The Old Baker's Club—A Sleepy Reminiscence

Old and Crusty Donuts

I was reading Steve Cotton's blog the other day, and encountered this blogpost on siestas.
Then, I left this comment:

Same Life--New Location

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

sleep glorious sleep

Don Cuevas said...

I must have naps, due to my long engrained baker's habit of arising in the early morning hours. It's when I do my best work, that is, after a mug or two of strong Chiapas coffee.

In my real experience, bakers arrived at work sometime between 2 and 3 a.m. There's a certain special feeling of belonging to an exclusive club.
(Snort!)

Siestas are a must. Our usual siesta time is after la comida, at about 3:30 until 5:00 or so.

When I arise from those naps, no one should engage me in any meaningful conversation until my brain has returned to normal velocity. I just can't process anything that requires more than a grunted response. The amygdala rules.
Think of Steve's crocodle post, above.

Saludos,
Don Cuevas

April 21, 2010 5:27 AM

The NY Times recently had an article, 
What Is Sleep? - Opinionator Blog - NYTimes.com

JOINING THE CLUB
first, you have to adapt to the schedule; sleep is always on your mind


When I started my first real bakery job, my hours were 3:00 a.m to 11:00 a.m.

I wasn't at all sure I could adjust to that reversal of my sleep cycle. I recall an August afternoon nap on a camp mat in the air conditioned living room of our bungalow in Springfield, MO. I was desperately trying to get some rest before I had to arise at 2:00 a.m. I was only partially successful.

Now, after many years of working similar hours, I can go back to my previous sleep routine only with the greatest difficulty.

planning a proper lunch/breakfast is important

I want to tell you something about working in a medium to large retail bakery in the early morning hours.
Often, when I arrived at the loading dock entrance and entered the bakery production area, the two senior bakers were sitting on the flour sacks taking a break and eating bologna sandwiches on white bread. Always white bread. When I expressed a preference for rye or whole wheat, Chester, the older baker, who resembled W.C. Fields, would poke fun at me with comments about my "whale blubber sandwich on kumquat toast." Funny guy. That's only a sample of his humor.


One of my first jobs as a Baker's Helper was washing sheet pans and other things as called upon. Getting mild electrical shocks when washing the outside walls of the walk-in freezer was an eyeopener.


the whole mirth catalog


It was a big moment when the senior bakers called me over to the bench (work table) and invited me to help make donuts. My assignment was to pick the cut holes from the big sheet of dough sprawled on the bench. It was a monotonous job, enlivened only by Chester's jesting, making funny faces, teasing the cake finishers, general ribaldry and hilarious parodies of popular Country and Western songs.


They sheeted the dough through a big machine and cut out the shapes with a die cut roller, and I got to pluck the holes. Somehow, that task would cause my mind to wander. It would often wander to the eastern Missouri Perry County Karst Plain. (PDF, 1.6 MB) Hundred, perhaps thousands of sinkholes...endless cavities, stretching to the horizon.

Later, when I'd graduated to the point to where the trusted me enough, they took some time off and I was left alone in the bakery production area, mixing, kneading, sheeting, cutting and still plucking those thousands of donut holes. It was a big step and a big responsibilty. But it was easier for my mind to wander at 4 a.m. when I didn't have that crazy, crusty old baker banter to keep my mind on the job.


flubbing up can be hazardous


A few mishaps occasionally resulted: like the sugar cookie dough one morning. "Emmett; it just doesn't look right." —I phoned the head baker at 4:00 a.m. on his day off.
"Did you put the sugar in?"— he asked.
No. That was what was missing! Mixing in the correct amount of sugar nearly instantly corrected the problem.


Then there the big floor mixers. These are not your Kitchen-Aid table top mixers. They are powerful machines. I think one was an 80 quart and the other a 120 quart capacity, with electric lifts.

Massive Mixers a lot like these

There was at least one close call when, in my sleepy daze, I failed to properly lock the massive bowl onto the mixer arms. The bowl was loaded with perhaps 100 pounds of donut mix, maybe 60 some pounds of water and and several one pound blocks of fresh yeast. That plus the weight of the stainless steel bowl came to over 250 pounds.

 As the bowl rose, it canted forward, threatening to spill the unmixed contents onto the less than pristine floor, as the mixer rose from the floor on its legs! (This was a hard to achieve feat.)

I was sweating, you bet. After I calmed down, I was able to fiddle the mechanism to safely lower the bowl to its round, wheeled dolly.

After experiences like those, quitting time at 11:00 a.m. was welcome, and then home to lunch with a beer then some sleep. (Breakfast had already been eaten while sitting on the bags of flour in the bakery. My usual, of course: a whale blubber sandwich on kumquat toast.) 


This is not the end of the story, but sufficient for now.

¡Viva Las Vegas!

