Complacency is a trap. At least that’s what I was thinking when I up and left the comfort of a Yankee prep school gig, where I taught music, amongst other things, for 28 years. There was also that life long career as a composer, musician and artist.
First, it was a year in St. Thomas, USVI, working as a reporter and shooting photography and then, a year in San Agustin Etla, Oaxaca, Mexico. Time passed. More time passed and a year back in the Athens of America followed by a hasty return to Oaxaca where it is all happening. A couple of years in San Sebastian Etla and now, just down the road in San Pablo Etla. Life is good.
Click on an image to see it larger. For additional photography please visit my flickr page. You can find my music on Jango(World & latin - Worldbeat) and at iTunes and most online stores. ¡Soy consciente de todas las tradiciones del Internet! If you are coming to Oaxaca, please contact me for tours or advice.
All through the month of October in San Pedro Atocpan, people flock to la Feria Nacional del Mole to sample the many varieties of one of Mexico's most famous dishes. We chose to go on Monday to avoid the crowds and we had the place almost all to ourselves. As we walked up the aisles we were handed spoonful after spoonful of various kinds to taste. There were moles negros, rojos, verdes, con frutas, almendrado (almonds), pipian (pumpkin seeds), an almost endless list. Of course, even within one particular kind of mole, say negro, no two moles taste the same and everyone takes such pride in their products. We ended up eating in one of the restaurants right next to all the stalls, but it all tasted so good, I ate it before taking a picture. Muy riquîsimo! Still, none of them came close to the moles I have eaten in Teotitlan del Valle made by Emelia Ruiz.
MEXICO CITY — The governor of a southern Mexican state says he will not resign despite a Supreme Court ruling blaming him for rights abuses during deadly 2006 protests.
Oaxaca Gov. Ulises Ruiz says he respects the Supreme Court ruling but disagrees with it. He says he has no intention of resigning.
Ruiz spoke to reporters Friday, two days after the Supreme Court ruled that he had "plain responsibility" for the 2006 conflict that paralyzed Oaxaca's picturesque colonial capital and left at least a dozen dead.
The ruling has no binding consequences but carries moral weight.
The conflict started as a teachers' strike and quickly ballooned into a broader movement to demand Ruiz's resignation over allegations that he rigged his electoral victory.
With an historic 7-4 vote the Supreme Court of Mexico this week held responsible Governor Ulises Ruiz (URO) of Oaxaca for violations of human rights. Rejecting the opinion of Justice Mariano Azuela, the Court, for only the second time, blames a sitting governor for violating citizen’s individual rights. The one previous condemnation followed a massacre of seventeen campesinos in Guerrero in 1995. The governor later resigned.
The present ruling justifies the claims of violations of many civil society organizations, the APPO (Popular Assembly of the Peoples of Oaxaca), and Section 22 of SNTE (National Education Workers Union). The teachers union now hold symbolic leadership of the struggle for social justice in Oaxaca.
What you see is what you get. These shots are of a tree right around the corner. You can see how much change there has been in just a few short days. These are not adjusted in any way. WYSIWYG.This is my last day in El Norte. Mañana, it is Mexico City. What a difference a day makes. WYSIWYG
Over 1,800 people have been killed in drug-related violence this year in the city of Ciudad Juarez alone, right across the border from El Paso, the Guardianreports. Local newspapers call the situation "criminal anarchy"; a government human rights investigator who recently fled to El Paso to escape death threats suspects many of the executions represent "social cleansing" by the Army, murdering drug addicts, street kids, and other vulnerable targets. ........ So, what should America do? Should we deploy troops to northern Mexico, employing an extensive counterinsurgency strategy to hunt down drug gangs and protect local populations, and send thousands of aid workers to establish jobs programmes and reduce corruption in the Mexican government? Most Americans would treat such a proposal as absurd. And rightly so.
There should be a little Miles Davis playing....This is one of the classic New England weekends, the Columbus Day holiday, prime time for leaf peepers. I have five more days here so I am just enjoying it.An amazing year for acorns.
My work in El Norte is finished. Everything went better than imagined and I leave knowing that all is in great shape for the coming winter (brrrr). I am psyched to head back to the place and people I love. Misperos y Rosas await.
Javier is trying to grind out a living on the streets of Mexico City playing his harmonica for restaurant patrons for a few coins. It was tough enough to find work before the global economic crisis hammered Mexico, but now it is almost impossible.
He talks about trying to find construction work, which he has done before. "But it is difficult, real difficult," he says, "they say even the city government is firing their street cleaners and cutting their salaries." He talks about going north to try his luck in the United States. "But it's hard there too," he admits. As he thinks about his family, his eyes dart with the worry and desperation shared by many of his fellow Mexicans.
