Fotos

Chilangolandia

Ricos Tamales Oaxaqueños;
Colchones, tambores, refrigeradores, estufas, lavadoras...
Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaassssss;
Esquite, tacos, tortas, mangos, dulces, and balloons.

Crosswalks nothing more than paint on the street;
Red lights more of a suggestion;
Random four foot holes in the sidewalk;
Pirated movies, stolen phones, indigenous beggars;
Energy, life, smells, sounds;
It is hard not to feel the chaotic charm.

Modern and antiquated at the same time.
Two steps forward, one step back;
Sometimes two or three.

Escape into a quiet park;
Families together and happy on a lazy Sunday afternoon;
The gentle jingle of the ice cream cart and churro guy;
Time seems to have no meaning.

Until we meet again Chilangolandia;
El placer ha sido mio.

Last Day of Work

Today was my last day of work. Feels kind of weird. I just sent out my goodbye email:

Dear Everyone,

Today is my last day at SOLCARGO. I want to thank everyone for having accepted a gringo into the SOLCARGO family. I take with me great friends and many good experiences. It has been a pleasure.

So that we are in contact, here is my personal email: xxxxxxx@gmail.com

A hug to everyone,

-Taylor

///

Estimados todos,

Hoy es mi último día en SOLCARGO. Quiero agradecerle a todos por haber aceptado a un gringo en la familia de SOLCARGO. Me llevo grandes amigos y muchas experiencias buenas. Ha sido un placer trabajar con ustedes.

Para que estemos en contacto, aquí está mi correo personal: xxxxxxx@gmail.com.

Un abrazo a todos,

-Taylor

Tomorrow we are doing a Tour de Cantinas in the Centro Histórico and then I have Sunday and Monday to pack up my stuff and say my final goodbyes. I am ready to leave, but it's hard not to be a little sad. 

Name Explorer

So this post has nothing to do with Fulbright or Mexico, but found this awesome website that lets you plot the popularity of names over the last century. Could be useful for Michael and Lindsay's naming process as you can see if your name is "trending" or not. Here's the link:

https://rhiever.github.io/baby-name-explorer/index.html 

Naturally, I looked up myself first. Looks like Taylor was equal for boys and girls until about 1992 when I guess girls won the battle. Since then, both have been dropping off, which surprised me given Taylor Swift's success.

William is more of a classic name. Hugely popular all the way back to 1880 and sort of declining since then. 

Julianne is a little more volatile. Not sure what happened in 1980, but there was a crash in the Julianne stock value. But it recovered in the 1990's. 

Finally, Osama was a great name. Booming in popularity, until about 2001. Not sure what happened. 

Mexican Elections

Sunday was Election Day in Mexico. It wasn't a presidential election, rather an election for 9 governors (there are 31 states in Mexico), some members of Congress, and local district elections. It is very similar to the US in that there is a rotating election cycle for a portion of the seats in Congress and state governors. One of the surprising things for me is that the sale of alcohol was banned all weekend. The idea being, I suppose, that people vote better when they are sober. My main problems with this are a) if someone really wanted to drink they would just buy booze on Saturday and b) if someone doesn't have the self-control to not drink, would they really be the type of person that would vote in the first place? Anyway, no booze this weekend including bars during the Champions League Final!!

Below are the results of the two most important districts in Mexico City: Benito Juarez and Cuauhtémoc. You can see how differently the two districts vote despite the fact that they are in the same city and are adjacent to one another.

Benito Juarez: This district has the highest standard of living in Mexico City and is on par with Europe in terms living standards. The party who won is PAN, a conservative party whose main objective is to fight corruption. Although, many would say that PAN is just as corrupt as the other two main parties the PRD and PRI. I live in Benito Juarez.

Cuauhtémoc: This is the district that includes the Centro Historico, Condesa, and Roma. Although parts of Cuauhtémoc are much nicer than Benito Juarez, this district also include very modest / poor neighborhoods. Almost all the other Fulbrights live in this district. The party that won is called Morena. This party is an offshoot of the PRD after there was a disagreement between politicians. Both PRD and Morena are left-leaning parties. In general the PRD has controlled Mexico City.