Last Thursday while enroute to Morelia, I was seeking lodging for a visitor, and had a rare opportunity to visit the Auto Hotel Las Vegas. It's on the Pátzcuaro-Morelia highway, located less than half a mile east of the Tzurumutaro junction. Although we'd often driven past the attractive, new building, we'd never had a reason to stop by, as our home is not too far away.

Look for the motel behind the power pole

The facade is white, with a can't-miss, bright red sign. It immediately gained points with me for its clean, uncluttered, yet Devil-may- look. No lighthouse, no crenellated towers, no throbbing neon sign.  Just inside the curving entryway is a placard with the rates. I wrote them down.

• Normal $180
• Especial $200
• Jakuci $500

All the posted rates are for an 8-hour stay.

(I have to state at this point that the designations, "Normal" and "Especial" don't have any relation to the variety of activities that might transpire within, but only to the size of the rooms.)

At the office, I inquired about 24-hour rates. The woman on duty called her manager for further information. After a while, I obtained the following:

• Normal $300
• Especial $400
• Jakuci? I didn't bother, as our visitor would be on a tight budget.

Now, we step beyond the semaphore barrier...

This is a semaphore barrier, or something like it.

I was pleased that without even asking, I was shown two rooms. The first was a Normal. Its overhead garage door is electrically powered and rises smoothly and quietly at the touch of a button.

The interior of the garage was not only spotlessly clean, it was far nicer than a few scruffy hotel rooms we'd stayed in elsewhere.

It's notable that there were no stairs to climb, as the Auto Hotel is built on one level. This is thoughtful planning, as both the electric overhead door and the lack of stairs mean better energy conservation.

A simple door lead into the habitacíon itself. The decor was neutral but not unattractive. There are small and subtle decorator touches.

Inside was the immediate, unmissable, suffusing presence of a powerful air freshener. Inescapable, but fortunately not to the level of gasping and choking.

The room itself was small, but serviceable, with a neatly made bed, two shelves as nightstands, a shiny, flat screen TV, and a tiled floor. I didn't have the nerve to jump onto the bed to test it, but it looked new and firm. Firm is important.

The modest sized window was well curtained. That, too, is important. There may be a deficiency of ventilation. We noticed that the garage door descended to within a foot of the pavement. Maybe that's to help the ventilation.

Over in the baño, just past the entry door, the necessary was behind a partition, opposite the sink and an attractive, glass enclosed shower. Every thing about the place was clean, modern and upright.

On the vanity in the bedroom was a plastic-laminated menu, listing foods and drinks, a select line of your favorite tipples, plus Health and Beauty products that might be useful for your stay. (Like a comb...)

There is an on-site restaurant, probably not open to the public at large, for example, tour bus groups, but solely intended for the comfort and sustenance of the Auto Hotel guests. I'm also speculating that there's no dining room, but that there's 24-hour room service. I didn't notice any pasamuro opening for food delivery. Maybe I just wasn't paying close enough attention. (Later...nope, there is no pass through. I wonder how room service makes its discreet deliveries.)

The Especial room was next on our tour. It was on the same floor plan as the Normal, but perhaps 25 to 30% larger. This particular room was next door to the office, and had no window but a false one. The bath also was a little more spacious.

It's up to the individual guest whether size matters in choosing a room, but the Normal is certainly cozy, yet functional. If you were to bring a trunk full of special doohickeys and accouterments, then you might wish to pay a little extra for an Especial.

That was my first visit to a true motel de paso*. If we didn't live nearby and were traveling, I'd certainly consider it an excellent and economical lodging option. But it would not be my choice for an extended stay.

I returned Sunday afternoon with our visitor, who approved of the standard layout, and it was then that I quietly took some photos. I noticed that a few luxury details were missing, such as the fancy glass shower partition, but no matter; it was fine with him.
Bedroom with mirror
The garage; not the living room.
A "Normal" room.

Cinderella's coach goes here.
The air freshener was more muted in his room.

I'm hoping to obtain a man on the sheet interview with our visitor when we see him today, to get his effable evaluation of the lodgings and services. So, stay tuned to this URL. §

*The Hotel Pal in México, DF has a motel section, but we stayed in the family and business section, so I have no observations of the nether regions of that hostelry.

§ This, just in: the bed was fine, but the room was warm and he wished for a fan. I didn't get any info on the bathroom and hot water supply. He didn't call for room service food.

§§ NEW! Our visitor stayed a total of 4 nights and reports that the shower was fine, with plenty of hot water, although its arrival was somewhat delayed. He also confirmed my earlier fleeting impression that there is another, smaller mirror on the wall across from the foot of the bed. One could reflect on the possiblities of that arrangement.
(Now I see that I captured it in my photo. So much for my powers of observation!)

Apple, Inc Collaborates With Pátzcuaro Tourism Commission

DATELINE: Pátzcuaro, Michoacán. April 1, 2010

As a devoted Apple fanboy, I occasionally am privileged to receive insider info from a Silicon Valley source that chooses to remain anonymous.
(For similar reasons, illustrations are not available yet.)