The crisis could finally push Mexico over the brink, into disaster. According to the country's weekly news magazine Proceso, "unemployment, increasingly costly public services, family debt, and desperation because of hunger" as a result of this crisis, "are causing increasingly violent reactions. The fed-up clamor in a wide array of the population, that is now becoming more evident, could soon become what, although some see it as far-fetched, many think is entirely possible: A social explosion." Premonitions of this social explosion are fed on a regular basis by well-publicized acts of violence, perceptions of a dramatic growth in criminal activity and, on a more hopeful note, the recognition that many political, social and labor activists are trying to organize this discontent to push for real changes in the structure of Mexico's economy, especially its core neoliberal policies that many on the left believe to be at the root of the crisis.
The main reason I came north was to get the house ready for winter. I plan on being some place much warmer and I don't want to worry about it. Of course, just to keep the flavor right, everyone who is working on the place speaks Spanish. And as in all things, as they work, they discover problems. It is an old house. My cup runneth over. Nuf said.
I like watching El Norte from the outside. It is healthier. Being up here is sure different. Some of the stuff going on is just plain bizarre. Between, politics, economics and the social/entertainment diversions... well, it is..... interesting. Nuf said.
So I guess I would just say, El Norte kinda seems like it needs some roof repair and tearing that roof off is going to reveal one hell of a lot of problems that need to be fixed. We can ignore them, but they will do what my roof did - start to leak on the coldest day of the year so that water came down the newly painted walls. Nuf said.
What was it that Dorothy said? "Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore." You are correct. This is not Oaxaca. It is maple sugar country in western Massachusetts and the color is just beginning. As long as we are here... for the finest in maple syrup and delicious maple treats visit South Face Farm.They say it will be a spectacular autumn, that all the factors have come together tp make it one of the most glorious in years. I'm ready.
Last July, I spent a few days in Teotitlan de Valle during the annual fiesta celebrating La Preciosa Sangre de Nuestra Señor Jesucristo, the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ. The week is filled with much activity and much of it is centered around la Danza de las Plumas and La Calenda. I wrote about La Danza here and here and La Calenda here and there is a video here. I was there for two different days of dancing. So here at long last is the video of La Danza de las Plumas.
The economic downturn has not led to a decrease in support for trade. In fact, the share of the public who believes growing trade and business ties between nations are good for Mexico has increased, rising from 69% in 2008 to 79% in 2009.
Mexicans are less enthusiastic about the free market than many others around the world. Just 52% say people are generally better off in a free market system, even though this means some may be rich while others are poor; about four-in-ten (41%) disagree with this point of view. Only four of the 25 publics in the survey express less enthusiasm for the free market.
Almost universally, political corruption is considered a problem. Fully 94% of those surveyed say corrupt political leaders are a big problem, and 68% say they are a very big problem.
Despite seeing a host of problems afflicting the country, the vast majority of Mexicans (87%) say they are very or somewhat satisfied with their own lives.
The economic downturn is having an impact on the lives of Mexicans - 54% describe their personal economic situation as good, down six percentage points from last year.
Most Mexicans think their country has a poor image abroad - 61% say Mexico is poorly regarded by people around the world.
I am on a quick trip to El Norte. New England in the autumn, always a treat. But life is better in Oaxaca. I miss the markets, the people, the feel of the sun and the smell of the rain.
But as they always say, "How can I miss you, if you won't go away."
No sights like this in Beantown. These were from the day before Independence Day. Not really the typical oaxaqueña look, but patriotic nonetheless.
All this week Oaxaca has been blessed with "el saber del sabor," a gastronomic festival featuring many of the best chefs and cooks from Mexico. 'To know the taste" might be a decent translation or maybe "the knowledge of flavor."
At any rate, it has been a remarkable week, starting last Friday in the spectacular setting of the botanical garden at Santo Domingo with a dinner for 700 prepared by twenty of Oaxaca's finest cooks from the city and the surrounding villages.These cooks did not disappoint with many wonderful taste treats like molés, tamales, ceviche, mezcals, soups, and desserts. There was great music, complete with a mariachi band, to go with the fine food and drink. People really had a mighty good time. The Oaxaca social scene at its finest
Much of the week was in celebration of author and Mexican food expert, Diana Kennedy and her latest book, which is entitled "Oaxaca al Gusto." Diana has written a whole slew of cookbooks and compiled hundreds of recipes from all over Mexico. Just watching her bask in well deserved glory and interact with all the chefs was a real honor. There was an official presentation on Wednesday at Santo Domingo to recognize her many contributions to the Mexican cooking literature.
