Experiencing the REAL Mexico
Our family had a great experience last night! We were invited by Gerardo, an employee of MAF here in Mexico, to his home for comida. Comida here is basically dinner, usually at 4 p.m. or so, and it can be anything from a full meal to soup and tortillas. It was just so cool to see and experience what a typical Oaxacan family really lives like - we don't see much of that here in the city, but when you get out into the surrounding areas, you realize that you really aren't in Kansas anymore!
Gerardo lives with his wife, two daughters, his in-laws and dozens of cousins, aunts, grandmas, and uncles. They live in town but their plot is its own little farm with chickens, turkeys, ducks, goats, parrots, and two bulls to pull their cart. They live simply but so richly, with all the family members sharing in each other's lives and pitching in with the chores. Rather than one house, they have several small buildings or covered areas that house different rooms -a kitchen/dining room, bedrooms, an open-air bathroom and shower, dish and laundry washing area...
When we arrived, Gerardo quickly served us up cups of his homemade nieve de coco, an ice cream-type treat, this one flavored with large chunks of fresh coconut. When Gerardo isn't working at MAF fueling and loading planes or operating the radio, he makes up a batch of his nieve and rides around town on his little bike cart selling it. It was very tasty! We watched him whip up a small batch when a neighbor came by for some - it is similar to how we would make our own homemade ice-cream: a large bucket holds ice and water and he uses a smaller, metal bucket to put his ingredients into and then spins the metal bucket around with his hand. He said it usually takes about thirty minutes to make one pail. I wondered to myself what he would think of our electric ice cream makers back home!
Our dinner wasn't near ready, so we all sat around beneath the shade of a pomegranate tree to talk. (Our dinner was in a large clay pot, simmering over a fire.) Brooklyn immediately went chasing the ducks with the other kids and Maddie followed the turkeys around the yard with happy giggles! We met an aunt who is just visiting for a few days - she works as a maid in two fancy casino hotels in Las Vegas. We discussed farming with the patriarch of the family, who proudly showed Sean his stock - large bulls (tied by their noses to the roof of a shed!) turkeys and chickens and goats, all kept behind a fence made of miscellaneous scraps of wood, tin, and mattress springs. Grandpa ties those bulls up to his two-wheeled cart and drives out of town to their little plot of land (called a milpa) where they grow corn completely organically - they discovered that adding chemicals was doing damage to both the land and their bodies. They don't have a well on their land, so they are nervous and anxious as they wait for the rains to start so that the already-planted corn will grow. (Last year at this time, the corn was already a couple of feet tall. The rain has been slow in coming this year.) The corn is used to make corn tortillas and to feed the animals (who will one day feed the family).
We were amazed at how self-sufficient this little farm was. They literally grow or raise all the food they need. Of course, on occasion, they do go to the market for the things they can't grow, but they don't make weekly (or sometimes bi-weekly) trips to the store for everything like we do! They had a huge mango tree, a grapefruit tree, a pomegranate tree, chili plants, and I'm sure many other trees and plants that produce treats for the family.
While Grandma and Grandpa relaxed and told us about their life, Gerardo's wife was cooking our dinner, washing the dishes, and pulling dried laundry off the lines - they do have a washing machine, which I'm sure she is grateful for! Gerardo was busily making some nieve for their neighbor. When we went into the kitchen/dining area to eat, we shared in more laughter and conversation. Our dinner was similar to a stew - with large slabs of bistek (beef steak) and sliced potatoes - served with tortillas (homemade from their own corn, of course), avocados, and freshly-picked chilies for anybody that dared (I didn't, Sean did.)
It was a tasty meal and I marveled as Grandma explained the process of taking the corn from the field and turning it into the tortillas that they eat with every meal. They also buy raw cocoa beans, cook and shell them themselves, and then take them to a mill to grind. After adding sugar and cinnamon, they have their own, all-natural hot cocoa! They gave us a bag to take home with us....and it was the best stuff we've ever tasted (and we've had some good hot cocoa here in Oaxaca.)
We talked about everything from farming, to food, to politics (they wondered what we think of Barak Obama and also about the teacher strikes happening in Oaxaca right now - touchy subjects!) It started to rain hard and Grandpa hurried off to cover his wooden cart so it didn't get too soggy. Pretty soon, the turkeys and chickens escaped and Grandma chased them around the farm yard in the rain! I tried to help, but Grandma didn't really need my help :-)
Our girls played and wandered around with the biggest grins! They aren't used to all those animals, and they both loved it! When it came time to leave, Brooklyn was quite upset. She wasn't quite done torturing those poor baby ducklings! We left feeling warm, humbled, loved, and welcomed. I don't think I've ever felt so comfortable and welcomed as I felt sitting in that humble farmyard discussing the proper raising of turkeys. Such a humbling and incredible experience! Wish you could have been there!
(Sorry, no pictures. We forgot the camera. And we were too busy enjoying ourselves to take pictures anyway.)
