We left for the United States Wednesday morning from the Hood (Colonia Ursulo Galvan). Anita has a passport – I don’t. This goes back to our methodology for getting items into Mexico. June 2 of 2009 the law changed at the border requiring auto and foot traffic to possess a valid passport as it has been for people flying into Mexico for some time.
Some people were convinced I would be turned away from the border – refused entry or worse – perhaps arrested and possibly spending the balance of my days in a Mexican jail – or God forbid a U.S. one.
I searched high and low on the Internet to find clues as to what might happen in my situation. There was nothing. I could find no one reporting on their experience in a similar situation – no passport.
What I did have were the documents that were required before the law change; a official birth certificate (yes they actually documented births that far back) and a drive’s license.
We stayed in Soto La Marina Wednesday night; resting up for a daytime encounter at the border. We were returning in a car with Mexican license plates – a car we had purchase a week before (more on that story soon).
It is 300 kilometers to Brownsville from Soto La Marina. We left at 9:15 Am after a good night’s sleep at the Rey Motel. We were waved through two Mexican Military drug inspections (maybe those Mexican plates were paying off).
A transito ‘officer’ did motion for us to pull over in Tampico as usual – so the plates did not help there. I think any foreign plated vehicle is fair game to those robbers in Tampico. I plan on writing to President Calderon (that for another time). Of course as I have recommended we ignored the motion to pull over. I watched the ‘officer’ jumping up and down in my rearview mirror as I moved on.
We arrived at the border entry at 1 PM. The line was long. When it was our turn we were ready to be motioned over to the secondary inspection area as per usual. But not this time. I showed my driver’s license. The Latino officer asked if I had my birth certificate – yes I did. We had a bit of small talk including the very nice officer asking why we two U.S. citizens were driving a Mexican plated car. We explained we lived in Mexico and it was our newly purchased car.
Here the fellow made a phone call – he was confused. He was told that the border did not deal with those issues and to let us pass. He suggested we stop at the Brownsville Visitor center and ask if it is OK to drive a Mexican plated vehicle in the U.S. We already knew the answer; smiled and we drove on. From start to finish 30 minutes time went by.
This was by far the easiest border crossing we have experienced in the last five years. I asked in passing if I wasn’t supposed to have a passport – risky but I just couldn’t resist. The VERY NICE officer said it wa not a problem but I should apply and if I am to return before I get a passport I can just give them the application number.
So we are here in Capitan, New Mexico. I am going to get a passport and sign-on for social security before they go belly up. We had a safe and successful journey. I will post this before my battery dies on my laptop. But Stay Tuned – more tomorrow about the trip etc.
It was fun for me to share the win by Mexico over the United States Sunday; unlike most expatriates spectators I imagine. After a rather lackluster first half where the Gold Cup finalists’ teams The United States and Mexico played to a 0-0 tie, the second half was a fun-filled trouncing; fun filled if you were a Mexico fan.
Futbol or soccer is an acquired taste. Occasionally the game is slower than watching paint dry. But like most sporting activities if you give it enough attention and learn to understand some of the strategies and nuisances it can become quite entertaining. Since moving to Mexico I have become a fan.
Sunday’s match was held in East Rutherford, New Jersey’s Giants stadium. The largest audience ever to attend a soccer game there watched Mexico stun the U.S. team winning 5 goals to 0. Next is getting Mexico qualified for the 2010 World Cup.
There are certainly more exciting futbol games to watch other than a one sided 5-0 event. That written it was great fun to watch, especially the awards ceremony and after the game celebration by the Mexican team. Congratulations Mexico! Stay Tuned!
We took the scooter into Xico for the GRAND Celebration Wednesday. Any other mode of transportation short of walking would have been too frustrating to get there. We passed several miles of cars crawling along at a few miles an hour to enter into Xico where most would not find parking.
We easily found a scooter-sized place to park. We had been invited to a private casa/tienda by our friend Rosie. She is an entrepreneur. She has a shoe store on the main street about two blocks down from the grand cathedral. She also sells fine perfumes, silver and gold jewelry and the best bottle of Mora available around here.
For 100 pesos per person you can enter Rosie’s store and head upstairs to her living quarters that include a substantial balcony just above the boulevard.
We arrived late. Rosie was at the front collecting money for entrance. She advised us that the upstairs was sold out – but come in and stand at street level behind her rented wooden barrier. As it turned out we had a better location and for free as her guests.
