Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Today is Fat Tuesday, also known as Mardi Gras

Today is the last day of the celebrations. Tomorrow begins the 40 days of Lent. There have been parties and parades here for a week. Every night I have been hearing drumming and bands. I keep my casita door open so I can hear them better.  Dogs have been barking up a storm, but this is just Mexico.  Barking dogs and crowing roosters are always in the background here.

Someone told me that the person who was poisoning dogs in my neighborhood did it because of the constant barking. Very sad. I have seen a dog die of poisoning. It was not a pretty sight and I will never forget it.  Appropriate punishment would be to make that person eat some of the poison and experience what an awful death it would be. But maybe I am being too harsh.  I sometimes love dogs more than people. You can always depend on dogs to be trustworthy. This reminds me of a joke someone recently told me. If you want to find out who loves you more, put your dog and your mate in the trunk of your car and leave them there for an hour. When you open the trunk again, see which one licks you and is glad to see you......   Okay, stupid joke but some truth in it. Dogs don't judge. Only people judge.

I have been going around town almost every day of these celebrations. It is exciting to be here this time of the year. It is getting almost too hot for walking in the late afternoons. That is siesta time. The hills are very dry but the flowers are blooming everywhere. The winter people are starting to think about going home. I have seen several postings at the Lake Chapala Society of people looking for others to caravan with them back to the States or Canada. Safety in numbers. Lots of things are for sale too.  More rentals are becoming available. Less traffic in the street. It is an interesting time of the year. But it is always interesting for me here. No matter what time of the year......

4 comments:

  1. Hi again Patricia,
    I didn't realize that they celebrate Mardi Gras in Mexico. It seems like you are always posting about a parade or holiday.
    But since Lent has started I guess its quieter now.
    We have a lot in common. I love dogs, too. We have two "shelter" dogs and they are the best.

    Enjoy the spring in Mexico,
    Karen in VA

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  2. Hi Karen, Thank you for writing again. I am going to post some photos of the parade on Fat Tuesday. What a parade. Everyone was throwing flour.....
    You are right about the holidays and parades here. I can't keep up with all of them. Glad you too are a dog person. I love dogs. Patricia

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  3. Hello Patricia. I am a student teacher in a Spanish classroom. I wanted to do something different with the kids to give them a break from our unit on driving. I thought having a little Fat Tuesday celebration would be nice, but I wanted to also include information about Mardi Gras and the season of lent in Spanish. I thought gathering information about what they do in Spanish speaking countries to celebrate this season would be an ever better cultural experience. Can you help me at all with this? In Mexico, do they give up something for lent like we do in the U.S.? What are the festivities like to celebrate Fat Tuesday? I studied abroad in Chile and they didn't really celebrate Fat Tuesday or give up something for Lent. My Chilean family was Catholic and they ate meat on Fridays. Could you just give me an idea of what it's like there?

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    Replies
    1. I am sorry, I can't help you with any information. I don't know much about the culture here. I mostly just walk around taking photos. Maybe you can find something on the internet? Thanks for writing. P

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