Thought iīd just share a few of the more different things, impressions, you know.
* How to tell the men from the boys in Mexico: the men look like mexicans, the boys look like gangstas. Most men over about 35 have the jeans, check shirts, cowboy/ranchero hat, boots - just like the movies!
* The women wear very tight clothes, to show off their curves - and a lot of them are VERY curvy! Also a lot of makeup going on.
* The children are adorable - they often smile and wave or say hi, but always laugh at us in our funny clothes and shoes.
* Food - mmmm, yum. A lot of stuff we see around is fried. They also like a lot of sweet stuff - many different varieties of pan dulce (sweet bread). Of course tacos (with soft tortillas), quesadillas etc. We love the tacos carne asada which is like our bbq beef. They have these donut things - churros which are a long sausage shape with a hole right down the middle into which they squeeze your choice of sweet sauce. There are wheelbarrows on the street full of a huge varietyof lollies. I like the dried, sugared tamarind pods. But my favourite food novelty so far is the "pay de quesas" (cheese pie). Itīs about the size of a medium biscuit, with a soft biscuit crumb base and a kind of cheesecake filling but itīs not as rich - like a cross between cheesecake, custard and mock cream. Very yum
* Streets - busy and urgent. At large intersections there are often clowns doing tricks for tips. The coolest thing so far was a guy selling baby turtles for $3.50 in little plastic cups on the sidewalk. The streets are very clean, virtually no litter, although a lot of tagging/graffitti. Almost all the buildings are painted white, orange, or yellow and any semi-decent house has a large iron fence and gate around it. Of course we have seen a lot of poor areas and drove past the "slums" on the outskirts of Tijuana. There are a lot of street dogs, itīs quite sad. It was awfully hard when one six week old puppy came howling outside our motel room. Of course i had to go and feed the wee thing and then it wouldnīt leave us alone! There are a few beggars in the street. Most seem to just sit there all day with their hand out. Many locals seem to give them money.
* Hermosillo - state capital of Sonora state, about 750 000 people. We went to the magnificent Catedral de la Ascension. It was amazing. I would need another email to describe it but this will have to suffice: colourful, opulent, graceful, immaculate, stunning. In the Palazio de Gobierno (Government Palace) the courtyard has a mural depicting Sonoran history and culture around all the walls of both storeys. It was incredible - it integrated narrative with, i think, indian myth/tradition, abstract designs, and the recurring motif of a swirl or whirlwind, perhaps representing how people are swept along with the turning tide of history. There were quotes falong the bottom of each piece, from ancient indian folklore to albert einstein. My favourite was "antes como antes, y ahora como ahora" which means - before as before and now as now. I guess itīs talking about accepting that times change. A nice philospophy, although it doesnīt mean that we canīt preserve some of the best things from "before," I think.
Well, we carry on south through the desert - cripes there are a lot of cactus! I gotta stop photographing them all the time!
Adios amigos
