Tepoztlán

There is nothing like a hike with hundreds of other weekend merrymakers to make you feel like you are one with nature. I am sure the fact that it was a holiday weekend here in Mexico and that Sunday is free entrance to the Pyramid of Tepozteco only added to the tremendous amount of people who we joined on the 2 km hike up the mountain. The trees shading the sun did little stop the sweat. The rocky and uneven path did little to deter the hiking of the women dressed to the nines, including heels, the teenage girl in purple suede boots, nor the short, 70+ year old woman holding the beer. And the slightly dangerous heights and paths, without the usual US overprotective security measures or regulations, did little to stop young children running freely with little parental oversight.

As the legendary birth place of Quetzalcóatl, the feathered serpent god of the Aztecs, Tepozlán, is known for its interesting weekend market and “creative energy,” as seen in the potions for purchase. During my short visit this afternoon, I would add that it is a quick getaway (one hour) from the city for those looking for a good party. Walking into the city center again, after a much easier descent, we had any number of options for micheladas (beer with chile and lime) from the numerous vendors.

Artisans of Mexico: Taxco el Viejo

Now in a Ten Thousand Villages store near you – artisan jewelry from Taxco el Viejo.

We drove in to Taxco last night after dark with the twinkling lights of the houses nestled in the mountainside illuminating the beautiful colonial architecture and narrow cobblestone streets. After the exhausting two days of travel, the former 17^th century monastery converted hotel provided a beautiful and welcome relief to weary travelers.

Taxco is a picturesque town in the mountains of Guerrero that has been declared a national historical monument by the government which helps to preserve the colonial architecture that gives the town its character. While the 16^th and 17^th century silver mines have long since been depleted, the town is still lined with numerous silver shops, a main attraction for tourists.

After two intense days of car travel and early mornings, the 9am twenty minute combi (public transportation in a converted van) ride, post coffee, was a welcome relief. Ten Thousand Villages buys alpaca (metal alloy) with abalone jewelry from a cooperative in Taxco el Viejo, 8 miles from Taxco and the original site of the town of Taxco.

We were met at the entrance to Taxco el Viejo by Manuel, the administrator and leader of the cooperative that began in 1997, now with 15 members. At the workshop, seven to nine artisans were at various stages of the production of hummingbird pins. It was apparent that there was a healthy and friendly spirit among the group. Before we learned the techniques involved in each step, Manuel described the mission of the cooperative which is to improve the social conditions of the community and to provide employment. He also was proud to show us the new samples and designs that the group had recently produced.

The new tree of life pin is coming to stores near you in the fall, and we had the pleasure to see the process from beginning to end. Probably for our sake, each artisan was going to have a part of the production. And I was glad that today’s visit was so close to Taxco since the artisans showed on sense of urgency to bring the piece to completion.

First, Carlos sawed around the pattern of the tree of life, including the small areas where the abalone would be placed, from a sheet of alpaca. Another artisan soldered the pattern to another piece of alpaca, and again, the pattern was cut. The most intricate and time consuming part was shaving the larger pieces of the abalone so that they could fit into the small and different shaped areas of pin. Luis, who previously had enjoyed the camaraderie much more than any type of work, was in charge of this step in the process. He seemed to want to avoid getting involved, but when Manuel called his name, he ambled over to the machine to do his part. The last step before the pin was polished included filling in the spaces with resin. I must say that the final product was impressive, and I encourage you to look in the stores for their other pieces.

This group of artisans consistently produces high quality work which is obvious to those at Ten Thousand Villages because their jewelry is regularly on the best seller lists. As I relayed this news to the artisans through my translation, I had the sense that there was a deep sense of pride, and hopefully, they are encouraged to continue improving their techniques and designs.

With a better sense of the jewelry making process, I returned to Taxco in the evening ready to mine the silver shops for treasures.

Artisans of Mexico: Acatlán

Coming soon to a Ten Thousand Villages store near you – artisan burnished clay work from Acatlán.

