Tonala Handicraft Market Day

Thursdays and Sundays are the market days for the Tonala's handicrafts. Sue and I were going to take a taxi to this neighboring town, five miles to the southeast. Olivia said why take a taxi when there is a bus two blocks from our apartment. We walked two blocks and, where were we? On Calle Tonala. Now, on which corner do we catch the correct bus? A helpful teenager explained that there were two buses to Tonala. The regular bus for six pesos and the more comfortable bus for nine pesos. Well, the six peso bus arrived first and we confirmed that it was going to Tonala. Drove a few blocks...and there was the church where we ended yesterday's procession. And we thought that we were so far from home, yesterday, and it was only a matter of blocks.

Other passengers advised us when to get off the bus in Tonala. Crossed the street...and immediate joy ......the bright, pleasing colors once again of the art work. We were greeted by the brightly dressed skeltons of Dona Caterina and her friends. I fell in love with Catalina, years ago at the Day of the Dead celebrations in Patzcuaro, Mexico. Two other familar faces....Diego and Frida.

There were booths with vendors lining the streets. In some locations, the booths were four deep. Wonderful, fun, pieces of art. For the sake of my wallet, thank goodness that I have collected many pieces of similar folk art over the years. Otherwise, the temptation to buy out the vendors would be overwhelming.

It got to be very crowded and less fun as we went along. Crossed the street and started making our way back...very slowly. There was so much to see....dishes of all sorts and designs...paintings...carved pieces of fruit...candle stick holders....

Tme for lunch. Cut off the main street and follwed our map to an area closer to the center of town. Had lunch at Restaurant El Boquinete which is recommended in the Moon Guide. Very attentive and helpful waiter. Lunch of quesedillas was adequate....but, not nearly as good as those at Olivia's restaurant.

Walking on Zaragoza, we saw many shops displaying beautiful ball gowns. They were the kind that I imagined having when I was a little girl....right out of Disney's Cinderella. After translating a sign, we realized that these were Quince Anos gowns. An important time in a Latin American girl's life is the celebration of her Fifteenth Birthday.

Made our way back to where we had gotten off the bus a few hours earlier. Where do we stand for a bus to get back to Tlaquepaque? A kind storekeeper walked me up the street and pointed to an approaching bus. Had a lot of writing on it....including "Tlaquepaque" I asked the bus driver if he was going that way...and he replied "Si". This was the "comfortable" nine peso bus. We had soft seats for the extra three pesos. From what I read, I think that we were also suppose to have air conditioning. Not today, not this bus. Went a sort ways and then stopped for a large group of people. Apparently, their bus had broken down. The bus turned and we were in unfamilar territory. We made several pickups at the largest, most modern bus terminal that I have ever sen. This I later read is Guadalajara's "new" bus terminal. Buses to locations all over Mexico leave from this terminal.

Are we on our way back to Tlaquepaque? or Guadalajara? Nothing looked familar until we came to a corner where the building was painted yellow and had a big ear of corn illustrated on the side. This was a tortilleria in our neighborhood. Time to get off the bus. We felt good that we had been successful in finding our way to and from Tonala by bus...in spite of limited Spanish. I credit the kind people that we met along the way.

Back to Lirio Blanco...put up our feet and lounged on the patio with books. I stayed out until the last rays of light until 7:30 PM. Felt good to enjoy the warm air and sunshine for a another day