Janet Lowe

The Virgin of Guadalupe

Thursday, after lunch on the beach, I decided to visit the celebrations underway of the Virgin. First I visited a shop on Ave 30 and Calle 6 dedicated solely to her cause. There were statues of every size, color and material, candles of at least 16 colors and others in cans, cups and vases, paper flowers, ribbons, etc. From there I climbed on a public bus, called a colectivo, and rode north into the Colosio, the working class part of town beyond the tourists. At Calle 60 I saw more shops and the church dedicated to the Virgin. People walk, crawl, ride bikes or motor scooters, get there however they can to celebrate at midnight Thursday, as Friday is the official cumpleaños. I saw boys behind decorated vans with music blaring, a bike procession, a group of motor cycles with banners flying, and many children being decked out in traditional garb near the church.  The next morning as I sat quietly in yoga class, fireworks continued to explode.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Last Friday was the national day for celebrating the Virgin of Guadalupe, the saint of Mexico. Children dressed in traditional worker costumes (and a few others) walked the pedestrian roadway in Playa del Carmen carrying balloons decorated with the Virgin and singing Christmas songs. 

We were on our way to the Tequila Barrel where we joined Santa celebrating the coming season of generosity by asking for donations to Angel Notion, a clinic for low income people in the northern part of town. (www.angelnotion.com)  They have accompanied and financed children on trips to the US and Mexico City for surgeries, run the only pre-natal clinic in Playa, operate a Diabetes testing and education session every Friday, and offer both traditional and modern medical care for the community at very reasonable rates.

Valladolid, on the return to Playa del Carmen

I spent time Monday morning meditating and doing yoga on our front deck in the sun and walked the neighborhood photographing more “doorways of Merida.” We called the property management company about 10 am to say we were ready to leave and they arrived quickly with our $100 deposit in hand. Our first stop, after passing the entrance to the Mayan ruins of Chichén Itzá and Balancanchén Caves (another trip, perhaps in January when my daughter visits), was Valladolid, a 120 km drive. I had met a woman at the craft show who has a gallery there, so I ran to see it. Called Yalat, it is located on the NE corner of the Plaza Central. It was very nice and I purchased an embroidered light cotton blouse and a bag of chocolates from the state of Tabasco. We lunched in the Plaza beside one of seven churches in the town, I chatted with the Mayan ladies selling crafts in the park, and bought a hand crocheted purse for 100 pesos.  Then we were on the road again, back into the state of Quintana Roo, a couple stops at a ceramic sales shop and a stone and clay artist’s studio, on to Tulum and then up highway 307 to Playa.  I liked Valladolid very much. There is a cultural museum and there are murals in the government building, famous cenotes are nearby, and hotel rooms are quite reasonable.

La Feria Yucatán in Xmatkuil

Sunday, Nov. 30, was the last day of the month long State Fair a little south of Merida. A public bus on Calle 50 would get us there, but we decided to use Matt and Allan’s car. We got lost a little trying to avoid the closed streets of city center every Sunday but eventually found the fair ground and parked. We had been warned that we would be joined by up to 150,000 people that day, and I believe the figure. Colectivo buses arrived continually and the crowd bought their 10 peso (85 cents US) tickets and entered the fray. There were surprisingly few animals present, but Allan found the goats and crawled into their pen so three week old kids could climb his frame. Color and food were everywhere, as were games of chance and carnival rides. There was a huge tented market place where piles of bedding, dishes, pots and pans, and clothing were sold very reasonably. We tried the food, shopped the market, and rode the rides. Interesting that we never lost track of each other. Allan’s 6′ 2” frame stood out dramatically above the sea of much smaller native bodies.

Merida’s Museo Arte Popular

After the craft show I wanted to explore a couple galleries in the neighborhood and started off with my four male companions trailing behind. One good stop was Alma Mexicana, on Calle 54 between 55 and 57, a shop of Mexican folk art from all over the country. My second planned stop no longer existed and by then I had lost the attention of three of my men who split off to have lunch in the Plaza Grande.  Jim and I continued on trying to find the Museo Arte Popular. We walked into two schools whose front gates were wide open on a Saturday afternoon, and finally found the Museum near Parque Mejorada on Calle 50-A at Calle 57. Entrance fee was 20 pesos (about $1.70 US). It is located in a beautiful home known as Casa Molina which was built in 1900 as a wedding gift from father to daughter. The father, a henequen tycoon, became governor of Yucatán. This space, opened July, 2007, has a wonderful collection of contemporary craft objects displayed very professionally in glass cases.  The main floor had a revolving exhibition space that was currently filled with Christmas Nativity Sets: ceramic, papier mache and wood. None were under glass and a guard stood at the door the entire time we were inside. I asked if I could take photos and permission was granted.