The fearsome foursome that conquered the roads to Olinalá was back together again today for another road trip; this time, to a small town in southern Puebla, just south of Izucar de Matamoros. When we fell out of the car last night after twelve plus hours together in the compact car, I was afraid to ask Inez about today’s travel itinerary. Thankfully we would not leave until 8am and our projected car time was four hours round trip, which would still allow us plenty of time to travel to Taxco in the evening, or at least that was the hope.

The three hour drive was beautiful, through high mountain desert spotted with tall, pole saguaro cacti; a panorama that reminded us of the environs of Phoenix. When we drove in to Acatlán, we stopped for a light lunch, and after several wrong turns found ourselves at the home of José, an award winning artist in burnished clay.

José has worked with clay for 38 years, following in the footsteps of his mother, who at 81 is still working. He says that he taught himself by trial and error, shaping the clay into hollow shapes of animals such as deer, peasants and birds. His process is labor intensive as he first creates the hollow base, followed by the hollow, circular frame that gives the tree of life its shape. It is time consuming as he has to wait for each piece to dry a bit before adding it to the height so that the weight of the clay does not destroy the piece.

Jose’s clay pieces are earth toned with natural colors of black, dark and light brown and red. He emphasized that his work is all natural and was willing to explain the process of how he tints the clay, except for the red. With a twinkle in his eye and his New York Yankees hat askew, he chuckled and said “it’s the secret ingredient.”

After the piece has dried for two days in the shade, the next step is to burnish the clay with charcoal to bring out the color of the clay which is the last step before it is wood fired in the yellow brick kiln that he has by his house. José was proud of his work and showed us many pictures of his various designs that he draws from his imagination.

My translation skills sometimes faltered as I searched for several more technical words to describe his, as he emphasized time-consuming, all natural and made-by-hand, process. His teenage grandson was quick to help me out and show off is English skills that he learned while living in the Bronx and working in an Italian restaurant.

Having captured the story, process and technique, along with the pictures to accompany the burnished clay tree of life that will be in Ten Thousand Villages stores by fall, we were on the road again for Cuernavaca. We passed the saguaros and maguey (agave plants from which they make mescal) plants, the landscape shifting from the mountainous deserts of Puebla to the bustling city of Cuernavaca.

Artisans of Mexico: Olinalá

Coming soon to a Ten Thousand Villages store near you – artisan lacquer work from Olinalá.

I have been living in Olinalá since mid September, but it required a visit from a Ten Thousand Villages buyer from Akron for me actually to learn about and see the process that is involved in the artisan work of the area.

Mexico is the last stop for Doug Lapp, the Latin American/Middle East buyer from Ten Thousand Villages, on his whirlwind, three week visit of various artisans in Latin America. My job for the next few days is to help with logistics and translation during the artisan visits in Mexico. And our first visit was to Olinalá today.

I knew it was going to be a long day when they hatched the idea of making the round trip from Cuernavaca, where the nonprofit fair trade organization that Ten Thousand Villages buys from is based, to Olinalá in one day. In previous communications with Inez, the director of the organization, she explained to me that the trip would take seven or eight hours one way. She refused to believe me when I countered that in my three or four trips between the two cities, it has never taken more than five hours. Today would be my lucky day to learn what route requires eight to nine hours of your life in a car.

At 4:30am, without coffee, I settled myself into the backseat of the car beside Doug and forfeited control to Inez and the driver that she had hired to drive her compact Nissan. It was too early for me to attempt conversation, so I lapsed into restless sleep. I roused myself around 7am with the sun only to realize that we were no closer than Chilpancingo, the capital of Guerrero and a good four or five more hours from Olinalá. It took several missed turns, backtracking and asking for directions before we were on the right road to Chilapa. Inez and our driver couldn’t believe there were no road signs! I think it was at that point that it finally set in; this was going to be a longer day then even I had anticipated.

