I am nurturing the following dream into existence, so indulge me while I share its details. Maybe broadcasting its vague outline is how the ephemeral is captured in a jar and kept alive just long enough to study…
The last 7 years have been interesting. A gift. I have been (almost) completely on my own. I was always a partner kind of girl – either married or a girlfriend. But lately – amazingly, I am it. So daydreaming what’s next means I get to create – confirm – plan and execute alone. For some that might seem daunting or sad or not much fun. I get it; that might have been my thinking too… once upon a time. But now it is a thrill – I finally meet the requirements to ride the tilt-a-whirl alone!
Mexico sparked my imagination years ago and was kept alive with a steady stream of books that followed me home from the Strand Bookstore in NYC. Cozy in my small Brooklyn Heights’ apartment turning page after page of glossy photos picturing impossibly beautiful vistas: cascading bougainvillea over stucco and stone walls; jacaranda trees dotting the landscape with amethyst drifts; interior courtyards alive with the sound of burbling fountains… intensely colored tiled walls and floors; markets spilling handmade crafts and locally grown produce…arid terrain with scrubby growth transformed by summer rains into lush greenery. Music and dance; art and culture available for the asking. After gorging on books and Pinterest images I decided it was time to for us to meet – to see if Mexico would hold up on close scrutiny. It did. I traveled to the state of Guanajuato and stayed a couple of nights in the capital city before moving on to San Miguel de Allende. These two beautiful colonial highland cities were my picture books come to life. A too short visit to Mexico City left me wanting more…
It is one thing to visit (4 times now) and another to move – how do you know that this is the place? The dream provided answers: store most of my stuff and spend time as a vagabond. The dream didn’t specify hostels or backpacks – but living light with a rental in San Miguel for a year provides the flexibility to spend time exploring numerous Mexican cities: Oaxaca, the land of mole and craft; Santiago de Queretaro, another colonial highland city near San Miguel de Allende; Guadalajara, the second largest city in Mexico (me love cities!); a return to Mexico City to explore neighborhoods and more time in Guanajuato, visiting during the Cervantes festival (Festival Internacional Cervantino). Now that a new progressive President Obrador is taking office – Mexico’s star is shining brighter than ever. And of course Mexico gets points for being a short flight to LAX – gateway to easily seeing August, Noah and Tammy and now – tadahhh! – an expected granddaughter…she will need her abuela nearby 🙂