Mexico, Mercados, and Meditation

My mom keeps pleading with me to not go to Mexico. What I think she doesn't understand is that there is really no difference between here and just over the border in my sister town called Progresso. I went to the market this weekend and asked my friend, what exactly the difference was between here and across the border, as I couldn't imagine any. "Basically just the pharmaceuticals." Touche.

At the market everyone was packed around us closely, jabbering in "Tex-Mex." People laid out tables selling everything you could possibly imagine--and I mean everything: live chickens and puppies, fresh fruits and vegetables of all kinds, music, DVDs, kitchen and household appliances, clothing: new and used, mechanic tools, cleaning products, furniture, school supplies, cowboy boots: buy some or just get yours shined, toiletries and over the counter medications, and probably anything else you can imagine. Some tables appeared to literally be selling garbage.

And who'd have guessed; my favorite part was the food (see my Peru entries detailing my reckless consumption of all street food all the time). At this market there were Tamales; Elote: big kernals of corn usually served with mayo, lime, and chili; Hochatas: a yummy and very sweet drink made with rice milk, sugar, and cinnamon; "Chitos" which are cheetoes covered in nacho cheese; enchilladas; breakfast tacos; fried potatoes on a stick with ketchup, mayo, and lime; big styrofoam cups of fruit sprinkled with chili; Aguas frescas: juice with fresh fruit, water, sugar, and sometimes some kind of flavoring or koolaide; Raspas: the snowcones I talked about earlier; and all kinds of little sweets.


The markets by far are my favorite thing ever.

Yesterday we had a big rain, which was incredibly refreshing. I had hoped that the drop in barometric pressure would have some babies dropping too! But alas, no births. We've got women due, but the midwife is going out of town for a few weeks this week, so I'm going to Dallas on Tuesday and hoping I won't miss out on too much excitement here.
Though actually, my trip to Dallas will be all about avoiding excitement. I will be doing a 10 day Vipassana meditation program. It's at a meditation center outside Dallas that offers free meditation programs in striving to make the world a more peaceful place. I am looking forward to the challenge and the opportunity to re-center myself. No talking, reading, or writing for 10 days. I'm carpooling with 4 other people from Austin, so it will be interesting to see how we react in the 4 hour ride back together.

Keep on breathing!
xoxo, Rachel

The Art of Living