September in Morelia
September means back to work and school- Helen and Don at UNAM; Margaret and Sarah at Jefferson.
We (particularly Helen and Sarah) have started doing a daily loop walk
around our neighborhood: down the hill past the site of the market,
around past the zoo to visit the lions (which you can see from the
street) and then up the long set (276) of stone stairs back to Vista Bella.
The stairs are a popular place for soccer players in training or
anyone who wants to get some exercise. We go up them once, but others
make several trips up and down . . .
(Our apartment is the non-descript white concrete building behind the blue school.)
Fiestas Patrias
September is a month of patriotic holidays, so the town is getting
dressed up in red-white-and-green bunting in preparation for
independence day on the 16th and Morelos' birthday on the 30th.
More on that later.
The Monarcas
Futbol season has started: Morelia has a National League soccer
team, the Monarcas, and we went to our first game last week. It
was a much bigger crowd than anything we see in Middlebury or Bristol!
The fans were lively and the stadium was covered with yellow and
red banners. (However the liveliest were the red and black boosters
from the opposing
team, Atlas, who kept up a steady drumbeat thoughout the entire game).
So far, the Monarca's season has been undistinguished, but that
may still change . . .
Ever since the closely-contested presidential election on July 2,
supporters of the losing candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO)
have had an encampment in one of the central plazas. There have
been signs, rallies, and large statures poking fun at the president,
but no unrest here in Morelia.
But mostly life goes on as normal . . .
