Mexico Travelogue - Day 7

Day 7 in Mexico invited us right smack dab into discovery and uncharted adventure!

In the morning we headed south along the surf-pounding Pacific coastline, past a spot where wizened men of the sea monitor a dozen huge round nets suspended with floats from their patrolling fishing boat.  A few miles further we arrived in Ensenada, a port known for commercial as well as cruise ships.  There we walked the “Boulevard Touristica” featuring shops with souvenirs and a lively, very fishy-smelling fresh fish market. 

I’d never seen so much FISH in one place.  Many varieties were beyond my culinary expertise, especially octopus and alien-looking clams.  Eager vendors initiated conversation (in Spanish, of course), hoping to persuade us to try their particular versions of bounty from the Pacific or the Sea of Cortez.  I confess to an unexpected sense of approval for this open-air market (responsibly operated with fish displayed on ice), even though it would be considered unregulated and potentially dangerous by American standards.  I loved the fact that these water-people, as well as generations before them, had probably been marketing fish similarly for a very long time.

 

 

Next we headed into bright sunshine to walk the wharf and engage in conversations (in Spanish) about charter fishing boats. We also purchased a handmade hammock for $15 American dollars!

Several reliable sources (friends of Fritz jr.) had recommended “the best fresh fish” for lunch to be found at La Guerre Rense in downtown Ensenada, so we checked it out…to discover not a restaurant, but a small street vendor with a huge reputation that’s been in business since 1960!  I enjoyed a traditional “cocktail” in a plastic cup, a mixture of seafood (everything you see on the menu – check it out below) smothered in a spicy tomato juice.  A few unidentifiable items seemed dubious at first glance, but it was all quite delicious!  Fritz sr. also had a tostada featuring clam salad, raw scallops, and avocado slices.

Next we headed inland to a valley known for its many wineries.  Our first stop provided rows of neatly-kept grapevines, as well as a certain earthy quality I’ll label as pure, unadulterated charm.  Big “full service” tents could be rented for overnight visits - so enticing!  Ocean views from a lookout were stunning.

We continued deeper into this valley originally settled by grape farmers from Russia, to a destination point with appeal beyond anything I’ve ever experienced: a rustic but alluring restaurant featuring simple-but-elegant, unique charisma.  This unassuming business has plenty of busy days and seasons, but for whatever reason we were the only patrons for dinner.  This meant we had the full attention of the waiter who explained local history to us while we savored hors d’oeuvres of homemade cheeses and bread, and sampled wines.  Local color, and local food and drink, with custom service – wow!

 

The dining room, with a charming packed dirt floor, had originally been a working barn.  Our table was set with linen and flanked by flickering candles, and the food – duck soup, beef kabobs, and salmon baked with fresh rosemary – was exquisite.

 

Again, the recurring word-of-the-day echoed in my thoughts: intensity.  The lifestyles of the fishermen and grape farmers no doubt were harsh in many ways, with acute challenges. I especially connected with the owners of the restaurant who not only tended grapevines, but also baked their own bread in a wood stove and produced their own huge wheels of flavored cheeses and a vast assortment of marmalades – hot, savory, and sweet.  

And yet these expressions of intensity seem different from many American versions, or at least that was my perception.  Perhaps these folks live in heightened ways that are more likely to breed simplicity at the soul level, for they seem not so cluttered with artificiality - less complicated with externally imposed stressors.  Their lives appear to be less contrived, and more basic and real. I like that.