Thus it was that I was astonished when I opened my encrypted email earlier this morning to learn of the collaboration of Pátzcuaro's Tourism Development Commission with Apple, Inc. in regard to the renovations of the Plaza Grande. The newly renovated Plaza will, first of all, be a wi-fi zone where both local citizens, expats and tourists can use their mobile devices to both check their email and chat in real time with their buddies. (There goes The Office.)

Artesanías aficionados will be able to shop online and pay with digital money for the Catrinas, Alejibres and Cocuchas without the bother and added expense of a guide to take them to craft villages around the Lake.

The new multi-story Mercado will feature multilingual touch screen iPads at strategically located stations so that shoppers may view produce, meats and clothing in an easy manner, comparing the prices in advance, and pay with credit  card or PayPal. This lessons the risk of petty thievery as well.

Local fondas and taquerías are eager to jump on the digital bandwagon. Proposals are afoot for an iApp for online ordering from your favorite taquería, birrería or quesadillería for digital micro payments. This is looked on as a major breakthrough in reducing or even eliminating the perpetual coin change shortage.

As an added bonus, digital subscribers will be able to get combi van schedules on line and make reservations for boarding passes, thus eliminating the uncertainty that some persons experience under the present system. Phase 2 will breakout the digital readable passcards to eliminate the scrambling for change that is so aggravating now.

All involved are enthusiastic for the success of this plan. "If all goes well", said an unattributed municipal spokesperson, "we'll be looking at virtualization technology to allow more visitors to enjoy Pátzcuaro without those stinking tour buses clogging our calles."

Other municipalities are watching closely, and may develop similar programs if Pátzcuaro's is seen as successful.

Remember; you read it here first.

Flash Panned: Hospitality Horrors

From the archives of Surviving La Vida Buena comes this relic, freshly dusted off for viewing. Since this post was conceived, I have learned that Flash does not work on an iPhone or iPod Touch, which is somewhat limiting, but perhaps a blessing in disguise. Perhaps we can look forward to it not working on the iPad.

Hotel Pal, Colonia Centro, Mexico, DF

About a year go, while browsing the useful pages of wikimapia.org, I found the Hotel Pal near Metro Station Balderas where Lineas 1 and 3 cross. The location seemed a long way from the usual Centro Histórico attractions, but as we found out, we were able to walk to the "Centro Centro" in 25 to 30 minutes. Having the Metro Station on the corner, near 3 Banamex ATMs, was a real advantage. The other attraction was price.

View Larger Map

I'm not sure how they can offer such tremendous value at modest prices, but I think one way is to eliminate costly frills, eg, there's no bellman staff. The lobby is attractive but minimally furnished with a few easy chairs and a sofa.

The non-uniformed reception staff was business like and correct. They work from behind a large, heavily glass window.

There is a restaurant and bar, but we didn't eat there, as we had other dining interests in the area.

The hotel caters to business travelers, families and tour groups, but also the "drive-in trade", with a "love motel de paso" section accessed via a ramp into the garage. This had no feel of sleaze about it to us. Now, some persons might not like that the TV in the room has 1 or 2 porn channels amidst the regular programming; but our solution was to not watch them. The brief glimpses we had were definitely raunchy.

While we were there, a large tour bus group of older Americans or Canadians arrived by for one night.

The maintenance and hygiene are impeccable, and it's clean to the point of looking sterile. Our room was simply but pleasantly decorated.

I have to mention that the free wi-fi in the room and lobby worked well, and for those guests who didn't bring a laptop, there are two well maintained PC's with Internet connection in a glassed in area to one side of the lobby.

The huge bathroom of our Master Suite, on the 4th floor, was a highlight. The floors were faux marble, and in addition to the usual equipment, there was a bidet and a 2-person jacuzzi tub. (Unfortunately, it took 25-30 minutes to fill adequately, which made me feel guilty for wasting water.)

The capacious shower stall supplied forceful and plentiful hot water. We never had less than 4 or 5 big bath towels. The bath amenities were basic but adequate.

The main bedroom-sitting room was even larger and had a good, firm king bed, nightstands, a desk, a desk chair, a small round table and two wing chairs. The closet was open style, but had many hangers. There were no drawers of any sort in the suite, but the night tables had undershelves.

Illumination was adequate from recessed spot lamps. There were two large windows, which partially opened, and well shielded by heavy curtains. There was some noise at night (music) from the buildings behind the hotel (some of which are humble tenements) but the noise usually subsided in and hour or so. A friend stayed in a streetside, single room, and he had no trouble sleeping, he said.

The TV remote control did not work, and was inconveniently bolted to the wall next to the bed.But since we don't watch much TV, it was not a big problem.

The wi-fi worked seamlessly.

