HOW TRAVEL HAS CHANGED MY KIDS

       So we've been back home for a few days now and I've noticed that our trip has effected my kids in ways that I didn't expect. Here are a few examples that left me pleasantly surprised:

Waiting around at the bus station, Rosie cracks a smile that lights up the room.

1. My kids have become more comfortable with the unknown. Yesterday when we were out walking around town, Rowan needed to "go potty" but there wasn't a toilet in site. When I turned around he had found a nearby tree all by himself and was peeing on it. He shouted, "Look mom, I found a secret spot!" He didn't stress out because we were far from a bathroom. He knew what his needs were and he found a creative way to get them met. I was proud of the little guy.

2. They sleep better. Rosie used to wake up several times every night to nurse. Any little noise would wake her and only nursing would calm her down. I didn't get a full nights sleep for the first year. It was awful. But since there are no noise ordinances in Mexico, one can expect to hear cacophonous goings on at all hours of the night.  So, both of my children had to learn to sleep through the sounds of ambulance sirens, public buses passing by, large tropical birds squawking, rockets going off, parties next door, parties across the street, talking airplanes that fly overhead blasting public service announcements and the sale price for toilet paper over loud speakers, and high school marching bands who find it practical to hold their drill practices in the middle of the night. 

Rowan loves drinking out of the coconut with a straw. 

3. They are no longer afraid to try new foods. One thing that really chaps my hide about some kids is how frickin picky they get with food. Why can some kids only stomach macaroni and cheese? Why do some kids throw a fit if their meat touches their potatoes? In Mexico children don't have those luxuries and my kids had to adapt. Both of them tried foods they don't see back home. We have a "one for fun" rule, meaning they must try one bite of everything they're offered. As a result we've been quite surprised by some of the things they ask for again and again. Rosie loves chicharron (deep fried pig skin). Rowan adores pazole (hot! and sour soup with corn). Both of them will pick up any stray tortilla and shove it in their mouths. They never turn down coconuts.

     These new skills my children have developed make life easier back in the states. No one asks "what's for dinner" anymore in acticipation that it might be something new and scary. Also, when we jump in the car I no longer have to give Rowan a detailed itinerary of our day. He's comfortable with the simple statement, "we're going on an adventure". Last but not least, I get a full night's sleep every night. Ahh...

THINGS WE'LL MISS MOST ABOUT MEXICO

     The kids slept most of the five hour flight home and were happy to be back in the green rainyness of Seattle. I didn't anticipate experiencing such reverse culture shock however. Mexico is our close neighbor so how hard could it really be to re-adapt to American life?  Well... so hard in fact that as I'm writing this none of my family wants to step outside our house, let alone drive down to the store to buy food for dinner. So in ode to the fact that we've been eating pizza delivery for three straight meals because we're not yet ready to greet the American World, here's some things we will miss most about Mexico:

THE JACKSON FAMILY

The Jackson's and the Trelstad's have been friends for four generations now. We adore these people.

COLORS

Like this kitchen, most of Mexico is brightly decorated in greens, yellows, reds and oranges.

SMELLS

Street vendors fill the air with aromas of tacos frying, meat cooking and coffee percolating. 

OUTDOOR MORNING MARKETS

Everyday we'd walk two blocks to buy local produce, tamales, flowers,  fresh squeezed juices and baked bread for breakfast. 

MUSIC

There's no noise ordinances in Mexico, and the air is always filled with music of the mariachis and bandas.

THE BEACH

Trelstad Family photo 2013. There's something undeniably healing about bathing in the warm salt waters of the Central Pacific Ocean. Here we are at a secret beach in Troncones just days before returning to the USA.

DANCING IN THE STREETS

     Since my last post we've visited the native P'urhepecha markets of Patzcuaro and Quiroga, we've climbed the ancient Tarascan ruins of TzinTzunTzan, and swam in gigantic tide pools along the secret beaches of Troncones. 

     It was on a day trip to a small village where I encountered this women dancing all by herself on the sidewalk. There was no music but she acted like she was being serenaded by invisible mariachis. She was about 5'2" and she looked so cute in her little cowboy hat with her long grey curls. She saw me and asked me if I wanted to dance! Of course I had to say yes. 

     So we had our own little dance party right there on the sidewalk. She told me that she was ninety-four years old. Looking into her eyes, she seemed so young at heart. She smiled brightly and danced so freely. I would've taken her for a teenager if it weren't for her sunken eyes and her geography of deep wrinkles. 

     Talking to her brought tears to my eyes because a week ago we had the honor of attending a wake for a gentleman in Uruapan who's family took care of him in his own home until his dyeing day. I have not seen any assisted care facilities or "old folks homes" like we have in the states. Here in Mexico the elderly live in the same homes with their families.  I couldn't help but think that if this woman lived in the states she probably wouldn't be dancing in the streets, but rather cooped up in a facility surrounded by other people her age.

