Equipales

Equipales are a form of traditional Mexican furniture and have been a favorite of Brian's since he started coming to Mexico in the 1970s. They are very comfortable and durable, often lasting 30 to 40 years or more.

Our friends Ken and Kris were kind enough to take us, along with our Roca Azul neighbors Dean and Valerie, on a day trip to the town of Zacoalco de Torres where equipales are still hand-manufactured. Zacoalco is where Ken and Kris bought their equipale set so they were familiar with the town. There are more than 300 families making equipales in Zacoalco which has a population of about 26,000. It's kind of like a factory town without a big factory.

 

 

We were able to wander into several shops and watch the process of making equipales which come in many shapes and sizes. There were chairs, sofas, loveseats, chaise lounges, tables, barstools - even swivel and rocking chairs.

 

 

Traditionally the frames of the equipales are made from wood, branches, bark, leather and woven palm or reeds. One of the artisans told us that the best wood is cut during a full moon when the sap is in the plant, thus the wood will last longer. The frame is tied together with leather or a fiber removed from the maguey cactus. The leather is pigskin or cowhide and is either died or painted. Cowhide is more expensive, but many prefer pigskin because it is more porous which allows air to circulate. In addition to leather the equipales are often upholstered with colorful fabrics - it all depends on what the customer wants.

 

The men in the photos above are making barstools, complete with footrests. The base shows the wooden support, reeds are woven for the seat, and then padding and leather are attached to the frame.

 

 

Since this is where the equipales are made there's a tremendous variety of styles, quality, and prices. I have to admit that we didn't find exactly what we wanted and may custom order something the next time we visit.

 

We were really happy that we visited Zacoalco. The friendly people were obviously proud of their town and it was reflected in the cleanliness and beauty we found there.

 

 

Kris, Ken and Valerie enjoyed soaking up some sun and watching the world go by on the town plaza.

 

 

As we were walking by the church, which is obviously very old, a woman stopped and told me I should go in and see the beautiful view inside the church.

 

 

As usual, I was pretty amazed. I think this church had the most gold of any church this size that we have been in. There was even a worker up on a scaffold applying or touching up the gold leaf.

 

Even though we didn't return with any equipales we thoroughly enjoyed our day. We hope to go back and spend some more time there in the future. Maybe we should figure out how to purchase this equipale and find a place for it............

 

 

 Zacoalco was about a one hour drive from Roca Azul. It was only 33 miles but we had to go around a mountain range. Our route ...

 

 

Happy New Year!

 

New Year's Eve got off to a good start this year with our party at Hacienda Contreras. Lots of good company, good food, good beverages, and even some games.
Plenty of good cheer to go around---

Jerry and Brian

Kevin, Ruth and Don

Juan, Norma and Chris.
It was a fun evening and a great way to kick off the New Year.

As usual there was plenty going on here besides the party on New Year's Eve. A group of us led by Kevin and Ruth took a day trip to the nearby Cascadas, or waterfalls. They had been there before and wanted to go back to find a hiking trail to the bottom of the falls. We had an interesting greeting committee as we approached the restaurant above the falls.

It was an easy hike down to the upper falls and pool.

There was no obvious route down to the bottom of the falls but Brian tried to spot one while taking in the great view. Not a place for a wrong move.

Ruth and Kevin took off to see if they could find a way down but were unsuccessful. They caught up with the rest of us having a relaxing lunch at the Cascadas restaurant.

We took a different route back to the campground which went through a small town called Concepcion de Buenos Aires. It's a pueblo magico and a very charming town with friendly people and a lovely square.

The church was beautifully decorated, I believe for a funeral.

This young cowboy was giving kids rides around the square on his horse. Very cute.

We had a couple of other special treats last week. Chris and Juan invited the entire campground for a fabulous breakfast of huevos rancheros, cooked to order. I was really impressed by both the food and their culinary skills.

It was a large group to cook for and they did a great job, fixing each individual breakfast to order.

Our other special treat was a 'field trip' to a small dairy operation. Barb and Sal arranged for us to visit and taste a local beverage called Pajarete.
The recipe for Pajarete is simple. Take a glass or cup, add ground up sweetened Mexican chocolate, some good strong alcohol (92 proof sugar cane alcohol in this case - to kill the bacteria) and top the cup off with milk right out of the cow's udder.

 

 Brian thought is was surprisingly good as did the other campers - another unique experience for us, although I do have to admit we didn't master the art of milking a cow. Harder than it looks.

 

 

We've had a bit of rain since New Years but have been keeping busy. I'm sure there will be more to blog about soon.

Happy Holidays!

 

 

It's been a busy holiday season once again at Hacienda Contreras. The weather has been beautiful - warm and sunny during the day but cooling down at night.

We went into town a few days ago for the children's fiesta, which of course was followed by the adults' fiesta. There were games for the kids, including sack races for both boys and girls.

 

 

The jardine, or town square, in Valle de Juarez is one of our favorite jardines in Mexico.  The Christmas tree was decorated, lights were strung, and people were out enjoying the festivities.

