A merciless conquest of plans

My mission for today was to get groceries that absolutely had to include bottled water and toilet paper. I was about to take a shower when there was no water at all, so I got dressed and phoned Luis, (my upstairs Airbnb host) and he came down in his PJs with his shirt on inside-out to plug in the electric water pump and turn some valve under the patio stairs to vent the air out of the pipes. I had already gone outside to crank up the gas tank to heat the water and noticed it was a rather chilly day. The water pressure in Mexico is nothing like the luxurious Amazonian flow we experience in the developed world, but if you move around enough you get wet and also pick up a satellite signal if you happen to wear braces! One tip that I will share at the expense of my pride is to buy a portable bidet at a hardware store that basically works like an upside-down water bottle that you are able to squirt against any gravitational pull.

I don’t really buy food other than perhaps a banana and yogurt, as I am eating out twice a day on Mexico time (it’s 4:30 pm now and I am just finishing lunch and I won’t eat after this). Breakfast today was back at the central square of Coyoacán, outside on a terrace from where I noticed among the Sunday hustle and bustle that a cultural tour trolley was about to depart. It was basically open-air with a roof and very limited seating and luckily, they had one spot left when I approached them. The 40-minute tour was $5.

I was the only person on the tour who was not 100% Mexican, which is nice to see because it means people are embracing their heritage and appreciating the historical significance of the neighbourhood. I learned that this area is called Coyoacán because it means place of the coyotes, named by the Aztecs in pre-Hispanic times, but the word is in the Nahuatl language. The Tepenac people living here were dominated by the Aztecs and they welcomed Hernán Cortés and the Spanish who made it the first capital of New Spain between 1521-1523. All of the street signs depict a tiny coyote sitting on top.

A church entrance is decorated with a mosaic made of flowers

All street signs in Coyoacán have a tiny coyote on top

As we are currently leading up to the Day of the Dead, the seasonal flower is a Cempasúchil and is the colour of a marigold flower, but it is not a marigold. Church facades are decorated with this and other flowers leading up to the Day of the Dead, which begins on Nov. 01 and ends on Nov. 02 when the day is specifically devoted to children who have died.

It is a joyous time here, and a lot of church visits take place. I snapped a picture from the tour trolley of the yellow church of the Conception -La Purisima Concepcion de María

Church of La Purisima Concepcion de María

which happens to be my mom’s first name (but everyone calls her Chita). Other shortened names for Concepcion are Conchita, or Concha. This particular church is endearingly called La Conchita by the locals. It was Hernán Cortés who had the Franciscan temple built in 1521 on top of what was a pre-Hispanic ceremonial ground, but legend says he built it for his mistress, La Malinche who also lived in the area and was a Catholic convert. She was a Nahua woman from the Gulf Coast known for contributing to the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire by acting as an interpreter and mediator.

I also discovered on the $5 tour that on weekends the local artists’ league sets up shop on one of the squares to sell their wares. I enjoyed the pop-up gallery in the park known as Jardin Allende.

A local square turns into an art gallery every weekend

Artists display their wares in the neighbourhood square

An oversized Mexican doll decorates the outside of the artisan market

A sign advertising ice cream flavoured with the seasonal Cempasúchil flower

On one side of the main square is Hernán Cortés’ palace, a wide orange building with permanent canons built into the architecture. After the tour, I walked part of the route to backtrack and visit some areas on foot, including an artisan market where I bought some award-winning chocolate and posed with some Day of the Dead characters. Just as I am thinking I am in another world, far, far, away, I spot the mother ship imposing its bow from the corner of my eye. Her christened name is Starbucks; you may have heard of her. I have decided to snub her for now as there are other more enticing local options that are far more welcoming among the colourful skeletons, squares, and churches festooned with flowers.