      I don't know her name but I'll never forget her smile. She was as close to death as any of us but she didn't care because, like most Mexicans, she didn't see death as something to hide from or be afraid of. Most Mexicans say that death is just as beautiful as life, and the beauty of both life and death was apparent in this woman. 

ON MEN, WOMEN AND FAMILY

     In the Pacific Northwest, you can run most errands without having any direct eye contact with anyone if you don't want to. For this reason it took me several days to realize that people here look each other in the eyes constantly. People passing in the streets, shopping in stores, walking along the beach, picking their noses, all stare at each other. Mexicans are excellent people watchers and are not embarrassed about about prolonged eye contact with us, or with anyone.

     Also noteworthy are the public displays of affection. Men and women stroll along the street hand in hand, or just sit for hours and talk while staring longingly into each other's eyes. Making out in public is many teenagers' favorite pastime. They see it as something to do while at the park, or at the store, or waiting for the bus, or waiting for school to start, or waiting to grow old. 

     I can’t help but wonder if all the this PDA has contributed to Mexico’s many small children. Most women of child bearing age are well-dressed in high heals, make up done, hair done and towing at least one small child. High heels and motherhood seem to go hand in hand here. Like a secret status symbol: the younger your kids, the higher your heels. The higher your heels, the more likely you will end up caught in a public display of affection... which leads to more small kids. It's a vicious cycle.  

      Since I'm noticing things, women appear to be procreating at an earlier age than most do back home.  Especially outside of the city women are often seen in groups, taking care of the children together or serving food to their families, or serving food to their pregnant bellies. Men do men’s work: fishing, farming, driving, negotiating and drinking. Women are not branded as second class citizens the way they are in some other countries I’ve been to. But they are noticeably more subordinate and family-centered than your average, liberal, Seattleite Selfie. In short, the duties of motherhood appears to be priority numero uno for most women here.  Most everything revolves around the capital F, Family.

POO POO FALLS

       In a previous post titled “A Day at the Park” I wrote about the Cupatitzio River, which is said to bubble up from an underground aquifur at the exact spot where God won in a battle against the devil. Well, as we found out today, there's irony in this myth which I shall share with you now. God may have won at the beginning of the river, but the Devil appears to have won at the end.

       We rode on horseback down a mountain side into a beautiful valley, in search of a famous waterfall that cascades down 150 feet. The falls mark the end of God’s great river, after it has exited the park and winds its way through Uruapan, washing the city of all its sins and carrying along with it raw sewage, garbage, dead dogs and other untreated waste. When we reached the bottom of the waterfall, the spray enshrouded us with the smell of poop.  We were so overwhelmed with the natural beauty juxtaposing the sheer stench of it all. Needless to say we didn't stay long. Now we fondly refer to this place as “Poo Poo Falls”.

        On the bright side, I'm told the city is building a filtration system at the top of the falls to “improve the experience” for those who stand at the bottom. I'm here to tell you the experience could stand improvement. When the project is complete and the water has been cleansed of its evils, then God’s gorgeous river will look and smell holy once more.

ZIP LINES OVER ZIRAHUEN

     Aside from Kids' Day, there are many other national holidays here in Mexico. They must have decided to lump some of them together in pairs to save time. So when the holiday for "Catholics and Constructions Workers" came up, we decided to rent a cabin on Lake Zirahuen just for the occasion. Why not? 
      
    

Exploring downtown Zirahuen.

     Zirahuen is a very small farming and fishing village; and the people here take their holidays seriously... especially the Catholics and construction workers. Rockets were shot off right next to us (the super size ones that you can't get at home). There were fireworks, battle of the mariachi bands, kiddie rides and plenty of tacos and tamales. 

Rosie was less inclined to wear a life jacket, but she got used to it.

     The next day we rented a rowboat to explore the lake. Travis and I rode on zip lines 150 feet over the water which was AWESOME. At the end of the line we had to do a ropes course nailed to the top of a pine forest. 

150 feet above the lake, soaring at lightning speed! Or so it felt...

     As you can imagine Travis felt right at home in the trees. So he went swinging upside down from one tree to the next, running through the ropes course at top speed, then yodeling like Tarzan at the top of his lungs on the return line home. 

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's Travis flying over us on a zip line!

Men dominating animals to demonstrate machismo.

We also attended a rodeo, which was... well... kind of an eye opener for all of us.

Rowan leaning against an adobe wall, which he proudly announces is, "made of mud, straw and shit!"

NATIONAL KIDS' DAY

     In Mexico there's a national holiday called Dia de Ninos: Kids' Day! We started our celebration by walking to the morning outdoor market. We carried home fruits, tamales, eggs, fresh cream and rolls for a giant breakfast. 

