Tijuana - Tumblr Posts
Fuimos caminando
The gorgeous weather couldn't last (as I knew it wouldn't) so today the weather is crappy and my planned trip across the boarder has been delayed. I have been waiting two weeks or so for this jaunt; apparently, looks like it will have to wait even longer- til Monday... Hum.
In the meanwhile, let me tell you about Chapultepec.
Fuimos caminando en las Lomas de Chapultepec y es mejor caminar allí que en las Lomas de Beverly. Esta es mi opinion, por su puesto.
On two different occasions, my Human and I have been able to celebrate a few days of some early Spring/Summer weather by taking hardcore strolls through the more ritzy parts of Tijuana. This particular area of the city was where all the gangster related violence was happening a few years ago. But that isn't why the strolls are hardcore. Now, there is a quiet in the hills, fresh air, pizza bike deliveries, construction crews remodeling homes and folks in vehicles zipping along the wild curvy roads. These are some fantastic hills to walk- if you are up to the challenge of fighting gravity. And being alert to motorists. The inclines are intense most of the way and we would see the road stretching every more steeply before us then jokingly call for our Sherpa to carry us the rest of the way. {Thanks to The Onion we know that Sherpas are super beings!} Forgive me the lame photos- I was not able to catch any really stunning shots of the imaginative architecture or the expansive views with my camera... the power of the wide lens is not with me. Also. Cafe De La Flor. {Food Happiness.} If you come visit, You will eat here. And you will like it. We pit-stopped at this cafe and had amazing food to fuel our walking excursions.
A Black Puppy and the Governor Himself
A black lab mix puppy was found yelping and whining outside the window a few days ago. It was brought in and put in the laundry hamper for safekeeping until she could be cleaned and groomed. 100 ticks and fleas on a puppy not pleased... After an intensive cleaning and a night of more crying, she tried to bond with me as I hoped around her in the kitchen making lunch.. it was rather fun to play with the baby creature as I had never had the experience, but I did not become attached. I could not. There are already two dogs here (plus the love interest chihuahua next door) so she was taken to a shelter here in town that will hopefully find a good home for her. Then there was the random studio visit from a woman who wants us to visit Mexicali. She invited us to an open in Tijuana that promises to have some butoh. I am interested in seeing this- good or bad. Last night I stayed up too late watching the excitement in Boston and the footage from Texas and catching mice. It was a restless evening. My Human bated three mice into a trash bin and dumped them out in the lot, one by one. That will perhaps lead them to new hunting grounds and they will not quickly return to our spaces. We don't even keep food in the rooms where they muck about- unless you count the crickets that keep coming in.. and why they come- I have even less of a clue!
~~~
So we went to this opening. It was way the smeg out in the middle of non-tourist Tijuana and not much fun to walk to, but walk we did- after taking a bus to that part of the city, it was still a hike. So I arrive looking like the wandering elf in green hidden by my sun-hat and there is all the elite of Tijuana roving around what looks an arty school campus / gallery set up for an outdoor inauguration ceremony... so it was. So it was. But yes elite. The governor was there! And they were all staring at me like I was the whitest (that means highest class, btw) person they had ever seen. It was funny, but I was overwhelmed. Between the unwanted attention of the masses and meeting all these guys- artists that Human knows and trying to watch dance performances, look at art works... translate Spanish!.. I was out of my depth from the start. But this went on! We arrived at 6:15pm and did not leave there til - oh I dunno- 9:00pm. Or later! I even ended up shaking the hand of the governor... I was like what the hell! Can someone please give me more warning before I meet officials?! I had been walking around all evening with the rich and slick which I was not expecting and now bedraggled me was meeting the highest shmuckity-schmuck in the state?! Yeah. Muchas freakin gracias. Then I was stuffed into a car with strangers (older women drinking red wine) and taken to Revolucion to drop in at another art happening and suffer the waiting list as Ceasar's for dinner. I did not want to go into Ceasar. There were even more elitist slimeballs in there. The woman who invited us to this whole thing announced there it was her birthday. So we HAD to stay. She loves Hugo.. she loves me because I hove Hugo.... I am now family.. ok.. Did I mention the overwhelmed already part? I think my bed did not catch my failing nervous system in warm blankety embrace until 3am. And upon waking up in the daylight hours, I am miserable. I feel like I am shit. I don't know why my complaints were not taken seriously. Por Dios. I had been expressing need to go home since... what 8pm? And was ignored. And ignored. And ignored some more. Yeah, again, muchas friggin gracias. So did I see butoh in all this? I think so. I am not sure! It all looked and felt like modern dance. Oddly enough, I was more impressed with the stepdancers 'covering' Lord of the Dance! The real highlight was the flamenco. Super small stage. Red lighting. Presence. They knew what they were doing. Which was pretty much making magic... It was the best part. The rest was chore. And I was not at my best to keep up with the chore. This will be a sleep weekend. Lest I melt people with my acid disposition.
José Hugo Sánchez’s performance in Tijuana last night -14th November - was really strong. Not flawless, but timely and effective. It was his first performance after 14 years! so I wasn’t going to be harshly critical of it. My participation in this performance was to walk the streets from TJ in China Project Room to CeCuT in procession with him in the streets (ironically, with cops protecting us) and stand in a circle with the rest of the observer participants around a set prepared with fire and other items José prefers to incorporate in his performances. We were given pictures of the disappeared students and we called their names aloud. The name I called into the night with my gringa accent- Saúl Bruno Garcia. The picture that the person next to me was holding cut my finger. Just a paper cut, but there was blood. I knew the spirits were hungry. For some balance. Justice. Photo credits: Jill Marie Holslin, TJ In China