Outside of Mexico City the big news is that for the first time in Mexican History a governor was elected with no party affiliation. Jamie Rodriguez, the "Bronco", of Nuevo Leon was elected over the big parties: PRI, PAN, and PRD. Apparently the business leaders in Nuevo Leon were frustrated with the leading parties and funded their own independent candidate.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/09/world/americas/el-bronco-jaime-rodriguez-calderon-governors-race-nuevo-leon.html?ref=americas&_r=0

This could be a big deal if more independent politicians emerge. Most Mexicans are extremely frustrated with the 3 main political parties and see elections as voting for the least bad party. It reminds me of the Simpsons when the planet is taken over by aliens and they hold an election between the two alien leaders- Kang (Republican) and Kodos (Democrat). Homer suggests, "Well why don't I just vote for a third independent candidate?" To which the aliens reply:

So the idea that independent candidates can win could be a game changer in future elections if the currently ruling parties don't impress citizens. 

On a national level, the elections were kind of blah. Mexico has mostly been governed by the PRI. All the presidents have been PRI except for Vincente Fox (PAN) 2000 - 2006 and Felipe Calderon (PAN) 2006 - 2012. The current president Enrique Peña Nieto is PRI and many thought his party would be punished at the polls as a result of the missing 43 students, and Casa Blanca scandal, which I have mentioned in previous posts. However, the PRI retained its majority in Congress and won the majority of the governor races. Many analysts are saying that this has less to do with PRI, and more to do with voters being unimpressed by the alternatives: PAN and PRD. 

There was some shoddy business going on during the election. The New York times reported on the PRI giving away "free TVs" just before elections. The government claimed that this was part of the government's plan to move the nation towards digitized TVs away from analog, but the timing seems very suspect. The New York Times writes:

The campaign gifts are illegal in most cases, but subjected to fines or other sanctions only after complaints are lodged with the Electoral Institute. Because all the parties break the law, such complaints are rare.

Also, during the elections 5 candidates were assassinated. I am wondering whether the Bronco will be assassinated during his first term. But I guess this is Latin American politics. The United States has its fair share of election woes so it's hard to judge. At least the Mexican election buzz only started about 3 months before the election. That seems reasonable. In the US we are in a constant election cycle. We are obsessed and have been for months with the November 2016 election and that is 18 months away!

In other news, the training for the STP is going well, although still don't have access to a non-stationary bike.

Update: Just found an amazing graph that shows the voter demographics by sex, age, and education level for each of the parties. What the graph shows is that PRI, the party in power, is incentivized to keep voters as uneducated as possible, because that is their best demographic. The PAN is the conservative party and you can see that all of the educated voters vote for them, probably because they are richer.

Sandra Mayo

Sandra came on May 14th and stayed with me for two weeks after finishing her finals. The first day we took a flight to Zihuatenejo. You may recognize the name Zihuatenejo as it is the small fishing village referenced in the movie Shawshank Redemption where one of the prisoners says that he buried his loot there and will go there when he escapes. As an aside, Shawshank Redemption is currently the number one movie of all-time on imdb.com. Anyway, Zihuatenejo is great! It has definitely retained its village charm and Sandra and I had the luck of being there in low season. We stayed at a small AirBnB hotel and we were the only guests! We were also one block from the local corner store. Everyone in Zihuatenejo seemed to hang out on their stoops at night and it made for an extremely pleasant atmosphere. It was also much more affordable than Puerto Vallarta or Cancun. 

The only thing that was a little off was that the police were all military police and had massive automatic rifles. It was also fairly normal to see a federal police pick-up truck with a bunch of soldiers in the back and one guy manning a mounted machine gun turret. The reason for this is that Zihuatenejo is in the state of Guerrero and according to the State Department website, there are only 3 safe cities in the state of Guerrero: Taxco, Acapulco, and Zihuatenejo. I have been to all three. Luckily, none of the violence is directed at tourists because the bad guys benefit from tourism too. We had an enjoyable 3 days in Zihuatenejo and just lounged around for 3 days walking around to different beaches. According to the locals we were there about 2 weeks before the rainy season begins, so our timing couldn't have been better. 

Our little hotel in Zihuatenejo

Playa de la Ropa

After getting back from Zihuatenejo a little more tanned (Sandra tans insanely fast, me... not so much), we set out to see Mexico City. We started with Coyoacan, former residence of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. We went to the Museo de Frida Kalho and couldn't resist the photo opp:

I still can't get over how fat Diego Rivera was. He was not a good looking guy, but I guess neither was Frida Kahlo. In the photo above, they are both incredibly good looking of course. I still find it a little hypocritical that Diego and Frida were socialists/communists yet they lived in a MASSIVE house. The house is an entire square block. To me, it doesn't really embody the principles of communism. 

As we were leaving we saw the dancing doctor of Farmacias Similares. This is Mexican marketing at its best. I have a pharmacy. How can I market that we are professional and good value? Anwer: Dancing fat doctor. The doctor dances for hours to all kinds of Mexican music: salsa, cumbia, reggaeton, bachata, etc...   