      The first sign of a holiday is parties going on in all the schools (we can hear the music from our house). Typically parents give their children gifts and let them do whatever they want on this day. Kids know about all of this and take advantage of it. 

    

     We took Rowan and Rosie to a pool party just for kids. It was like MTV Spring Break for babies!  Disney music was playing so loud that we couldn't hear ourselves talking. It reminded me of the raves I used to go to in high school, where I had to either yell really loud or use hand gestures if I wanted to talk to someone.  Rowan went down his first water slide. All the children were served hamburgers and fries, and then loads of candy. 

     This picture was taken at our house later that night. Rowan was starting to come down from his sugar high at this point. We decided to continue the Kids Day tradition when we come home, minus the sugar crash.

CHARMED BY MORELIA

Imagine an entire town the color of terracotta. Imagine hand-laid stone streets, earth tone churches and pink stone cathedrals, large cascading water fountains, sculptures of beautiful topless women and grassy parks with Baroque archways.

Now imagine university students walking to their classes along tree lined promenades, lovers kissing on every corner and cloudless skies. At night there's live music and fireworks that light up the whole city. This is Morelia. We've been here for a week and we are already talking about when we will come back. It’s like Little Spain.

Rowan has had to grow up a lot here, as we walk everywhere and at the end of the day that means several miles. He’s gotten used to walking through the outdoor markets. He has two favorite places to walk to, which he is constantly begging us to re-visit. The first is the Gum Tree: a hundred year old tree that is covered in ABC gum. Passersby pull gum out of their mouths and stick it to this tree all day long... and Rowan loves to stick his gum there too! The second is the Candy Market, where Rowan loves to sample locally made coconut candies, caramels, fruit leathers and spicy Mexican chocolate. His walk-a-bout legs have certainly strengthened here. Rosie’s legs are also getting stronger, and she’s starting to take steps!

I’m convinced we’re staying in the coolest guest house in Morelia, called Casa Rosa, owned by the sweetest Grandma from Chicago. Both of our kids have fallen in love with Rosa. Here we are having dinner together.

It so happened that this week is the State Fair. We got to "Do the Puyallup", Michuacan style by watching Mexican horse dancing, eating tacos and sampling locally made Mescal which is an agave micro-brew that tastes something like rubbing alcohol mixed with dirt. Rowan even got to sit on the world's largest bull (at least he thought it was...)

While Rowan was sitting on the world's largest bull, Travis was drinking the world's largest beer. 

Who better to show the clowns how to ride a unicycle, than Travis?

Rowan went on his first roller coaster ride at the fair, and loved it. We also took him to his first circus where he saw clowns walking tight ropes, child contortionists and graceful trapeze artists. At one point Rowan leaned over to me and said, "Look mom, they have super powers!"

A DAY AT THE PARK

Parque National Barranca del Cupatitzio makes our parks at home look like forgotten wastelands. Myth has it that this is the spot where the devil lost in a battle with God. Hence a natural spring bubbles up from the underground, creating a jungle oasis in the middle of a mountainous desert.  We stroll along cobblestone pathways unveiling waterfalls at every bend and watch monarch butterflies engaging in their mating dance. We climb high arching bridges over trembling waterways and catch trout to cook for lunch. We feel like we’re in a dream every time we come here.

Rowan and his buddy Marlen like to have sword fights. Travis marvels at the trees of course, like the Banana Palms with leaves the size of a vans. Oh and don't let me forget the restaurant which serves the most delicious, mouth watering, CREAMY macadamia nut soup made from nuts that were grown nearby. It's a small bowl of Heaven. My hats off to you God, for winning the battle.

"Kissing cousins" Rowan and Marlen, playing at the national park.

FABRICA SAN PEDRO

Here we are standing in front of Fabrica San Pedro, a two hundred year old company that is famous for hand-loomed and hand-dyed fabrics.

Inside: giant wrought iron machines were brought here by boat from Europe, then shipped over the mountains in pieces by train before being reassembled here. Many are dated from the 1800's. Can you see us on the left?

After the cotton is cleaned and carted and hand-dyed, its spun into thread and wrapped onto spools here.

Thread is then loaded onto these wooden hand-looms to make rugs, bed spreads, curtains or wall hangings. 

Here is one example of the beautiful finished product. 

TO GRANDMOTHER'S HOUSE WE GO

When invited to Grandmother’s house for dinner, the wise person will always say yes.  So it came to be last Saturday that we arrived at Lucy’s (our host here in Uruapan) parents’ house. In Mexico, dinner happens at 2pm when all the shops close and everyone goes home to eat and then rest. We were welcomed by Lucy’s four brothers and twenty cousins to a long table ensconced with Don Julio Anejo tequila, a mount of limes and a pile of salt for the tequila, different kinds of chips, soda and Mexican beer. 