By around 9:30am we were driving through Chilapa, three hours from our destination, when we decided to stop for breakfast. While the coffee was a welcome blessing, the idea of delaying the trip more was not. My opinion was not consulted. And by 1:30pm when we reached the door of Don Jesús, I understood completely what route requires nine hours for a five hour trip; a route that is all highways. I have never been so happy to see Olinalá.

During the two and a half hours that we were out of the car in Olinalá, we had the pleasure of listening and watching Jesús and his wife explain the process for the lacquer work that I see daily as I walk the streets of Olinalá. He and his wife have been involved in this work for years, learning as children from their parents.

The process begins with a black base layer on the wood that is coated with a particular type of oil to give it a glossy sheen. A brown paste of fine earth and oil is applied next, which when dry, Jesús draws the design that is unique for each piece. He was sure to tell us that there is no pattern, only his imagination. For the color, they mix the white dust of marble with a dye powder, red for our demonstration, which is applied to the piece. Using what looks like the point of a feather, he traces the design, in so doing removing the color from which emerges the raised design and color contrast. The last step is repeated before finally applying an oil to produce a glossy and finished look.

The demonstration was abbreviated as is my explanation given the condensed period of time that we were actually in Olinalá. I know that my description does not do justice to the labor intensive process or the talent of the artisan, but I guarantee that the pictures and description that will accompany the product in the Ten Thousand Villages stores this fall will.

As we said our thanks to our artisan hosts around 4pm, it pained me to say goodbye, knowing the long road trip that was ahead of us. My only consolation was that several of the locals of Olinalá had convinced Inez that the route through Papalutla, my usual route, was faster and that the road was fine. I knew that road was not paved, which was a high priority for Inez as she did not want anything to happen to her precious car, but I was not about to mention this fact.

As we laboriously made our way down the windy, dirt road, the angst and disapproval from Inez and our driver were continual. They were certain that death or disaster were eminent at every turn. I gladly ignored their dissatisfaction for the one hour of unpaved road and continued to talk with Doug, knowing that the trip would be hours less than this morning’s interminable drive. The comments of disapproval continued even when we reached the comfort of the highway where they could see road signs and knew where they were. By 8:30pm when we pulled up to our hotel, we had all discovered that the trip could be four and a half hours with a little sense of adventure and humor.

Polanco

In a city of millions, I should not be surprised that the concrete block houses that populated yesterday’s drive to Teotihuacán are a few metro rides away from the wealthy tree lined neighborhood of Polanco, just north of Chapultepec Park. As I walked the streets, with names like Ruben Dario and Jorge Eliot, I passed art galleries, embassies and the affluent of Mexico City enjoying Sunday brunch on a beautiful sunny day at numerous sidewalk cafes and restaurants. Missing were the street vendors selling tacos and the variety of faces with indigenous features that enlivens other areas of the city.

Joining the other patrons, I indulged in some reading and strong coffee and had to wonder how many of the children and their parents playing in the shady park across the street would ever come to appreciate the other reality of the thousands with whom they share their city. Similar to many cities in the world, the socioeconomic disparity is far too large, yet many of us learn to live in that tension.

Leaving the quiet of Polanco, I walked a short distance on Paseo de la Reforma to the expansive Chapultepec Park. I ambled through the green spaces passing numerous defeños (Mexico City residents) relaxing in the grass with friends and family, escaping the city grim and concrete of their daily lives. Without regard for our daily routines or realities, it was evident that we all appreciated the time to be in the sun and fresh air.

Teotihuacán

This morning we left Mexico City, which was built on top of Tenochtitlán the center of the universe in Aztec belief, to explore one of Mexico’s biggest ancient cities and the capital of the Aztecs. As the bus crawled through the heavy traffic north of the city, the reminder of a conquered empire reverberated through the thousands of drab concrete block houses that enveloped the hillsides.

