Mexico 2019 - Street art

Outside the Senate building on Reforma there is always a photo display along the sidewalk.  The exhibits seem to usually have some social/political content.  This one serves to highlight a program, "Healing through Art".  It's a sort of arts therapy program for people who have suffered trauma of some kind, primarily kids, but adults as well.

Further down Reforma was another sidewalk photography exhibit, this one highlighting the work of Mexican women photojournalists.  

Guatemalan Refugee in Southern Mexico

 

 For some reason I struck up a conversation with this woman who was there with her quite elderly father.  I think I commented about the photo and it turned out that she was the photographer!  She was there to show it to her father.

Mexico 2019 - Another Sunday in CDMX

My first day back in Mexico City was a Sunday and, as usual, the streets were full of festivities.  Like this Flower Festival on Reforma.  

An exhibit on Iran

People hanging out playing music:

And another Ciclovia!  

 This is part of the cycling for the blind program which is component

of the Ciclovia every Sunday.  A way for people with blindness to get out on a bike safely as the man in back is doing.

Here's that jazz band again. Getting right in your face.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1J4ZqOlvqd8&feature=youtu.be


This is the Imperial Hotel; opened it's doors in 1904 and is one of the truly grand, old hotels in the city and has hosted numerous celebrities. 
I was only able to take one photo of the interior before I was turfed. 

 

Mexico 2019 - Oaxaca - Parting Shots

Portions of the bus trip to and from Oaxaca from Mexico City are quite scenic including this wild mountainous countryside not far north of Oaxaca.  

That's the road home to Mexico City and in a few hours we'd be back there.  It was a fun trip to Oaxaca, primarily because of Ron and Meg's presence.  They are dear friends and lots of fun to be with.

Mexico 2019 - Oaxaca cooking

We did some investigation into cooking classes in Oaxaca seeing that it's a hotbed of gastronomy of all kinds and there is some sensational regional cuisine. We three like to cook and eat as well.  None of the classes we saw on the internet turned out to be quite right but, in wandering around town, Meg found a unique cooking class opportunity.  José Luis Diaz Robledo is the owner/chef at Chilhuacle Rojo restaurant.  

Sometimes he operates the restaurant when he has a group of 10 and prepares a set meal.  I'll bet it's really good because he's a really good cook.

  Other times he gives these cooking classes.  We met with José first thing in the morning, discussed what we had in mind to learn, he told us his thoughts and sent us off to the mercado with his two personable young assistants and a shopping list.  There we bought what seemed like an inordinate amount of food; veggies, meat, fish, fruit, herbs, cream.  On the way home we stopped and visited this vendor selling a grain based drink, tejate I think this was, a toasted corn, fermented cacao drink.  

Very substantive.  Very tasty.  

Back at the restaurant José and his assistants immediately set to work, toasting tomatoes, tomatillos, onions, garlic and avocados on the brazier

 Dani manning the brazier

and getting the herbs and other ingredients cleaned and portioned out.  

Next we had a tortilla making session and we all took a turn with the press.  The squash blossoms make for a beautiful tortilla.  

 
We also learned how to make Tetelas, tortillas folded into triangles with a filling of beans and herbs.

 Meanwhile the cocoa beans were toasting

chiles, onions, tomatoes were cooking for salsa, the chicken was browning

the blue corn was getting processed for grinding into masa dough.

 

  

After browning, the chicken was cooking in a mole Coloradito, the fish was grilling

We were put to work grinding ingredients for salsas both raw and cooked

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRjEAMDY--w

When it was all done we all sat down to eat, José, assistants and all.  I'm sorry I didn't take a photo of the laden dinner table but, by that point, the food was the priority and we wasted no time getting to it.  There were several salsas, some cooked, some raw, a rich, creamy guacamole made from the roasted avocados, chicken in mole Coloradito, a fish sauce made from the fillets we bought, tortillas, of course, and I don't remember what else.  The crown on the event, at least from my perspective, was the dessert.  A big bunch of basil had been slowly simmering in whole cream for some time while the cocoa beans were roasting.  A spicy chocolate sauce was made from the cocoa beans and a freshly made strawberry coulis was swirled into the basil infused cream in the dessert bowls followed by a couple of ounces of the chocolate sauce.  I think it hit every available pleasure centre and maybe created some new ones.  We all begged for seconds. 

 

This culinary experience was a big favourite for all three of us, certainly one of the highlights of our Oaxaca stay. 

Happy students

Mexico 2019 - San Augustin

In the little town of San Augustin de Etla, up in the hills on the outskirts of Oaxaca, is the San Augustin Arts Centre housed in what was a textile factory.  

Built in 1883, this huge old factory was was converted into a arts centre by Mexican artist, Francisco Toledo and opened in 2006 as the first so called "ecological arts centre" in Latin America for the commitment to use environmentally friendly products in the creation of art.  The facility includes fully equipped paper-making, digital printmaking, dance, photography, and textile studios, as well as two sprawling exhibition spaces, artists’ housing, and a retail store. 

Exibition hall

 To be continued