Mirar y Ver

I loved the way afternoons rolled out. School would end and I would wander. I learned new words in class, like hoja (leaf), disfraz (costume), or goma (eraser), and I'd spend the rest of day just hoping I would hear someone use one of those words.

As I walked, the rumble in my mind over the frustration of el and le and lo, and not knowing where to put them, gave way to all there was to see. Balloon vendors, a vintage photo found in the post office, the Iglesia de Santo Domingo, people and pigeons in the zócalo. I loved the shape of stone metate, used to grind corn for tortillas, and how they looked lined up in the rain.

The walk usually led back to Hotel Azucenas, where I would settle in for afternoon siesta, falling asleep to the sound of the fountain outside my room. Waking up later to the glow from tin lanterns, I would remember that mirar (to look at) is active, while ver (to see) is passive, then head out to find dinner in a city that came alive at night.


***Am having a terrible time with some of the new changes at Blogger. My posts are written about two weeks ahead and the formatting I originally used is not fitting with the new system. So posts may be looking askew (like here) until I have time to figure out what to do.