Rain, Tacos, Potatoes, and a Thoughtful Farewell

We had a soggy weekend. So soggy, the President of the Vallarta Garden Club, Sunny Rossi, canceled the outdoor concert on the Isla Cuale starring Angeloo. There is a chance it may be rescheduled; I’ll let you know.

I met my dear friend Brian Bott for mango smoothies last Friday. He put together the most thoughtful travel care package for me to take to Europe, including a small notebook and a pen, as he knows I am not taking my computer. A funny gift centered around mangos with an even funnier card that I cannot take a picture of, fearing that some people would be possibly offended by but let’s just say it looked like a wedding invitation – gold italic writing on heavy bond; I will keep it forever!

Read Richard Coleman’s debut article this morning in Vallarta Mirror. His short stories about walking around different cities in Mexico captured my attention and I hope they will capture yours. He recreates those small idiosyncratic moments that make Mexico so special.

I left my house Saturday a bit before 5 pm to meet Georgia Darehshori for food and chatter at Tacos Now. She had never been, and I needed a baked potato fix. By the time I hit the first bridge crossing the Rio Cuale, it started to rain; by the time I was halfway across, out came the umbrella. (Just a note here: the wooden planks on these two bridges are slick when wet, so tread carefully.)

While I waited for Georgia, the lights went out and stayed out for about an hour. I figured the spuds would be precooked somewhat at least, so did not anticipate problemitas. Ugh!

We settled for tacos – Georgia, the pork, Madeline Milne highly recommended from our trip to Tacos Now last week. And me, the vegetarian. I was surprised at how good it was; the tortillas were made in-house and delish!

Then, the power came back on, and we continued to feast on those massive Russet potatoes that lend themselves to be baked to perfection. Have you ever eaten potatoes as a kid that were cooked buried under a bonfire? Remember gingerly pulling away the scalding hot tin foil and braving the tiny missed pieces hitting the silver fillings in your teeth and then biting through that smoldering blackened skin to the inside? Oh boy, I just had a moment. Anyway, this is as close to that as it comes. Clearly, I am a fan.

I have been sewing like a maniac this past week, trying to make the backlog of purchases from the tianguis into wearable clothes. So today I will go to La Perlita to buy more elastic, then go to Tel Cel and give them some money, and then I will have a facial. I know most women do these as a rule, but I have had exactly one in my life, so I am looking forward to seeing what is involved. You’ll know that answer tomorrow morning too.