Sunday, I was lucky enough to attend a dinner at Casa Oaxaca featuring chefs Mikel Alonso Garcia and Roberto Solis doing his Matrix cooking thing.Alejandro Ruiz Olmedo , the fine chef and manager of Casa Oaxaca helped organize the week and hosted the meal, which was haute cuisine, small servings of a wide range for dishes from the opening course of tomato aspic with chicharon through seafood dishes, meat and ending with a sublime mango dish. The menu:Tuesday is was a special degustacion at the other Casa Oaxaca location with a kitchen full of cooks. Mighty tasty food and and an honor to be invited. Gracias, Alejandro.
From there the week progressed with films, lectures and above all, spectacular food prepared by some of the best chefs in Mexico.
Check out this fish soup cooked by addng heated rocks. Muy rico!So it has been a heady week just being around all these great cooks and authors. Patrica Quintana and Susannah Trilling were among the luminaries.This has been an important event for several reasons. First, Oaxaca is famous for its unique cuisine and this week it certainly showed why. Secondly, to celebrate Diana Kennedy and all the remarkable cooks and chefs. And lastly, to invite the world to come to Oaxaca and see the diversity of foods here, everything from the traditional molés to haute cuisine. This place has it all, something for everyone.
Last week I accompanied a food writer, Pat Reed, as her photographer to interview Ron Cooper, an artist from Taos, who established a mezcal bottling company here in Oaxaca back in the 90's. Ron's company,Del Maguey Single Village Mezcals has a great reputation and he has earned respect both in the States and here in Mexico. We started at his office in the city and then met him out at his bodega in Teotitlan del Valle. From there we followed him to one of his palenques, places they make mescal in Chichicapa. All Ron's contacts make their own mezcals and he guards their locations and special techniques carefully. We were sworn to secrecy as to where the one we visited was.If you can recognize it from this, go crazy.Here's Ron with mezcalero, Faustino.Faustino was not making mezcal while we were there, but he will be later this week and we will go back to finish the shoot. Still, it was interesting to see the place. The altar in front of the distilling unit. The process is fairly straight ahead. The maguey or agave is planted and then one simply waits for seven years for them to mature. The plants do not need much care, just an annual cleaning. Then the leaves are cut off, the piña, or center section is baked for two or three days in a covered pit which imparts mezcal's distinctive smokey flavor. Then the piñas are then crushed with a stone wheel drawn by a mule or horse in this case. This produces a sweet extract, called aguamiel, which is put into vats to ferment for five to fourteen days. The resulting liquid is about six percent alcohol, which is, in turn, distilled and ends up between 40 and 56 percent alcohol. Don't try this at home, unless you live in Oaxaca. There is much more to producing good mezcal. However, because I am sworn to secrecy and I value my well being, I can't divulge any of the ticks of the trade. Needless, to say, it was mighty fine drinking. More when I finish the shoot.
I am in the land of strikes, protests and road blockades. This place has problems that need to be addressed just like everyplace else. We will see how it works out if it works out.
I don't speak from much experience, however, if I get injured or ill here, there are decent options starting with the village clinics. Seeing a doctor is fairly easy and is not expensive. Many even make house calls.
At the same time, as a Massachusetts resident, I am required to have health insurance or pay a tax penalty. I pay the penalty. After paying exorbitant prices for several years and getting nothing for it, it seemed to make the most sense. I got tired up hearing, "Sorry, you are not covered for this."
I always figure I am representative of several million people, professionals without health care. I know it is a crap shoot to not have insurance, but it is better than paying for half of it, you know, crap.
So when I read that they are considering health care "reform" that requires people to buy it even though they can't afford it and that the mandated payments must continue to go to the health insurers, who are so obviously ripping us off... well, it sounds like Bizzaro World. I must be missing something.
All through the month of October in San Pedro Atocpan, people flock to la Feria Nacional del Mole to sample the many varieties of one of Mexico's most famous dishes. We chose to go on Monday to avoid the crowds and we had the place almost all to ourselves. As we walked up the aisles we were handed spoonful after spoonful of various kinds to taste. 
There were moles negros, rojos, verdes, con frutas, almendrado (almonds), pipian (pumpkin seeds),
an almost endless list. 
Of course, even within one particular kind of mole, say negro, no two moles taste the same and everyone takes such pride in their products. We ended up eating in one of the restaurants right next to all the stalls, but it all tasted so good, I ate it before taking a picture. Muy riquîsimo!
