Journey to Mexico City cont.

On the way to Angels' home, we stopped at "el super" Where he purchased a number of delicacies for dinner, this is also a good place to change your dollars, major banks have branches here. They also have parking attendants they also help customer with their groceries. On the way out Angel said, he needed to make one more important stop, "la carboneria" charcoal store. Javier and I wondered why he just didn't buy a bag of briquettes at "el super", when we got to the "carboneria" we found out why.

Javier and I didn't want to get to closer to that black entrance full of silt. The charcoal sold here is as large as bricks or larger it is sold by the kilo, that sacks in front of the establishment are full of "carbon" apparently it burns hotter and has an aroma of hickory, which gives the meat a wonderful flavor.
After we arrived at home, the chef got in high gear getting the grill ready. The rest of the family his wife Yami and his son Alex aka "Jando" joined in the preparation.
While the grill reached the preferred temperature, Angel quietly was preparing the meat with aromatic spices and ingredients, after some persistence on my part he agreed to share with us what he was preparing. He began grilling "chiles poblanos" after they were done they were peeled, the seeds were removed, then stuffed with generous amounts of cheese, and back on the grill until the cheese was melted. There were also fresh, green, "nopales" know as Indian pear tree" put on the grill. They were turned frequently to insure they were evenly cooked afterwards they were wrapped around fresh cheese, the other entree was "longaniza" "A tasty Mexican sausage also placed in a taco along with cheese and the main course, sirloin stake tacos. After awhile, I noticed who the real chef was, Angel was sitting down having a "traguito" drink while Jando was doing all the grilling. Who's the real chef?

Here you see Yami, our wonderful hostess, enjoying one of Angels savory steak tacos. Javier suggested that he should set up a taco business, he even suggested a name Angels' Heavenly Tacos.
Needless to say, we had wonderful meal. Javier shared with us some DVDs of his Mariachi students and "folklorico" dancers which, by the way, are outstanding students in every respect. This was like a preview for the music that awaited for us in "Tlaco". After good conversation and a few brandy drinks we retired to a restful evening.

Day six began with the aroma of "cafecito de la olla", bacon and eggs that was our call to face Mexico city. We decides that because we have seen most of the places of interest on previous visits, we would go to the museum of Frida Khalo, a trip that would normally take an hr. by car from Angel home It took us twice as much today because of the engrossing number of street closures, in preparation and repairs for extravaganza of 2010 when Mexico will celebrate their 200 years of independence. Therefore be prepared when driving in D.F., by the way there are no visible signs, that we could see, warning motorists of street closures, nor alternate routes to take. Here "you are on your own" detour signs is not a concept familiar to this country. Finally after battling the free for all driving, we arrived safely to the museum Londres #247, Colonia Del Carmen, Coyoacan one of the oldest and nicest neighborhoods.

The museum was Fridas' home, situated in a corner of the street,
it has been converted into a museum. The entrance fee is "$55 pesos" about four dollars. Students & teachers $20 pesos, seniors free with ID. As you walk in you immediately sense the intimacy of this museum. You will not find Fridas' most famous painting here. But instead a more personal work which captures her struggles as well as her physical and emotional pain. Her work on display challenge the viewer with symbolic meaning. Her life is also visible through the furnishings such as the bed with the mirror on top among others. This is a typical home like many other in this neighborhood. The first inclination that you get that it's a museum is the guard outside and the sign on top of the front door. Most of the works on display are in the first two main halls some of them made by the artist herself, some by other artists, there are pictures of her father and family, as well as personal items relating to her injuries. As you go around the building you pass the kitchen embellished with typical Mexican clay pots and pans and colorful chairs painted with intricate designs. Exiting the kitchen you end up on the patio, plants make a beautiful contrast with the blue building. There's a cafe and museum store, as you sit and relax with your "cafecito", you realize that the soothing sound of a water fountain, a perfect setting to page through the Freida book you just purchased.










After relaxing in the patio for a while Angel said "let go to the place that sells the best ice cream in the world", Javier answered "you mean the best ice cream in Mexico", so off we went again into the chaos of Mexico City traffic. The ice cream was indeed delicious but according to Javier there are many ice cream stores in L.A which rank higher. We stopped in few other points of interest before returning to Angels' home. After dinner and more conversation we headed to bed because we would have to wake up very early, why? because of our cars' licence plate number ends on one that could not be in the roads tomorrow. This is one way the government is trying to reduce smog. Therefore we had to be out of the D.F. before 6:00am. We were on the toll road before the first ray of sunlight peeked through the clouds. Oaxaca here we come.

Stay tuned.