Better Late Than Never

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I missed school yesterday but didn't care much as it hasn't been going well. I got a strange email later in the day saying that they decided that I was right & that the classes they stuck me in weren't appropriate for me & they arranged for private instruction which was supposed to start that morning. It would have been nice if they decided this with more than 4 days out of 15 to go, or if they made any effort to discuss this with me so I could be sure to show up. But I'm glad for the opportunity to salvage something out of the time & money I've dedicated to this endeavor.

The class today was exactly what I had hoped for since signing up. The teacher actually wanted to hear what I already knew & where I learned it, plus what my goals for the lessons are. Based on less than 5 minutes of discussion, we jumped into conversation-driven lessons which made much more sense to me. I'm actually excited for school tomorrow for the first time since my disappointment on day one. Keep your fingers crossed that I'll manage to pack in a ton of knowledge in the 2 short days of lessons I have left.

After class I found myself wandering down a beautifully landscaped median in between the 2 lanes of Álvaro Obregón, one of the bigger streets near my apartment. Each block has benches, gardens & a small tiled fountain in the middle. I don't really know where I was going, but I worked up an appetite & began to wander towards a side street in search of lunch. When a woman stopped to ask me directions in English without even attempting to speak to me in Spanish (I apparently radiate gringo), I decided on my goal.

I would walk down streets I haven't yet traversed generally towards the tented outdoor stalls where I scored my pambazo last week. If I stumbled across something that looked good, I would stop. If not I knew a good meal would be waiting for me at the end regardless. A lot of places weren't yet open despite being after 1pm & I peered into some places that were even a bit too seedy for me so I made it all the way back to the tents. But instead of getting the same thing I loved last time, I made a bold move & ordered something I've never had: a "tlacoyo".

I've never had one for 2 reasons- first is that I had no idea what it is. Second is that it's not easy to pronounce a "T" & "L" together especially when the rest of the sentence is in a foreign language. I can't believe I waited so long, although I did have to repeat my order 3 times before I expressed myself clearly enough.

A tlacoyo begins with the same handful of blue corn masa that starts a quesadilla. Instead of pressing it flat, it's first worked into a football-shaped mass then an opening is poked into the middle & it gets stuffed with a choice of filling (I went with refried beans). It's carefully shaped into a flatter oval in such a way that the filling stays safely locked inside & grilled until the outside is crusty & the inside is slightly molten. To finish it off, it's topped with crumbled cotija cheese, lettuce, cilantro, julienned poblano pepper & spicy salsa. It reminded me of a Salvadoran treat called a "pupusa" which I learned to love years ago but haven't had in ages. It may have taken me more than 35 years to have my first tlacoyo, but I imagine my second will come much sooner. ¡Besos!