Street Life in the old New World.
La Teirra de las Mexicas, Land of The May Shee Ka People. NOT May hee ko, an Espanol political name.
How can one live, love and laugh on the plantation without plantation script.
Blood of Freedom. La sangre de la libertad
There is only such place I have found where this is not only possible but a thousands year old cultural model. Here the people of La Diosa ( Goddess )have fought a long line of Owners to bloody draws and exist peaceably in Freedom even if necessarily and periodically nourished by a few drops of el sangre del pueblo ( blood of the people) , and largely left alone to live unforcibly contracted to Rothschild banks.
Here people take their personal libertad seriously. Street vendors last month here in town were cleared by conquistadors (conquerors) enforcing the new licensing regulations. Some cops were shot…and everyone was back that afternoon. Vendadoras (street sellers) take to the march instantly upon any attempt at introduction of licensing and zoning laws. Mira (see…), there are no “those” vendors but only our vendors, since everyone including the wealthy mostly eats street food. Its the only thing to eat , man… 24 pesos average for a good tasty cena, dinner..12 for lunch hahaha.
People Power.
Here “Labor” is not just another gang but actually workers, and they are politically savvy and influential. 100,000 Oaxaceno teachers and parents are still shedding blood to keep education out of corporate hands. Chiapas, a huge southern state, fought the Mexican government to a standstill and kicked them all out - viva subcommandante Marcos! Zapatista ( after Emiliano Zapata, hero of the Revolution) road blocks filter out federates but not the common people. And this has been so for decades. I know of no equivalent in any country- Christiana in Denmark is still under sufferance unlike Chiapas. It is typically Mexican..of both sides.
Commerce Game.
Here, if Profiteers choose to contract with the Plantation, then that is literally their “business” with all of that and all of those. In reality, only corporations are taxed. There is no "sales tax". The rest of us can live, love, laugh in the still large cracks no number of corporate enforcers can fill. Us Mexicas simply won’t have it and we are, man woman and child, ready to walk the walk. If we want to open a pinche bar, we just buy some chelitas, (beer) for 4 pesos, get a plank and sell, we don need no pinche (fucking) license, cabrones! (bastards) I enjoy the colorful cussing by both genders and all ages…apply pinche cabron; puta madre; no mames; puto (punk); to any and all…a huevo (right on), cabron, you’ll be a Mexica in no time, hombre. jejejeje…
Libertad. Freedom.
The blood of Libertad flow in the veins of Mexicas everyone. Here, like nowhere else I have been, revolutions and revolutionary heros are daily celebrated everywhere on the streets. Every town has streets named after heroes and dates of battles. Freedom from interference by the Owners-This is what we seek when we fugarso (escape) south of the border. This is what we mean when we talk about the sense of freedom in Mexico. This is what we mean when we say one can do anything one wishes here. This is a land where anarchy is the street active social fabric. You don’t see people complaining and calling the cops if someone invariably parks blocking traffic which they all seem to...fuck the pinche parking rules..They just move around it as others move around them whenever they themselves do it. Mexicas be like… why do cars come with parking flashers if not to park anywhere…? If you really dig the above anecdote, you get it, man.
Street anarchy
The simple act of cooking something and selling it, anywhere on any street, from your garage or living room; free from the government protection racket is an everyday revolutionary activity - eating Freedom. Try this in any “civilized” society and you will attract the guard dogs and tax collectors of “public health” within a day. Here “public” are your neighbors, and impeccability of behavior is all the protection we need. Mexicas make daily life easier all around in words and deeds.
Mira (see here), mama will cook or buy some food for 10 pesos, sell 6 portions for 10 and bring home 50 pesos. This buys a kg of fresh handmade corn tortillas de maiz; frijoles (beans); arroz (rice); chile; and tal ves (maybe) pocito pollo (bit of chicken). This is a full dinner for 5… a few hours work and all is fed, chingon (perfect)! Then its tranquilo or chill with the man, more, importante things in life like family and laughter…maybe even sleeping (under a cactus) like a Disney stereotype, heheheh.
No Rules but Self Rule.
There is a People’s Law, La regala de pueblo here and it trumps government law. Police enforce government law ( corporate bylaw) and leave People’s Law alone. Streets get blocked off with no notice by some local fiesta…people’s law. Corporate law enforcers exert no will here, they are not preying upon us constantly like in the States, you know what I mean…?. Gypsy mercados (markets), 6 year old traffic intersection jugglers, curbside mechanics, water sellers, bus preachers, subway mariachis, the list goes on. Begging is rare and mostly limited to people from the sierras ( mountains) needing plantation script for reasons other than survival. Its simply below the dignity of Jose Average.
