I’d hoped they’d have finished building it by the time I cycled past it this Sunday, but I guess the worlds biggest Christmas Tree isn’t something that can be rushed. Still, just in case you’re interest in the progress they have made since last week, here’s a few more snaps! It has to be said that there are quite a few residents of Mexico City who feel that this isn’t the best way to spend money during an economic crisis with acute ongoing water shortages, but I myself like Christmas and Christmas trees! And I also feel that the worlds largest ice rink, which will be going up in the Zocalo any day now is a much more questionable project regards funding – exactly how much does it cost to keep an ice rink frozen on sunny, 20 to 25 degree, days in Mexico City? 
Ciclothon again. With a twist. This weekend the Japanese had Reforma turned into an oriental fiesta, of sorts. Of course, sales are the primary drivers of these sort of events. Tourism, cars, restaurants, origami classes. That sort of thing. It’s all good fun though. I didn’t get an awful many photos, but I managed to capture a few Japanese Latinas (a brand new race I believe!) and some shots of the wrestling match.
I like Japan and Japanese things. I’ve never been there, but I suspect the cold, formal society would suit me. Perhaps the hours of work they like to put in less so. Along with Argentina, Cambodia and Tanzania, Japan is one of the countries at the top of my ‘must visit’ list. The language would be a confusing barrier, but I am often confused anyway, and enjoy jumping over barriers. Or going round them, as needs dictate. The handful of photo I did take are here.
For this weeks Ciclothon, there was a Japanese flavoured treat on Reforma. Which included, rather bizarrely, a Lucha Libre contest. I’m still trying to figure out how this is Japanese. But what the hell. I like Lucha Libre. Ok, so they didn’t manage to get Mistico to turn up, but it was still a bit of fun.
I’ve been teaching English in Mexico City, independently, for quite a few years now. It makes sense to have a website. It makes more sense, when you waffle like I do, to have a website slash blog. So that’s what I now have. Click here to see it. It does serve a few purposes, besides giving me yet another platform to waffle from. A place to point prospective students for one. And later, when I return to the UK, evidence of what I have been up to for the last how ever many years. An awful lot of the time, job interviewees tell a potential employer that they have been travelling or living abroad for the last few years, when what they really mean is ‘I’ve been in prison’….
Last year, August 2008 to be price, I got married in Milwaukee and went to Las Vegas for the honeymoon. This was all done with my wife, naturally. I bought quite a few postcards in Vegas and gave them to the missus for safe keeping. So safely did she keep them, that we didn’t see them again till earlier this week when we went through some bags.
And it seemed fitting to send one of them, the one below, to one lucky reader of my blog. Want a postcard of Las Vegas, sent from Mexico City? There’s gotta be some ‘bizarre’ value in that. Just leave a comment to claim it, and send me the address to post it to through the Contact page of my blog, and it’ll be on its way.
If it has already been claimed, check out the Postcard page by clicking here. At the time of writing there is still a postcard from Toluca up for grabs. The offer is open to anyone, anywhere – you don’t have to be a regular reader.
I was ill on Saturday, but well enough on Sunday to head off on my bike to do the Ciclothon circuit. I have to say I love the Ciclothon, even if they don’t change the route very often. Fortunately, the streets on the route seem to change themselves. Aside from venturing into the Jose Luis Cuevas museum, as blogged about already, I took a handful of other photos as I rode around at a leisurely pace. Click here to see a few street scenes.
I noticed work begin on this roundabout on Reforma a couple of weeks ago. It looks temporary. Actually, it looks a little dangerous too. It looks like a pretty large construction though, whatever it is going to be. The first thing that springs to mind is a Christmas Tree. We have been promised the worlds biggest ever tree this year. Does anyone know, or am I going to have to wait and see?
Last year these weird and thoroughly abstract metal face sculptures appeared around Belles Artes and the Zocalo. What were they? Why were they there? Who made them? Today I found the answer to that question, and the answer is Jose Luis Cuevas. Inside the museum of the same name. I assume he is the artist who created them anyway.
