Can You Guess Where We Are?

Would you like to play a game?  A guessing game?

Take a peek at these photos and guess where I shot them.  The goal – to accurately name the location.  The prize – to be determined later.

A cowboy from a rancho on the Baja?

Could they be Queretaro? La Paz? Mexico City? Todos Santos, or somewhere in Chiapas or the Yucatan?

Need a hint?  The location is hidden. Look very carefully.

Give up?  What’s the Spanish word for HIDDEN?  That’s right.  Escondido.  As in - Escondido, California which is 30 miles north of San Diego.

Two weeks after leaving La Paz homesickness struck like a severe case of the turistas but it affected my heart not my intestines.  Oh, there were plenty of Mexican restaurants around but they were so Gringo-ized (every dish drowned in melted cheese) that I felt even more depressed.  Then one day on our way to Safeway I spotted a small sign in front of a humble-looking market.  Tacos $1. 










Zoom, our little Miata, made an illegal U-turn and as we pulled into the parking lot, I smelled Mexico.  

 The moment we entered I saw Mexico.  And when I squeezed limon onto my carnita I had to squeeze back my saliva. I took a big bite and I tasted Mexico.  I was home.

Alex eats four tacos!

Jose, the chef, who had piled a mountain of meat onto the hand-made corn tortilla, gave me directions to the tortillaria where they are hecho a mano and it was while we drove there that I noticed that Mexico was all around me. I hadn't noticed because it was merely Escondido.

Would they accept pesos?

 

Alex and I have been in The States for four months this summer and we've housesat in six towns.  One of the first things we do after we arrive in a new city is search for hidden Mexico.  So far we've scored 100%.  It's easy when you know what you're looking for.