One of the days we were in Mexico City, this weird thing happened where there was a halo around the sun. Everyone went crazy, but I swear I remember seeing stuff like this as a kid in Seattle. Promptly pictures started getting sent around on Whatsapp. I received the picture below like 3 times from different people. It's a Dragon Ball Z reference, which is apparently a huge thing in Mexico because it was one of the shows that aired on free antenna TV in Mexico in the 90's. It is part of the cultural identify of all Mexicans between the ages of 20 and 35. 

The Friday night after we got back to Mexico City we went to a comedy show, which is something I had always wanted to do.

The comedian's name was Ricardo O'Farrill and he was spectacular. He reminded me of the comedians you see on Comedy Central in New York. He was seriously that good. It was also a good test of my Mexican Spanish because they say that comedy is one of the hardest things to understand in a foreign language, but I got almost all of his jokes and cultural references. There was a lot of bathroom humor, but he also had some great social commentary on Mexican culture and politics. 

The next day we went to the Castillo de Chapultepec. Even though I have been to the castle like 5 times, my Mexican national history is still not very good: Spain conquers Mexico, something something, 1810 Mexican independence, something something, 1910 Mexican Revolution, something something, War on Drugs, something something, Present Day. 

On Sunday we considered doing something cultural like going to a Pueblo Magico or going to a museum or something of the like, but instead we went to Six Flags Mexico. Best decision ever. I still had my annual pass from the last time I went so it was free for me and Sandra's ticket was only $15. The weather forecast said thunderstorms all afternoon so the park was almost deserted. We had a bit of a fright because when we first got there, all the rides were closed indefinitely due to thunderstorms. I guess large metal roller coaster structures attract lightning bolts somehow. But after about 45 minutes everything cleared up and we were getting our asses kicked by all sorts of roller coasters: Superman, Batman, Medussa, Kalauea, Curandero.

As mentioned in a previous blog, Six Flags has a thing called Flash Pass which basically lets you buy your way to the front of the line. The concept is a little bit fucked up because it teaches kids that money can resolve anything, but it worked great for us. We skipped all the lines and walked to the front. We actually got kicked out of the best ride for jumping the barriers in order to save time, but we snuck back in later in the day. Highlight of the day was the Old West photo we took in costume, which I sent out to the family Whatsapp group.

 Churro Sheriff

 The whole time Sandra was here I worked from about 8 am - 2 pm leaving us the afternoons free. One day we decided to go to the Universidad Autonoma Nacional de México (UNAM) which has 300,000 students. It is so big that it is called Ciudad Universitaria or University City. The architecture is all very unique and very Mexican as seen in the building below of the library. This is also the site of the Mexican Olympics in 1968. The university is filled with hipster / hippy-ish dressed students. UNAM is the most prestigious university in Mexico and is also free tuition.

We decided to be cultured and went to the Museo Universitarero de Arte Contemporaneo (MUAC) or University Museum of Contemporary Art. We weren't quite sure what to expect as modern art can be really hit or miss. Below I am outside the MUAC.

Here is one interesting piece we found. It was a dinner table with pictures of food and then 6 flat screen TVs pointed to each other. The artist had video taped a dinner between 6 people and then put each persons face on a TV screen to reenact the meal. All the TVs were synced and you could listen to their conversation.

We also saw lots of weird pieces including a bunch of videos showing naked people walking around in nature. It's art I guess.

Sandra left on May 28th and for me it marked the last part of my Fulbright. I don't have any more visitors and things are wrapping up. I am doing almost no work at work because they have nothing for me to do. I spend my days learning French on Duolingo, taking an online computer science course, doing homework, and taking the required pre-term coursework in calculus for Johns Hopkins. It is disappointing that my job isn't more fulfilling, but I am making the most of it. I also recently learned that my company will be excluded from the Fulbright program next year, which I think is for the best. Although I do have great colleagues, there is no real work for me here. Anyway, I will enjoy my remaining 3 weeks and then I am home to Olympia for the 4th of July!

Uber: Case Study in Mexican Cronyism

On Monday May 25th, a bunch of taxis blocked one of the financial districts (Santa Fe) with their taxis in protest of Uber. I have seen this type of protesting before in Latin America. In Buenos Aires, the bus drivers protested by parking all of their buses end to end on the main avenue of the city effectively bringing the city to a grinding halt. I guess the idea is that if I am annoying enough, piss enough people off and cripple commerce, politicians will listen to me. The traffic in Mexico City was devastating on Monday and many people abandoned their cars on the road to walk to work as there was simply no movement. Two Fulbrights experienced this first hand.


