The People United in…SCHADENFREUDE!

A recent faux pas by Mexico’s top presidential hopeful unleashes people’s intolerance of public embarrassment.

SCHADENFREUDE:  (from the German language) Enjoyment obtained from the troubles of others.

Enrique Peña Nieto

There are many peculiarities of the Tapatío culture that I have yet to “get” in my years of living in Guadalajara.  Early on after having worked in academic and corporate settings here for a few months, I arrived at the conclusion that the worst sin anyone can commit against a Mexican person is to embarrass him/her in public.  I have witnessed people come up with the most inane of lies in order to avoid embarrassment.  OK, this happens everywhere but what’s interesting in Guadalajara is that everyone else may know full well that the person is lying, yet that is somehow less morally reprehensible than public shame.

During the most recent edition of the Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL, for its acronym in Spanish), “pretty boy” presidential hopeful Enrique Peña Nieto was asked which readings had been most influential in his life.  The guy gave an answer that made it quite clear that he is not a reader.  People forget that politicians lie all the time though this guy ventured to wing it instead.  I believe the real faux pas was the fact that neither Peña Nieto himself nor his staff had the foresight of guessing that at a large book fair, he would surely be asked about his affinity for reading.  Now, that is lack of vision right there!

A great number of people in Mexico reacted quite passionately, making great fun of the episode.  In the almost five years that I have lived here have I seldom seen Mexicans become so fervently united for a particular cause.  But Peña Nieto’s gaffe somehow became a good reason for people to flood the social media networks to incessantly ridicule the politician.  I don’t know much about him. There’s something about him that I just don’t like.  I am aware, however, that part of his potential as future president of Mexico lies in his sex appeal.  By the way, I also agree that it is important for a presidential hopeful to be well-read but can anyone accurately prove something of that sort?

It seems people have realized that what is in fact embarrassing is for Peña Nieto to have made it this far presumably just based on his good looks.  It was the people of Mexico who got him this far.  The embarrassment of making him the top presidential contender must be squashed or camouflaged by all means!  That is how the endless, mean, and downright cruel jokes have grabbed hold of the Mexican cyber-psyche.  Have we got nothing better to do with our time? Pena Nieto’s blunder is bad for him but good for Mexicans because now voters have the opportunity, prior to the July 2012 elections, of finding a “more cultured” top contender.

This situation also points out to another purported “embarrassment” that can remain in the shadows as long as there is someone else to crucify:  the average Mexican reads 1 to 3 books per year.  There’s no need to feel ashamed of that.  Everyone has a right to do with their time as they please.  It is questionable though for non-readers to malign another non-reader.   Please malign him for his lack of tangible political accomplishments.

What I really find baffling about this goes in contrast with an unrelated recent event.  The lovely city of Guadalajara has managed to stay relatively safe despite the drug-related bloodshed that the country has experienced in the last few years.  Recently, the city hosted what to date have been the most successful Pan American and Parapan American Games ever as well as the FIL, which is a massively successful event year after year.  However on November 24, the bodies of 26 people were dumped in a main artery of the city in a gruesome, highly symbolic message from organized crime to the local government.  I didn’t hear one single person talk about this. There was zero outrage, no tweets, and no Facebook updates.  The people of the city remained indifferent.  And I remain perplexed.

Back to Peña Nieto’s unfortunate blunder, a canned answer (i.e., a blatant but eloquent lie) would have done the trick and everyone else (myself included) could’ve continued with our superficial pursuits instead of actually paying enough attention to which politicians may be viable candidates for bringing Mexico out of this bloody and painful war against drugs.


Related links:

• FIL Press Conference (YouTube)
• Mexico Top Presidential Contender Can't Name Books (NY Times)

Few sins, miracles galore!

The Mexican-American artist breathes new life into old classics and enraptures the audience with her latest musical creations.

Lila Downs’s current tour, named after her most recent album “Pecados y Milagros” (Sins and Miracles), doesn’t delve into much sinning though it certainly delivers on the miraculous. In fact, it is a sin that this chanteuse extraordinaire is not a bigger star, at least here in her native Mexico.

As a child of an American father and a Mexican mother, Lila’s music speaks to the migrant class and to those of us who can no longer be pigeonholed into one single culture. The artist gained international notoriety in 2002 for her acting and musical contributions to the film Frida, starring Salma Hayek. A few years ago, I bought her deeply relatable album “One Blood/Una Sangre” on a whim, an album that is as nostalgic as it is political and that as a whole triumphs in protesting cultural complacency.

Fast forward to Lila’s recent concert in Guadalajara where the artist enchanted the audience with her unique mix of earthiness and disarming simplicity. Most Mexicans who have never left Mexico have no clue of the impact of their culture on the rest of the Latin cultures. Sadly, popular culture in Mexico has been watered down by the effects of globalization and, contemporary artists like Lila lose out to the glitz and glamour of today’s pop acts.

In comes Lila, a kind of superhero whose power is to reclaim everything that is evocative and iconic in traditional Mexican music. Ok, she sings old boleros but, no one in her generation can breathe new life into these old classics the way Lila can. The genius in her interpretations is that she can keep what is traditional but infuse it with her strong-woman personality and ‘world music’ sensitivity. Her voice is as dramatic as it is acrobatic, taking the listener on a wild ride of joy, for witnessing such a gift, and longing for the simple life of yesteryears. Her musicians are exquisitely trained and demonstrated that the show is a carefully curated cultural installation.

The concert’s song set featured upbeat and downbeat numbers, all uniquely appealing. Like the album, the show started with “Mezcalito” (Little Mezcal) which praises this cousin of tequila not for being a spirit to drown one’s sorrows but for its role in the celebration of life and nature’s bounty, Oxaca’s bounty, that is. In “Tu Cárcel’ (Your Prison), a composition of another Mexican musical genius, Marco Antonio Solis, Downs laments the loss of a lover who is dumb enough to leave…tired old topic but somehow still relevant.

Lila’s playful manner and easy banter with the audience makes her all too human and it would be easy to dismiss her based on her humbleness, but when she sings, she commands the stage, and no one can come close. The classic “Cucurrucucu Paloma” had never met a better performance. Despite the bitter lyrics, the musical arrangement coupled with Lila’s range of vocals, sometimes heart wrenching and sometimes playfully seductive, is almost celestial. “Zapata Se Queda” (Zapata Stays) is a flirty and contagious song that mixes the political with the superstitious and best of all, doesn’t take itself too seriously. The grand jewel of the concert (and of the Album as well) was Lila’s and husband Paul Cohen’s original composition “Palomo del Comalito” (Dove of the Tortilla Pan), a mélange of musical styles that is nothing short of astonishing, thanks greatly to a fascinating mix of musical instruments. The lyrics here are infused with hope. Yes, sometimes it takes that much musical hard work to get us to pay attention.

Lila’s earthiness can be better described as a fertilizing force as supposed to the harvesting quality associated with the term ‘earthy’. I’m no farmer but I bet that what you put into the earth is as important as what you reap from it. Lila gives back to the earth and a miraculous crop results. Days later, I’m still vibrating with the echoes of her invigorating gift. For that, I am forever grateful.

Lila will perform in New York on February 18. This is an artist to be experienced live! For details visit:

http://www.liladowns.com/mx/events

Also, the “Pecados and Milagros” album is available for streaming on npr.org at:

http://www.npr.org/2011/10/23/141546950/first-listen-lila-downs-pecados-y-milagros-sins-and-miracles

Lila's official website is:

http://www.liladowns.com/

Quick Update!