Beautiful life. Hermosa vida
There is a lovely unique custom here; people make unwanted food carefully and hygienically available for any needy on the street. Nobody, not dogs, starve in Mexico…cool huh? This is what I mean when I say people make life easy for each other and this good vibe cascade is beyond imagination for those in “developed” societies, where rats race rats and dogs, even, eat dog. Orale (yeah, baby) dog love dog is mas mejor, more betteh, brah. Your heart can feel this. I could not have imagined a lovelier life. My heart sings everyday.
Recycling. Reciclaje
There is not much official “recycling” but there are huge city networks of salvagers and scavengers who barter at gypsy mercados, open markets; and bazaars, second hand stores. The streets are cleaned and garbage (always nicely sorted and neatly bagged) are picked up nightly by a combination of private and municipal people. These guys do NOT leave any mess and you never even see them.
Trade currency.
The concept of private trade currency is taking root with these salvagers inspired by Michael Litton's LETSystem. I feel optimistic about this because there exists a few practical basic commodities to serve as base units similar to the ancient Japanese Koku, which was a measure of rice to keep one man alive for a year. Here it can be tortillas to mota. Mota, cannabis is in political flux at this moment but it appears the world tide of Legalization has finally taken hold here. ExpoWeed in DF (common name for Mexico City) is the primero event of its kind. Entrepreneurs take note! The discussion of freedom without mentioning “drugs” (or gun ownership for that matter) is meaningless but that is another topic.
Violence. Violensa.
People view the gangwars as intecorporate warfare of little consequence to non-affiliates. Stray collateral damage is not zero if you hang out where turf wars occur, but nowhere near sensational mass media makes it out to be. ( what gives with the dead people front page in all papers here..?) Its bad enough to shoot each other, gangsters know, but civilians?…its good business to avoid this. Thirty one colleges, universities and uncounted private schools make my hometown Puebla the epitome of university towns and the learning center of the country even from tiempo prehispanico, prehispanic times. Everyone on all sides send their kids here. There is a Zona de Neutrality, a sort of self-enforced DMZ here. Non-Poblanos are not aware of this.
Mexican street kungfu.
The Chino term kungfu literally means Efficiency of daily work. Mexicas are natural masters of street kungfu. Imagine a sushi master chef…but for ALL actions of everyday life from making a torta (sandwich) to street sweeping. I saw 4 guys moving a huge steel roof beam down the street with a 2 wheeled dolly…ahuevo!. In the States it would be a crane, a truck, streets blocked by cops and 8 guys or more for a whole afternoon...Three guys grow a house in stealth mode, silent, clean, perfect. ..seemingly overnight, crazy. This is normal for all construction of all scales. To my eyes, graceful elegance is the default mode and on a daily basis amaze me with its unassuming and recognized beauty.
Off grid within the Grid and perfect climate
Corporatization efforts are increasing here of course but its not working that well or quickly despite the campaign rhetoric. The gentai, people, are not docile enough and maybe never will be…so far anyway, despite fluoride being in all table salt ( nasty!). Make no mistake, the Mexican slave is as controlled by fear as any, if not more, but If you wish to live in a beautiful natural corner of the plantation where you can be off grid within the grid; with fantastic, cheap food' cheap well designed housing and the climate PERFECT; dig a small tranquilo life surrounded by charming, warm, friendly humble people who love to laugh; where life simply works commonsense; where the culture is rich beyond imagination and is and always has been a goddess worshiping land; learn Espanol and the gateway to the entire New World opens…; where masculine honor is not out of style; and the senoritas are diosas hermana (beautiful goddesses) in the traditional way, then, man, move your butt across the Rio Grande. I will gladly help you.
Look for further posts where I share my experiences of two years on the streets of Mexico.
Puebla de Los Angeles, an ancient modern secret.
Laws that benefit tourists you were never told about.
Free stuff everywhere.
Forget jobs and money, make a living.
Valuable skills you took for granted at home;.
The RELEVANT (unpublisized) visa laws...cuz Mexico does love turistas!
Getting nationalized (passport) in 2 years minimum for no dinero, easy and legal.
Romance. BEAUTIFUL loving men and women. Social mores and ethics.
Crazy mysterious spots unknown to the world. The world's largest pyramid (formerly)..in town..
Exporting Mexico (forget importing!)
Why to learn Mexican and not Spanish.
Mexica culture is Goddess culture (only one in the world)
Nahuatl Empire, most recent ( 1300 AD ) of the Five Great Civilizations; Sumer, China, India, Egypt, Aztec (Nahuatl). Its still living…all around us.
Weed, Peyote, Mezcal.
Shamans and sacred plants.
Health, folk medicine and modern.
Food. Mexica feed Mexica. Simply the best I have experienced.