As one of the largest pre-Hispanic empires, the Aztecs’ Teotihuacán developed and flourished from the 1^st century through the 8^th century before its eventual collapse due to social and economic factors. Our exploration of the ruins began with an easy walk around La Ciudadela (the Citadel) believed to have been the residence of the supreme ruler. With many pyramid structures in various stages of renovation surrounding the larger main pyramid in the center, where one can only imagine what this great city once was.

The main road that leads to the Pyramid of the Sun, the world’s third largest pyramid, and the Pyramid of the Moon, a smaller but no less impressive structure, is called Calzada de los Muertos (Avenue of the Dead). With an unforgiving sun overhead, the avenue’s name held its meaning as we ascended and descended the periodic stairs on our way to the Pyramid of the Sun looming in the distance. Tiring of the stairs, I once opted to crawl through a narrow canal that spat me out on the other side with aching knees.

Avenue of the Dead

My progression through the canal. My flexibility isn´t what it used to be.

After the deceptively long walk, we arrived at the Pyramid of the Sun, tired, but ready to climb the 248 stairs. The pyramid was built around AD 100 from three million tons of stone without the use of metal tools, pack animals or the wheel. It is imposing (222 meters long on each side of the base), if not frightfully tall (over 70 meters), yet taken in stages, we were rewarded with impressive views of the surrounding area despite the haze. After a walk around the top of the pyramid to help us catch our breath, we began our descent passing some people who preferred to descend backwards due to the steep steps.

Pyramid of the Moon (left) and Pyramid of the Sun (right)

Pyramid of the Sun

Worth the climb of 248 steep steps

While the Pyramid of the Sun is the tallest, the views from the top of the Pyramid of the Moon, built around AD 300, were worth the climb despite the fatigue. The climb was shorter and steeper. Positioned at the end of the Avenue of the Dead, the ancient city lies at your feet offering a complete view of the steps we would have to retrace on the treeless Avenue of the Dead.

Pyramid of the Moon was a lot steeper.

The city at our feet.

The Importance of Family

The eight hour overnight bus to Mexico City and the flight that was delayed several hours did nothing to hinder my excitement to visit with my sister and her husband. I am so thankful to have been able to spend several days with the two of them at Playa del Carmen, just south of Cancun, talking and discussing a variety of topics.

We can not choose our family, and for all of the talents, idiosyncrasies, joys and sorrows of my family, I could not choose or ask for a more supportive family. I love that we can find the humor in our foibles and applaud our gifts. I appreciate the security in the knowledge that I am surrounded in love no matter how far or near I am. I value the unconditional support. And for that, I am grateful.

My brother-in-law is a great photographer, but my sister and I fail to be photogenic. We're happy though!

The Caribbean is beautiful, especially in January.

Patience is a Virtue

Patience is a virtue, and when you are in Mexico it is a necessity. This is especially true when you interact with government bureaucracy, even at the local level.

Manuel and I met Saturnino (refer to blog entry Saturnino and his Stoves) and Luis, the comisario (town mayor) of Zacango at 10am outside of the Municipal building where we planned to met with Presidenta Luisa, who was elected to a three year term in 2009 as president of the municipality of Olinalá. To begin this process we signed in on the first floor, which allowed us to climb the stairs past the guard armed with an automatic weapon. We were greeted at the top of the stairs by a crowd of people who were already in line to meet with her. We signed in again with her secretary, this time including the reason for our visit. We were 9^th on the list. When I asked how long we might wait, the response was perhaps an hour, or two, or perhaps less. Translation: who knows?

After meetings earlier in the week with another government agency involved with adult education, Manuel and I decided our next step was to talk with the president as she might be able to help us in the process to get internet service for Zacango as part of the watershed management process. Zacango currently has no telephone lines; however there is one satellite phone in the community.

I enjoyed the first hour, watching the variety of people, talking with Saturnino, Luis and Manuel, and marveling at the wonders of bureaucracy. Thankfully we were waiting on a balcony that overlooks the market and basketball court, so there was no shortage of entertainment and a cool breeze to help pass the time.