The neighborhood seems safe enough, at least in daylight hours, and we walked everywhere to the north and east, reaching the Centro Histórico in 25 or 30 minutes. However, I didn't want to make the same walk after dark. The Avenida Arcos de Belén looked fine, as did Av. Balderas. Calle Luis Moya might be o.k., but I wanted to stay away from the areas near Mercado San Juan and east to Eje Central 3 (San Juan de Letrán) after dark. We took a cab back after dinner at Restaurante El Huequito in Centro, and it was only $16 MXP.

We found most basic services within a 2-block walk.

The Ciudadela Artesanias Mercado is 2 blocks away. Mercado San Juan of specialty foods, about 8 blocks.

We will definitely stay at the Hotel Pal again when in Mexico City.

Hotel Pal Location. (Fixed image)

The Forwarders

I've always hoped that the Internet would be a Force for better Communication and Understanding. Instead it seems to be an Effing Facility for Forwarding Freaks.


I know these FWD: emails are intended to be inspirational, entertaining and informational. But they are clogging my In Box and slowing down the delivery of useful mail.


Just last night, I got one with seventeen (17) attachments, none of which opened in any reasonable time.


I got a PowerPoint slideshow of Great Pictures, complete with an audio track; Funny Commercials, Nostalgia pieces, on how everything was better when we were young. Those are common, and tend to recycle the email rounds.


I get forwards from people I don't know. I get forwards from acquaintances. My sister won't send me a personal email, but she regularly sends me forwards from work. Her firm's Internet policy forbids listening to Internet music because of bandwidth concerns, but she'll send fat PowerPoint files. I don't get it.


Here's a tip: almost all of this vital info is somewhere on the Web. Google it, and if it's so interesting, send the link to your victims recipients.


There are at least two kinds of Forwarders:
• There are those who ask if it's o.k. to forward you messages of interest.
• There are those who don't ask.
But they have something in common; whatever your answer, yes or no, they'll send them. The Forwarders are worse than proselytizing religious zealots. You can neither slam the door in their face, or politely get rid of them.


With religious proselytizers, you can say, "Gracias, pero no tengo interés. Que les vayan bien." and they go.


Fowarders don't get, "Do. Not. Send. Me. These. Forwards." They are compulsive in their behavior. Their mouse inexorably gravitates to the FWD To All: button. They will ALWAYS find some way to ignore what you'll tell them. I think that some get a sense of empowerment in that with a click of mouse, they can spam* everyone in their Contacts List.


*Most of the spam I receive is from people I know send announcements of local events. They either don't realize that they have me more than once on their contact lists and there are those who forward the orginals, to be sure I don't miss the event. So I get 4 or 5 emails with the same subject.


Some send political messages, of both Right and Left viewpoints, all of which presume I'm interested. I'm not. I'm the Don of Apathy.


I found this article on Responsible Forwarding, and it has some good advice. It reminded me of another reason that I dislike receiving gratuitous forwards: list after list of previous recipients' email addresses. Sometimes, my address is included in the CC:, which is Unforfriggiingiveable.


You are obliged to scroll on and on about who sent what to whom, ad nauseam. Somewhere, past all that unecessary dross, is a nugget of some Priceless Gem with which you have been blessed: "Coca-Cola Caps of the mid-20th Century", for example.


I have a big favor to ask.
Please copy this blog, and Forward it to everyone on your Contact List or Address Book. Your recipients will thank you. Mil gracias.


Saludos,
Don Cuevas

UPDATE: I just received an unsolicited file attachment of 958 kb, of a NY Times Digest. Right after I shot off a snappy reply, I noticed my email program struggling to intake some other wad of uselessness.

(Useless? Yes, as I can read the undigested Times on their website, and if I wanted to, I could probably read the digest form on my own.)

As I knew it would already by in the inbox of my Gmail account, I looked in there. The same person had sent it again with an "Oops, LOL!" that the previous wad had the wrong day in the subject line.

God save us.

I'm increasingly in favor of Internet training to obtain an operator's license.

And people who send me offensive "humor" FWDs are going on my Shit Buddy Reject List

Las Cabañuelas

A friend gave me a brief note yesterday, suggesting that I'd like this new word, "cabañuelas".

The note reads: "Cabañuelas= the first 12 days of January. Tradition says that the weather during these days indicates the climate during the 12 upcoming months of the year."

If the tradition is true, then we are in for a wild and windy time of rain interpersed with hail and mitigated by rainbows.

After nearly two weeks of unseasonably rainy January weather, the streak seemed to have broken yesterday. Though here at la hacienda the world was covered in fog, it cleared by mid morning and the rest of the day was bright, sunny and less cold. There is hope.

Alas! I just looked outside and there are ominous dark clouds to the east.

It's probably his fault. (I don't understand this next picture, other than it's a "Wanted" poster. I found it in a Google images search for cabañuelas.

What's So Great About Pátzcuaro?

"Uriel" put this question last week to one of our local forums, Michoacan_Net.

What is so great about Patzcuaro? Why do people want to travel there? The ice cream ("nieve") isn't all that great. There isn't much to "really" see. Or maybe i haven't seen the greatness of Patzcuaro.