To me folks objecting could ONLY validly raise complaint if they were vegetarians. I scoff at the fact that the same people that love a steak or a hamburger cringe and assail toro events for being so insensitive calling it torturing the beasts they thankfully eat. That meat they so dearly love comes wrapped in nice white paper – no need to consider where it came from or how the animal was destroyed to get it there. But I am not here to defend, rather to report.
I must admit that I did get out there in the street with the charging beasts. Up to that moment I thought how stupid is anyone that would take such a risk? The truth is you can get caught up in the moment. A little tequila and the excitement of it all just captures you and makes you do dumb things I suppose. If you think it can’t happen to you, read Hemingway’s Death in the Afternoon – he ran with the bulls – but then he also shot himself in the head with a shotgun. But, seriously you had to be there to understand the excitement.
You Could Not Get this Shot Form the Sidelines
I should add chivalry is not dead. We let the women and children scramble back through Rosie’s narrow wooden gate before us crazy machos. I’m pretty sure Rosie had hired a guy to make sure she got back-in in time
The real fun for us was meeting new people and making some new friends. Our group of Rosie’s friends and paying customers was youthful, energetic and somewhat bilingual to boot. We have photos to email to Miriam, Hugo, Sandy, Noe and of course prints to make for Rosie. We had a grand time drinking Mora and learning the introductory stories of our fellow partiers. There were about 30 people in our group not counting the ones up on Rosie’s balcony.
Señora Calypso with some New Friends
I was afforded near front row spots to shoot pictures, when I wasn’t in the street trying to capture clear views of charging bulls for my readers. In this case the bulls were coming from both directions which made being in the street even dicier. My head went back and forth watching in two directions for charging massive carne.
With all the bad things going on in the world these days – in those moments all was put aside for the meeting of new friends and the camaraderie of the Fiesta. It seemed as though even the bulls were having a good time – they were running relatively free with an opportunity to even some scores – and they did.
More New Amigos!
One fellow directly across the road from our vantage point took it in the shorts – chalk one for the bulls. His pants were thrashed open from a simple lashing horn motion. He made it up the side wall but mostly too late. His wallet was lying on the street below. We could easily see he was in some pain. Some medical people showed up and he was gone behind the scenes with a damaged behind.
The Borrachos Were Friendly
The event lasted several hours including roping the loose animals and getting them back in metal boxes to head to the Bull Ring up the way. We didn’t go there and can only imagine the balance of their day was not fun in the end. But a lot of people were going to enjoy some really fine beef. Señora Calypso and I went home and had bean filled tamales and rice. No carne for us thank you. Stay Tuned!
In Malcom Lowry fashion we were walking the streets of Xico during the festival after imbibing a few tequila sunrises (sans the redness – I am allergic to grenadine). Being a head taller than the crowd is great for getting that shot of the rockets launching from the deck of the warmly lit grand Cathedral but perhaps not so great for anonymity.
In short order we were approached by three borrachos, there were many – perhaps I amongst them on that score.
One fellow nearly rubbing noses with me explained that he lived in Teocelo, several times. “I from Teocelo. I luff my town.” Backing up I explained we too loved Teocelo, stated with a little less fervor, but we love it all the same.
Teocelo’s ambassador was carrying a shaft dressed with a lot of snake skin bracelets.
Carlos Showing His Snakeskin Bracelets to Señora Calypso
The pitch: “You buy me and my friends beers – I give you any of my bracelets – I made myself. You take what you like – just buy us a beer.”
A beer I thought – that might be good. Now Anita starts to get worried in her best Jacqueline Bisset form. Her Geoffrey Firmin was perhaps too close to the flame. Tromping off with these three borachos was probably not the best of ideas – tequila nearly always distorts sound thinking.
We were all standing in front of Rosie’s shoe store – she being our friend for some years now called Anita aside apparently warning that we should be careful with those people – “Don’t go with those people!” This as I was sauntering off with my new amigos.
After 25 years, it isn’t so much a matter of not trusting – it is more about caring as Yvonne Firmin worried about her lost generation husband. We found a cantina – dark with loud music – borrachos listening to borrachos flailing away at their instruments.
Beers were ordered. The game was on.
A bargain was struck. I had a new snake skin bracelet and a slim macramé wrist band to boot.