Just few years ago there were some parts of the Centro Historico, pretty close to the Zocalo, that you went to if you wanted to get yourself mugged. There still are of course, but bit by bit some areas are being regenerated or otherwise made safe to visit. The problem is, word hasn’t gotten out to Mexicans that this is the case.
My wife for one became incredibly anxious on one of the Ciclothon routes a few months ago as we headed down streets that had been off limits once upon a time. This museum lies in just such an area. How long ago in the past it was iffy to walk down I don’t know. She got her info from her father, so it could be anytime from 19…well, it wouldn’t be polite to him to say!
But anyway, today I Ciclothon’d alone, and stopped to check out the faces, a few of which are now in this thoroughly disreputable part of town! I’d seen them there before, but one of them now had a sign attached to it. There’s a museum down that side street? I must look, thought I. So I did. And if you click here, you’ll be transported to Flickr to see what I found.
The Record Industry tells us that pirated music will destroy music production. Nonsense. Piracy will destroy the record industry, certainly as it exists now. Good. Best thing that could happen to it. I consider piracy, as far as music is concerned, to be something of a virtual anti-biotic, killing off the disease known as the ‘recording industry’. People have been creating music for thousands of years, the vast majority of it without any help from some parasitic ‘recording industry’ feeding off the blood sweat and tears of artists.
For sure the music scene would be different. No more manufactured plastic bands forced onto the airwaves and radio waves by the leeches of the ‘record industry’. Can you imagine life without Britney Spears and New Kids On The Block crooning out of your TV? Fear not. They’d have had to fall back on the sole genuine attribute – their looks. And you’d be able to see more of them than you currently do in various porn movies.
So no, I’m no fan of the recording industry. Without it, maybe we’d have greater access and exposure to real talent. Which is the point of this post. Sure I do come across a lot of talentless souls inflicting their vocal chords on passers by and passengers on the metro, as they beg for a few pesos. But Mexico City is often alive with impromptu performances from aspiring artists, or slightly more organized events like the one I wandered past today. Music has, does and will continue to exist with or without the Sony’s, EMI’s et al. I just happen to believe that better music, offering better value will thrive more successfully without them. I’m just sorry my poor little camera doesn’t do these performers justice.
From king of the castle to sick as a parrot. I should be nearing the hut, halfway up Izta by now. I would be if I hadn’t eaten whatever it was that has made me ill. I felt a bit funny yesterday evening, but I’ve been on paracetamol for a tooth infection, so I didn’t think much of it. By bed time, I felt positively horrible. Headache, shivers and aches. I was convinced I’d been Swine Flu’d. I got about three hours sleep in all, but still got up this morning, had a shower and coffee to try and make myself feel better.
And I did feel a bit better. Not fluish anyway. But I didn’t feel terribly good either. I stood at the door for about 20 minutes trying to make up my mind whether to just go and give it a try and put up with the pain and tiredness. I decided against it. You don’t ‘give it a go and see what happens’ with a 15,000 foot mountain. I didn’t want to hold the others back either. And I thought it would probably be a fairly unpleasant couple of days, up on Izta feeling like this.
Turned out to be a good call. I thought it was Swine Flu last night. By the end of this morning it was clear it was something I ate. I’ll leave it to your imagination how I came to that conclusion. Suffice it to say I’ve been in no state to be out in the wilds, miles from any bathrooms. I’m gutted though. I don’t often get these sort of troubles. This is just the second or third time in four and a half years.
And I had bought a new sleeping bag, thermal shirt, headlamp and all sorts for nothing. And I made a huge bowl of curry to take with me and heat up on a tiny disposable stove I bought. But the photo below is sadly as far as any of it got. I’ll have to investigate the possibility of doing it again somehow, if not this year, then in the spring.
