Today I went to Desierto de los Leones, which is a former convent up in the mountain forests southwest of Mexico City. The whole area is now a huge forested park. The convent originated in the seventeenth century and is now a museum full of interesting rooms, cells and beautiful gardens. There is quite a network of trails but the hiking is a bit steep and at eight thousand plus feet above sea level the air is rather thin and I wasn't in the mood to get lost so I tried to stay reasonably close. Up in the woods I discovered three different hermitages, small buildings made of stone used as retreat places by members of the convent before it became a national park and museum in 1917. One of them was open so I explored the interior taking in the four or five small rooms and chambers. I plan on going again next Friday. Victor, one off the staff here at the hotel, is going to drive me there and this way I can see it again through someone else's eyes. The forest itself is very impressive and with the tall pines and cedars reminds me a lot of our own West Coast. The air is cool, clean and bracing. The trails weren't busy, there were a few mountain bikers as well as people riding on horses and even someone riding a donkey.
Getting there was a bit of an ordeal. I had to take a local bus from one of the metro stations and the buses in Mexico City are not that comfortable, at least by Canadian standards. The driver was smoking in his seat before starting. To cut him slack at least he was blowing the smoke out the window. Most of the neighbourhoods we drove through looked quite poor and the buildings were all scrawled with graffiti, which I think of as more a symbol of disempowerment than crime and delinquency. People will do whatever it takes to assert their identity, that they are here and that they matter. Some of the tags were quite vibrant, a lot were kind of hideous. But I saw them everywhere the bus went, as though graffiti and tags have become the single identifying architectural feature of much of Mexico City. The drive back featured a driver with his two teenaged sons who took turns behind the steering wheel. It was often crowded, and I was amazed that with the lurching motion of the rattling bus that people were able to stand. As I see more of Mexico City I am noticing how run down and poor this city really is. Outside of the wealthy and touristed areas much of this place is very disheveled and dirty. Getting to know a city, like getting to know a person, means laying aside the illusions. It means facing the ugly reality in yourself and the other. It also means learning to find the beauty in the ordinary, the ugly and sordid.
While I wonder why anyone would want to live here, I realize also that most people have little choice in the matter. it is also clear from casual notice that the real wealth of Mexico city is it's people. These people are incredibly tough and vibrant and I am amazed how well they do here.
Received: Sunday, February 26, 2012, 7:00 PM
I walked through Chapultepec Park, always busy on a Sunday and tried to escape the strident crying of a toddler who was upset because she didn't get her ice cream or whatever. Eventually her father screamed back at her, grown up man version of what she was doing and it worked. There was silence in Heaven. I looked back and he was carrying his now placid little girl on his shoulders. While I am against hitting children I do believe they need firmness and I think that too many parents nowadays are too lily livered to draw effective boundaries with their little darlings. I really think this child centred form of child rearing is for the birds.
I went into the Auditorio, that grotto garden where you can listen to music in silence. They were playing Mozart and some composers I couldn't recognize and for a while it was lovely. Then a tour group of around fifty, count 'em, fifty people came in. One guy, an apparent student, and I exchanged meaningful glances about the situation and I got up and left. I passed through the park. There was a free concert put on by a jazz ensemble. I might have stayed but I'm not a huge fan of jazz, so I wandered into the Polanco district, filthy rich with lots of apartments and more white Mexicans than you can shake a stick at. Once again I noted, in the two different cafes where I stopped this afternoon, that the clientele were all very white and the servers were all very brown. But it is also spacious, green and quiet, so never mind the rich folk, rich neighborhoods can be a balm to troubled nerves. If the rich aren't good for much else, and honestly what are they good for besides the extra taxes that they should but seldom cough up, at least they provide us with lovely neighborhoods to take walks in!
Actually this also brings to mind the whole attitude of entitlement that many of us in the middle to upper income brackets seem to have. I really got a sense of it this morning. There were several very well off looking people at the breakfast table this morning all waxing on about their various trips, travels and vacations to every part of the world as though this was their birth right and why not? But when you put this in perspective and think of the many more people in the world, here in Mexico City, and in my own dear Vancouver who could never dream of the luxury of foreign travel. For most of my adult working life I couldn't afford to travel any further than Vancouver Island, and when I think of what I'm able to do now I must feel hugely privileged! I am also reminded here of an article I read in the Globe and Mail several weeks ago, hey it was in the Globe and Mail so it must be true, that indicated that one should not spend any more than four per cent of one's annual income on travel or else you cannot afford it. So the idea is that unless you're earning well over forty grand a year then you should really stay home and wash your kitchen cupboards instead. Well, I earn significantly less than that so I must be doing something wrong. But thanks to subsidized rent and the fact that I don't really like buying fancy expensive stuff that I don't really need, it is easy for me to save and I'm not even in debt!