Installation Included!
The beers arrived and almost immediately I was accidentally struck by a beer bottle wildly brandished by my snake skin amigo. His bottle twirled to the floor dispensing its liquid here and there – oops! My camera was dripping, my jeans well soaked and my head swirled back to some semblance of reality – maybe we should go.
Meanwhile the snakeskin salesman was trying to sell Senora Calypso a fine skin bracelet. Her concern had moved up a couple notches. “Pleeeze take want you want,” Carlos bellowed over the barroom music and hollering.
“I don’t like snakes – no thank you!” Anita emphatically replied.
Now my esposa’s eyes bore into my soul – it was indeed time to go before I ended up in the street waiting for the world to spin back around to me.
There was the matter of the bill. We had ordered four beers for my three new friends and me. But the tab had already mounted to more beers and whatever? Anita took my wallet from me and went off to handle the situation; something she is quite good at, especially in moments like these.
We bid ado to my friends. As we walked further up Miguel Hildalgo we asked each other thoughts on who was going to pay the unfulfilled debt at the cantina? It surely will be a surprise to my former new friends; or more of a surprise to the cantina jefe?
We scooted home safe and sound.
This morning I am looking at my new snakeskin bracelet as I type and reconstruct the evening. I think it was a bargain at a cost of three cantina beers. Unlike Geoffrey Firmin we are ready to play another day.
Today we will shoot lots of photos of the bulls running up the main street in Xico – Stay Tuned!
We have been attending the festivities in Xico for the last few days. I have shot over 500 images. The difficult part is picking out just a few to post here.
Xico is a colorful pueblo with fascinating construction. A myriad of colors and building types kind of overwhelms you. Throw in thousands of people crowding the streets and occasional fireworks launching from anywhere and you can be pretty sure you aren’t in Kansas with Toto and Auntie Em.
In reviewing the 500 plus photos I came across this photo of a blue gutter. I think my eye was drawn to the wall and the cross above it.
The colors and textures just in that frame fascinate me. I started thinking, ‘How many people in the U.S. paint their gutters?’; and deep blue at that. And then there is the red brick in the first portal below the cross. A building with many stories if they could be told I think.
The architecture here will not dull your senses. It is design from the inside out – from the heart. Stay Tuned!
Starting off earlier in the month and running through 26th of July is Xiquenada. This is an annual Festival happening in Xico. This week it culminates into essentially non-stop partying with bands, vendor stands, grand arches of flowers adorning the fronts of some churches, bull runs in the streets both the firework laden and horn wielding versions, a marathon run, two days of professional bull fights in the local ring and the religious parading of our patron saint. The celebrations principal star is the Santa Maria Magdalena our areas very own patron Saint.
Xico Viejo (Old Xico) was formed in 1600. They don’t know exactly when but the story goes that a little burro showed up in Xico alone. The burro was carrying two containers. No one paid attention to the little burro as burros were the chief mode of transportation. After a couple of days roaming loose, simply hanging around, it began staying around a capilla (a religious shrine).
Some hombres removed the two containers to see what the burro was transporting. Inside one container was a plaster casting of Maria Magdalena. In the other were many candles. The mysterious little burro and its cargo were deemed by the local friars as a message from God that Santa Maria Magdalena should Xico’s patron saint.
This afternoon the local folks will march a statue of Maria Magdalena along a beautiful colored sawdust alfombra (carpet). She will be crowned and placed to bserve.
Many workers started early this morning creating the carpet using bags of colored sawdust, first sifting it, then sprinkling it over stencils creating beautiful patterns and pictures. The elegant sawdust carpet is a work of art like complex sand castles that are soon washed away. It is really something to see those saw dust tapestries.
These colorful patterns stretch the entire length of the main street of Xico.
Around midnight with much pomp and circumstance the statue will be marched back to the Cathedral at the other end of the street. We will be there watching this and the accompanying colorful fireworks show.
Many streets in the little pueblo are closed off. Vendors of all kinds, mariachis and street concerts abound. There are fair rides, and of course the running of the bulls like Pamplona, Spain. It is frightening and can be a blood bath. Last year it was reported 15 people were seriously injured – two gravely injured having to be transported to nearby Xalapa by helicopters.