I'm sure many are wondering what I've been up to in 2009, especially as you see in the news how Mexico is apparently the least safe, most disease-ridden place on earth. The short answer is that I'm doing GREAT!!! Been a bit busy. So, I'm going to try to quickly summarize what's going on in my life:

1. Life at home is wonderful. We both work hard but we also know how to relax and enjoy each other's company. The level of drama is really low. However, our house could use some TLC in terms of decoration and gardening. We're finally biting the bullet and hiring someone to come in a few times a week to help with the upkeep. That way, we can focus on the pretty stuff.
2. My yoga work keeps paying dividends much beyond the $$. I now have about 50 students in all of my classes and have been specializing on working with athletic types. I just launched a yoga website in spanish (www.vidalumi.com) and have plans to go into a partnership to open my own studio. That's scheduled for September.
3. I still work at the univerisity teaching advanced business English. The semester is about to end and I think that I won't return. I found that the work is extensive, the pay is low and the students are less than motivated. Enough said.
4. I have some private clients who get English communication coaching from me. I love that work although it's, perhaps, too flexible if you follow my drift? I've learned to live with so uncertainty and it's just fine! However, I'm in talks with a colleague from the university to start expanding together this executive communication coaching idea. There's a great market for it!
5. And finally, the big thing this year is that I've been hired as the official translator for the 2011 Pan American Games. It's kind of a big deal and I'm really enjoying it. I'm meeting a lot of interesting people.
6. So don't laugh but I'm actually thinking of hiring a personal assistant. Funny, right?

I've decided that I'm no good at Facebook, MySpace, Friendster, Twitter, IM and all that stuff. So, I rarely log in or I go stealth. Good old e-mail and blogging are great tools for keeping in touch.

I promise to follow up soon with my personal opinions of this crazy thing they call the Influenza health crisis. *sigh*

This is it for now. Keep in touch!

Left vs. Right: I'm talking about the brain!

I know it's been a while since my last post. It's just amazing how days turn into weeks, weeks into months, and...well, you get my point: I've been busy!

I quite enjoy listening to NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross. A few months ago, I downloaded a show titled "After s Stroke, a Scientist Studies Herself" which left a huge impression on me. I confess that I was so riveted by this story that I listened to the interview several times and then told all my friends and students about it.

The (real-life) story goes something like this: Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, a Harvard-trained neuroanatomist woke up one day to realize that she was having a stroke. The stroke, however, only happened on one side of her brain. I won't give away the story in case you want to get the scoop from the source but, I can tell you that the affected side of her brain would go on and off. During the off periods, the functions of the other side of the brain would intensify. It's just fascinating to see the extraordinary insights that Dr. Bolte Taylor experiences.

It took her about eight years to recover and she's using her experience as both a brain scientist and a stroke victim to shed light, a whole lot of it, into the subject.

While I have not read her book "My Stroke of Insight", I continued to search on the Internet to learn more about this story. Luckily, I came across a video from a TED.org presentation by Dr. Bolte Taylor. I highly recommend watching it! You can see it here. The video is about 20 minutes long.

This story has great scientific and spiritual appeal.

On a related note, back in July, there was also an interesting interview with neuroscientist Michael Gazzaniga titled "Mapping The Mysteries Of The Brain's Two Halves." This one gives an easy-to-understand explanation of the relationship of both sides of the brain.

A Year in Mexico

They say, and I can vouch for this one, that as you get older time passes by increasingly fast. Anymore, a year is really nothing. In my opinion, time is the most devalued currency of modern times. I'm trying to reclaim its value in my life.

This past year, more than a transition, has really been about contrasts as I started from scratch in a new country. Frankly, it’s been a lot easier than I thought though I wouldn't try to credit anyone in particular (myself included) for the ease of the experience.

Sure, I came here with a plan and by god, the plan is unfolding and it’s even better than I had envisioned; that’s not to say that I didn’t have many doubts. Some as recent as this week.

My experience of life in Mexico reminds me of my own journey as a yoga practitioner. Not being particularly flexible with my body has actually translated into an invaluable lesson. That lesson is patience. Plain and simple.

Everyone back home knows me as a calm New Yorker. I suspect that here I’m a bit abrasive and loud. Though I’m a lot calmer than back home, there are days when the ugly New Yorker bursts the hell out! I think you have to be Mexican, by blood, to put up with the nonsensical inefficiencies of this country.

To celebrate my first anniversary here, and acknowledging that no place is really ‘perfect’, I’d like to share my experiences of the journey so far.

I want to keep this entry short so, I won’t go into the reasons why this country seems to be so badly stuck in the old ways. Suffice it to say, that everyday I get to practice my patience. I’ve gotten pretty good at it but when you know there’s a better way to do things, you can’t hush down the voices inside. On a good day, when I watch people’s (lack of) reaction to the inefficiencies, I want to praise them for their patience; on a bad day, I want to slap them awake from their feeble resignation.

What is particularly fascinating is that among all the crap, you are always met by impeccably dressed, polite, good humored, soft-spoken Mexicans who simply seem to move too darn slow. That’s it. They seem to have a different sense of time than the average American. I admit that the charm is disarming to the point that I often feel guilty for being such a tight-ass.

Some of the cultural highlights that have particularly struck me are:

- Family comes first, career comes second. There’s no wavering there.

- I’ve yet to see anyone be rude to anyone else in public. People just don’t lose their cool here. Well, except for me…just a little bit, sometimes.

- Personal hygiene ranks high in priority with everyone I’ve come across. There’s no bad odor of any sort coming out the people I’ve come in contact with.

- Mexican children are gorgeous!

- The most beautiful dark, dark eyes are right here in Mexico. They seem to be enhanced by thick, almost curly eyelashes. I find myself mesmerized.

- Driving is scary here. People are nuts! But I haven’t really seen anyone flip the bird or hardly ever blow their horns to express road rage.

- People from GDL are aloof and reserved but when they show affection, it oozes with heartfelt sincerity.

- In one year, I’ve seen like 5 dark skinned (black) people.

- I didn’t know what contamination really was until I moved here. I’m actually allergic to it.

- I haven’t seen a drop of rain since last September.

With all that said, some of the personal experiences that I’m deeply grateful for include:

- I’ve learned to build in and enjoy guilt-free leisure time every day of the week.

- I love shopping at the farmer’s markets for the freshest, most beautiful produce. Beyond that, I love bantering and haggling with the sellers.

- Yup, I’ve learned to haggle. You’re expected to do it.

- Cooking (and having the time to do it) has become a source of joy and creativity that I hope to never let go of.

- Real Mexican food is wonderful! It can be healthy, actually, and it’s always fresh.

- Home is a sacred space for Chava and I. Particularly, every weekend is a chance for renewal, celebration, and mutual growth.

- My students and clients revere my knowledge and my position, treating me with the utmost respect, which makes me look forward to spending time with them.

- I have time to listen to my favorite podcasts -- most of them from the US, helping me keep a pulsebeat on life in America.

- I enjoy meeting country folk who are outspoken, friendly, funny, and infinitely wise.

- I like it when random strangers easily greet you on the streets. I think I've become friendlier as a result.

- People are always late to social events. Live with it!

I view these experiences as a unique opportunity to integrate who I really am and to increase my sensitivities about everything that unites us human beings regardless of cultural background. I’m happy. Perhaps the plan wasn’t a real plan after all. Perhaps it was a trick for me to safely venture out of my comfort zone and collect life-affirming memories along the way.

I think I’ll stop here. I'm trying to be good about posting more frequently.

Portfolio Career

OK, OK! I know I haven’t been very good about keeping up with this blog. You’re probably wondering what I’m up to these days. Busy. Happily busy.

So, I thought I would do a quick post just to fill everyone in on the recent events of my life in GDL.

Right now, I’m very focused on work. I had a bit of a slowdown after I stopped working for the institute at the end of November in order to go solo. Since then I worked on legalizing my business (boy, that one requires its own entry!) and drumming up business. After many phone calls and endless conversations, things finally started to pick up in late March. I’ve learned so many (sometimes painful) lessons from that experience.

So, what exactly do I do? My career can be best described as a “portfolio career”; that is, I do several, mostly unrelated things; all of which I love.

My main source of income comes from my English teaching gigs. Both of them are business-oriented courses taught on the premises. I use textbooks but re-interpret a lot of the exercises and make them a lot more exciting from a creative standpoint. I love that part of the work though it’s time consuming but awesomely rewarding.