This elicited a flurry of replies, many tinged with indignation. Most made references to a "warm fuzzy" feeling they had while in Pátzcuaro.

I refrained from answering, as I thought the orginal question more than a little trollish. Besides, why should anyone feel compelled to defend their choice of where they live?

After an interval, our friend, "DrBosque" (who left Pátzcuaro several months ago for the more southern climes) cut through the warm fuzzy haze and replied thusly:

Many of the people we know who have moved to Patzcuaro shared the impression that it just felt right. For most, immediately. I can think of few who would use the word "great," a rather hollow word for a place and culture that's anything but.

It's one of prettiest cities in Mexico, and perhaps the only one that has such an inspiring tree-filled plaza without a church scowling from one end. That earns it a certain greatness in my mind (but then I do tend toward attitude regarding authoritarian religions).

What are you comparing it to? And what caused you to have such unrealistic expectations, that you're so disappointed you have to ask the question so disparagingly?

I replied privately to DrBosque:

I agree, the word "great" doesn't apply. For most of us, it has a nice feel to it. The geographic setting is attractive. You can walk from one side of Centro to the other in 15 minutes; you almost always see people you know. But there are almost no really good restaurants. :-(

The mercado is a true highlight for me. The vibrancy and color animate me. But I wouldn't want to spend more than an hour at a time in there. It can be exhausting.

The historic center's streets and buildings are charming. Outside of a few choice areas, the town is rather less attractive. (See the Libramiento, por ejemplo, athough it's improving.)

It's a good, cheap place to retire!!!

I'll add that although we enjoy living out in the countryside, on the peaceful and tranquilo rancho, I need the stimulus of several visits a week to the vigorous and animated scene of Pátzcuaro Centro. A few hours of walking the charming streets, having coffee with friends, shopping, and I'm renewed for a few more days.

Others, who live close in, enjoy gallery shows, concerts, and playing bridge with friends. Everyone finds what they like best.

The Rainbow Gathering

Central highland Michoacán area seldom gets more than isolated rain showers during the months from October to June. This year we've had several rain showers, and today was a soaker.

We were driving home from visiting friends when we saw a partial rainbow along the foot of the ridge. Of course, we could never quite pass under its arc or overtake it.

On the other side of the road, the windbreaks of eucalyptus were austerely beautiful in their clean washed grayness. Sunshine was breaking sporadically through the rain showers, illuminating Los Tres Picos and the other mountains that form the backdrop to the valley.

When we drove up our street and reached our gate, I was amazed by the magnificent double rainbow in the northeast sky. As soon as the car was inside, I opened my camera and took some pictures.

Maybe these rainbows are a favorable omen for the New Year.

Dead Horse Curve (unpleasant subject)

There's a section of highway, at the base of a small mountain between Tzurumutaro and Sanabria (the turn off for Ihuatzio) that is notorious for its blind curves. For reasons incomprehensible to us, it's also an area where livestock, both cattle and horses, freely range unfettered. The result is that there are often the corpses of cattle or caballos.

We had just finished smelling the last of one such rotting carcass when another unfortunate victim was seen lying on the other side of the road, a hundred or so meters closer to Sanabria.

We feel badly for the victims, but we have no solution to the problem. Ni modo. At the very least, we use extreme caution when driving around the curves. When riding in the combi van, we have to adopt the motto, "Fe en Dios y adelante." "Faith in God and forward."

We once had a driver steer with his knees, while texting on his cell phone, on this same stretch of highway.

The last victim's situation was especially asqueroso; after a few days, its head was missing.

Sorry to upset your stomachs. I'll offer a photo of some beautiful, live horses, taken alongside a less trafficked stretch of another highway near here.

Click on photo for full view.

Zi-Wha?

We have just returned from a 4 night stay in the small, tropical, Pacific coastal city of Zihuatanejo, in the Mexican state of Guerrero.

This trip was out of character, as I especially have not liked beach resorts in the past (I was bored to irritation), and we are both averse to steaming hot locales. (One of the big attractions of the Pátzcuaro area is that it's seldom hot.)

Lately, however, the onset of cold weather here in the Michoacán highlands plus a desire for a change of scene, impelled us into taking this brief trip. I theorized that an air conditioned hotel, in a city with numerous restaurants and shops nearby would appeal to me more than a "chill" beach scene. (Chill beach scene, if I understand that phrase correctly, is a place of hammocks under palapa shape huts, where you lie around, drink coconut water mixed with gin or whatever —neither of us like coconut water—, and I'm good for oh, maybe, 5 minutes chilling in a hammock.)

We decided to travel by bus, an economical and less stressful way than driving. Oddly, no buses go directly from Pátzcuaro to Zihuatanejo; one has to either back track to Morelia or go to Uruapan. Uruapan is the logical choice, as it's 50 miles down the slope and in more or less the right direction. We packed lightly and carried two soft mini-duffel bags and a woven shopping bag. Thus equipped, we walked down our street to the corner, where we waited then caught the combi van to Pátzcuaro.

