There's no place like this! Once the gateway where everything important from Asia trans-shipped here to Europe by coming overland from Acapulco, and also the place Cortes camped for months while making up his mind what he was gonna do about Montezuma's empire, it's still a place of importance, and such a great blend of everything... And especially, seafood and music! There's not a lot to do here besides eat, sleep, seek out music, seek out beach restaurants, eat, drink, and people watch! It's so cool for that though. People are having such a good old time. The vendors are one community, the visitors are pretty happy, and the air is warm.
We've got a lot of great photos of folks, and mostly folks here are welcoming but quite politely or even actually ignoring us. Except when they see Craig's new local soccer team t shirt, then they get all happy. Wow, you, the only gringo in town, know that the Tiburones, The Sharks, "ate a lot of chicken" last night? 4-0, wasn't that cool?
(Craig in his new t shirt, next to composer Agustin Lara, who was a little unconventional)
It's also the source of great strains of music. Cuban-Mexican-Caribbean romantic songs like the so campy "Besame Mucho" got famous in the U.S. partly because Augustin Lara, a very talented local boy, got started composing and womanizing here in Veracruz's bordellos and then got famous on Mexican Radio station XEW and then ultimately Walt Disney fell in love with his music enough to use it in a movie called The Three Caballeros. I just learned all that today but we do LOVE Agustin Lara. Solamente Una Vez (just one time) and Mujer (woman) are among his hundreds of classics. And he loved the beautiful ladies! Here are a few of his lady loves
Did they (did the ladies know how to pose and dress back then, or what? )Another great contribution by Veracruz to the world was "la Bamba" which is well - sort of a bastardization of the local style, Son Jarocho, Son (meaning song or sound or style of music) Jarocho (which means, a native of Veracruz!). Son Jarocho is part Huastec Indian part African Slave part Cubsn-Spanish criollo part who knows. Delicious rhythms, sometimes moving from 3/4 to 4/4 or adding extra beats to measures just like Hawaiian composers sometimes add the odd 5/4 beat to a mostly 4/4 song. And it uses an odd instrument combo (harp, tapping heels, a jarana which is like a baritone uke, and a guitar), beautiful girls in very lacy dresses, and lots of repetition with puns. Like Hawaiian puns kinda sorta. It's such a lot of fun. La Bamba doesn't capture half of it, if you want to see it in Northern California try to catch Cascada de Flores when they play at the Freight. Some other local Bay Area groups,specialize in it too.
Son
The third musical blessing from Veracruz by way of Havana and Merida? Danzón! Stately dignified couples who may have danced together all their lives, pretend to barely to know each other yet flirt outrageously just like tango, to the music of big bands as smooth and warm as they can be. We get to see some Danzon tonight. Can't wait!
Danzon
After we enjoy Veracruz's other gift- red snapper Veracruz style, Huachinango a la Veracruz..
You hear a lot of other special Caribbean stuff here. Lots of Marimba, lots of Cuban jazz. And lots of mariachi and nortena and just now what sounds like Lebaneee-inspired Mexican hip hop. And Cumbia. And salsa. Todos vamos a bailar. Music whenever you turn around. Even at the beach. Especially at the beach!
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