I also have a private client, a lawyer, who is in the process of applying for an MBA program in the US and needs help refining her English skills. We have so much fun working toward that goal!

My other major source of income comes from my yoga classes. I teach at the Pilates studio and at a mansion in a shi-shi neighborhood to a set of nine well-to-do ladies. Also, one of the companies where I teach English hired me to give classes there. How cool is that?

As a backup, I can also take the occasional translation work and do some technical writing through project bidding on elance.com. So, that’s what a portfolio career is all about.

My workload is pretty darn good. I teach a total of 12 hours of English per week and about 12 hours of Yoga. The drawback is that I always have to work around my clients' business hours (early in the AM, at lunchtime – 2PM here, and after 5:30PM). My work schedule runs Monday thru Thursday. Fridays are practically my day off though I run around a lot and leave weekends for total play and relaxation.

My worst days are Mondays and Wednesdays. I leave the house at 7AM, come in and out a few times and my last Yoga class ends at 9:15PM. I have decent gaps of time during the day which allow me to go to the gym, do costume changes, cook a healthy dinner, plan my lessons, and not to mention wind down a bit several times a day. Yes, I always have time to go to Starbucks! At the end of the day, I'm hardly even tired.

For exercise, I go to the gym Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays for about 1.5 hours to lift weights and to practice boxing with an awesome teacher who is still a competitive boxer. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I go to the Pilates studio (where they have reformer machines) and also practice Yoga at home.

Since I am my own boss, I’ve instituted a pretty liberal vacation policy. My clients are pretty chill about that. The plan is to give myself a one week vacation every four to eight weeks, depending on the time of the year. Things are looking up in that respect. Next vacation destination? CUBA…before Fidel kicks the bucket.

There’s a lot of demand for both English and Yoga here though networking is essential. I could take on more clients but for now, I’m more interested in a healthy and balanced life. However, if a real interesting project comes along, I’m all over it. Some potentially exciting Yoga opportunities might be working with one of the world famous soccer teams (Chivas!) or with some tri-athletes. For English, I'm being considered for starting a new program with GDL's emergency response system (like 911) and I also have some leads at a couple universities. I feel blessed to have so many options.

Stay tuned for more entries…I have a lot of exciting stuff to talk about! Next up, I plan to write about my first year anniversary here. Yes, there’ve been some cultural challenges but I’m still here. 8-)

Roasted Tomato Soup a la Mexicana

This delicious recipe was inspired by a NYTimes podcast of “The Minimalist” Mark Bittman. The main difference is that I use fresh tomatoes and spiced it up with green chiles to give it a Mexican flare.


This recipe yields 4 appetizer size servings. There are three main processes to this recipe:

1 – Steam-cook the tomatoes (15-20 minutes)

Ingredients:
- 10-12 very ripe plum tomatoes, skinned*
- 1 jalapeno pepper, sliced
- 1 garlic clove, chopped
- ½ yellow onion, chopped
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ cup of celery, chopped
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning mix or fresh mix of oregano, rosemary, and basil
- 1 tsp unsalted butter
- 1 tbsp olive oil

Preparation:

1. You’ll need a medium-sized pot with a tight-fitting lid.
2. Mix all the ingredients the pot, keeping the tomatoes whole.
3. Cover and steam at medium heat until the tomatoes begin to fall apart (about 10-15 minutes).

2 – Roast the tomatoes (15-20 minutes)

1. Scoop out just the tomatoes from the pot, draining them as much as possible, and set aside.
2. Drain the remaining stuff from the pot into a bowl making sure to squeeze the juice out of all the ingredients, and set aside the broth.
3. Place the tomatoes in a cookie sheet or oven tray.
4. Drizzle the tomatoes lightly with some olive oil and oregano.
5. Put in the oven at 450 and bake until the tomatoes begin to brown at the tops.
6. Remove tomatoes from the tray and scrape off any brown crispiness on the tray using some of the tomato broth that was set aside.

3 – Make the soup (8-12 minutes)

Ingredients:
- Remaining tomato broth that was previously set aside
- 4 cups of chicken broth (preferably home-made)
- 1 medium carrot, finely chopped
- ½ red onion
- 1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
- ¼ fresh parsley or cilantro, coarsely chopped
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Sautee the garlic and onion in the olive oil until the onion is translucent.
2. Add the carrots and sautee for another two minutes.
3. Add the tomato and chicken broths.
4. Add the roasted tomatoes.
5. Add salt and pepper, if desired.
6. Let it boil for about 5 minutes.
7. Add the fresh parsley or cilantro and let boil for another 2 minutes.
8. Remove from heat.
9. Serve in a medium sized bowl and drizzle some fresh cheese (Cotija or Parmesan) and eat with a nice crusty bread!

* for skinning the tomatoes, I boil some water in a pot, and drop each tomato for 20-30 seconds. Take the tomato out, rinse with cold water and proceed to peel with fingers or with a pearing knife.

Feliz Cumpleaños!

Holy cow, I’m 37 Years Old!

I’m not sure how it was that I woke up this past 10th of March only to realize that I was turning 37. I definitely feel and look closer to 40 than to 30. Ouch!

Actually, I’m incredibly happy and grateful for each birthday that I’m blessed with. I feel really great!

Many of my friends up north are probably wondering what it must’ve been like to celebrate my birthday in the middle of total sunshine and perfect temperatures…just kidding! The truth is that this was my first birthday since I can remember, away from home and my family…not counting the time I was in London and was serenaded at lunchtime by Bill Nighy. There’s a story for you, but I digress!

Anyway, back to my most recent birthday in Guadalajara. Well, it was strange. Not just because I’m in a foreign country and I’ve had most of my new friends for just a few months but, also because my grandpa died in the D.R. I was unable to attend his funeral and I definitely had my sad, teary moments knowing that the old man was being buried on the very day that I’d be blowing another birthday candle. After work, around 3PM, I went to a local park to enjoy a bit of nature and to reflect on my grandpa’s legacy. I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful setting to do just that.

I was most disappointed by the fact that I couldn’t see my mom. She had planned to come down and spend two weeks with me to celebrate my birthday season but alas God had other plans and instead she went to the D.R. to be by her dad’s side as he took his last breath.

So, how did I celebrate? You may be wondering…I friggin’ milked it! It was awesome. I tend to celebrate for about two weeks and indeed, I did – no one stood in my way. Between several cakes, many libations, and quite a few dinners and lunches, I felt really loved in this land. I enjoyed how my friends and students (English and Yoga) were not shy in demonstrating their affection toward me. One of the funnest experiences was a night of dancing "Banda" at a very typical (and huge) restaurant. You can see me getting down with my friend Chely.

In all honesty, sometimes I get down on Mexicans for being a little too distant, perhaps “indifferent”, in the day-to-day but when it’s time to express heartfelt emotions, they have no problem doing it and they do it well…I swear I can feel the warmth in their hearts.

I am completely humbled by the experience and perhaps I’m learning a bit more about “true” sincerity. No one had to be nice to me because it was my birthday instead they simply insisted on making me feel great not just because of the occasion but because they might’ve thought how hard it must be to spend your birthday far from home.

Moments like these make Mexico a bit more of “home” to me; especially as I get ready to celebrate my first anniversary of living here in April. Hmmm, sounds like another opportunity to celebrate a la Mexicana! Andale! Arriba! Arriba!

Cooking Pasta Part III - Hands-on Tagliatelle

This is the final post on my Pasta Making adventures. It's funny how the sequence of events was actually backwards but I guess sometimes it's cool to see the end before the beginning so, here it goes...

Tiziana had mentioned that her “baby” was a tuna lasagna. Yup, she’s so proud of making this one up! I was dying to try it out as it sounded so unusual. I asked her to bring me one of those the next time we met for yoga which would be on a Thursday. She had asked me to give her a call the day before to remind her.

