Hasta Luego
Plano, Texas, U.S. – We came to Mexico planning hang out, visit family, live cheap, save money, get some projects done. But sawdust in a hurricane has more permanence than our plans, so none of that actually happened.
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Friends of a Long Year is a private mailing list bringing stories to your inbox like it's still 1995. It's written in the spirit of Mary Austin. It was originally called Place Without a Postcard, which does a better job of summarizing what I like to write about. Friends is delivered roughly twice a month.
Archive
Horses
Around San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – There's horses everywhere in San Miguel, but finding one the kids could ride was a little challenging. In the end, as always, it was all about finding people.
Semana Santa
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – Semana Santa, holy week, is the roughly two week period leading up to and just after Easter. If you want to pin it down more than that you're not Mexican.
Koyaanisqatsi
Around San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – The midday Mexican sun has become more intense lately. The dry season stretches its legs and lays down across the land, pulling a blanket of dusty haze over it. I don't know where it comes from, I don't even know what it is, perhaps it's the wind out on the plains kicking up dust. Perhaps it's smog drifting up from Mexico City.
Visa Run
Plano, Texas, U.S. – It was time to renew our Mexican visas and move the bus to a new (temporary) home.
Around San Miguel
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – I was walking up from the bus station when I happened across my favorite of the indigenous dance groups that come into town. There's no machetes but they have the best drummers, best costumes, and best dancing in my opinion.
Cascarones and Machete Dancing
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – Cascarones are eggs that have been drained and filled with confetti. Or glitter or flour. They're colorfully painted, cost less than 50 cents a dozen and exist primarily to smash on someone's head. What's not to love?
Rite of Spring
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – San Miguel celebrates Candelaria with an indigenous ceremony at the park, with a blessing of the seeds and a huge plant sale.
Sounds of San Miguel
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – San Miguel has a reputation for being a bright and colorful colonial town, with good reason. Still, what I end up noticing when I walk around is the kaleidoscope of sound that bounces around amidst all those colors.
These Walls Around Me
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – We moved at the beginning of the year. I miss swinging open the big windows of our house on Canal, watching the life of the street below, but our new place has a courtyard and a roof top deck, pretty fancy for us. Haven't been able to find the engine though.
Sparkle City
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – Three foot long sparklers and no stockings to be found, Christmas in Mexico. When in Rome, adapt.
Four
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – Those of us with birthdays in December generally do not get to spend them at the beach. Not unless we go to Australia. Neither, it seems do we get to spend them in the bus. One day, but not this year.
Mary of the Wild Moor
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – Monotheistic religions that want sole claim to the capital T truth have a hard time accepting this, but religions are always changing, always in flux. Gods and goddesses come and go throughout time. Whatever essential mystery is behind them seems to remain. One of the advantages of polytheism is that this truth can be easily accepted.
There’ll be Food on the Table Tonight
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – Food powers economies, shapes ecology, dictates religious rituals, causes wars, drives the explorations of the unknown, determines the size and shape of our bodies, and, to an extent we are only beginning to realize, shapes how we act, how we think, and even how we see the world.
Let’s Go For a Ride
Around San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – Exploring the country side around San Miguel de Allende on 4x4 ATVs.
Friday
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – Halloween in Mexico, expats behaving badly, Dia de Muertes is different than you think, and at long last have you left no sense of decency sir?
Como Se Goza En El Barrio
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – Finding your places helps you find your place in a place.
Alborada
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico – San Miguel de Allende's Alborada festival begins at 4 AM. Actually it was closer to 2 AM. The Jardin was packed, there was plenty of music and then thousands and thousands of fireworks. Not that we saw it, but we did periodically wake up to volleys of fireworks between 3 and 5 AM.
Big Exit
Cuidad Mexico, Mexico – We explored Mexico City for a few days, adjusted to city life as opposed to roaming the wilds of the United States, and then we jumped a bus for San Miguel de Allende.
Southbound
Plano, Texas, U.S. – After 19 months in the bus we're changing things up a little. The bus is in storage, not forever, just for now.
Grassland
Pawnee National Grassland, Colorado, U.S. – The vastness of the prairie sky is addictive. Once you've spent a while surrounded by nothing but grass and sky you start to feel closed in whenever there is something else near you. We tried to go back to regular campgrounds, but you find yourself wanting more space, asking why are these things blocking my sky?
Range Life
Buffalo Gap National Grassland, South Dakota, U.S. – Two weeks on a grassy expanse of earth at the edge of the badlands. It doesn't sound like much, but there's something about wide open spaces that makes time slow down. We swam, hiked, made new friends and briefly got the bus stuck in the mud.
West to Wall Drug
Buffalo Gap National Grassland, South Dakota, U.S. – Wall Drug is a full city block of tourist junk and food. There's still free ice water, and the coffee is still 5 cents. The donuts are pretty good too. Bill Bryson sums up Wall Drug perfectly in The Lost Continent: "It's an awful place, one of the world's worst tourist traps, but I loved it and I won't have a word said against it."
Superior
Moningwanekaaning, Wisconsin, U.S. – Reflections on the greatest of the Great Lakes.