Day 43 - Mariachi Square

I was given the opportunity to tag along with Erny’s latest tour group.  It was agreed that I would travel with the group through Mexico until we reached Palenque which was near the border with Guatemala.  In return I would be the group’s photographer.  It was a good opportunity as I hadn’t really planned how I was going to get from Mexico City to Guatemala.

Erny and I first met the group in the lobby of a hotel in Mexico City, a distinctly grey and dull building at the edge of downtown.  Travelling as a backpacker I had gotten used to the quirky style of backpacker hostels, each with their own distinct personality and vibe.  In contrast hotels especially hotels belonging to large chains are devoid of any such personality.  Erny had told me that the group was almost entirely made up of women.  One by one a slightly lost looking woman would walk into the grey reception of the hotel.  Erny would bring them over and give them in introduction sheet.  After all the women (and one other man) arrived we had a brief welcome and personal introduction. “Hi, I am Mike, I will be the group photographer” I said in a sleepy voice.  Sitting in reception for 30 odd minutes had made me tired.  Why were there just women in the group?  I guessed women preferred these groups due to the added inconvenience and potential dangers of being a female solo traveller compared to a solo male traveller.

The road

Our first group activity was to go have drinks in the Mariachi Square and be serenaded by a Mariachi Band.  It was a long walk to the Mariachi Square.  During which we passed some of the rougher looking areas of Mexico City.  Although not far from the bright lights of downtown Mexico City this part of the city feels very much detached and forgotten by the rest of the city.  The lobbies of unfinished and abandoned building are now home to the homeless.  The lucky ones had sleeping bags, the rest had to make-do with cardboard.

Amongst the homeless I saw one man dressed up in mariachi uniform stood by the side of the road.  He wasn’t doing anything he was just stood there staring longingly into the oncoming traffic.  I didn’t think much of it at the time but then I began to see more of them.  All stood on their own by the side of the road.  “What are those guy doing dressed in mariachi uniform?” I asked Erny.  “They are mariachi singers waiting to be picked up, if you are hosting a party and want a mariachi singer you just drive down this street and pick one up” Erny replied.  What an odd concept I thought, “We are having a party tonight, let’s drive down the road and pick up a singer”.  Although having said that you can pick up other professionals from the street who offer a very different personal service.  With that in mind picking up a mariachi singers suddenly seemed more normal.  We began to see more of these mariachi street walkers as we approached the Mariachi Square.

The Mariachi Square

Each band have a slightly different uniform.

It was just a large square filled with various sized mariachi bands, from one or two men to large groups.  Most were carrying some type of musical instrument; mainly violins and guitars of various sizes but there were also a few trumpets and the odd accordion.

The mariachi bands were obviously interested in our group, like the vendors in Teotihuacan it was impossible to walk anywhere in the square without being constantly approached.

Erny had arranged for us to go to one of his favourite bars where the in-house mariachi band would serenade us but some people wanted feeding first so we headed to a small food court just behind the Mariachi Square.

The food court was a row of small equally food outlets, all of them pretty much identical.  The owners of the food outlets were even worse than the mariachi bands in the square outside and the vendors in Teotihuacan.  They would wait for us to walk by and shove laminated menus into our faces and request that we eat at their outlet, some almost demanded it.  In the end we chose the food outlet which hassled us the least.

The hassling didn’t stop after we sat down.  The occasional mariachi band would come and try and sing for us.  Occasionally I would see a solo mariachi guy walk past who was extremely drunk.  It was funny to see someone in such elaborate clothing look so drunk.  I did feel sorry for him also, maybe business was bad although I don’t think he was going to get much business being that drunk.

Like it was their last

Another mariachi band approached us and after we declined they approached a Mexican couple who were sat at the table next to us.  After a brief discussion the family agreed to have a few songs with the mariachi band.  The band was made up of 4 men including an old guy who seemed to be blind.  They left the blind guy outside and after they agreed to do a few songs for the couple one of the band went outside to guide the old guy into the restaurant.

They performed at least 3 songs for the family and it was fascinating to watch from our neighbouring table.  I didn’t understand what was being sung but mariachi songs are sung with a lot of passion.  The old guy was especially impressive, I think he was supposed to be more backing vocals but he sung with so much passion that he often took over parts of song.  He was good with the accordion as well.  By the end of the third song the couple had become emotional with them hugging each other; the woman was fighting back tears.  “It is a big deal for people here, it is something they look forward to all week” Erny said.  “This song must have some deep importance for the couple, maybe this is their song, maybe they met many years ago and this song was being played in the background when they first saw each other” I thought to myself.

After the food court we headed to the bar where Erny had arranged for the in-house band to play for us.  We ordered a few drinks and within a few minutes a large Mariachi band of between 6-8 members approached us.  Erny asked us what songs we wanted them to perform for us, a difficult question to answer considering none of us knew any Mariachi songs.  In the end Erny requested some songs for us that he thought we would like.

Watching a Mariachi band performing for a couple from a neighbouring table and having a band perform for you personally are both very different.  Here you get the whole experience; the uniform, the instruments, the passion...  They sing each song like it is there last.  I think the main reason why the experience is so enjoyable is because it is nice being made a fuss out of.  Having a band of smartly dressed men sing passionately for you, it makes you feel very important.  You are a celebrity for the duration of the song.

Overall I was surprised how much I enjoyed the mariachi experience.  I thought we would just be sat there awkwardly whilst some band play some boring songs to us that we couldn’t understand but it was really quite the opposite.  It is not something you could appreciate by listening to it on CD or by watching a video, you just have to be there.  So if you are ever in Mexico having a mariachi band perform for you should absolutely be near the very top of your to-do list.

Some of the group with some of the band.

Next post will be Thursday 29th May 8:00 GMT