This past week I attended the Mardi Gras celebration held at
the Golf Course Clubhouse, where it has been held for the past several
years. This event is a fundraiser
organized by the Nopolo Homeowners Association (the community surrounding
Loreto Bay) with the proceeds benefitting charity and improvements within their
neighborhood.
Similar to other annual events that are held here there was
a certain "deja vu" aspect to the evening, but what sets "Fat
Tuesday" apart from most other events held here are the costumes. Without doing an actual nose count, by my
estimate more than half of those in attendance had dressed up, or at least
accessorized with beads or a mask to take part in the festivities. And many of those who did were in some sort
of full costume, with some of the most elaborate belonging to local year-round
residents.
The party had been underway for more than an hour when I
arrived about 6:00 pm, after finishing my day at the Office and then returning
home to change into my ensemble for the evening. You may recall from last year's Blog: http://livingloreto.blogspot.mx/2013/02/mardi-gras-mexican-style.html
that I wore my Kilt to this event a year ago and I had been wondering what to
wear this year, until my recent Visitors presented me with a very handsome Guinness
Beer apron that had been purchased for me on their trip to Ireland last
Summer. Worn over a black outfit with
lots of beads and a beret on my head (don't ask me why, it was a last moment
addition) I felt as though at least I had made an effort, and so with camera
equipment over my shoulder I headed off for the evening.
On my arrival at the Clubhouse where the party was being
held I was somewhat surprised, by the presence of an Ambulance near the
entrance, but then mildly impressed when I realized that it was there on
stand-by and not responding to a call! I
don't know if this was in response to some new local requirement (but I doubt
it - this is Mexico, after all) or an abundance of caution by the organizers,
but I couldn't help thinking how things have changed here over the years! After showing my 350 peso wristband pass and
receiving a numbered string of beads (for costume voting later in the evening)
I purchased some drink tickets and joined the party.
Once again the central courtyard of the Clubhouse was where
a stage was set-up for the musical entertainment, leaving the rest of the space
for dancing and chairs were set up on three sides of this in the colonnade
around the courtyard. Passing through
the courtyard I headed towards the driving range area behind the Clubhouse
where on one side a bar was set up to serve wine by the bottle or glass and
draft or canned beer and bottled water and on the other side was a BBQ pit and
food service area. Across the back of
the driving range was table seating, some under shade tents and the rest open
to the balmy early evening.
Which brings me to another comparison. At the same party this time last year, I
remember it being distinctly chilly on Mardi Gras evening - but this year has
been the mildest winter of the seven I have spent here and this evening was no
exception! Which follows along with my
current theory of climate change (as opposed to global warming) - the planet is
a closed system, and for all intents and purposes nothing gets in or out. So when somewhere that normally gets rain is
having a drought, it follows that more rain falls somewhere else that is
normally dry. (Consider Loreto, that
historically gets less than 4 inches of rain annually but has received 3 feet
of rain over the past two years!) Likewise
it follows that when most of North America is struggling through one of the
longest, coldest and snowiest winter's on record, here in Loreto we have been
enjoying the mildest and calmest winter it has been my pleasure to experience
since I started living here.
I was drawn back into the courtyard to listen to the
entertainment with "Histeria" as the opening act, a four piece band
of young guys from near Santa Rosalia two hours north of here, accompanied by
Loreto's own Herzon, a guitar master of many different styles. Later on, when the party was going full
steam, there was an impressive dance ensemble called " Gujiaki" from
the Casa de Cultura in Loreto that performed two styles of folkloric dances in
appropriate costumes. Later on in the
evening, the local favorite "Los Beach Dogs" took to the stage and
filled the dance floor for most of the evening.
Along with appetizers and rice this year the organizers of
the event chose grilled skewers of meat, fish or vegetables as the main course,
which was a good idea for portion control, but more grill space would have
probably moved the food lines along at a faster pace. However, the lines provided a good
opportunity for visiting and costume watching, besides, no one was going
anywhere anyway! Later there was a
collection of small deserts which satisfied the sweet tooth and made a nice end
to a dinner under the stars.
During the rest of the evening, along with the entertainment
there was a silent auction for an original piece of art, and a 50/50 draw as
well as crowning a Mardi Gras Queen and Costume awards, however, I confess I
hit Baja midnight earlier than usual that evening and headed home before the
festivities had ended. But in thinking
back over the evening my final observation has to do with the ongoing evolution
of Loreto Bay and the surrounding community.
While this year's Mardi Gras party was an undoubted success
with about 250 in paid attendance and turning people away at the door, I know
from my own casual conversations with people I spoke to, there were a
surprising number who said they were not planning to attend the party - due to
too many other events happening at this time of year. While that may not sound unusual to casual
observer, coming from a place where not so long ago bumping into someone on the
sidewalk that you hadn't seen for a while was reason enough for a party (well,
OK, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit - but not much!). To now
hear that people are choosing to skip a beautifully organized event,
held within walking distance of their home, because there are too many other
things to do - well, perhaps that is another sign that our little community is
growing up - and that may be the best part of "Living Loreto"!