There's a second class bus stop in lower Pátzcuaro called "La Estacíon", after the long inactive train station nearby. This is a popular transportation hub for buses and combis and taxis. We dared enter the Tortas Pátzcuaro shop, next to the infamous Federal Police Station that got shot up by narcos last year, to buy two tortas (hoagy/sub-like sandwiches) to go. Then we walked a block, waited a few minutes, and got tickets for the Uruapan bus.

The bus is "servicio ordinario", which in other words, means it isn't first class, but it's reasonably comfortable for short trips.

The scenery is beautiful, as the highway winds down the mountain slopes through pine forest and views of extinct cinder cones, then past groves of avocado trees. The outskirts of Uruapan mark the end of the pretty part and the start of the gritty part. It's quite unattractive a place, but the bus station isn't bad. A good thing, as we had over two hours to wait for the next bus. We'd bought our senior discount tickets for the 1:30 p.m. run two days before.

The people watching was above average, and helped while away the time. There's even an operating bakery, where I watched the baker scrape down the dough on the inside of a still whirling dough kneader machine.

From Uruapan, our First Class bus on "La Linea" took us down into the Tierra Caliente of Michoacán and the dramatic mountains around the Presa del Infiernillo reservoir.

Three quite forgettable movies played for our entertainment. (At least, I'm trying to forget the last one, an animated, full-length feature about anthropomorphic eggs, in an Old Mexico desert setting. Although the stark beginning, shaman-haunted and set amongst the buttes and mesas of Real de Catorce was auspicious, it quickly degenerated into mawkish and squawkish silliness.

The autopista disgorged us onto the sunny coast road, which carried us palm thatched huts, cold beer stores and  for about 45 minutes to lovely Zihuatanejo.

The Zihuatanejo bus station has no taxi boleto taquilla where you can buy tickets at a regulated rate. So I was pleasantly surprised when the taxi driver quoted us a rate of $25 MXN to take us to our hotel, Villas Miramar, in Colonia La Madera, a ten minute walk from Centro.

Colonia La Madera is a pleasant, semi residential area, in which most every property is dedicated to the hospitality industry. The principal, east-west-ish street, Calle Adelita, is shady and relatively cooler than the nearby streets across the mostly dry canal that marks its northwestern boundary. There, as in much of touristic Zihuatanejo, English is widely spoken. Prices are often quoted in dollars, but with firmness, you can pay in pesos, which is better for you, the customer.

Villas Miramar was a good choice for us. We are grateful to our friend D.L. Glidden, who told us about it, and gave us many dining tips. The Miramar has two sections, one on either side of Calle Adelita: a "garden view" and a "sea view" section.

We chose the sea view section, which cost us $850 MXN a night (about $66 USD a night, with a 40% discount on the 4th night. It would have been $100 MXN less per night for a garden view room. (These were shoulder season rates, which changes to high season on December 18.)

The room was very spacious and comfortable. There was a small terrace with  a view of the bay and the pool below. There was a small refrigerator; an effective ceiling fan; two double beds, reading lights, an AC unit, a decent bathroom with very ample supplies of hot water, and a telephone, which we never used. The TV had very few channels available, and we had no remote, but TV watching is not among our priorities.

What didn't come with the room was purified drinking water, facial tissues, and instructions for operating the lights. But we bought two liter bottles of water at nearby stores and we eventually figured out the light system.

We were soon into the pool. Not big enough to do laps (like I care?), it was perfect for cool, easy lounging.

I realize that this post is getting long, so I'll leave it here for now and later, describe our quasi-touristic activities and especially, the restaurants, on My Mexican Kitchen.

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Beam Me Down, Google...

...there's life down there.

I learned on Mexconnect.com's forums the other day that Google Earth now has Street View for Guadalajara. I have to admit the Guadalajara aspect didn't excite my interest, but I was really thrilled that Google Earth had this feature. The poster helped me out by explaining how to enable Street View in your Google Earth browser. Open the panel on the left side and look under "layers" for "street view", then check the box.
(You can visit Ajijíc and Chapala, if you wish. I haven't tried San Miguel de Allende yet.)


Areas which have been photographed for Street View have little camera icons up and down the street. Mousing over the icon reveals the street name. Corner intersections are indicated with names of both streets.


You can click the camera icons to reveal a small photo, then click the link below to open in Street View. Or, just double click the camera icon to swoop directly down to street level. This is often vertiginous and not for those prone to los mareos. Once at street level, you can drag the image to either right of left and then navigate your way up and down the street. There's some limited zoom in-zoom out capability. To exit, click "exit photo" in the upper right of the screen. This does not return you to your previous, regular view very well. I have to zoom out and correct the North arrow on the navigation tools to reorient myself.


