Independence Day in Mexico

The Viva la Musica! concert on Thursday was an opera, Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love. They used a piano for accompaniment, but otherwise it was a full scale production with a chorus of about 60. The 5 principal singers were all very competent and the soprano had an outstanding voice. She was Hungarian, but is married to the man (also a tenor) who was the conductor. It is amazing what cultural events are available here. Of course, all those in the opera are from Guadalajara, which has a full array of classical and cultural organizations and artists.

This is a big week of festivities in Mexico. Sept. 16th is Independence Day and the culmination. However, there have been events every weekend since the beginning of the month. Yesterday, in Ajijic was the hot air balloon festival (I have a description and some photos in my blog last year in September). This year we took the girls from LIA, but when one of the tissue paper balloons caught fire (as many do), Fatima was frightened and started crying. Dariana then followed suit. Dareli was unworried and took it in stride. However, we left almost immediately. Today, there was a big Mexican rodeo in the bull ring and this evening, the women parade around the plaza in traditional costumes. On Tuesday night at 11 p.m. here in Ajijic and in virtually every town and city in Mexico, mayors and officials reenact the ‘grito’. This was the call by Father Hildago in 1810 to rise up and fight the Spanish for independence. It was mostly Indians who responded. A few months, after some successes, Hildago was captured, tried and executed by the Spanish. However, others took up the cause and eventually independence was achieved in 1820. Hildago and another priest Moreles, who took up the cause and was also captured and executed, were excommunicated by the Catholic Church, but have remained the great heroes of Mexican independence. Just recently, the Catholic Church has been investigating whether or not the excommunications were valid and if they should be reinstated (like Gallileo and a couple of others). Critics here are calling it opportunistic as major bicentennial celebrations are being planned for 2010 (it will also be the centennary of the start of the Mexican Revolution in 1910). Anyway, the Church did not want to be left out it seems. After the reenactment of the ‘Grito’ at 11 p.m. on the 15th, there are fireworks and the partying goes on for many hours.

The mention of Moreles brings up another point. Subsequently, one of the oldest colonial cities in Mexico (founded in the late 16th C) was renamed Morelia in his honour. It is the capital of Michoacan, the state directly south of us here in Jalisco. A major part of the city center remains with the outstanding Spanish colonial architecture of the 17th to 19th C intact. It has been declared a World Cultural Heritage site. Viva la Musica! has arranged a 4 day trip to an international classical music festival at the end of November. With Jack and Kate, we thought that we would like to go, but by the time we got a line on someone to housesit with the dogs, the places have been spoken for. Unless there are some cancellations, we won’t be going. However, I shall keep an eye out for other tours going there. Everyone who has been to Morelia is vociferous in raving about it.

Much of the construction of Barb’s pergola is finished. As usual, they build things to last! The main posts are 5 inch square steel beams. They are anchored in concrete blocks over 2 feet square and more than 30 inches deep; then on top over the entire area is a concrete slab 6-8 inches thick with mortar and flagstones another 3 inches on top of that. There is other work of concrete and tiles out about 2 feet under the veranda where the washing machine and water heater are located. We have also decided to have Jose Luis and his men go ahead with installing an irrigation system. Barb needed to spend over 2 hours, 3 times a week just to water the flower beds. She was becoming a slave to the garden. We did get a really good rain (over 1 inch) on Thursday night. It has been a very dry rainy season. The construction phase always has things a bit disrupted, but Jose Luis always ensures that the job is done well and very inexpensive compared to what it would cost north of the border.