 

 

We had dinner that night with a nice group of friends at one of our favorite restaurants on the jardine that specializes in really good enchiladas suiaza. Then out to dinner again the following night at another favorite restaurant in the nearby town of Mazamitla. It was Barb and Sal's 40th wedding anniversary and a great celebration. Two of their five daughters and their son-in-law flew in for the occasion and all the campers were invited as well. It was a fun group!

 

 

Lots of good conversation, good food, and even mariachis to entertain us.

 

 

The traditional Christmas Eve dinner in Mexico is tamales, and we made them once again this year on Christmas Eve Day. Sal's sister Juana was up at the crack of dawn to have the corn ground for the masa, and she and Barb got everything ready for us to help assemble the tamales. Corn husks were soaked in water to make them soft and then coated on the inside with the masa. The filling, in this case shredded pork in a spicy sauce, was added and the corn husks were folded.

 

 

Even though Juana cut the proportions in half from last year, we still had a huge amount that were then steamed for several hours.

 

 

The tamales were served that night at our Christmas Eve Fiesta Dinner. In addition to the tamales, everyone brought a dish or two to share and it was quite a Christmas feast. Chris even got us a fresh turkey from a farm just up the road - can't get much fresher than that.

 

 

Christmas Day has been fairly quiet and it's been nice to have some time to sit down and get caught up. Tonight we'll get together again and try to demolish some of the leftovers, including some turkey soup.

I think it's time to plan some hikes and work some of this food off. 

 

More Mezcal Fun

We made our third visit to a very secluded mezcal still near Valle de Juarez. Mezcal is similar to tequila in some ways but different in others. Tequila is actually a type of mezcal and produced in a similar fashion. Real mezcal has more of a smoky flavor and we find we prefer it to tequila. This is fine sipping liquor and should not be used in mixed drinks or slugged down like some people enjoy doing with tequila. Some say the best mezcal comes from the state of Oaxaca but maybe those folks have not tasted this mezcal yet.

Each time we go we learn a bit more about the process, and it's fun to share the experience with our fellow campers. We blogged about it last year when we visited so I didn't take as many pictures since information and pictures can be found at this link.

During our visit this year we learned more and of course we purchased more mezcal. Last year we were told by Don Jesus, the patron of the operation, that he can tell if the mezcal is just right by looking at the bubbles. This year he demonstrated how that's done. Long evergreen needles found in the area are bent in a loop, similar to a whisk. A portion of the freshly distilled mezcal is poured into a small bowl that looks like a coconut shell and is whisked briskly. If there are no bubbles, the mezcal is ready. If there are many bubbles or small bubbles adjustments are made. As near as we could tell it mostly has to do with the temperature of the fermented mash being cooked.
The mash is cooked for about 12 hours and then another batch is started. All of this is constantly tended 24 hours a day, taking about two weeks from start to finish. Approximately 500 liters of mezcal are produced each time, beginning with cooking the pinas in a deep, rock-lined pit....

 

followed by mashing, fermenting, and then distilling. It's estimated that about 5,000 liters are produced each year.

Some of the above information is a bit different than our previous post in January 2012 as we have learned more and clarified a few things. There may be even more changes next time we visit.

There are some fellow RVers here at Hacienda Contreras that went to the still with us and have their own stories to tell about our visit. Unlike me, they blog on a regular basis and have some very impressive blogs with more to share about their travels in Mexico and other parts of the world.
Check them out at:

http://croftsmexico.blogspot.mx

http://www.travelwithkevinandruth.com

htttp://livingboondockingmexico.blogspot.ca

http://alifemadesimple.blogspot.mx

And some more links from Brian with info about mezcal and tequila-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mezcal
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agave
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agave_americana

Another beverage similar to mezcal and tequila is sotol, which is produced only in the state of Chihuahua from a wild plant
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sotol
http://www.tequila.net/sotol-news/latest-sotol-news/like-tequila-love-sotol-a-walk-on-the-wild-side.html

One of the websites with a simple basic explanation of mezcal was added to the following website by a guy who has a mezcal distillery in Oaxaca. He's an American who also has an RV park for small RVs, but you must make a reservation and stay a long time.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/297668
http://www.scorpionmezcal.com/g/index.php/en 

It's About Time.....

It's hard to believe we left Arizona almost three weeks ago and I have yet to sit down and post anything about our travels. I guess I'm more of an event blogger than daily blogger but it's still time to post.
We are now at Hacienda Contreras in Valle de Juarez, our destination for the holidays. The park is looking great and has quite a few rigs with more to come. We are seeing some old friends as well as making new friends, some of whom we have known via the internet but are just now meeting in person. Fun for us!

The weather since we arrived has been great - sunny and very warm, although it cools off at night. We're very happy to be settled in for a bit and are just enjoying being here with our favorite hosts, Barb and Sal.

After leaving Arizona we stopped and walked over the border at Palomas which is just south of Deming, New Mexico. We went to our dentist, Brian got new glasses and we completed our paperwork for the Columbia crossing (near Laredo, TX)  with the Bus and car. Getting the paperwork done in Palomas was very quick and easy. It was a good decision since it saved us a lot of time at Columbia when we crossed a few days later.