Instead of Guad, I went zooming off at high speed to México, D.F. There I homed in to one of my favorite areas of the city, Colonia Roma. Once I "arrived", I navigated to Avenida Álvaro Obregón, locating various well known landmarks such as Casa Lamm, Hotel Colonia Roma (budget), Hotel Milán (moderate), Hotel Stanza (Executive Class). The latter is located at the corner of Álvaro Obregón and Calle Morelia, with the Jardín Pushkin to the east side. (You can see the street tianguis and food stalls there.) About three blocks up Calle Morelia, at the corner of Calle Colima, I located my favorite hamburger stand. (pictured below) With minimal maneuvering, I was able to get a good Street View, full screen picture and save it.

With a little trial and error maneuvering (the direction you are looking is not always clear.), I then navigated several blocks to the off-center, second floor, shiny chrome and formica restaurant, Las Costillas d' Fuentes, at the corner of Calle Mérida and Calle Durango. Nº 58, to be exact. It's on the first floor up in this modern building, pictured below. It's a slightly odd but pleasant, low priced restaurant specializing in charcoal grilled meats, especially the eponymous rib steaks. Coming soon on My Mexican Kitchen.

This is another great tool enabling us to explore the world and its wonders, thanks to the generous development of the Google Corp.

Don Cuevas' Top 5 Hotel Picks

When we last heard from him, Felipe was concerned that the Cuevas couple was still skimping on pesos and staying in wretched backpacker budget hotels.

Rest your fears, amigo. With two borderline exceptions, we have not stayed in a budget hotel since 2004. Those exceptions were the Posada de La Villa (pretty basic and older), and the Hotel Casa Galeana, (newer, nicer and noisy) both in Morelia. Neither of which would be on our Top 5 List, however. Since then, we have made it a point to spend the necessary money in order to be comfortable.

These are our top picks.
Mexico, D.F. is where we usually stay in hotels these days, going to and from the Aeropuerto Benito Júarez (MEX).

Hotel Milán, Av. Álvaro Obregón, Colonia Roma Norte. (Map) This is a 3 star hotel which is well located in a pleasant zone of the city, near parks and fountains, restaurants, coffeehouses plus new and used book stores. The rooms are modest in size but nicely renovated. The bathrooms are small but very clean and functional. Sometimes there is free wi-fi in the rooms.*

Hotel Catedral is our choice when staying in el Centro Histórico. It's a couple of blocks north of La Catedral. It has all the amenities but still, despite its increased popularity among Lonely Planet fans, its rates are still affordable. Book by email and save by not opting for the breakfast in the hotel restaurant. Save even more by paying en efectivo.

Also in CH, we have stayed at the Hotel Gillow, the Catedral's older sister hotel, on Isabel La Católica at Cinco de Mayo, and we didn't think it worth the extra money. The Gillow has great, 1930's Art Deco style in its lobby and public spaces, but the room we had, though large, was quite worn.

Similarly, the cute Hotel Canadá on Cinco de Mayo itself has a pleasant staff but tiny rooms and street noise. The chief advantage of the latter two are their terrific location in the very center of the CH. The wonderful Jugos Canadá is next door. The Gilipollos chicken restaurant is across Cinco de Mayo. (I confess; we haven't eaten there yet, but the '30s and '40s style Cafe La Blanca is only a block away.)

Back in Colonia Roma, we have recently pampered ourselves at the Hotel Stanza (used to be called Hotel Parque Ensenada). The rooms are like the Catedral, but a higher notch in amenities and style. The rates are reasonable for the quality and service. We like it because it's a great place to rest while decompressng after a visit to the U.S. It's the closest decent hotel to Hamburguesas a la Parilla, just 3 short blocks north on Calle Morelia.*

*Note that both my Colonia Roma choices are within convenient range of several Bisquets Obregón restaurants, including the Mother Ship of all Bisquets in Mexico. They are notable for serving decent fare at good prices.Breakfasts, accompanied by café con leche, are a strong point.

Puebla, Puebla.
We have only been in Puebla once, and we chose to stay at the quirky but pleasant Hotel Imperial. In a way, it's a semi-budget hotel. They offer a geezer discount, if you show an INAPAM card. They also include a Manager's cena, but it's pretty basic. There's a breakfast included, a bit more elaborate. There's wi-fi, and it works. The location is quite central; a few blocks to the Zócalo. The rooms are old, and worn, but we were comfortable. We opted for a Suite Ejecutivo, as the price was so reasonable: $550 less INAPAM discount. In your spare time, you can get in a few holes of mini-miniature golf, while in your bathrobe. (Included in the Suite Ejecutivo price.)

Oaxaca, Oaxaca.

Really, we've only stayed in one hotel in Oaxaca, the Casa Arnel. We have a great deal of affection for this hotelito and the family and staff that runs it.
On our first stay, in the early '90s, we skimped and took a very minimalist budget room, resembling a barely converted mop closet. Since then, Casa Arnel has renovated and improved so that the rooms are pleasant, although they could not be called luxurious. The attractions, besides the hospitable family, are the green leafy patio and the neighborhood. There is a small restaurant for guests, serving breakfasts, drinks and light meals.