Then the food arrived. We were served vats of roasted goat, baskets of hot tortillas, and bowls of green salsa, red salsa and fresh onion-cilantro salad. After the goat was eaten they brought out a roasted chicken and everyone started the meal all over again. After that, when we were surely stuffed to the gills, Grandma unveiled her famous cake with homemade lechita frosting which was a sticky icing that melted in the hot afternoon sun. 

Rosie was passed from auntie to auntie, cousin to cousin, and tasted her first goat meat.  Rowan made friends with the younger cousins and played for hours. He didn't understand Spanish and the cousins didn't understand English, but somehow they made it work. Travis and I ate and drank, and then ate and drank some more while visiting with the Familia. We didn't understand much Spanish and they didn't understand much English, but somehow we made it work.

Sharing a good meal is universal.

URUAPAN

We finally made it to Uruapan! We passed several police check points along the highway in Tierra Caliente, a dangerous desert-mountain settlement. But our bus rode through the check points with no trouble. Uruapan sits at 5,000 feet above sea level and is perfectly gorgeous with its 500+ year old churches, plazas, outdoor markets and streets busy with people. Our hosts, Nick and Lucy Jackson put us up in a room with a view of the city. Our room is on the top floor of their business, Jackson English School. Every afternoon the school is bustling with students who are here taking classes. The evening breeze cools off the heat of the day and everything gets quite around 9pm. This will be our home base for the rest of our trip and we love it. 

Godbrothers: Travis and Nick.

Did I mention Uruapan is the avocado capital of Mexico? Lucy's brother took us to his avocado farm to play with the goats, hold the baby lamb and learn about Mexican farm life. 

 

"TEMBLOR" IS SPANISH FOR EARTHQUAKE

The kids had just fallen asleep under their mosquito nets in bed when everything started shaking. At first it was so subtle that I thought perhaps a big truck was driving by. Then I heard the hostel owner (we stayed at Hostel Ricon Del Viajero) say, “el temblor” and suddenly everything started rocking back and forth violently. When it was over, Rowan’s mosquito net had fallen down on top of him and woken him up but other than that there was no damage. Rosie slept through the whole thing.  The next morning, the US government website reported a 5.2 earthquake. Turns out that Michoacán Province lies on a fault line and earthquakes are fairly common here. It certainly shook us up. 

First class bus: riding away from "el temblor" in style. Rowan and Rosie watch movies and eat treats. 

ZIHUATANEJO

The airplane dropped us right onto the tarmac in Zihuatanejo, which is Spanish for "uterus". It is said that this town is the uterus, or birth place, of the Mayan people. Thousands of years have passed since then and now Zihua is a fishing village with a booming tourism industry. The weather is in the 90's. The sky is blue. The ocean is warm and inviting. The coconuts are plenty.

We took a boat ride to Playa Las Gatas, a beach named after the Tiger Sharks that used to live in the lagoon here. There are 50 lb. pelicans with wing spans of up to six feet, who are constantly trolling the beaches for the fisherman's leftovers. Rowan saw one flying above and said, "Look Mom, it's a pterodactyl!"

Rosie has been doing a lot of eating, sweating and sleeping so far. She loves to eat fresh papaya, avocado, banana and young coconut meat. 

Rowan is in love with the beach. He spends hours everyday making sand angels, building moats, and running from the waves. This afternoon we leave this gorgeous place on a public bus, headed for Uruapan...

PACKING FOR MEXICO

The anticipation of leaving the country sent chills down my spine this morning when I came across an old scuba diving video of Travis and I. It was taken when we were living in Thailand in 2008. Since then we've had two beautiful kids, changed hundreds of diapers, washed hundreds of dishes, worked hundreds of overtime hours at both of our jobs, bought family-sized vehicles and gotten firmly rooted in our hundred year-old home I call the Little House. We're living the American Dream!

Yet I long for the open road. So much of who I am has been shaped by the years I've spent in other countries. I crave the smell of salty hot winds dangling beneath breathtaking sunsets. I cherish the days when all of my belongings fit into one backpack. I long for the sound of languages I don't understand, signs I can't read, mysterious food I can't identify... and how it all keeps me so full of the present moment. I want to be migrant again, with no laptop and no cell phone and no agendas and no deadlines. I miss the present moment.

Whether I will experience any of that again as a working mother of two seems unrealistic. But I'm convinced it's possible. I've seen droves of people from other countries backpacking with small children and they make it look easy. Like that French couple I met in a restaurant in Vietnam who had two very young daughters in tow. Or how about the South African mother I met in Thailand who sailed around Africa with her elementary-aged kids for an entire year. I'll never forget the Swiss women I met in an ashram in India, who were travelling as a group of mothers with their tween daughters. If the French, South-Africans, Swiss and all the countless Aussies, British, Germans and Kiwis I've met on the open road can travel with their kids, then maybe I can too.

Just watch me try.

- Katie

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