During the second hour, we spotted Bruce walking through the market and invited him to join us in the waiting game. He laughed at the fact that we were still waiting. When he tried to join us, he was denied access to the second floor because he was in shorts. I sensed that he was not too sad that he couldn’t join us as we waited.

As noon came and went, I was well beyond restless. I had already walked the corridor several times and checked out the town library with books from the 50s. I asked the secretary once or twice where we were on the list with always the same response, a smile and “un ratito más” (just a bit more). Translation: who knows? Just keep waiting. Not even my white privilege moved us up the list.

Most of my frustration was for Luis and Saturnino who had given up most of their day to wait. I expressed to them at various points that I was sorry that they had to waste so much time waiting. They just chuckled at me as if I was the only who didn’t know the secret. They had completely expected to wait, be it an hour or all day. This is how it worked. Luis and Saturnino did not show any signs of being upset. And a quick look around at the others who were waiting told me that this was entirely normal.

As my stomach growled shortly after 1pm, we were ushered into Presidenta Lusia’s office for our audience with the President. I explained our business and Manuel filled in the gaps. I suppose good things come to those who wait. She agreed to support Zacango with the installation of internet, but we would have to work with the phone company to check on the process and the rates. She also said that she would support our request through another government agency for the installation of computers; however, the funds for this would not become available until the end of the year. And so the 20 minute meeting concluded.

From my perspective the system is quite time inefficient; however, there is some logic to it for those from the surrounding communities who do not have telephones. For the people who live as far away as two hours from Olinalá, the only way to access the president is to come early in the morning and wait, for lack of other modes of communication.

Watershed Management Process

Earlier this month, Dan Wiens, the director of Water and Agricultural funds for MCC, approved our proposal to begin a process of watershed management planning in the community of Zacango. This process builds on the previous work in the community involving the promotion of cisterns and dry latrines as well as the continuing computer and English classes. The following, written by MCC worker Bruce Friesen-Pankratz, provides a brief explanation of our current work in Guerrero.

In their ongoing search for extraterrestrial life the North American Space Agency (NASA) focuses its efforts on finding liquid water on planets and moons. Water is essential to life as we know it. However, despite being an essential resource for life we continue to contaminate much of the Earth’s limited supply of freshwater. We as humans are also responsible in part for the recent prolonged drought which has occurred in western North America since at least 1999. This drought has negatively affected the livelihood of many people including the subsistence farmers of rural Guerrero, Mexico.

The management of water and other natural resources has traditionally followed a top-down approach. This approach has many faults including the fact that those in the “top tier” often have limited understanding of the reality of those in the effected communities. Recently in Canada, the United States, and Mexico there has been a movement to bottom-up approaches to resource management. The development and implementation of community-led integrated watershed management plans (CIWMPs) is one such approach that attempts to fully engage community members and other stakeholders in managing their watershed.

Although CIWMPs are developed and implemented by communities the process frequently involves support (e.g., technical) from outside agencies including non-governmental organizations (NGOs). As an NGO with capacity building and creation care mandates the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) appears to be in a position to support communities interested in the CIWMP process.

MCC has worked in rural Guerrero on water related projects (e.g., dry latrines and rainwater collecting cisterns) for over five years. Through this work MCC has established relationships and a history of trust with communities. These relationships and trust are essential if MCC is to successfully accompany communities through the CIWMP process. MCC workers in Guerrero will start to work with the community of Zacango on their CIWMP process. MCC has a strong relationship with Zacango which currently includes an education program, and MCC service workers living in the community.

Fall Weather

Last night I had the pleasure of curling up under a blanket to a good book with hot cocoa in hand, and I woke up this morning to discover mist hiding the sanctuary on top of the hill. I didn’t think that I would get to experience fall weather while living in Olinalá, but this week, as many of you are digging out from several feet of snow, I am revealing in the cool temperatures and rare gentle rain. I love this weather!

