Mexico City and Culiacan

On Saturday, Alberto and I went to the Saturday Market, a small art and craft market in San Angel. I tried to bargain with some of the vendors, but I think there were too many foreigners there--they wouldn't bargain at all. Except one. There was a fellow selling very simple bunny handpuppets on the street. I got him down from 60 pesos to 45 (13 pesos to the dollar right now). I also made him laugh. Later, on the metro home, I was across from a little girl and next to a little boy. The bunny came out and made them laugh as well. Soy una gringa loca!

Before we went to the market, I had a bowl of traditional hot chocolate with an anise bun. Yum. At lunch I had mole poblano enchiladas. Mole is a spicy dark chocolate sauce. Delicious and intense.

Here's a quiet little courtyard near the market:

After the market, we toured a former convent nearby. The best part were the mummies in the crypt! 19th century, I think.

On Sunday, I went to the Jardin des Artes de Sullivan, where Angel and Victor host a weekly storytelling performance. It's a lovely spot in a Sunday art fair, shady and pleasant. The featured teller told The Red Shoes and some other stories, with enthusiastic participation from the audience. Then Victor's brother Enrique told, and then Victor invited me to tell. I did The Ghost with the One Black Eye, in part because I knew Angel knew the story and would translate it well. She did.

I went back to the hotel, then on to the airport for my two-hour flight to Culiacan. Susan, the English teacher who picked me up, suggested I have the local style of taco for supper, at a place down the street from the hotel. Delicious!

Culiacan is "a big ranch," according to Edgar, the English coordinator. It's across from Baja California, and has wide streets and a colonial feel to it.
I told stories at Instituto Senda to two groups of kids, third and fourth grade. It was a bit of a media circus--three newspapers sent reporters and photographers. After the performances, Edgar drove me to the Botanical Gardens, though first I had a bite to eat at Miro Cafe across the street (chilaquiles, mmm).

This funny sign was in the gardens. Look closely at the message in red.




It was hot in Culiacan. I was a bit relieved to get back to the airport in the afternoon, to cool off! Back I went to Mexico City that night. Oh, and after Dina (the second tour manager) picked me up, we went to have hot chocolate and churros at a special churreria around the corner from the hotel, El Moro.