To me it seems like a terrible strategy. By performing a stunt like this, you are assured that public opinion will be against you. The protesters did the same thing after the 43 disappeared students. I am very sympathetic to that cause, but if you trap me on the freeway for hours, well screw you. Anyway, that's what the taxi drivers did to protest Uber. According to the taxi drivers, Uber is unfair because they provide a more convenient, more efficient, more reliable, cheaper, and safer alternative to taxis, which is... well... unfair. To be fair, the Mexico City taxis that are licensed (about 30,000 are not and are so called "illegal" taxis), pay about $400 per year in taxes and licenses. Uber offered to pay this amount per taxi, but the taxis declared that was unaccepted and that Uber is illegal and unregulated. Uber offered to be regulated, but the taxis prefer to deny Uber a seat at the table because it is simply a much better product and they know they can't compete.

Uber has made my life SO much easier in Mexico. Taxis are terrible for the following reasons:
1) They never have seatbelts
2) They never have change
3) They try to take you the long way and rip you off
4) There aren't enough and it's hard to find one
5) I have had two taxis break down on me. One on the freeway, and the other when I was on my way to a bus station and tight on time
6) At night, they try and screw you. On a Friday or Saturday night, they won't run their meters and try to charge you 6x what the metered rate would be
7) There is always the risk of express kidnappings in which the taxi driver temporarily kidnaps you and makes you take out the maximum amount at several ATMs.

Uber fixes all these problems. It is seriously so much better. That's what scares taxi drivers. And so they resort to these protests and they are going to use their political arm through their lobby to get politicians to outlaw it. The sad thing is that it is working. On May 27th, the Secretary of Transportation "resolved to combat the alleged illegality of drivers who offer their services through Uber rather than regulate them." It remains to see what this will mean exactly. In the meantime, Uber has advised its drivers to wear regular clothes and have passengers in the front seat so that they are less obvious. Taxi groups have also promised aggression against Uber drivers. I have had several drivers drive past my location and call me because they were afraid that the taxi drivers would see them pick me up.

I hope Uber stays in Mexico. It makes my life cheaper, safer, and more convenient. Uber had just arrived to Mexico City when I arrived in August, so if it leaves, my generation of Fulbright would be the only one to experience Uber in Mexico City. It's a damn shame and in my opinion a case study of Mexican cronyism.

Antonia & Jack

Photos from Jack and Antonia's visit to Mexico City. We started off with Xochilmilco, which is a river system about 1 hour south of Mexico City that has brightly colored boats to take you around. The Mexicans call it their Venice, but that is a big big stretch. 

Here we are in Coyoacan. Jack told us to "act natural."

Coyoacan market for some tostadas. Jack had a tostada de pata, which is pig foot. It looked horribly gelatinous and cartildgy, but he seemed to enjoy it. 

Outside of the Museo de Frida Kahlo

We took a cooking class that Fulbright paid for. Here Antonio is demonstrating how to properly fillet a chicken breast.

Here is our Master Chef, although to be honest his recipes were pretty lame. We made chicken stuffed with plantain and topped with mole, sopa azteca, and a mousse that ended up tasting like cheese.

Patrick Miller. This weird club in Mexico City where everyone stands around and watches other people dance mediocrely in break dance circles. Seriously, the worst break dancers I have ever seen. Not even break dancing actually. Just moving in rhythm. 

Museo Tamayo de Arte Moderno. There was only work from two artists. Pretty good. 

Jack smiling

Museum of Anthropology. Biggest museum ever. Way too overwhelming. 

Jack in the gift shop

Courtyard of the Anthropology Museum. It is truly an amazing building. The Mexican government does a good job investing in certain things, but not in others. Another amazing thing is the Cineteca, a government theater that is beautiful and shows independent movies for $2.50. Meanwhile, the metro looks like no one has invested in it in about 30 years.

Diorama showing cannibalism. Museum was full of dioramas. 

Can't tell from here, but this altar was MASSIVE. Apparently, people were sacrificed in front of it. 

Perspective on altar. 

More museum.

Best piñata ever.

Paddling around in one of the beautiful green lakes of Chapultepec. We got one of the peddle boats. I think peddle boats are one of the least efficient forms of transportation possible. We were peddling our asses off, and making almost no forward progress.

Castillo de Chapultepec looking at Reforma.

At a posh bar before going to a house party. Another stunning smile from Jack.