Altogether it was an enjoyable, uneventful kind of walk, the kind that is really great for clearing your head. Outside of the second fancy shmancy coffee shop I sat in I met another beggar woman named Juana. Very sweet lady.
OH, WHAT'S WRONG WITH US ANYAY!!!!
Not a lot happened today. The high point was lunch with a friend who lives here and he is always very informative so I will draw from some of our conversation. By the way, the pope is coming here to Mexico City sometime in March. That's right...Holy Ness. And yes, a celibate old man who wears a white dress and tries to tell the faithful "the facts" about birth control and contraception. By the way did you hear this one?
One day God appeared to the pope and asked him, "Hey Benedict, have you thought of reforming the law of celibacy so that priests can get married?"
The pope replied, "Not in my lifetime."
Then God said, "Okay Benny, what about accepting women and gays into the priesthood and accepting same sex marriage?"
"Not in my lifetime," said the pope.
"Very well, then, Benny. And how about those pedophile priests. Are you going to stop concealing them so that they can be prosecuted to the full extent of the law?
Said the pope, "Not in my lifetime." His holiness paused long enough to pray a few beads on his rosary, then he asked God, "By the way, Lord, tell me one thing please. Will there ever be another German pope, after me?"
And God replied, "Not in my lifetime!"
Mexico is a very Catholic country. In fact it has bff status with the Vatican. Apparently a lot of people here would prefer to put their trust in the Virgin Mary than in their politicians. Well, hey, I would sooner trust a used car salesman than any of the clowns currently running the show in Ottawa. It seems that the hold that the Roman church has on this country has done a lot to prevent real progress from happening here because they have generally taken the side of the power elites. However I think this is debatable because of the inroads made by worker priests and liberation theology. Still the Vatican has always frowned on such politics that are geared towards empowering the people and throwing off the shackles of ecclesiastical and political tyranny. Anyway, whichever way you paint it, to me the Roman Catholic Church lost it's legitimacy long long ago when they began torturing and killing people they disagree with and they are going to have to work good and hard at saying I'm sorry and really really meaning it before I will even think of looking in their direction.
Which brings me to my second point, something I didn't have a chance to bring up in my conversation with my friend but, Hey Alberto, maybe we can talk about this on our next visit. This involves the huge legacy of the church here in this country and their bloody collaboration with the Conquistadores in the sixteenth century. It seems to me that no expiation in this country has been offered for the rivers of innocent blood shed by the Spanish, by the church and yes also by the Aztecs themselves. It appears to me that Mexico is founded upon a legacy of violence and bloodshed. The huge deification of power and dominance and the rigid social and political hierarchy that has always been the norm in this country I think is a major impediment in Mexico's advancement in social, economic and political process. I feel so aware of this that I think this is why I find it difficult to be in the Centro Historico, the Zocalo or in the Catedral Metropolitano. I sense and almost can smell all this violently shed innocent human blood and it depresses me.
Still the Mexican people thrive against all odds. There would be no point in depriving them of their Holy Mother Church because this is also where so many draw their spiritual nourishment from. And the Church is very much integral to the Mexican identity.
I learned today that the majority of income taxes in Mexico are paid by the lower middle class. The rich don't have to pay anything.
We talked about the issue of race in Mexico. The vast majority of the Mexican people are of mixed ancestry with maybe an elite of five per cent more or less pure Caucasians running the show. To me it seems a sad irony that the mixed races and heritage isn't celebrated here but this would mean empowering the lower classes and those who hold the reigns of power just don't want that to happen.
My solution? Well, I don't have one. And in my own beloved Canada we already have enough of our own problems about social inequality so I really shouldn't be calling the kettle black. I will say this much, however. I believe that the reason our politicians are able to get away with such abuses of power is because we let them. Most of us, in Canada, anyway, are too lazy, too apathetic, too well off or two frightened of the consequences to resist our government. But it really shouldn't be that difficult. For one thing, as well as voting these imbeciles into power shouldn't we also be holding their feet to the fire throughout their tenure of power? They do after all represent us and our interests and it seems that for a lot of us our democracy ends at the ballot box. We cast our vote, then gnash our teeth for the next three or four years until we can vote again. Well Honey let me tell you something: Democracy does not end at the ballot box, it BEGINS there. We have many other ways of resisting. For example our habits as consumers. Our willingness to be brainwashed into believing that we need new gadgets and all sorts of other garbage made in China or somewhere when really we are spending ourselves into debt and keeping alive the same beast of capitalism that is oppressing us. Simply put, quit shopping, live modestly and develop a sustainable spirituality so that you won't be seduced by the brainwashing of the multinationals. Promote local enterprise and manufacturing, support fair and ethical trade. Challenge each other's thinking. We need to empower one another and we also need to resist laws and legislations that are unjust and lead to further oppression. Above all, start caring. See how you can expand your vision.
