My daddy loved to fish, and when he had given up farming, he could go a little more often. He had a homemade, wooden boat. The sturdy, flat-bottomed kind you need to fish the coast of NC, with an outboard motor you had to pull to start. When he came home empty handed, he called it a water haul. Well, Tuesday was a water haul for mama. She spent most of the day napping, and recovering from her fall that morning. And, yes, that is tequlia in her hand in the photo. Truth: she was not drinking it (I was, medicinal you know), but the swelling is all hers. I got some knitting done. But, Wednesday, we 'caught some fish'!
The Merida English Language Library has a house tour every Wednesday, and for a very reasonable fee, they show three houses and the pretty library/house. Mama didn't want to miss this tour. Our guide, Keith, was very informative, and we learned about the beautiful tiles we've seen on the floors all around town. Tiles unlike any we've seen anywhere else. They are commonly called pasta tiles, because they are made in layers, of colored cement. Originally, according to Keith, they were used as ballast on ships coming to Merida from Europe. Of course, the Spaniards were hauling sisal, cochineal (not from Merida), and other products back from the New World. Pretty quickly, people began salvaging the pretty tiles and using them for flooring. The tiles are now made here, but many renovation jobs save and re-use the old tiles, mixed with the new ones. Hard to tell the difference. Well, mama walked the entire 20-some blocks, and didn't miss a room! She sat when she could at the three houses, and was pretty well used up for the rest of the day, but we all had a loved seeing inside the walls of some houses, and learned much from Keith. The first house is a mansion, larger than anything I could have imagined, a secret behind those walls. It has not been touched since it was built more than 100 years ago, but when the owner finishes it....wow! Two courtyards, a pool, and casita at the far back, maaannny rooms. And, the place for the carriage and horse in the front rooms. The second house was smaller, very beautifully renovated, I could have moved in today. It even had a studio space, with good light. The third house was another amazing renovation, judging from the photos the owner showed us. It included a bed&breakfast, behind a separate wall, so private and peaceful. The tour shows different tours each week, so we may do it again. The small fee goes to the Library, for it's many projects. The second photo shows one of the houses, complete with an outdoor living room right beside the pretty pool. The hammock was hung over the pool, such a perfect location. Mama and I spent some time in the pool at her hotel in the afternoon, cooling off, before joining friends down the street for cocktails. They bought a house here last year, and it is fabulous! oh, my! Two pretty little courtyards, a beautiful kitchen and master bedroom area, just a picture book house.
Thursday, after a late breakfast, we caught a bus down to the big Mercado, and did a little touristing. A young man gave her a taste of some fried fish, and we bought some for tomorrow. And, we hit a couple of fabric shops close by. Mama and I are both sewers, and I have to go into every Telas Parisina I see! Stuart met us for lunch in the Mercado, which gave us a break, and afterwards the three of us toured the City Museum...one of the prettiest buildings in town, imho. The pasta tile floors are in great shape, waxed apparently, and that was the highlight of the tour. By now, I've walked mama into the pavement two days in a row, so we headed back for a short siesta before joining our downstairs neighbors for cocktails in our little back garden. Our neighbors are here for three months, from Canada, and we've enjoyed living close to them.
Dinner Tuesday night was not great...can't even remember what I served. Wednesday night we had a fish in tomatilla sauce. But, last night was the best so far. I marinated some chicken in sour orange for several hours, then cooked it gently in a little olive oil. The extra orange sauce went in the pan for just a few mintues, to reduce. The beans were perfectly cooked, and the radishes, avocado and two salsas were perfect sides!
I'd saw we caught a big catch of fish in the past couple of days!
3 comments:
I love the museum of the city. It amazes me, when we moved here that was the main post office and the park across the street was so full of vendors that you had to walk on the street. The little park next to the arcade is new too, If you look at the bricks they come from Canton Ohio!That street was also full of vendedores ambulantes with their makeshift stalls, between them and the traffic it was an adventure and a half.
I think it's cool that 25% of the house tour money goes to MELL, my understanding is that some of the homeowners also donate their 25% back to MELL.
regards,
Theresa
Theresa,
I'm so glad we connected! You are a wealth of knowledge. I can 'see' the vendedores ambulantes now, clogging the streets, and making a little money (I hope). Now, I must go back to that street, to see the Canton, OH bricks. Makes NO sense to me!
Oh, the Tree Lady and her musician partner were in the park Thursday, a treat for mama to see her performance.
k
If you walk down 64A from La Ermita to San Juan, the streets are made of bricks. The original bricks came as ballast in boats and are French. If you look carefully and aren't hit by a car (the street is currently being restored so many of the bricks are being stored somewhere) you can see the dates and maker's marks on them!Over time some of the original bricks disappeared and have been replaced by modern ones.
When they made the little park next to the arcade (which is the original Mercado of Mérida) they used bricks, I assume the French ones are unavailable so the modern ones which also have maker's marks are what they used.
I like Mérida, but I am no way near as knowledgeable as some of the people that I have met here.
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