OK, so it’s Wednesday and I had a midday interview with a new prospect for my English communication business. It so happened that my interview was not too far from Lasagna e Via so, I gave Tiz a call suggesting that I could actually swing by and pick up the lasagna. I made it there, dressed to impress while Pat, Tiz, and Lola (one of their employees) were busy making dough for the pasta. My eyes lit up.

Unlike last time, it was around noon and the place was hopping with customers picking up their phoned-in orders. In case I forgot to mention, Lasagna e Via is a take-out only business.

So, dangling an apron with one hand and pouring me a glass of white wine with the other, Tiziana asked if I wanted to get my hands dirty and learn to make pasta. I quickly responded “for sure!”
So, this time, as if going backwards, I was to learn how to mix the ingredients to make the dough. The process involved mixing flour and egg in a food processor. Since all eggs are not made equal, I was to use my judgment in determining if the dough was moist enough before kneading. So we kept some water in a cup nearby.

Pat instructed me to mix 300gm of flour (using a cup measure) with 3 whole eggs. I was to mix it up in the processor and then decide if additional moisture was needed. After that, I was to spread the mix on the counter and proceed to knead it out until it had a tight but soft-to-the-touch consistency. Once the ball of dough is good, we quickly store it in a plastic bag to conserve moisture. At this point, the dough can be frozen for later use. I had no idea it was this simple!


I went through several rounds of this process. I found it extremely relaxing. The kneading was a very nice stretching exercise for my writs. Pat and Lola would occasionally stop by my station to supervise, naturally, trying to abide by their quality standards and to give tried and true tips for preparing "beautiful" dough.

Once I made like 10 balls of dough, I could learn how to make tagliatelle, the short, flat spaghetti. But first, I needed to learn even more basics! Pat asked me if I’d like to make the dough from scratch without using the food processor. “Bring it on!” I thought. So, now she taught me how to make a volcano with the flour on top of the counter and then add the eggs in the middle. Then mix and knead by hand. To ensure I had the right level of moisture, I was to either add water or add a little flour. Fun stuff, indeed! I felt like a little kid with play-dough.


With all the dough ready, it was time to make pasta! Pat *strongly* suggested not using the pasta machine at all and instead roll it out using just the pin. I was up to the challenge!

Pat taught me how to do it mostly to show me the appropriate thickness for tagliatelle. By now, I was remembering an incredible dish I once had in Venice of tagliatelle with fresh crab meet, garlic and olive oil. Ahh, the possibilities when you make your own pasta!

Working and talking, I finally told them the story of the Dominican Lasagna in New York. They just chuckled as they went about their tasks.

I made several sheets of pasta, getting them ready for cutting them into the tagliatelle. We used a special pasta cutting knife (see photo) and Pat taught me, several times (I was slow on this one), how to first roll up the pasta sheet like a tube and then use the knife to cut the roll into segments of the desired width for my pasta. Pat explained to me how in old Italy, the job of being the pasta cutter was very, very important. I can see that. “What do you mean there’s no fresh pasta today?” A brief panic rushed over me.

Each segment of the rolled, already cut pasta is gently unbundled with the fingers. The end result looks like a small bird’s nest. Once unbundled, we placed each nest in a tray lined with a cloth napkin and then we covered them with another cloth napkin. Unlike ravioli, the tagliatelle needs to dry out a bit before cooking, so these guys were going to sit in the tray for a while.

As payment for my work, Pat sent me home with a *small* care package including:

• some of the pasta I just made
• bolognese sauce to-go
• frozen dough for making empanadas at home
• an assortment of fresh-out-of-the-oven empanadas (eggplant, homemade sausage, and kale with cheese)
• and of course, the tuna lasagna that I originally came for.

On the way out, Pat revealed that that the “crack” in the empanada dough are tiny bits of homemade sausage and fresh oregano.

On the ride back home the car smelled of something wonderful. I’m weak. I couldn’t wait to get home, literally…I reached for the empanadas and snarfed two of the down. I drove home happily and ready for a nap after all my hard work.

In the evening, I boiled my tagliatelle for 4 minutes and mixed it with the bolognese sauce. It was heavenly. The next evening, I tried the tuna lasagna and it was wonderful! It had a Mexican twist as the sauce had chilli peppers.

And, yes, the new prospect hired me!

Cooking Pasta Part II - Adventures in Ravioli Making

It was one of the loveliest evenings since I can remember. The specialness of this one laid in its spontaneity.

But first, a little background:

Tiziana was one of the first, and certainly most eager students who came to my yoga classes here in GDL. After class, one day, we started talking about our mutual love for food. She seemed more excited and excitable than your average GDL resident. She casually blurted out that she had been born in Bologna, Italy and came to Mexico as a young child. For work, she runs a lasagna shop with her sister Patricia.

“Lasagna, you said?” I asked and without waiting for an answer I bragged about my lasagna. We both got so excited to have this other thing in common. We agreed to exchange lasagnas. It was understood that hers was artesanal and mine was rustic.

At the start of the next yoga class, lasagnas were exchanged with relentless giddiness. I went home ate mine and loved it! Tiz explained that the pasta was made from scratch at her shop. I lamented how much I missed good Italian food since moving to GDL. Whining, I confessed my desire to learn to how to make ravioli.

“Easy!” She exclaimed. “How about you come over to the shop and my sister and I will make it happen.” I nodded with excitement. Then she added “Oh, we like to drink red wine while cooking. Is that OK with you?” By now I was ready to hug this woman and declare her my new best friend.

And so, the night came. It was a Thursday night. I like to go out on Thursday nights because of its unpretentious way of almost being the weekend. The air was festive already. The shop was small and beautifully appointed -- efficient, with clean lines, gorgeous white roses in a couple of places, and the smell of deliciousness was unquestionably the most important guest this evening.

Tiz and Patricia were hosting and two of their friends joined: Tere, a happy, energetic woman, who brought the white roses and was ready to crack some jokes, and Lorena a warm woman of wise words, thoughtful questions, and a good record as a world traveler. So, on to the business at hand: Ravioli making! I mean, look at my face in the pictures. Do I not look just so excited? Sometimes, it amazes me how little it takes to get me to this state. I like this sort of high.

Patricia was full of charm and ready to “teach” me. She handed me an official "Lasagna e Via" apron. She really meant business. Her patience and methodology told me: she’s done this a lot of times so I was eager to be learned. Oh, and don’t mess with her!

The dough had been made and ready to be rolled out. Pat kindly offered to teach me how to mix the dough but in the interest of time, we continued with what we had. First, we mixed the very simple filling:

1 tbsp of parsley
2 cups of Requesón (the Mexican version of Ricotta)
1 egg yolk
Salt and pepper to taste

Next, she introduced me to the process of prepping the dough before using the pasta machine so, she instructed me to massage it out a bit and then use the rolling pin to make the starting, albeit thick, sheet of pasta. fter that, the pasta making machine came out and I was taught to put the dough through, starting at the highest setting, cranking the handle, and continuing the process, lowering the setting until the pasta was thin enough for ravioli. We were to make two long sheets of pasta. As soon as you’re done with the first sheet, you cover it so that it doesn’t lose moisture.

For the last sheet, Tiz taught me how to stick a parsley leaf and put it through the machine and see how the leaf becomes big and thin; it looked like a cool tattoo.

Now, we’re ready to put the ravioli together. By now, wine’s been guzzled down. With everyone abuzz, the room was getting warm thanks to the laughter, my hard, happy work, and for the big pot of boiling water for the pasta to cook.

I laid out one of sheets in front of me, cut it in half, and then trimmed around the edges to make them into rectangles of the same size. One half-sheet stays on the counter and we spoon the cheese filling in little gobs leaving enough space to comfortably sew the ravioli together. This is a good time to decide on the size of each ravioli. Will it be ravioli, raviolini, or raviolocho? The one with the parsley tattoo will have to be a raviolocho.

With the bottom half-sheet all set with the filling, we evenly set the second half-sheet on top and iron out any pockects of air with our fingers. Then we use the special pasta cutter to cut while sewing the edges off leaving the familiar ridges all around.