It shouldn't be that hard, but we are for the most part selfish and lazy and would rather that someone else do the driving. Especially, don't give up hope. Without hope we are doomed.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012, 6:53 PM
I visited Cuernavaca today which is a city of one million near Mexico City and the capital of Morelos state. It has a reputation for being very beautiful with a lovely climate and a haven for wealthy Mexicans but I saw nothing and no one who appeared remotely well off and the weather, for me anyway, was hot. Of course Cuernavaca could have some very beautiful and prestigious neighborhoods that I didn't have a chance to see since I was there for less than three hours. It's just like Vancouver, in the sense that it is famous for it's beaches, and forests and mountains but if you never leave the Downtown Eastside, or Kingsway, or South Van or Marpole you're going to find Vancouver violent, poor, rundown, ugly, or just uninteresting.l Or if you never leave Main and Forty ninth you're going to imagine it is a city full of South Asians. Or if you never leave other parts of South Van or Richmond you will almost think you are in China. If you never leave Commercial Drive you'll assume that everyone in Vancouver wears dreadlocks and smokes pot.
What really stood out to me about Cuernavaca was the shabbiness that I have seen also in many areas of Mexico City. The same street corner food and taco and magazine stands, the same poverty. But I did catch glimpses from the bus window of a wealthier and lovelier Cuernavaca. In the Zocalo I noticed a phalanx of at least forty or more armed police with riot gear huddled in front of a government building. I asked an elderly man what it was about and he replied that this is the government's way of putting its fingers in its ears so that the people don't get heard. We had quite an interesting chat. Jose lives now in the southern US and comes back to Cuernavaca for long visits. He is very concerned about the state of his country, the lack of any just distribution of wealth and appears to have a healthy cynicism about governments in general. He also helped me find my way back to the bus station, where I chatted briefly with a man who asked me if I'm from Brazil. This made me laugh, and I mentioned to him that a lot of people have told me that I speak Spanish with a Portuguese accent!
The bus ride to and from Cuernavaca was lovely. The forested mountains remind me a lot of BC, only a bit dryer and warmer. There were a lot of vendors on the metro subway, at least eight on one train I was on, including a seven year old girl wearing a school uniform.
The more time I spend among the people here, no matter how annoying I find them in some ways, the greater my respect and admiration for the Mexican people.
Friday, March 2, 2012, 6:17 PM
So I visited the famous floating gardens of Mexico City and all I got was a long walk through yet another grubby town in the Distrito Federal of Mexico City. Much of their town is very rundown and disheveled, with brightly painted facades and bougainvillea and other flowers everywhere. The people, while obviously not rich, do not seem to be wanting for anything either and really seem to stick close together. Lots of street dogs, only one seemed threatening. The canals look interesting enough and several barqueros tried to persuade me to take a boat ride with them but I didn't feel like it so I walked everywhere. I eventually wandered into the better off area after stopping inside the enormous domed church. it is surrounded by landscaped gardens and a high wall. Then I walked along a highly trafficked street and just kept walking feeling almost carried by the wind. It could be called a zen state or something similar that happens when I walk in unknown places. It is as though I'm already at home though so far from home and everything takes on a startling intensity and sense of detail. Almost like revisiting a dream or a whole series of dreams forgotten until I set foot in these unknown places. I don't think this would be such a spiritually rich experience if I didn't travel alone.
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Saturday, March 3, 2012, 6:38 PM
I had a lot of fun getting lost. I wanted to try for a quiet day wandering through the wealthy neighbourhoods, Polanco and Las Lomas but the distances in this city are huge and the traffic is organized in such a way that there are huge disruptions because of freeways and viaducts. I actually encountered one of the biggest viaducts I have ever seen. It makes ours in Vancouver look like a footbridge. Pure concrete brutalism. So I retraced my steps. In Polanco I noticed tons of Jews, especially Orthodox wearing the big black hats so I imagine that Polanco has a large Jewish community, which is interesting given that this is such a hugely Catholic country. I have often wondered about people who dress in order to advertise their religion, and certain Christians such as Hutterites and priests do this as well. I would imagine that as a Christian my single identifying characteristic would be that I am a person who loves others so what should I wear to show this?
I eventually found myself in a huge restaurant, quiet, for a cold drink where the staff wanted to give me an English menu so I told one of the waiters in excellent Spanish that even though I'm white I could also be Russian or French or German. I eventually found my way to Las Lomas and walked among the tranquil gardens and ostentatious palaces where I passed the Canadian, Brazilian and South Korean Embassies. Then I got lost again and had to get directions from various people to the nearest metro station. Then I got lost on the metro, which can happen easily enough given that those places are so huge and labyrinthine. Now I'm back at the bed and breakfast and not really saying a lot to people because the staff member who has a grudge against me is on duty right now and he will not give me the time of day. Last week he was really pushing boundaries with me so I stood up to him and now he is sulking and being, I think, very unprofessional about it. Oh well, at least I get along with everyone else and I do rejoice at this opportunity to practice forgiveness.
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