Apparently Dedicated to Michael Jackson – A Fireworks Toro (ENLARGE HERE)
Xico has a bull ring. The professionals will engage six bulls today and again on the 22nd of July. There will be another street running of the bulls on the 22nd as well. In between there will be non-stop partying.
We will be participating in a lot of the activities and giving you reports – save running with the bulls. We have documented past bull fights (in the ring) and even a local running of the bulls in the street right here in our Colonia.
All this celebrating includes a good amount of fireworks. On the Cathedral steps I saw metal launching pads being loaded with sky bound rockets. On several side streets were the traditional wood caged ‘bulls’ laden with hundreds of fireworks. The firework toros are dawned by some loco locals that run up and down the streets with a crowd of dare devils, as the rockets shoot off in all directions. Here too people are hurt with burns from wayward rockets – it is pagan fun based on celebrating the religious saint.
Workers Painting with Colored Sawdust (ENLARGE HERE)
Like several other times though out the year life as usual stops and the parties and rituals begin. It is really something to see and participate in. Most towns in Mexico have these kinds of celebration and yet people come from far and wide to experience this particular festival.
A group of people called ‘mayordomas’ donate, plan and work for months before the actual event. The orchestration of the process is amazing.
The mix of borrachos and worshipers crowding and sharing elegant sawdust carpeted streets with bulls, vendors, firework launching hombres, children in colorful costumes and tourists is something not to be missed if you happen to be anywhere near here in July.
Jesus on the Cross being upstaged by Maria Magdalena – A Forbidden Photo Inside the Cathedral
Since we are usually back in the U.S. during this time we have missed the fun – but not this year. Stay Tuned.
The Xalapa Diario (The Jalapa Daily) is our principal local daily newspaper. With the assistance of Google Translate I read the Internet version quite often. I am following futbol these days (soccer to those of you NOB). Our Mexican team has two wins and a tie going into the final part of the Gold Cup series. We follow the political scene from afar. There is new law that reduces the teacher’s retirement pension.
Lately I have been buying a hard copy of the ‘Daily’ because the Internet version does not include the ‘Classified’ section – sadly. We are considering, no we are looking, to buy a new or used car here in Mexico – a lot more on that entire experience soon.
The online Xalapa Diario includes a daily question to poll the readership. I often participate. Today’s question brought a smile to my face.
You that are here often know we scoot around on a couple 150 cc Chinese scooters. At 62 years young I still get a thrill riding two wheelers with the breeze in my face and the challenges of that sport. The vivacious Vericruzian esposa of mine is a wonderful passenger, most trusting and she never puts her feet down.
One of the great challenges of scooting in our area is the many and unpredictable appearing holes in the road. Couple that with the topes (speed bumps) used throughout the eastern part of Mexico and the free for all driving spirit of the Mexican people, well you can imagine the challenge.
So when I read (translated) today’s poll and then looked at the response I just had to laugh. I am sure I haven’t seen such a landslide vote since monitoring them
¿Consideras que México cuenta con buena infraestructura carretera? Translation > Do you think that Mexico has a good highway infrastructure?
Sí (YES): 17%
No: 81%
No sé (Don’t Know): 2%
Votos (Number of Votes): 5076
The 2% that don’t know must sleep on the bus. And I have no idea what that 17% that voted YES are thinking. I can only guess they are road repair workers (a very secure job by the way) or otherwise involved with the highway system.
I would like to meet the person that thought up this particular question. I’m sure that it brought a smile to his or her face as it did mine. Stay Tuned!
A major asset to any Mexican household here in the Hood is the 19 liter (5-gallon) plastic bucket. Most of these containers are spent lard buckets – the poor use a lot of lard apparently. The containers come with lids and cost 8 pesos (about 60 cents US) with lard remnants and 15 pesos ($1.10 US) cleaned – both a bargain. Last time I checked they were about $6.00 US at Home Depot.
I am known far and wide for my thriftiness so if you guessed we buy the to-be-cleaned buckets you were right.
I set them in the sun until the thin veil of lard on the inner sides melts some, making them easier to wash out. We use them for our several compost toilets as well as containers for tools, topsoil, coffee bean chard’s, tools and even as planters.
They are hard to keep around as my neighbors often borrow them – never to be seen again. When you own a dozen of something that most hoard at one or two you just scream, “Get your Buckets here!”
The buckets are the most common tote; sand, gravel and cement unit of measure, and hauler; step ladder, suitcase and tool box in the Hood.
