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 Travel & Outdoors | April 2005 
Guadalajara: Mexico's 'Most Mexican' City
 Wendy Luft - The Herald Mexico
| | José Clemente Orozco murals in the Instituto Cultural Cabañas |
Mariachis, tequila, Mexican food (especially the salsa), and the extraordinary handicrafts produced in Tlaquepaque and Tonalá are high on my list, but what really makes every visit to Guadalajara special for me are the José Clemente Orozco murals in the Instituto Cultural Cabañas (Cabañas Cultural Institute) and the tapatíos, as natives of the city are known throughout Mexico.
Each time I visit what is known as Mexico's 'most Mexican' city, I am overwhelmed by the friendliness and kindness of the people. A few years ago when I was there, I had a terrible cold. I got into a cab and told the driver to take me to my hotel. There I was in the back seat, hacking away, when he pulled up at a corner and told me to wait a moment.
As an impatient New Yorker, my reaction was irritation at what I assumed was his thoughtlessness. Here I was feeling thoroughly miserable and he was running a personal errand on my time! He returned a few minutes later, and handed me a bottle, explaining that it was the natural cough syrup his mother swore by. "The best," he said. He insisted that I take a slug. Of course, he wouldn't let me reimburse him so, feeling really contrite, I gave him a big tip.
I was back in Guadalajara more recently and decided to visit the center of town, which is one of the only parts that has maintained a colonial flavor (as in most Mexican cities, many neighborhoods have given way to zealous "modernization"). I stepped into the cathedral, which anchors one end of the seven-block-long plaza, actually a series of plazas (Plaza Guadalajara, Plaza de la Liberación and Plaza Tapatía), and found only three people in the pews. I was surprised to see so few worshipers since Guadalajara is known as a city of mochos (a term used to describe people who are very Catholic), but then I noticed that a rather large crowd was standing in front of a statue, just to the right of the Virgin of Zapopan (the city's highly revered patron saint). I went over to see what was going on. Handbags and wallets and change purses were lying at the feet of the statue of St. Cayetano, while a group of men and women stood in a semi-circle around him and prayed. A woman standing next to me, probably noticed my look of bewilderment, said "Cayetano is milagrosísimo (VERY miraculous), and Wednesdays, between 10 and 10:30 a.m., he hears the petitions of those looking for work or in financial need." Without further ado, she took me by the elbow, steered me outside the front door of the cathedral and stopped at one of the stalls where they sell religious articles. She bought an estampa, with Cayetano's image on one side and a prayer seeking his intervention on the other, and pressed it into my hand as we returned to stand, once again, in front of the saint. She was so well meaning, how could I tell her I wasn't Catholic? In any case, with two sons looking for jobs and personal finances that are constantly on the brink, I could use all the help I could get! I placed my purse at the feet of the saint and said the prayer.
It's always a pleasure to stroll along the plaza, not only for the people watching, but because there's some kind of concert almost any time of the day or night somewhere. I walked a while and then took a seat under a tree (hoping that the pigeon droppings would miss me) to enjoy a delightful flute and guitar duet. The plazas are bordered by some of the city's most interesting buildings (the government palace, with its baroque façade, a majestic patio and outstanding murals; the state museum and the grand Degollado Theater) as well as some of its least attractive (tacky stores and modern "boxes" that are home to Guadalajara's thriving jewelry trade).
The far end of the plaza is anchored by the Instituto Cultural Cabañas, a Guadalajara landmark and major cultural center. But what's this in front of this stately building? Two groups of anthropomorphic bronze sculpture-chairs that are the delightful creation of Guadalajara native Alejandro Colunga. These whimsical "people-objects" come in all shapes and sizes, with grinning heads, pipes sticking out of jacket pockets and feet, big and small, some bare and other shod in sneakers, lace ups, boots… Some of the shoes even morph into snakes and lizards! The Instituto was founded by Bishop Juan Cruz Ruíz de Cabañas y Crespo in 1810 and originally served as an orphanage. Designed by Manuel Tolsá, one of the best architects and sculptors of the time, it was probably the most spectacular orphanage in the New World. The 160 rooms, 78 corridors and two chapels surrounding 23 flower-filled patios and are a showcase for permanent and temporary art exhibits. In 1997 the Instituto Cultural Cabañas, which was originally called Hospicio Cabañas, was recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
The first time I visited the Instituto I stepped into a huge hall, amazed to see people lying on the stone benches some were even on the floor while another group was circling rapidly under the cupola, heads turned up, looking as if they might break out into an Israeli folk dance at any moment. What was going on? Our guide that day explained that they were just getting the best possible view of the 53 murals that José Clemente Orozco had painted on the walls, ceilings and cupola of what had been the main chapel. Orozco, a native of the state of Jalisco, belonged to a group of post-revolutionary artists, that included Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros, who were convinced that art should be for all people and created monumental works in public buildings.
The murals, which Orozco painted in 1938-39, express his interpretation of the conquest, the colony and modern times. They have been described by writer Kate Simon as "the thunderous heroes of Mexican history gashing and roaring through the walls and ceilings … in their own idiom, not too distant from the awe and emotion of the Sistine Chapel." The piece de resistance of this complex is El hombre de fuego (Man of Fire) painted inside the cupola and depicting a human figure enveloped in flames. The fact that the figure is not consumed by the fire represents the unrelenting spirit of humanity. The mural was designed to be seen at a distance of 27 meters, which made its execution extremely complicated. It and the murals inside the government palace are generally considered to be his finest work.
I regret to say that I didn't have a chance to get the recipe for that wonderful salsa they serve in Guadalajara's restaurants, but I did watch closely as the maitre d' at La Camelia (the restaurant next door to Expo Guadalajara) prepared it tableside. In a stone molcajete (no new-fangled blenders are used here!) he combined onion, toasted Serrano chiles, garlic, tomato and something black and charred that I thought was eggplant but turned out to be tomatillos (small and green, very much like a tomato). The secret is obviously in the proportions, because there is no resemblance between my sorry attempts and that delicious offering to the gods that no Mexican restaurant in Guadalajara would be without.
Wendy Luft is a freelance writer, editor and translator living in Mexico City. Her e-mail is: wendyluft@mac.com |
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