We set the ravioli on a tray lined with a cloth napkin and then covered them with another cloth napkin. We try to minimize exposure to the air. With the water boiling, and ravioli ready, we throw them in to cook for no more than 3 minutes. By now, Tiziana was busy making the sauce:

2 cups of butter
2 tbsp chopped sage

With the ravioli out, Tiz tossed them in the butter sauce. She had already made a caeser’s salad. We sat down to eat, another bottle of wine was as necessary as the next gasp of air after so much laughter. We accompanied the pasta and salad with sausage bread as well as sausage empanadas all previously made on-site and by hand. Can you feel the love?

With food in tummy, head abuzz, and an air of teamwork satisfaction, we all agree to do this again. Like a dinner club.

Since this is an Italian feast, there has got to be a simple dessert and a memorable after dinner drink. Tiz had made poached pears with raspberry sauce. Patricia surprised us with home-made mandarin limoncello – she called it mandaretto. I called it “OH MY GOD!” That’s all I can say for now.

Check out the slide show (click on the photo to see the title, hover toward to the top to get the previous and next buttons):



I went home with care packages, a bunch of white roses, a big smile on my face, the anticipation of learning more about making pasta and perhaps meeting the ladies for a mid-day Campari sometime soon.

On the ride home, I marveled at finding Italy in Mexico -- I would’ve never imagined it. I love peculiar coincidences like these; it fed my spirit and my tummy. What else can I ask for on this fine day?

A few weeks have gone by and when I see Tiziana, a little bit of the world reveals itself to me through her mediterranean spark . Pat will forever be my pasta making teacher. She already holds a prominent place along with all my other spiritual teachers.

Cooking Pasta Part I - A Dominican Lasagna in Mexico (recipe)

After a short, stress-free day at work, I brewed myself a nice cup of chamomile and lavender tea, tuned in to NPR’s Fresh Air podcast, and whipped up a lasagna. This, I call meditation in motion.

I am not really sure how lasagna became a staple of the Dominican diet. It’s actually a staple of Dominicans in New York. From my childhood in the Dominican Republic, I recall people talking about lasagna as one of the most popular dishes at dinner parties thrown by the very rich – I had never seen nor tasted one. All I knew is that it was fancy, and therefore, a very expensive dish to make. Not too mention a bit weird, right?

In the late 70’s, as thousands of poor Dominican folks immigrated to the United States, mostly to New York, lasagna-making became accessible to everyone thanks to the easy availability of so many cooking ingredients at relatively inexpensive prices. These Dominicans were ready to bask in the grandeur of being able to afford lasagna in their newly-adopted land.

I moved to New York in the 80’s, a teenager not that interested in food though my mom made sure that she served her now world-famous lasagna frequently. Her signature lasagna is made with ground turkey and lots of fresh vegetables. Since I can remember, her lasagna is served in every special ocassion including thanksgiving, christmas, and birthdays.

So, what is a Dominican lasagna? I have no idea! A good American friend of mine used to say that any self-respecting Dominican girl in New York must be able to make a mean lasagna…he was right! My mom used to size up my brother's Dominican girlfriends by the quality of their lasagnas. Anyway, I have invented my own recipe mostly from the memory of my palate after having enjoyed them so much living under my mom’s roof.

Now that I live in Mexico and have taken up cooking as a hobby, my Dominican lasagna has caused quite a stir amongst friends and acquaintances; some have even suggested that I market it. I’m calling mine a Dominican-American lasagna because it’s influenced not only by all the versions I’ve had in the Dominican community but also by all the ones I’ve tasted in notoriously Italian neighborhoods in New York and Boston. I've also had them in Italy. In making this dish, there’s a lot of room for creativity and I really encourage experimentation.

My lasagna is definitely “rustica” and it has a sweet and hearty flavor…so without much ado, here’s the recipe (serves 4 very large or 6 medium sized portions):

Ingredients (in order of appearance):
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 large cloves of garlic diced or crushed
- ½ cup white or yellow onions
- ¼ cup celery, diced
- 3 plum tomatoes, very ripe, chopped
- 1 tbsp oregano (preferably fresh), chopped small
- 6 fresh basil leaves, chopped small
- 3 fresh sage leaves, chopped small
- 1 medium carrot, thinly sliced,
- 1 medium pear squash or chayote, cubed medium (if not available, use more carrots and zucchini)
- 1lb ground beef, lean (or turkey)
- 1 medium zucchini, cubed medium
- 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
- ½ cup of red wine (I use port)
- 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp baby capers
- Salt and pepper to taste

- Lasagna noodles – I like the Barilla 20-minutes pre-cooked noodles
- 2-3 cups of pasta sauce – I either make my own or buy a jar of Classico or Barilla Tomato Basil sauce
- 1 cup ricotta cheese (requesón in Mexico)
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese (adobera o oaxaca in Mexico)
- ½ cup parmesan cheese (cotija in Mexico)

Step 1 – Make the filling:

1. In a large sautee pan, heat up the oil then add the onion, garlic, and celery. Sautee and stir until lightly brown.



2. Add tomatoes, herbs, and some salt and pepper. Stir until tomatoes cook down and start to make a paste.



3. Add carrot and pear squash then sautee, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes.



4. Add the meat, crumbling it up with your hands but leaving some big chunks. Let it cook, stirring occasionally until it stops looking red.



5. Add the zucchini and mushrooms.



6. Add the wine, Worcestershire sauce, and capers.



7. Let the liquids simmer, stirring occasionally, until the alcohol cooks down a bit.



8. Taste the meat filling and see if you need to adjust the flavor.



9. If you plan to bake the lasagna, preheat the oven at 225°F.
   

Step 2 – Assemble it!

1. Spread the bottom of a medium-size square Pyrex dish with a little bit of pasta sauce and one teaspoon of olive oil. You can use any other type of glass dish that is safe for baking.



2. Line the bottom with a layer of noodles.



3. On top of the noodles, spread one cooking spoon full of the meat filling.



4. Evenly spread 4 heaping tablespoons of the tomato sauce.



5. With your hands, crumble up and spread 1/3 of the cup each of the ricotta and mozzarella cheeses.



6. Repeat steps 2-5 to make another layer.



7. Add the last layer of noodles.



8. Spread the more sauce of top, making sure some drops down on the side (inside) of the dish since the noodles need the moisture.



9. Add the remaining of the crumbled up cheeses.



10. Sprinkle the parmesan cheese on top.



11. If you have any meat left-over, you might want to save and use it as a base for a Bolognese-like sauce.
    

Step 3 – Bake it and eat it!

1. At this point you can cover and freeze for later or bake it now.



2. To bake, put in the oven at 425°F for 20 to 30 minutes depending on how brown the top gets. You might want to cover it at the beginning to get keep it nice and moist.



3. When done, let it sit for about 10-15 minutes to cool.



4. Serve with yummy warm bread and a side salad.



5. Enjoy!
   

If you plan to make the sauce, here’s what I do:

Ingredients:
- 3 cloves garlic, large, oven roasted then diced
- 5 basil leaves, whole
- Fresh oregano and/or rosemary to taste
- ½ medium onion, chopped
- 8 plum tomatoes, very ripe
- 2 cups of water or chicken stock
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- Salt and pepper to taste

To make the sauce:

1. Mix all the ingredients in a medium saucepan.



2. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally.



3. Boil on high to medium heat for 30 minutes.



4. Taste to see if it needs salt, pepper, and sugar.



5. If you’re pressed for time, you can mash the tomatoes down a bit while they’re cooking. I like my sauce a little chunky and watery.
   

Mexican Children Channel Madonna!

A few weeks ago, I went to a “concert ensemble” honoring Madonna at a university campus in GDL. I admit that I wasn’t sure what this was about. My best guess was that it would be an outdoor dance party with Madonna music and videos amid some cool lighting. Boy, was I wrong!

The set up was outdoors alright, but judging from the size of the stage, we were in for a real spectacle. It struck me that there was seating for roughly 200 people though the set design had more ambition than that.