Gerardo lives with his wife, two daughters, his in-laws and dozens of cousins, aunts, grandmas, and uncles. They live in town but their plot is its own little farm with chickens, turkeys, ducks, goats, parrots, and two bulls to pull their cart. They live simply but so richly, with all the family members sharing in each other's lives and pitching in with the chores. Rather than one house, they have several small buildings or covered areas that house different rooms -a kitchen/dining room, bedrooms, an open-air bathroom and shower, dish and laundry washing area...
When we arrived, Gerardo quickly served us up cups of his homemade nieve de coco, an ice cream-type treat, this one flavored with large chunks of fresh coconut. When Gerardo isn't working at MAF fueling and loading planes or operating the radio, he makes up a batch of his nieve and rides around town on his little bike cart selling it. It was very tasty! We watched him whip up a small batch when a neighbor came by for some - it is similar to how we would make our own homemade ice-cream: a large bucket holds ice and water and he uses a smaller, metal bucket to put his ingredients into and then spins the metal bucket around with his hand. He said it usually takes about thirty minutes to make one pail. I wondered to myself what he would think of our electric ice cream makers back home!
Our dinner wasn't near ready, so we all sat around beneath the shade of a pomegranate tree to talk. (Our dinner was in a large clay pot, simmering over a fire.) Brooklyn immediately went chasing the ducks with the other kids and Maddie followed the turkeys around the yard with happy giggles! We met an aunt who is just visiting for a few days - she works as a maid in two fancy casino hotels in Las Vegas. We discussed farming with the patriarch of the family, who proudly showed Sean his stock - large bulls (tied by their noses to the roof of a shed!) turkeys and chickens and goats, all kept behind a fence made of miscellaneous scraps of wood, tin, and mattress springs. Grandpa ties those bulls up to his two-wheeled cart and drives out of town to their little plot of land (called a milpa) where they grow corn completely organically - they discovered that adding chemicals was doing damage to both the land and their bodies. They don't have a well on their land, so they are nervous and anxious as they wait for the rains to start so that the already-planted corn will grow. (Last year at this time, the corn was already a couple of feet tall. The rain has been slow in coming this year.) The corn is used to make corn tortillas and to feed the animals (who will one day feed the family).
We were amazed at how self-sufficient this little farm was. They literally grow or raise all the food they need. Of course, on occasion, they do go to the market for the things they can't grow, but they don't make weekly (or sometimes bi-weekly) trips to the store for everything like we do! They had a huge mango tree, a grapefruit tree, a pomegranate tree, chili plants, and I'm sure many other trees and plants that produce treats for the family.
While Grandma and Grandpa relaxed and told us about their life, Gerardo's wife was cooking our dinner, washing the dishes, and pulling dried laundry off the lines - they do have a washing machine, which I'm sure she is grateful for! Gerardo was busily making some nieve for their neighbor. When we went into the kitchen/dining area to eat, we shared in more laughter and conversation. Our dinner was similar to a stew - with large slabs of bistek (beef steak) and sliced potatoes - served with tortillas (homemade from their own corn, of course), avocados, and freshly-picked chilies for anybody that dared (I didn't, Sean did.)
It was a tasty meal and I marveled as Grandma explained the process of taking the corn from the field and turning it into the tortillas that they eat with every meal. They also buy raw cocoa beans, cook and shell them themselves, and then take them to a mill to grind. After adding sugar and cinnamon, they have their own, all-natural hot cocoa! They gave us a bag to take home with us....and it was the best stuff we've ever tasted (and we've had some good hot cocoa here in Oaxaca.)
We talked about everything from farming, to food, to politics (they wondered what we think of Barak Obama and also about the teacher strikes happening in Oaxaca right now - touchy subjects!) It started to rain hard and Grandpa hurried off to cover his wooden cart so it didn't get too soggy. Pretty soon, the turkeys and chickens escaped and Grandma chased them around the farm yard in the rain! I tried to help, but Grandma didn't really need my help :-)
Our girls played and wandered around with the biggest grins! They aren't used to all those animals, and they both loved it! When it came time to leave, Brooklyn was quite upset. She wasn't quite done torturing those poor baby ducklings! We left feeling warm, humbled, loved, and welcomed. I don't think I've ever felt so comfortable and welcomed as I felt sitting in that humble farmyard discussing the proper raising of turkeys. Such a humbling and incredible experience! Wish you could have been there!
(Sorry, no pictures. We forgot the camera. And we were too busy enjoying ourselves to take pictures anyway.)
Oooooh, sounds like something from a novel. I would LOVE to experience something like that, I'm so glad you did!!! I say we all sell are belongings and move to the farm with Mom and Dad. Mom's already got her Amish dress and is wanting some chickens, and I bet I could trade the Pontiac for a milk cow and a couple of turkeys. Or, I could just keep dreaming. I do long for the simpler life! How wonderful that you got a taste of that! Love you all.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a plan to me!! Do you think, though, that we might have a hard time convincing our husbands that this would be FUN? Ah, but we know the little ones would have fun...though the animals might die off rather quickly from over-cuddling :-)
ReplyDelete