We made it to Matehuala the first night, then boondocked in San Miguel de Allende the second night. We'll be returning to San Miguel before heading back and will spend more time at that point.

Our next stop was Roca Azul Resort on Lake Chapala. Along the way we saw roadside stands selling fresh strawberries, and bought this basketful for less than $3. Great deal.

When we were about 3 miles from the RV park at Roca Azul we heard one of those sounds you really don't want to hear while traveling. A fitting on the hose to the right front airbag, part of the suspension, blew off. We were able to very, very slowly creep along until we got into the the park. A really bouncy ride but we made it. And of course the next question was, where in the heck are we going to get another part? Brian did a lot of research and after 2 days driving around Guadalajara we had what we needed. He spent several days replacing the fitting, taking the airbag out and having it welded where a bolt was bent and so on. I'm just grateful that he continues to be able to fix things and keep us going!

We were able to spend a little time with our friend Micky in Ajijic again this year. She cooked us a fabulous dinner one night and we went to lunch at one of our favorite restaurants another day. Unfortunately much of our time was spent making repairs to the Bus, but we hope to visit with Micky again soon.

 

We are trying out a new feature for our blog with maps showing where we are and the routes we have taken. Hopefully it will help a bit with visualizing our travels. Click on any of the maps to enlarge them.

Overview of our route to Hacienda Contreras in Valle de Juarez

 

Laredo to Matehuala

Matehuala to San Miguel de Allende

 

 

San Miguel de Allende to Roca Azul (Jocotopec)

 

Roca Azul to Hacienda Contreras (Valle de Juarez)

 

Arizona Rest Stop

We arrived back in Fountain Hills at the beginning of October this year, a bit early for us but we had some medical appointments scheduled for that time period.
We usually stay here for a month or two in the spring and a month or two in the fall. It's a time for us to stop for a bit and get caught up. Tilly loves having a yard and enjoys having a routine. We start each day with a walk around the fountain that gave Fountain Hills its name.

Fountain Park is in a beautiful setting and a brisk walk is a great way to begin the day. We have seen coyotes and javelinas as well as a large variety of birds and waterfowl. One of our favorites is the hooded merganser which has some unusual coloring.

We get some striking sunset views from our patio.

We store the Bus at an RV park on theFort McDowell Reservation, which is about 5 miles from the house. Very convenient. We have a nice view of the Four Peaks rising above the desert when we drive over to get the Bus.

Most of our time is spent on projects and maintenance on the Bus, maintenance on ourselves, and catching up with friends. We're only ten minutes away from the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale and feel fortunate to be part of their excellent health care system.
At this point we seem to be almost caught up and are preparing for our winter in Mexico. We will host Thanksgiving at our place this year. We will be joined by our friends Judy and Jim who we visited in Washington state this summer and who winter in this area, and our friends Kathy and Dan will be flying in from San Francisco. Should be fun!
We plan to leave Fountain Hills shortly after Thanksgiving and work our way across New Mexico and Texas to the Columbia Crossing north of Laredo. After stops in San Miguel de Allende and the Chapala area we hope to be at Hacienda Contreras once again for the holidays.

California's Central Coast

When I looked at my road log, I was surprised to see that we'd been roaming around the central coast of California for over a month. Time flies.
We love returning to this area and always seem to have some new adventures. Santa Rosa was a new stop for us and we liked it a lot. We were centrally located in our spot at the Sonoma Country Fairgrounds. Among other things we toured some of the many wineries in the area. Most of them were dog-friendly but Tilly wasn't impressed.

 

Our next stop was Petaluma which is about 35 miles north of San Francisco. From there we were able to take the car into SF. Our friends Kathy and Dan moved there from Santa Barbara and are leasing a condo in the North Beach area. It's a great location within walking distance of Fisherman's Wharf, the Embarcadero, Washington Square and many other interesting areas. And they have off-street parking for us which is a huge plus!
It only took a minute to walk to this view that included Alcatraz and the Golden Gate, so it was easy to bring along some refreshment. It was really fun to have our own personal tour guides while there.

 

 

Of course we have the all-important picture with the Golden Gate in the background.

 

 

Another great thing about staying in Petaluma was the proximity to Sonoma. We spent some time in Napa a few years ago and it was so crowded thatI couldn't wait to leave. Brian suggested going to Sonoma at that time but I was done with crazy crowds and traffic and wanted to move on. My mistake. The two areas are totally different. I loved Sonoma and the laid-back atmosphere there, even at the larger wineries. We were able to chat with the people in the tasting rooms while sipping some wonderful wines and even met a few winemakers. 

Our other stops after leaving the Bay Area included Moss Landing near Monterrey, Lodi and Paso Robles for more great wine (sensing a theme here?) and Cayucos near Morro Bay for one of our favorite dog beaches.

 

 

We wrapped up our central coast tour with a few days in San Luis Obispo (rated the happiest town in America last year), Lake Cachuma, and Santa Barbara. We love this entire area and will be back.

 

People have been asking for maps of where we've been, so I'll try to start adding them. Here's where we were for this post.