The show was indeed a performance-based ensemble of Madonna’s most memorable concert performances starting back with 1989’s Blonde Ambition tour and finishing up with 2006’s Confessions. Much like Madonna’s productions, this show did not lack in props, lighting, a large number of dancers, a live orchestra, a back-up gospel-style choir, video, and all sorts of visual treats.

I assumed all the performers were college students though they all looked like junior high school students to me. I think some of the songs performed might’ve been older than the performers. What’s cool about this is that Madonna’s popularity transcends several generations and it shows. This didn’t feel like a retro-tribute; it definitely felt like it was the “now” thing to do.

So, how was the show? Well, it was pretty good. There were some major flaws in my opinion but first, let’s talk about the good stuff. I was most pleased to see men perform some of the songs, most notably Rain, Live to Tell, and Jump. It was so refreshing to see guys be so open and free with their interpretations. The sheer number of dancers and performers on stage made the concert very engaging though at times, it felt like there were more performers than audience members. By far, the most impressive feature was the flawless choreography. OK, most of it was imitated directly from Madonna’s performances but the stuff is physically demanding and requires a lot of coordination and cooperation – not an easy thing to pull off.

As for the flaws, believe it or not, the Madonnas were the worst part. There were like seven of them who performed different numbers. What was wrong? Just like the real Madonna, most of them couldn’t sing well though the biggest mistake was that these Madonnas weren’t slutty enough. Yeah, you heard me right! These girls were a little too nice. You can’t play Madonna without getting a little nasty! The brilliance behind Madonna’s performances is that you cannot take your eyes off of her. It doesn’t matter what else is going on stage, she commands your attention at all times. The costumes for these Madonnas didn’t stand out enough and the fact that they lacked in stage presence made them pretty forgettable, almost undistinguishable. There were two Madonnas that did get a lot of our attention: One of them was a little sluttier than the rest performing Vogue and the other, unfortunately, was carrying a little extra weight and wore an unflattering white body suit while dancing not very well to la Isla Bonita. That was the closing number.

What I found most strange about the whole thing is that when you get almost one hundred people on stage and most of them look similar – same skin color, same hair color, similar height, and uniform-like costumes – the show loses a lot in its visual appeal. In other words, the troupe was not diverse enough but that’s not the fault of the performers. The stage director should’ve paid more attention to that particular detail. It definitely would’ve helped the show to have the Madonnas wear some blond wigs or to be more inventive with the costuming; in the end, from a certain distance, everyone looked the same. That was a shame because obviously a lot of work went into making this.

I’m not sure what the objective of the school was in doing this as I would wager that they didn’t collect enough revenue from ticket sales to cover the production expenses. The tickets were about USD $15.00. If the goal was to showcase their modern dance program, then this was a brilliant way to present it.

As it’s the norm here in GDL, the audience didn’t feel like dancing, cheering, or screaming and, as expected, I was the loudest person in the whole concert. It was surreal to see such an elaborate upbeat spectacle take place while the audience stay put in their seats only clapping on cue. Will I ever get used to that?

Yoga en Español

I am finally working as a yoga teacher here at the local Pilates studio. I don't know if I can call it work since I don't actually get paid. I'm not authorized to work in Mexico teaching yoga so, how did I fanagle this? Hmm, I proposed them a barter deal. En Español, it's called a "trueque." It took a few tries, but basically they agreed to hire me in exchange for free pilates classes.

It's a pretty good deal since they use the high-end pilates reformer machines and the instructors are well trained. In the end, clients pay around USD $150 per month, which is a fortune here. I teach two classes per week on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8:15AM.

I love the experience since I get to practice my Spanish with Yoga, which is something that I've been wanting to do for a long time. My students are very eager and disciplined, and because they have a good pilates foundation, I can do all sorts of fun stuff with them. I am actually surprised at the good turnout and the perseverance everyone is showing. This is a blessing as I started to worry about the Yoga scene here. Part of the reason why I got hired is because there's a severe lack of teachers in the area. Someone should start a teacher training program here!

Other than the clientele being all nice and shi-shi, I'm surprised at the diversity...there as many foreigners as Mexicans. I have Brazilian, Italian, and American students. It's awesome plus when I make mistakes in Spanish, no one hardly notices. Hehehehehe.

Another good thing about this is that I can see me expanding and doing some private lessons in the area. Some clients have suggested it already but I haven't had a chance to formalize it as I'm trying to get my English teaching business off the ground. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

As for my personal Yoga practice, I do it mostly at home with free video that I downloaded from http://www.yogatoday.com/. They have excellent, 1-hour lessons in there. I also do some Yoga on my own at the gym at the risk of looking like a fool to the natives. I don't care! 8-)

That's all for now.

Cirque du Soleil - Quidam

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of seeing a live performance of Cirque du Soleil's Quidam. That is their current show now touring Mexico. They stayed in Guadalajara for about a month.

While the "circus village" set-up seemed identical to other shows I've been to, inside the big tent it definitely felt more intimate than I remember.

Quidam's tagline is "Lose Yourself." The story revolves around a young girl, Zoe, who seems disconnected from this world and is forced to dream up a new world around her. I didn't feel that the theme was terribly coherent but that could be because my seat was to the side of the stage and my view was obstructed at times. That's not to say that it wasn't an excellent show.

I love Cirque du Soleil's performances because you can really lose yourself in the mesmerizing effects of whatever is on stage. The creativity and attention to detail that go into the shows makes the expense worth every penny.

The most recent performance I saw live was "Corteo" in New York, which was, in my opinion, more ambitious in its performances and in its well-balanced use of costumes, props, music, and humor. Quidam felt less ambitious in comparison and the case may be that the show was probably trimmed down here in Mexico. I felt that they didn't have as many "overhead and hanging from the ceiling" types of acts.

In terms of the numbers featured, I tend to favor the ones where great physical strength and flexibility are primarily showcased. We had a few of those and it left me hungry for more. I particularly enjoyed "Statue - Vis Versa", featuring a couple who seemed to defy every law of physics with their act. I was really taken by the hypnotic power of the visuals. Another favorite, called "Contortion", featured a young woman contorting around and traveling up and down a long red swath of fabric hanging from the ceiling. Lastly, in "Handbalancing", a woman performed a set balancing acts around the stage using some interesting sticks.




Part of the reason I enjoy acts of great physical feat is because I can often see, step by step, how you can put together some basic Yoga poses to get your body to do amazing things. In the case of Cirque du Soleil, the simplicity and beauty of these numbers speak highly to both the discipline and sense of play that is necessary to make their act fresh and appealing to audiences worldwide.

On the funny side of performances, I enjoyed a couple of numbers in which one of the clowns pulls in audience members and have them participate on some hilarious games, all done with silent directions. This stuff was hysterical. Also, another sort of light and happy number involved a large number of performers jumping rope and trying all sorts of configurations, many of them perfectly synchronized.

I spotted several mistakes, most notably in "Diabolos" when a set of 4 adorable Chinese girls balanced and juggled their prop on a string. Nevertheless, you can see how hard these girls seem to work to make it look easy. I was also disappointed in the music. It wasn't up-tempo enough for my taste.

Despite its minor flaws, I've yet to see any other performance-based show that comes close to Cirque du Soleil's. I will gladly go back for more!

The show lasted about 3 hours including a 30 minute intermission.

Car Racing in Toluca

It was a perfect Saturday morning in Toluca. It started really early for me, around 5AM. To get to Toluca, we hopped on a chartered jet from GDL for the 50-minute flight.

Toluca, the capital of the state of Mexico, is an up-and-coming city about 1 hour’s drive from Mexico City. The area is surrounded by beautiful green mountains, and more famously, Toluca is home to the Nevado volcano, aptly named after the snow covering it. From the feel of it, Toluca has the perfect weather conditions. There was no time to explore though. The trip was a one day jaunt with fun things to do.

The occasion?

