There is an absoluteness defining the silence of a new
morn following a major fiesta in our village. The canine corp intuitively
delays its piercing yaps while the roosters appear to have vanished to some poultry
retreat. Family elders engaged in street sweeping and greeting delay. The air
is stilled by a fog which suspends any observable animation. Heads full of brew
from the prior night have yet to awaken and throb. It is the quiet before the
hangover storm.
The first weekend of June is designated Dia de la Marina
to celebrate the activities of all those who live, work and play on the sea. The
celebration begins mid-day Saturday with families in their pangas floating a
wreath in Banderas Bay to honor those who have gone before. The boats return to
Yelapa Bay and the party begins. There is the opening egging as children, big
and small, chase others to anoint the pursued with the fruit of the hen. A
rented DJ presses the power button and techno music (???) belches from four speakers,
each the size of a port-a-potty. Locals offer all sorts of ceviche and finger
food. An actual panga pulled up onto the beach, courtesy of El Buly, functions as
a cooler and offers transitory refuge to countless cases of mini-beer. Collections
of swim suit clad young women undulate to the primordial drum beats. Larger groups
of imbibing men mask their staring at the dancers and then find solace in
patting, rubbing and scratching their overhanging bellies. Let the fiesta
begin.
The balance of the day plays out along similar lines.
The afternoon highlight is the team climbing of a greased pole. This involves
the same male groups mentioned above attempting to organize and then execute a
plan to scale the greased power pole and retrieve a cache of cash affixed to
the top. By this time in the afternoon the aforementioned groups of men are
neither capable of organizing nor executing anything. They tumble frequently and
relish in their demonstrated inabilities.
The evening is punctuated with a rodeo, Yelapa style,
at the far end of the village. Additional quantities of food and beverage
sustain whatever feelings of invincibility were instilled earlier in the day.
Actual vaqueros, cowboys, straddle immense bulls and attempt to remain vertical
for several seconds. More often than not, their success rate mirrors that of
the pole climbers; but once in a rare while one is successful and an immense cheer
erupts.
It is Sunday morning. Signs of life imerge. The beach
party aspect of the fiesta will resume at mid-day. More solid/liquid
refreshments to be consumed, more music and undulating to be stared upon and more
overhanging bellies in need of much rubbing and scratching. Monday will arrive,
as it always has. Over the next few days any evidence of this ancient ritual
will be archived and erased. Once again the dogs will bark, the roosters will
crow and a less frenetic level of activity will re-visit our village. Aaaah, la
vida tranquila (the calm life).
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Commercial
Break
My regularly scheduled office hours will return on
Monday. Remember, additional discounts beyond current low rates, are available
for multi-day rentals. Happy paddling. memo
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