Upstairs were six rooms of art objects displayed by medium: ceramics, textiles, articles of stone, cardboard, wood, metal and glass. The collection is vast and varied. The core holdings came from the old Museo del Pueblo Maya of the Institiuto Nacional Indigenista that was closed in 1995. To quote their brochure: “… the home of folk artists, where you can appreciate the cultural diversity of Mexico, along with the way of thinking, the way of life, and feelings of many artisans. They share with us their priceless knowledge, techniques, and values stemming from their highly unique viewpoint that we hope will prosper to strengthen and preserve this rich intangible patrimony of Mexico.”

It was fantastic. We stayed for hours until a phone call from our friends made my feet return to the earth. Apologies are due. I have just realized that almost all of my photos are of ceramics - what do you expect from a potter at heart.  Please visit the museum when you are in Merida, it is very worthwhile.

Our arms were laden with treasures from the craft show, so James, Jim and Matt walked home with those while Allan and I stayed in town. Together we had turkey dinner at our local market then walked into town where traffic had been diverted and the streets were open for pedestrians, music and dancing. In the Parque de Maternidad, Matt spotted an artist with oil pastel drawings of Mayan women. His studio was nearby and we followed him there to see others. After some debate about buying two they decided on one, created in 2005, of a Mayan woman standing in the doorway of a thatched roof palapa house with two boys inside. It is wonderful and I look forward to regular visits with her at their condo near us.

Craft Show Artists from the Yucatan

About a year ago a group of friends, living in Merida and appreciating one of a kind craft work, began searching out native artists from their state of Yucatan. At least the partial result was a craft show Nov. 29 at the TTTI, a school of tourism on Calle 59 of nearly 30 exhibitors. There was room after room and patios filled with small displays of various works: carved gourds, ceramic sculptures, embroidered textiles, detailed clothing, pottery, books, stones painted with animals, masks, sculptures of cast off motor parts, palm fronds painted with landscapes, stone carvings, ceramic drums, hand stitched pillows, papier mache sculptures,ceramic whistles shaped as animals, hand woven table cloths and shawls, jewelry made from sisal spines and other natural materials, and wooden mobiles. (Perhaps there were more.) The work was very good and the prices reasonable. It opened at 9:30 and we arrived at 10 am.  Our friends Allan and Matt had driven in from Playa the day before to join us in our rented house and attended with us. Knowing that I had a ride home for me and my stuff freed me up for collecting.

On to the Ruins of Kabah

Nineteen pot holed kilometers west and north of Labná are the ruins of Kabah with it’s incredible Palace of Masks, an entire wall of nearly 300 Chuc-Mool masks that once each held a huge curled up stone nose protruding from the face. There is only one left intact at the southern corner. On the back side of the same building stand the two atlantes (male figures used as supporting columns), among the very few 3-D human figures at Mayan sites. I went around behind El Palacio the main palace, on a path leading a couple hundred meters through the jungle to the Templo de las Columnas.  Last year we took a tour to Uxmal and Kabah and wanted to return to spend more time and this did it for us, although I realize now there are more of the Kabah ruins back across the highway behind where we parked. Guess we will have to visit again. We stopped in the small gift shop just as it was closing for the day (5 pm), having seen a craftsman carving outside on our way in.  The work was very good. I bought a blouse with crocheted shoulders. I think I will wear it over a brightly colored tank top.

I had hoped to dine in Sta. Elena (which we did) and then push on to Uxmal for the light show at 7 pm, but my men were worn out. So after a wonderful chicken dinner (done in three styles), and a visit to the Fly Catcher Inn where James had stayed on a previous trip, we headed back past Uxmal, then north to Muna on Hwy. 261 to Umán, and into Merida 101 km and about 2 hours later.

The Mayan Ruins of Labná

Fourteen kilometers southwest of Lol Tún through the rolling hills of the Puuc region lie the Labná Ruins, much less visited with vegetation growing atop the stuctures. It is believed that 3000 people lived here at one point during the 9th century. The Palacio, one of the longest buildings in the Puuc region, has near the center a stone carving of a serpent’s head with a human face peering out from between its jaws, the symbol of the planet Venus. There is also an impressive Chac-Mool mask. We walked down the limestone paved sacbé looking for the more than 60 chultunes (underground water funnels for holding rain water in this arid land) and found  El Arco Labná, a magnificent arch, once part of a building that separated two courtyards. On the opposite side is the pyramid El Mirador, topped by a temple. The pyramid is largely stone rubble, but the temple stands 5 meters above and is well positioned to be a lookout.

