the craft faire

Yesterday I went in to Manzanillo to a craft faire selling goods supposedly representing various parts of Mexico. Although it was a treat to be in the big city, the faire was a bit disappointing. The first thing to greet visitors was this big display of, well, stuff. The usual stuff you find on street corners or in the airport shops. Not a good start. This was the last (and only) photo I took before the battery died. Other things, however, proved to be more interesting. There were several booths selling Oaxaca molé, which I detest. Lots of beautiful blouses made in Mexico but of cloth from India. A good selection of bara clay cookware; I wouldn't dare bring another pot into the house! Some nice embroidered clothing also from Oaxaca, table linens from Patzcuaro, lots of cheap shoes, gaudy jewelry, scents, some leather from Quiroga (near Patz, in the state of Michoacan). Also some nice rugs from Urupan but if we had rugs in the house I'd just trip over them so forget that. The faire had been going on for a couple of weeks, and probably the best of what it had to offer had already been snatched up so what was left was nothing to write home (or a blog post) about. We were all sorely disappointed in what we saw. I did, however, make a couple of nice purchases.

I bought some beautiful wooden spoons to replace those that had gotten completely rotten out by the humidity over the summer here.


The three shiny ones are made of bamboo; the others are unvarnished pine. They are wonderful on the clay bara cookware I use here and on Teflon® I use at home.

Then I bought this nifty shirt made out of a cotton material you might characterize as "dishcloth" weave.





It will be perfect over turtlenecks or T-shirts in the cooler weather of Suchitlán, where we are going in late February for a week's vacation from our vacation.

Finally, I found what I had really come to see ~ beautiful aromatic baskets made out of pine needles. (This photo is not mine; my camera battery died after the first shot! Thank you, Harry Kroyer.)


This was a case where almost everything had been sold. I found two tiny baskets with lids, perfect to nestle in with my sheets to give them a nice, woodsy scent. The weaving is very intricate and tidy. I saw a few that had some color but most were open and flat. I don't think I'd store food in them because of the heavy scent. Or just have one open on a table or shelf to perfume a room. Here's what I bought:





I did not come across anything over which to mull whether or not I really, really, REALLY wanted it. Nor did I have any regrets on the way home over a treasure left behind. The only thing I might have wanted was a large woven pine needle chest to keep blankets or sweaters in, but there was no such animal.

Dago's tonight. Opera tomorrow: Tosca. Forty-eighth wedding anniversary on Sunday. Where did the time go?