ART & CULTURE
My Experience with
TRADITIONAL MEXICO By Photographer Bruce Herman
HAPPY MAN, CHIAPAS
I had the pleasure to meet this happy man: a guitar maker, player, and seller at EL Mercado Central, the central market of San Cristobal De las Casas in the state of Chiapas, Southern Mexico. He played one guitar under his arm and carried two more tied to his back while he moved around the plaza at the entrance of the market. He spread his cheerful music and salesman’s good charm. Sometimes, when people he recognized arrived, he would follow up behind them playing his music louder and louder and getting closer and closer. Finally, the person would turn and he would smile and greet in familiar conversation, all the while he, played displaying his crude but beautiful homemade guitar, ever the salesman. I noticed as well that he greeted cheerfully the many children he passed and they, in turn, seemed excited to see him and kept watchful eyes as he moved around the plaza trying to find a buyer. Late in the morning he made a sale and, as the transaction finished, the children approached and followed him to a candy stall on the edge of the market. Here he filled and paid for a large bag of assorted colourful sweets. He put a few in his pocket, a few in his mouth and then generously distributed the rest of the children who had been waiting for this, obviously often repeated ritual. As the bag emptied and the happy kids moved on, he got another guitar off his back, spent a moment to get it in tune, and then started out again across the plaza, spreading amongst the people his quiet music, his enviable charm, and his energetic good will. *
AMBER GALLERY SAN JOSÉ ART DISTRICT - Alvaro Obregón 18 b across from restaurant Mi Casa Gallery 624-105-2332 www.brucehermangallery.com | 624-143-4793 | brucehermanphoto@hotmail.com
GIVING BACK
love the elderly
THE GOOD NEWS
For the sailor in love with our East Cape and the Sea of Cortez, J & V Yachts is the first yacht company to open doors in San José del Cabo. They are located in the lighthouse fishermen village of La Playita, by Marina Puerto Los Cabos. Enjoy the sport of navigating, and let these professionals take care of your nautical legal advice, mechanical services, import/export, polishing and washing, marine laundry, and all details of yacht management. Or, simply rent a yacht and navigate the beautiful seas of Baja California Sur with their certified crew, who dedicate themselves to help you plan your marine vacation and make your sport a pleasure. * For more info: www.jvyachts.com
DIF means Desarrollo Integral de
la Familia (Comprehensive Development of the Family). Those who support DIF activities help create awareness and organize activities promoting family wellness. Volunteers gather in support of the diverse national public programs created to protect and help children, women, and the elderly. Next time you find yourself wondering how to help, ask DIF about their activities at Casa de Día. People in need are helped with food, construction materials, clothes, wheelchairs, medicine, health services; but it is the DIF cultural workshops and events which provide our community with the opportunity to enjoy the company of others in a safe environment, creating art, dancing, singing, learning a new craft, or simply making new friends. Casa de Día offers free transportation service, meals and activities to our elders, who gather inspired by their love for life. You might be surprised when you discover that it is you who needed them.*
www.loscabos.gob.mx/dif www.DestinoMagazine.com | MAY 2014
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