Barrio Jalatlaco

The location is within 7 blocks of the first class bus station, in the picturesque Barrio antiguo Jalatlaco. It's a 20+ minute walk to the Zócalo, but an interesting paseo. A few blocks away is the Parque Júarez, better known as El Llano, a very relaxing and pleasant place.

Casa Arnel is in a fairly quiet neighborhood, but there is sometimes noise from other guests out in the patio.

For longer stays, they have some basically furnished but pleasant apartments a few doors up the street.

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Bonuses: A nice, inexpensive Morelia hotel; and a very nice expensive B and B:
1. Hotel Plaza Morelos.

We don't need to stay in Morelia very often, as we live 45 minutes away. But sometimes there are occasions when we are in the city for some special event, for example the recent Lila Downs concert. We stayed one night at the Hotel Plaza Morelos, just off Avda Acueducto, on the west side of the eponymous plaza. Behind the colonial facade is a modern hotel. They have renovated parts of it, so you have a choice of "nice" and "better" rooms. None of it is luxuriously appointed, but for only $450 pesos (special promotional rate, usually $650), we had a very large room with 2 beds, a large bathroom, an unusually large closet space, free wi-fi, a Continental breakfast. Quibbles: the desk was silly, designed for tiny people with low knees, and there's a good sized outdoor swimming pool, but it didn't attract me because the water looked overdue for a change.

2. Now, if cosmetic defects bother you, such as paint spatters on the walls or unfinished wiring, or that the two sections of the building join in a skewed juncture, pass up the Plaza Morelos and get a reservation instead at the Posada de San Antonio, nearby on the leafy, tree lined Calzada Fray Antonio de San Miguel, where you'll pay $1200 pesos a night for tranquility and peace and near perfection, plus a full breakfast, attended to by unusually amiable hosts. There are only 3 guest rooms. Some have great bathtubs, and plentiful hot water.

The map. Note Plaza Morelos just east of the Posada San Antonio.

This concludes my hotel picks for now.

Hoteles Mexicanos: Los Buenos, Los Malos y Los Feos Part 3

I'm beginning to realize that these anecdotes of Bad budget hotels could go on for a long, long time. Conversely, what's so interesting about a Good hotel?


I think I'm getting close to wrapping up this theme.


But I must highlight just one more really bad hostelry. It's
hard to choose: the hotel in Huautla de Jiménez, Oaxaca, whose bathrooom window almost fell to the street below when I opened it? The Hotel Lorena, in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, looking like a suite of bare bones dental offices, with the bare electrical wires in the closet?


The room in the Hotel Avenida in Chihuahua that had the concrete support column in the middle of the tiny room, and a good view of the flashing lights of the marquee just below our window? Not to mention the literally piped in central AC that came on and off at the whim of management?


No; the outstandingly bad hostelry was the Casa de Húespedes Bed and Breakfast in San Cristóbal de Las Casas, January, 1993. We were in full backpacker kit and mentality as we drudged up the cobbled streets of SCLC, while light drizzle fell. Our goal was this fantastically cheap hostelry which offered a room with bath PLUS breakfast for the peso equivalent of U.S. $10 a night/dbl.


After a long walk from the bus station, we arrived at the two story Casa de Húespedes, where we were greeted and shown two different rooms. The first was closer to to the main house. We imediately detcted a foul sewer odor upon entering. We quicly noted that the bathroom was separated from the bedroom by a coarse curtain.
We immediately asked to see another room.


That looked and smelled a lot better. By now, our energy reserves were at the point of no return. We needed to stay because we lacked the strength to return to the centro and look for another place. Besides, we really wanted to experience the cheapest lodging deal we'd ever read about.
We took the room.


It was nearly bare: a bed, a few pegs in the wall for clothing and a small card table for a nightstand.
We soon realized that the bed had no mattress but only a boxspring, covered by the bedding. There was one, bare light bulb in the room.


The bathroom was a charmer: a copper pipe snaked into the window, ending in a big showerhead. We were not keen to use the shower, as the bathmat was a filthy car floormat. The bathroom floor was equally unattractive.


We decided to make the best of it and crawled into the bed, between thick woolen blankets, atop our boxsprings.


Lights out.


We were awakened at intervals by the shrill screams of a child. Sleep was difficult, but we somehow survived a restless night.


When we went to the sunny terrace where a breakfast of frijoles negros, tortillas, eggs and excellent coffee was served, we could almost overlook the wretched night we'd experienced. But we knew we couldn't stand another night like that, so after breakfast, we left, lugging our backpacks, and found a nice, clean warm place, with hot water showers, just off centro. It was about U.S. $17 a night, with no breakfast, but it was worth it. La Posada Virginia was cozy and homey, and we snugged right in.


Stay tuned for Don Cuevas' Picks of his favorite Mexican Hotels.