This was American Thanksgiving Day and we celebrated by watching turkeys run free behind the entrance to these ruins, magnificent birds with colors of red, blue and green.

The Caves of Lol Tún

We drove south of Ticul to Oxkutzcab, then turned southeast on a very narrow and often pot holed road toward Lol Tún and on to Mayan ruins. A guide is required to enter the caves which are over 2 km in length. There was a large group of school children awaiting the next tour time with organized games in the park and they entered followed by our small group of French, Germans, Spaniards, Mexicans, a Canadian and we two Americanos. The caves were lighted with various colored spot lights nested under huge overhangs. The ground was extremely uneven and slippery from the constantly dripping limestone which had created all the stalactites. On reaching the first level spot, James decided this was not good for his knees and turned to climb back up the steps only to have the lights extinguished, and this followed us throughout the tour (perhaps on a timer and we simply moved too slowly). This (like much of Mexico) would be a nightmare for OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) in the US. I recall being at Xcaret (a local theme park near Playa del Carmen) for their Day of the Dead celebration where we exited a huge auditorium by a ramp which reached to 30 feet above the stage below but had not a single railing on the edge. But back to the caves: the ground was crevassed like an ocean beach, but hard, slippery, and not well lit at all, but it was dramatic. While watching one’s step so as not to slip, suddenly a friend’s voice would warn you that your head was about to meet a stalactite.  These caves were used for safety by the Mayan people who were hunted for slavery by their conquerors from the 1500’s. Halfway through we were introduced to two pillars that joined floor and roof and which, when struck with one’s palm, echoed “Lol” with one and “Tún” with the other. Near the end was an overlook on a canyon filled with huge rocks with sharp edges. These were said to have collapsed into the cave when a meteor struck the Yucatan Peninsula. Much of the cave is still unexplored. An unpleasant aspect of our tour was our guide who stopped us three times while underground to remind us that he was not well paid and it would be good, for all of us together, to come up with 600 pesos for him. Daylight was surely appreciated on the long walk back to the parking lot where the car started right up.

Road trip to the Pottery town of Ticul

Having been a potter for 35 years, clay is always an attraction, so when I heard of the town of Ticul in the state of Yucatan where there is a natural clay deposit I longed to visit. Their huge vessels, planters and vases, are found in hotel lobbies, museums, and government buildings throughout Merida.  We found a very reasonable car rental company (mexico-rent-acar.com) on Calle 57-A near the university, and arranged for a one day rental to drive south. We picked up the car at 6:00 pm Wed. and returned it at 8:30 am Friday for $49 including insurance. On Wed. morning we hit the road with map in hand. A little trouble with directions brought us too quickly to Ave. Itzales in the wrong lane, but we explored the neighborhood beyond and found our way back.  First to Umán, 14 km southwest on Hwy. 180, then 80 km south on Hwy. 261 to Ticul. We had no internet service at our house in Merida, and of course I had stored the information about where to find the best potters in my laptop, but we had no trouble in this tiny town. I remembered that the very first shop on the left had been recommended, so I pulled off the road into the shade.  What I found inside were rooms and rooms of glorious pots. All are hand built on wheels, like lazy susans my mother used to have, sitting on the floor with a man sitting nearby and a pile of raw yellow clay. No coils were rolled, simply handfuls of clay were applied in dabs to the tops of drying pots. Some of these were 6 feet tall, others were 30 inch wide bowls. There was also much tourist stuff that had been made in molds of figures and masks, but the pots were astounding. A line of 6 or 8 stood near the potter waiting for clay to be added. Outside, in the sun, sat hundreds of planters and vessels drying near the domed beehive like kilns into which workers passed, loading a firing. Everything is very low fired and color is applied after with acrylic paint.

Almost immediately I focused on one piece, a footed large planter, about 18 inches by 14 inches with horizontal stripes of brown, tan and orange. I asked the price and heard: 540 pesos (about $45 US). Jim decided to offer him 400 pesos and the reply was, “For how many?” in Spanish of course. Then we realized that a single piece was only 150 pesos ($12 US) and quickly settled the deal. After I had strapped it in with a seat belt in the back seat, I realized that the car would not start. Here we were in the middle of nowhere, but luckily it had a standard transmission and with a couple shoves from James and Jim we were off again. I made a couple more stops in town to see more potters and visit the ceramic god that stands at the edge of town, but always left the motor running. Then we were on to the Caves of Lul Tún.