When an hombre gets on the job and empties his bucket of tools, it then becomes a step ladder; often in conjunction with a straight back wooden chair. Some of these fellows look like they are practicing a balancing act for the Ed Sullivan Show – and if you remember that show you are old like me.
I wrote a few entries back about the collapse of the front apron of our local Alcoholics Anonymous building. The 4 meter by 4 meter room with a few pew like benches and encouraging quotes and photographs on the walls is actually the front room of our neighbors sprawling property – where there are seven casas and currently five families living as well as the AA oficina.
I thought perhaps tearing down and starting anew would be the ticket as there was some question as to the viability of the balance of the structure. That not being the Mexican way, it was decided to shore up the building with cement post and beams and reconstruct the apron with reinforcement beams. No small project.
A Complex Fix for the Small AA Building
Our next-door neighbor and another hombre commenced to working a couple of weeks ago. I check in on the progress regularly being that I am retired and often wander aimlessly around the Hood. Well the truth is I am watching this fascinating process for my readers.
A couple of days ago peaking in I noticed my neighbor and friend Emilio perched on one of the aforementioned buckets resting on a small wooden chair – wobbling as he greeted me. He calls me Yanni – I assume for Johnny. I have no idea where he came up with that? For many years he called me Señor. But, in recent time we have become friendlier and now I am YAWN-EE.
I was disturbed to see that bucket swaying on that rickety wooden chair. I forcefully said, “Alta hombre!” I walked over the 200 yards to my house and got my trusty yellow step-ladder. Upon returning I explained what he was doing was tantamount to hanging himself without the rope and that he must use this ladder.
Emilio’s Turn on our Step Ladder in the AA Building
Hours later during another wandering spell I check-in; Emilio is still on the chair and bucket, and his work associate is using the ladder. The other hombre after all was the Jefe (boss). I blurted out that I brought that ladder to protect my neighbor’s life and he remains risking limb and life? The Jefe started to dismount the ladder taking me quite seriously.
I smiled and said, “No, it is OK” – at least one life will be spared. I had, sort of, loaned them the ladder to use with their best judgment (seldom a good idea actually). They continued on. Emilio returns the ladder at the end of each work day – that being something novel here a bouts – returning things.
Anita Warns One of Our Clever Workers Incorporating the Ubiquitous Bucket with Our Ladder
When Anita heard that I had loaned the ladder to Emilio she gave me that stern wifely look, reminding me that loaning my stuff has been less than successful. I thought for a moment. I explained that particular excellent ladder was obtained from a dumpster dive in the back of Sam’s Club in Pueblo, Colorado. A great find actually. Replacement value $100 US.
I suggested that perhaps the reason that fine ladder was in that dumpster to be found by me was God’s intention; He provided it so I would loan it out to my poor neighbors, perhaps saving their lives or at least prevent a few broken arms or legs. Anita moved on without saying anything. In my head I smiled thinking we former Americans have too much stuff anyway. Stay Tuned!
Yesterday was Election Day here in Mexico. Not being of voting caliber we could only watch from the sidelines and not too close at that. We were actually run off by the President of the Hood, sternly advising us that photos around the voting place were not allowed.
Anita Calypso, no shrinking violet, was quite off-put by the anti-photog ‘rule’. We were taking photos of the signs and voting booths and only with permission photos of a couple folks we knew. Even explaining that did not appease the Hoods El Commandante so we grudgingly ceased and desisted.
Anita Talks with one of our friends as he readies to vote.
In large letters on the voting booth it read “EL VOTO ES LIBRE Y SECRETO” which is to say THE VOTE IS FREE AND SECRET.
As I understand it there was only one vote to be cast. With a pencil the voter marks an ‘X’ over their favorite party’s symbol; a single vote along party lines. The two most popular choices are the PRI and PAN parties with the PRD running in third place. The PRI is the party that ruled Mexico for 70 years until Vicente Fox’s PAN party defeated them and again PAN was victorious with Felipe Calderon.
This is not a Presidential election year. Here in the State of Veracruz as reported last night by my friend who worked at the voting station and this morning in the Xalapa newspaper the PRI party won most of the states districts. Headlines read “Gana PRI mayoría en Veracruz” translated is “PRI wins majority in Veracruz”. With 72% of the votes counted PRI won 16 districts and the PAN party won 5.