The SAAB dealership in GDL, where I usually take Sam, was part of an event hosted by General Motors to showcase the 2008 models of their line of sporty cars. This event took place at a car racetrack and they promised a day of fun.

I, however, felt slightly skeptical imagining that we’d be cornered on the plane by eager salespeople and that during the event they would try to get to yes before the end of the day. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case. It truly was a fun day with no arm-twisting pitches to get you to buy a new car.

From the airport, the Pegaso racetrack was a 15-minute bus drive away. Upon arrival, we registered and went in a big tent where we had to listen to the only sales pitch of the day. It was actually interesting and quite exciting to hear the head of the GM luxury line in Mexico talk about all that is in store for the future. The speech was short and sweet and we were introduced to the SAAB Performance Team – three pilots flown in from Sweden who would be performing some cool stunts for us in what they swore were “normal” SAAB 9-3’s. Imagine that being your job…bring it on, I say!

The show was spectacular! I have no desire to pull any of those stunts in my car but I guess my testosterone kicked into high gear. I might’ve also been the loudest person in the entire racetrack as Mexicans are so, so reserved. Imagine me. Loud. Hooting and hollering at some Swedish pilots. Sigh.

One of the most impressive stunts was when they set up a short metal ramp in the middle of the track. The pilot drove up the ramp so that one set of wheels (on the side) was on the ground and the other set up the ramp. From there the car stayed on its side wheels for what seemed to me like *forever*. Yup, he went 300 meters like that and on his way back, his co-pilot crawled out the window (on the up side) to stand up holding a Mexican flag. By now, I wasn’t the only one cheering. It was really very cool.

After the show, we were treated to a free, fast-food style lunch of burgers and fries. After lunch, we stood in line for like 30 minutes to get to drive one of the cars around the track. This was also a lot of fun since people drove in packs of five cars, lead by a professional pilot in the front car who gave us instructions via a radio system wired into the car. The most exciting part was keeping up with the rest of the pack as not to fall behind. There were some tricky curves, by the way.

As many of my friends know, it doesn’t take much for me to have a good time. So what else was in store? Well, they also had demos of Segway Personal Transporters. That was also so much fun! They gave us a quick tutorial and off we went! I actually found the ride on the Segway quite relaxing, probably because the perfect weather and beautiful sorroundings. To kill time until the flight back home, I went for several rides on the Segway getting to test drive the different models they had…one of them seemed perfect for rough terrains. I later found out that GM and Segway have some sort of future joint development deal.

The return home was uneventful and they treated us to unlimited drinks on the flight. Everyone seemed charged up from the excitement of the day and all shyness went away as the flight attendants rolled by their fully stocked carts. I settled on vodka and grapefruit soda. It was lovely!

Apart from all the fun, the best part of the trip not being hassled to buy a USD $40K car just like that! They haven’t called to follow up either. OK, I’m happy about that BUT, how are they going to recoup the expense of this event? Maybe a little prodding would be OK, after all. I almost feel guilty for having gotten something as cool as this for FREE????

Touched by Angélique

Angélique Kidjo. That’s her name. I can’t quite remember how I came across her but it was a few years back when she released her breakthrough album for the American public, the Brazilian-inspired Black Ivory Soul. For many years, the singer has been at the forefront of the world music movement with her work staying true to the “world” part of the genre.

Much to my surprise, Ms. Kidjo scheduled concerts in Mexico as part of the promotional tour for her latest production, Djin Djin. One of the stops included GDL and I just had to be there. It would be my first time seeing her live. I had never even seen her on video before…just her music and a few photos.

The concert was this past Tuesday.

Angélique’s gift to the world is her ability to create various, often collaborative, fusions which always remain true to her African roots. Born in the nation of Benin in western Africa, but living in Paris since 1980, most of her songs are in her native Yoruba language with the occasional song in French or English.

Her repertoire, heavy in drums and percussion, blends traditional African rhythms with new world creations such as jazz, R&B, funk, salsa, merengue, calypso, reggae and others. Her genius is that she’s traveled the world making these new sounds her own only to intricately weave them back into the sounds of the old motherland. It’s a match made in heaven! Or perhaps a match that was always meant to be. The end result is a sound so universal that it transcends linguistic, racial, and geographical boundaries.

Wearing her hair short and platinum blonde, dressed in a cropped, shiny red jacket and a pair of humorous mariachi pants, the pint-sized beauty took to the stage like a fireball bouncing ablaze every which way. You can’t help but marvel at an energy so mesmerizing and disarming. Early into the show, she introduced us to what I imagine is her favorite dance move: a shoulder shimmy (performed with her back to the audience) so fluid that her entire back rippled like a waves in motion. You could hear the collective gasp in the audience.

Angélique’s voice, an instrument in itself, reaches high notes while never losing the velvety quality of her lower registers. She possesses the lyrical, vocal, and musical talents of any world-class diva out there but her sheer brilliance lies in her authenticity – a humanity so unstoppable that in my eyes, right then and there, she became simply ethereal.

After a few songs, it was time for a change of costume, giving the band a chance to showcase their individual talents. The percussionist, originally from Senegal, had all sorts of interesting instruments and toys. It was fascinating to watch him maneuver each of them with great ease. There was also a Brazilian acoustic guitar player, a guy from Guadeloupe on bass, another guy from South Africa on the electric guitar, and finally, a drummer from Suriname. There you have it, world music in the making.

Though all the songs were up-tempo, the audience stayed put in their seats bobbing their heads here and there. I too, stayed put, shimmying my shoulders and tapping my feet wishing someone would do something about the situation. Thankfully, after a particularly contagious salsa-inspired number, dumbfounded, the artist asked why everyone was still in their seats. She said: “Don’t tell me that’s how you dance the salsa here in Mexico? I don’t believe it!”

She swiftly transitioned to “Afirika”, an emblematic tribute to her land – any land really – and with the wave of one hand she motioned the audience to get up and dance. Just as quickly, the crowd stood up and willingly made their way to the front of the stage. Ladies and gentlemen, the party has finally started! She then did something I had secretly wished she would do, yes, she got off the stage and danced her way up and down the aisles and around to the other side of the stage all along drawing a trail of dancey audience members following her everywhere she went. That’s when she invited everyone to jump on stage and party on with her. You had to be there to witness this impromptu moment of bliss.

The crowd was beautiful, diverse in so many ways – age, skin color, ability to dance gracefully. These people didn't look at all like the ones at the start of the show. Did they just get bussed in from Party Central? I stayed in my assigned seat area but looking on to the stage, it became clear that we were treated to a visual rendition of the message behind Angélique’s music. I just loved the spontaneity of it all. With the music -- and the people adding color to it -- Angélique’s message of joy, love of nature, and unwavering courage became a multi-dimensional collage of undeniable significance.

As the show wound down, I imagined Angélique as the best friend who left the small village a long time ago to explore the world at large only to come back later and recount her experiences in such a vivid and magical way that I felt like I had been part of the journey all along -- her stories, a gift; her courage, a source of inspiration to those who stayed safely behind.

In my trance, I found great comfort reconnecting to my roots. My Afro-Dominican-American-Hip-Shaking-Foot-Dragging-Multi-Inmigrant-Bilingual self felt in complete and utter balance. My thanks to Angélique or to the party she started, for that!

Did I find any flaws in the show? Well, actually, yes…the show was too darn short. By the time she finished with her second encore, the crowd was still begging for more. It had been a grand spectacle delivered in the most deceivingly simple of ways.

While fiercely original, I couldn’t help but draw comparisons between Angélique’s work and that of other influential and highly original performers before her. Specifically, Angélique’s body of work and stage persona evoke the arresting spunk of James Brown, the nostalgic earthliness of Ms. Miriam Makeba, and the unapologetic exuberance of the ever-so-iconic Celia Cruz.

Days later, as I write this piece, I’m still abuzz with joy and wonderment. The party continues inside.

For more information on the singer, check out her website.

I, Entrepreneur

It’s hard to believe I’ve been in GDL for six months already. To celebrate my half-year anniversary of moving here, I get to go the Customs office at the airport to extend the permit for Samantha (my car). I’m kind of bracing for that one…’nuff said!

