Mexico City and Beyond!

Feliz Año Nuevo..... from the Wandering Berkmans!

Christmas and New Years #2 was spent in Mexico City (CDMX) and it did not disappoint.  For our 2 month stay we booked  the same Airbnb as last year in the Del Valle section of the city and it's beginning to feel like home.  So much so, we've booked the same place for next year and our terrific host let us leave our Xmas tree and decorations there.  Home is where your stuff is?? And with Javi joining us for 10 days it was fantastic to have the whole group together.  (Photobomber-- cute, random dog joins us at Bago Café.)

We were also very fortunate to have many friends and family members come visit.

Kris and db brother Budd  had such a good time last year visiting that they brought Kris' son Cyrus to join in this year! For ease and because we're just so darn creative, we called the trio "Cybris".    Cyrus was a trooper, first time out of the US and rolling with the punches with the joys of flight delays and cancellations.  And other than scorpions on a stick, Cyrus was game to eat almost anything we threw his way.  His stomach paid the price on the last day (was it the Dorilocos at Bosque de Chapultapec or the 4 Cheese pasta at the Italian place nearby?? Most times we find we have stomach issues after eating at "nicer" restaurants).  Nonetheless, it was a memorable time together that hopefully we can repeat next year.  Here they are at the whimsical restaurant Lago Algo in Section 2 of Bosque de Chapultapec.

Our friends the Wornings planned a month-long Mexican adventure  but we had the pleasure of their company for a couple of days.   We executed with great success a New Year's Eve dinner for the ages, with Zach's menu and their daughter Sophie and her boyfriend Simon as chefs . Here we are at the local tianguis (market) buying supplies for the feast. Shop owner and my twin Marta (third from right, below) graciously let us try her homemade romeritos, a staple for Xmas dinner.  (Zach is not a fan so we left it off the menu haha).  

  

A chance meeting in our neighborhood with Ian, who used to work for Casa Frida but now works for Alzheimer, Mexico had us volunteering one morning at their lovely day facility.  Don, as always, wowed the ladies, especially Ofelia shown below.  I helped the talented Tita throw the ring to win a prize.  

 

The Wornings had just come back from a visit to the colonial city of Morelia and recommended we give it a whirl.  All dressed up and illuminated for Christmas, the pink quarry stone of the buildings made the city look especially beautiful.

And we found our two new favorite foods! 

This "Wilson!" looking soup is sopa tarasca, a lovely pinto bean puree garnished with cheese, crema (akin to sour cream), avocado  and tortilla slices.  We ate it every chance we could, this one at the restaurant La Tarasca.   

This local tamal, called the uchepo, was a little sweet and very delicious on its own or paired with the pork and green sauce shown (on the side, just in case it had "a spice to it").  

With Tavo and Zach ("Zavo"), we took a "trip within a trip"  to Oaxaca for 5 days.  A beautiful colonial town chock full of local artists (and tourists doh!), we had a great time sampling the local fare (more on that below), taking a walking tour of historic sites and street murals, and visiting Monte Albán, the expansive and impressive pre-Colombian site of the Zapotec from 500 BC.  

Mugs of this type were everywhere.  We save a lot of money by not having a home base-- I would have bought the lot!  

No shortage of venders selling mounds of chapulines (grasshoppers) of every size to suit your snacking proclivities.  Tavo was in the market for sal de gusano (salt with powdered worm-- make your own at home!!) to go with mezcal.  

 

Oaxaca has a water problem-- there just isn't enough.  Everyday we were there we saw water trucks delivering water to establishments, at a high cost.  Our Airbnb hosts sent us a lengthy note upon arrival with ways in which to limit our water consumption while we stayed there.  It wasn't always an issue, as is evident from the expansive portion still intact of the San Felipe Acueducto, used from the mid 1700's to the 1940's.  When the leather industry contaminated the feeder rivers the aqueduct was abandoned.  Now you can see the entryway to homes tucked into the arches, like this one.  Charming, to be sure, but an indicator of the water issues the city still faces.  

Whenever possible we like to take walking tours of the street art of a city and Oaxaca has murals on practically every corner.  This one was on a private home near our Airbnb.  

We were constantly on the search for this elusive and rare Mexican dog, the  Xoloitzcuintle (or Xolo for short, pronounced "shoh-loh").  They are known as the dogs that lead you to your next life, and for that they are memorialized here.  The ones we did see were always very sweet and friendly... and labor intensive.  Because they have no hair, they need daily sunscreen application, the poor things.   

Having done his due diligence, Zach steered us in the right direction as it came to trying the local eats in Oaxaca.

El Pasillo del Humo was an eating experience.  Temporarily located outside as they do renovations in the tianguis, the moment we entered the area we were bombarded with offers from the different vendors, each with their offerings of meats to be barbecued.  Once you choose and are seated, the meats come to you in a paper-covered basket.  You can then order the vegetable side dishes (nopales, guacamole, cucumbers,  grilled onions, etc).  The hand-made tortillas (of white corn and larger than those in CDMX) come from a different vendor and round out the meal.  The ambiance-- smoky, loud, slightly chaotic and oh so delicious.  Here, we chose cecina enchilada (pork in chile marinade) , chorizo and res (beef).  

The tlayuda is another "don't miss" when in Oaxaca.  Inside the large white corn tortilla they spread  pork fat (if you want), quesillo (the cheese of the area) and beans.  You can keep it vegetarian there or add your choice of grilled meat to the mix, served alongside.  Don couldn't get enough of these.   Also shown:  my 2 beverage choices for the meal--  chocolate con agua (hot chocolate made with water instead of milk).   Not your mother's Swiss Miss, when the chocolate is this good, having it prepared with water makes for a refreshing drink.  And because we are in the land of mezcal, my choice for evening is the Cuishe variety, here deliciously accompanied with slices of orange and sal de gusano.

This pasta in a chapuline sauce was on Tavo's list of things to try.  He was a happy camper.  You can be too-- give it a try using this recipe!  

This caldo de pollo surprised me with the amount of aromatic spices it contained-- it was more like Vietnamese Pho than the consome de pollo that we find in CDMX.  Looking for a recipe, I think this soup had epazote and hierbabuena in it-- add it if you can find it! Here's a basic recipe. 

We could not get enough mole!  And with so many different kinds, you could have a different mole everyday of the week.  Don's preference was mole almendrado while I was partial to the mole negro (shown below).  Zach had a chance to finally try the elusive  Manchamanteles (literally "tablecloth stainer", the best food name ever).  

Seeing all this delicious food is making us miss Mexico... but we are game for new eating adventures after our arrival in Madrid on this past Sunday.  Tortilla española, come to me!  Dentist appointments are going well here and we head via train to Valencia for a 10 day stay before Seoul, South Korea.  

For this post's SOL, join us in wishing Maria and Luis marital bliss-- day 2 in Oaxaca and we crashed another wedding!!  Ok, so did everyone else on the street as the wedding parade made its way through the city center.  Included in the parade are dancers, musicians and the 15 foot dancing papier mache puppets called Monos de Calenda  depicting the couple.  Unfortunately, Don was not able to dance with the mother of the bride this time  as he did last time (we miss you, Page!) but he's not giving up on his streak of success.  

 

Hope everyone is doing well and thanks for following along! 

Don and Monica