Buying Cheap Movies

John's 60th Birthday celebration was wonderful! We toasted, ate, toasted and then ate some more. I think there was also another toasting. We watched the Super Bowl on a plasma TV that was perched in the restaurant courtyard and there was the usual loud cheering and yelling that goes with such an event. We made friends and celebrated with our table neighbors, a man from Sinaloa and his son, a student at the Instituto.

Monday was an exploring day. We walked for miles, climbing hills and cobblestone alleys and just enjoying life. We stopped in at Casa Schuck to see what a really upscale boutique hotel looks like and we are duly impressed. At $200 per night we will probably not be staying there, but it surely is a magnificent property.

We walked through Juarez Parque where the plant sale is still going on and marvel at all the beautiful things that grow here! There were Mexican dancers dressed in native attire putting on a show, so we stopped and watched and listened to the music. It reminded me of the shows put on in Hawaii at the Polynesian Cultural Center. Are these peoples more related than we think or are these "shows" all much the same? Hmm...

We stop at a shop on the Ancha de San Antonio and visit with the owner. We go in the "back room" and admire the intricate tin work that his brother is doing. Really gorgeous stuff and monumentally huge. He is currently working on a mirror frame. There are so many artisans here practicing their craft in Mexico and producing beautiful things.

On Tuesday we all head out to the Tiangus Municipal (Tuesday Market) and shop for our veggies and other "can't live without" items. We are taken with Alicia, a charming lady selling her fruits. John plays guinea pig and eats a mysterious fruit where you suck out the inside and swallow the whole mass of gooey seeds without chewing. He says it was very good, but doesn't buy any. We snack on fresh baked potato chips, candies, fresh fruit drink and churros. Carolyn buys a huge hair piece for $1.40 for bad hair days and a colorful purse for $2.50. Four AAA batteries set us back 70 cents. We get bags of fruits and veggies for very little money and the quality is superb. We fill our backpacks and mesh shopping bags. We buy a bouquet of red roses (14 of them) for 35 pesos ($2.45). Then we hit the jackpot. American movies. Not old movies, but CURRENT movies. We buy 6 DVDs ($7.00 for all!) to play on the computer (we have no TV) for evening entertainment. We get Gran Torino, Benjamin Button, Hotel for Dogs, Revolutionary Road and a couple others. Guess they don't have copyright laws in Mexico. We'll leave these movies at the Casa for the next people to enjoy as we don't want to bring them back to the States.

We have an "American in Mexico night" and order Dominos Pizza that we eat on the roof deck. We drink Margaritas and watch the sun go down. We retire to Casita Alhambra and sit around the coffee table and watch Gran Torino on the laptop. What a wonderful way to end another great day in Mexico...