Feliz Dia de los Reyes

By about 9pm all of Doña Clara’s children had gathered at house, except for her daughter who has lived in the States for the last eight or nine years. The oldest son, Tony, takes care of all the animals and manages the family land a few kilometers outside of Olinalá. Pepe works in the local government and helps with the family business, tending the clothing stand. Liz helps with the family business and will soon open her own beauty salon in the space below where I now live. Güero works at the local Nissan dealership. Carmen and Male, the two sisters who are married and the only children who do not live at home, both have shoe stores in town. Pelón, the youngest, is in his first year at la prepa (high school grades 10-12) and helps with the family business as well.

We sat around the table talking and laughing, ready to cut the two rosca de reyes cakes. The cakes sat in the middle of the table. Baked inside of each cake were five to eight small plastic dolls, no bigger than an inch, waiting to be discovered with each slice of the knife. Tradition has it that if the piece you cut from the cake has a doll in it you are responsible to host the party and make the tamales for La Candelaria on February 2.

We sipped our hot chocolate in anticipation to see who would get the first doll. One the first slice, Liz, found one of the small dolls. For cake number one, I was the second to cut a slice from the cake. I escaped the responsibilities of making tamales. There was plenty of laughter and jokes as we all took our turn, some finding a little doll in his or her piece, and others not.

As if one cake was not enough, the entertainment continued as we cut into the second cake. I cut my piece, and again, I escaped; however, Pepe saw a tiny piece of the doll in the cake that I “discovered” with my slice. And apparently if you undercover any piece of the doll, even if it is still in the cake and not in your piece, it’s yours. And to make things better, as he was digging around in the cake to give me my doll, he uncovered another, which was supposedly mine too. I think there was some trampa (cheating) happening, but everyone got lots of good cheer out of me having found twins.

With the cake festivities finished, many with a doll or two sitting in front of us, Mari Carmen passed out the Loteria cards. Loteria is like Bingo with pictures, and the way we played, the whole card needed to be filled to win. With a handful of dried corn to use as our markers at the ready, everyone placed their 2 pesos bets. Thankfully the original suggestion of a 5 pesos per game bet was reduced to 2 pesos. In the ten or so games we played I never once scored the 20 pesos pot, but I did manage to lose 20 plus pesos before I asked to be the caller.

In Olinalá the three kings did not bring toys and clothing; rather they brought entertainment and laughter.

Museo Dolores Olmedo

On our way to Xochimilco we toured the grounds of the Dolores Olmedo estate, a great patron of the arts, which is now converted into a museum. It boasts many paintings by Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo. Unfortunately the Kahlo paintings are on tour for the entirety of 2010. I especially enjoyed the many beautiful peacocks that roamed the grounds.

Xochimilco

As we floated down the canal with the other 40 or so people in our long, covered boat, we had our choice of paying for a boat of mariachis to sing to us, buying a variety of plants, eating elote (corn on the cob slathered in mayonnaise and chile) or drinking any number of drinks from the vendors who floated beside our boat in attempts to earn a few pesos.

If I compared it to Venice, you would have the entirely wrong mental image of the ambience. The supposed “floating gardens” of Xochimilco, south of the city reached by the light train, are more properly described as floating parties on a crowded canal. In the days of the Aztecs, the fertile gardens, made by piled up vegetation mud in the shallow waters of Lake Xochimilco, became an economic base. As the gardens proliferated, the lake became a series of canals. Today, the main canal is a traffic jam of colorful boats, some transporting 20 plus people in festive moods, made more so by the free-flowing alcohol, and others hosting a couple or handful of tourists enjoying the spectacle.

I was thoroughly entertained by the two older men sitting across from us testing out their English and trying to find a deal on the micheladas (beer with chile and lime), the couples swaying to the notes of the mariachis and the boat vendors who quickly had to change directions at the hint of a sale. Given the amount of boat traffic, I was surprised that your boat, guided by a man standing on the roof with a long pole, only rear-ended another boat once while navigating the canal thoroughfare.

Nativity Scenes on Paseo de la Reforma