These Two are NOT camera shy despite the ban.
I imagine the turn-out was large. People seem to be very civic minded as far as I can tell. It was a beautiful summer day. Anita and I scooted into Coatepec to cruise around and look for houses (nothing serious just our form of entertainment).
We dropped by Amanda and Mikes casa north of El Centro. The four of us, we on our scooter, they on their 4-wheeler, drove into town and had a fine late afternoon lunch at restaurant La Finca de Andrade across from the park. The food is good and reasonable – two can eat well for under 200 pesos (about $15 U.S.).
The park was standing room only. We actually managed to get parking in front of the entrance and held off traffic for Mike and Amanda to get right behind us. We rushed off so I could watch the last 10 minutes of Fútbol. Mexico defeated Nicaragua 2-0 in the Gold Cup series – Viva Mexico!
My voting worker friend reported the photo ban was rificulous as there were photographers there in and out all day and that here in the Hood the PRI party won – not surprising since the poorer folk tend to vote PRI. A big ‘X’ over your party’s symbol – The results are in, no hanging chads here. Stay Tuned.
Sunday July 05th 2009, 1:05 pm
Filed under: Mexico
Our neighbor built a new 1100 sq.’ apartment atop her casa. Rather than rent it out, her original plan, she decided to rent the old place below and move in to the new digs – we knew this would happen. Her original casa is dark, lacking in windows and sunlight. The back door faces a small corral where a horse, a burro, as well as a lot of chickens live and a few dogs.
Yesterday a couple of her son-in-laws (she has four) started moving her few pieces of furniture and possession up. Your host is recovering from bucking a few too many buckets of cement. The left arm is near incapacitated, so rather than my usual offer to help I stood on the sidelines watching the hombres tie a rope around a chair to be hoisted up from the street to the deck above.
These Mexican moments fascinate me. Typically they are very clever about wrapping and tying rope. For what they lack in tools, furniture blankets and refrigerator dollies they make up for with rope and moving moments of abandon.
I walked up the narrow stairway and over to the roofs edge to get a catbirds view of the action. The guys were cleverly wrapping the rope around a large over stuffed easy chair much like a bow being wrapped around a package.
While standing on the large cement deck where coffee beans often are laid to dry, a cement patio in front of the new second floor apartment, I noticed a crack running the entire length of the apron extension of the deck that hangs over the front rental that is currently occupied by one of the local Alcoholics Anonymous chapters.
In that moment I thought, ‘I don’t remember that crack? One of these days this apron is going to break off and fall to the earth below.’ Then I went back to watching the action until I was called away by my lovely esposa. I missed the action of the haul up over the edge. But from what I was told it was exciting.
An hour later we decided to take a scooter ride to Coatepec to buy some designer bread and cheese at the Saturday Eco Fair market and then checkout some DVD films to purchase. The Eco Fair can be found on the south side of Jimenez del Campillo in centro Coatepec. Honey, cheeses, breads, vegetables, juices, wonderful incense, artisan jewelry and more can be had Saturday mornings.
As we hit pavement I noticed action up at the street where the hombres had been moving stuff. The very one meter apron I had considered an hour earlier had completely broken off from the rest of the cement deck. It was hanging over the side draped in front of the AA building – ouch!
We pulled over to find out if our friends were OK – they were. However Dona Alma was quite distressed that part of her coffee drying deck had collapsed. I can only guess how the AA hombres would take this.
I have mentioned on a number of occasions that Mexico construction public and certainly private appears to lack any engineering evaluations. Being a libertarian I detest building codes, but honestly these structures and the people that live within and under them are in dire danger.
Here are some examples:
The third floor of one of our tallest casa’s in the Hood. Note the cracking block on this two year old casa.
Level Two – if that upper level collapsed – ouch!
This third story overhang is being built directly across from our Casita.
New Construction a few doors up our street. Safer to walk in the street.
Even our Casita has a 30″ second level overhang. I check it regularly.
All this concern about gravity and its effect on Mexican overhangs made me recall the tune “Gravity” by John Mayer – “Gravity really brings me down…Gravity stay the hell away from me.” An aside to all that, it is a beautiful sunny Election Day Sunday here on July 5th. The Hood is operating as usual. Materials have already arrived for the repair job. We will be following it for you. Stay Tuned!
