Mexico!

Seems that not that long ago I was taking an American road trip, and not much later was boarding a flight to Mexico! My motto for this year seems to be like a line from a poem I heard:
"...blow into town then blow out again". So here we are, three gringas in San Miguel de Allende, the "Heart of Mexico". I was last here over 36 years ago, when I attended spanish language classes, as well as weaving and jewelry making. Needless to say, the place has changed a little since I was here last. This is a photo of our home for the week, Casa Feliz, as people lined up to view the parade.
The exterior belied what lay within, as this view of our inner courtyard shows. The entire house was filled with art and plants and it really was a visual feast.We joked that we could happily sketch there for the week, and never leave the house!
We had two courtyards on different levels, and the views from the rooftop were spectacular! That was my favorite spot for sketching, and most afternoons would find me up there soaking up some sun.
This says Mexico to me. The rows of colorful fruit that was so enticing, but that we did not buy.
This was my amigo, who graciously posed with an armful of colorful detritus that he had collected from a recent explosion in the square. Unfortunately we missed whatever it was, which happened while we were having lunch. The debris consisted of lots of little paper mache arms and legs, though, so I'm sure it was very interesting to see.
This is the scaffolding that we watched being erected in preparation for the evenings' fireworks display, which we did see. It was fantastic, with lots of spinning, twirling , screeching bits, some of which spun off into space. After that was the larger aerial display, right overhead. It was the closest I have ever come to being on a fireworks barge.
I remember seeing lots of flowers when I lived here before, though mostly what we saw this time were rose sellers. But oh, what roses they were! We enjoyed the bouquet in our home that grew more beautiful by the day.
The balloon seller was a ubiquitous sight, especially on parade days. We never really saw too many being sold, but I fantasized about buying up his whole bundle and giving them away to the kids in town.