The week after I arrived here, I landed a job teaching English. This has been a great start for me to get to know the types of students here and also to familiarize myself with the business environment. The environment is practically the same as corporate anywhere but with a bit of a Mexican twist. Yes, it’s been challenging at times to get used to the casual, seemingly consensual treatment of time and tardiness. I’ve always been uptight about that so, I have plenty of ground to work off my impatience.

But as many of you know, I came with the purpose of opening my own business here, so it’s important that I learn up front many of the pluses and minuses of starting a new venture. I thought I’d give you an update so, here it goes:

The guiding principle behind my business idea is to create a center for the improvement of English skills for individuals who have graduated from a traditional institute but who lack the confidence to communicate in English – with speaking and listening being major challenges for Mexican learners. My target client is the quintessential corporate go-getter who sees excellent English communication skills as a competitive advantage.

In my current job, I go to different companies, most of them American or German to teach on the premises. It’s alright though I have to follow a curriculum that mostly lacks context and the students are often isolated from using English in the real world.

So, I’ve used this time for doing my hands-on market research and then refining my business idea to offer a set of services that would stand out from the traditional approach used in teaching English here.

The first thing I’ve done is start a blog to coach my students through managing their learning strategy. By focusing on a learning strategy, I challenge my students to take responsibility for their learning outside of the classroom and to learn to articulate their specific needs for more effective language acquisition. A lot of my ideas date back to when I was learning English when I was a teenager in the DR. Anyway, check out my blog at:


{ English Communication Arts }




The other thing I did was start marketing myself a bit, so I now I have a corporate image after having created my logo and some business cards. The logo is a silhouette of an archer shooting up to the sky…get it? I call him “little man” though I gave him a very spiritual name of Saraha that I picked up from one of my Tantra books -- I don't intend to use that name in any of my marketing...it's just a private pet name of sorts. Anyway, I’m also excited because in a couple of weeks I will conduct the first Conversation Club meeting at a cool café in a neighborhood full of high-tech companies.

I have also hired a lawyer to legalize my business entity and also to legalize my visa so that I can work independently and pay taxes. Looking forward to that! Yay!

It looks like by the end of this year, all my papers will be in order and I can then really market my services. It is unclear at this point on whether I will be opening an actual office or just go visit my clients at work. Most likely, I will start out renting space by the hour to conduct some special activities until I build a solid clientele. Obviously, I have a lot of choices and challenges and I’m simply thrilled to be involved in all of it.

That’s the update on my entrepreneurial pursuits. Stay tuned for more. Peace.

The $8,000 Elevator

I've had my car for 4 years now and it's in great condition though it had accumulated some pretty unsightly pings and dings, most of them my fault. As most of my friends know, I'm kind of good about taking care of my car. That is, I take it for scheduled maintenance on time.

OK, so last month, I decided to spend a bunch of money to get the car detailed inside-out and alas the car looks great...like new! Fabulous!

Last week, on a hot afternoon, returning home from work, the electric passenger window started acting up and I certainly messed with it enough until it stopped working altogether. I, of course, ran to the local SAAB dealer...they looked at it, and told me that it would cost me MXN $8,000 (about $800 USD) to get the whole elevator replaced since, for some strange reason, they couldn't just replace the small plastic piece that had broken off. Oh dear, I thought. And since I'm nuts, I also thought, oh sh*t, this has got to get fixed...RIGHT NOW...I CAN'T LIVE WITH THE WINDOW LIKE THISSSSSSS!!!!

BUT this is Mexico, right? So the customer service rep tells me, with a wink "Why don't you take it elsewhere? And who knows? Maybe they can fix it for cheaper..."

I wondered how much cheaper? Half the price? Certainly good enough for me.

I called Chava and he told me that in Guadalajara there's a whole district of shops where you can get car parts for cheap. The parts mostly come from stolen cars. I felt a little cringe but again, it was a small plastic part, probably made in China. The wave of guilt left me as soon as it came and I promptly said "Yes, let's do it!"

On Saturday morning we drove out to "the district". I was frightened by most of the sights - wild dogs, bandidos, the ever-present taco stand, dirt everywhere, the shops were shacks with rusty car parts hanging everywhere! Oh, and there was this street vendor who tried to talk me into buying a pair of binoculars...with night vision. Actually, the whole thing reminded me a bit of the South Bronx but with carnies, if I really used my imagination. I said to myself "OK, Cris now you really are in Mexico!"...and "Thank God for Chava!". He even knew where to go, a place called "El Chino."

Anyway, someone was able to help us quickly, as in zero wait, the work was done right there on the sidewalk. The staff was polite, professional and efficient; better yet, I had a new *metal* piece (which presumably lasts a long long time) installed in less than a half hour. The cost? MXN $600 (like sixty green ones!). Hell yeah! Unbelievable, right? This must've been one of the most memorable Saturday mornings I can remember, not counting this one time I was really hungover in Vegas. One time? I digress...this time, I was just shocked and full of glee.

With the leftover money, we headed to Teatro Diana and bought unbelievably cheap tickets for RENT. We also ate a nice lunch, bought floor tiles for the yard, then went to the movies...we didn't even come close to spending USD $100 for the whole day. Holy cow!

As for the guilt...well, I just have to accept that I'm in Mexico and I ain't gonna change it!

Cocktails in the garden...

So, we have this tiny patch of a yard in the new house. Though I know nothing from gardening, I've always had an inner desire to grow something someday. After being in the house for a couple of months, we finally went about "doing something" in the yard. We're talking 1.5x3' of space for this future great garden of ours.

Next, we needed to get some plants. I figured anything would grow here, really. The soil seems rich, it's sunny (though we covered some of the space to have some shade) and best of all, I swear, it rains here everyday -- even if it's for 2 minutes, it rains pretty darn frequently. Yay! I guess I probably woulnd't be the only one celebrating such optimal conditions. Oh oh.

Instead of buying plants and seeds at the nursery, we simply begged friends and family to give us anything from their (mostly overgrown) gardens. We got enough variety of plants to fill at least 3 times the space we had but, we figured perhaps not everything would survive.

Well, everything did survive, the plants took on to the soil and soon thereafter did the SLUGS! They found a cozy home with plenty variety to feed on. It's like an all-inclusive, outdoor vegetarian buffet in the tropics. What's next? A bonfire and a drumming circle? No wonder there are so many of them living with us!

We weren't sure which particular pest was feasting here until like a week of stalking the area to see what was munching on everything. Indeed they were slugs -- elusive, sneaky, slimy...and ready for a party!!!

Not knowing what to do and especially not wanting to use pesticides, I ran to the oracle that is the Internet to find a homemade solution. I ended up finding instructions for a homemade slug trap...one that uses beer as an enticement. All the slugs need on their holiday was literally a beer garden. I didn't quite believe it but it was an easy and cheap solution that would take me less than 5 minutes to implement.

By God, it works! It works really really well. Come early evening, the slugs can't resist the sweet smell of beer in our lovely garden. They take a hypnotic stroll to the trap which consists of a buried plastic container, lidded, with some holes for easy entry. Once they make the journey to the pool of beer, they simply dip in, and as I understand it, get anesthesized by the alcohol. I can't think of a better way to die...in the garden, at a nice time of the day, drowned in beer.

That't not to say that there are no more slugs. They seem to reproduce faster than dying from drunkenesss but, this is a great start. I'm very optimistic! We catch an average of two slugs per night but I'm thinking of installing some additional "cocktail lounges" in the garden.

For those interested in how this trap works, check out one of my sources here:

Sustainable Garden Tips

Also here are some pictures of the trap I made with a medium-sized yogurt container:

Who knows, you might find homemade solutions for any pests in your life. I'm definitely turned on by the idea of using (semi) natural ways to deal with problems like these. I'll tell you later about this garlic-chile spray I've been using.

Good luck if you're a gardener, if not, heck, just think how great the Internet is.