Oktoberfest

Yesterday, I returned to Salvador’s and Brian told me that a very good musical group was scheduled to play that evening at “The Hideaway”. In conversations with others at the outdoor tables, I was told that Brian probably meant a place called “Que’ Linda”. Later in the afternoon I returned by bus to my San Juan Cosala camp and decided I will go catch the musical performance. The group was called Ron and (somebody else but I can’t remember the exact name).

I changed clothes from the shorts I had been wearing during the day and took the bus back into Ajijic and went to the Que’ Linda restaurant. It is a very nice place on the north side of the carretera. It has a nice view of Lake Chapala and beautiful flowered gardens and a patio for outdoor seating. I arrived around 6 PM and met the new owner, Linda, who was a lawyer from Fredericksburg, Texas. I found out that I was either in the wrong place or on the wrong day. The Ron musical group is scheduled to play tomorrow, on Friday. That evening, the restaurant was sold out for a Oktoberfest buffet. Linda said she could probably squeeze me in if I was interested. That sounded good to me so I got a table and a Corona.

The event was not supposed to start until 7 PM so the staff was busy getting things ready. They were setting up tables like a German beer hall on the patio and German music was playing on the sound system. The guests started to arrive just before 7 PM. I didn’t interact too much with them, preferring to drink my beer and watch the scene. I got a plate and got in line when they started serving. They served sauerkraut, rot kohl, bratwurst, German potato salad, frankfurters, spaetzle, sauerbraten and schnitzel in a paprika sauce. For desert, they served apple strudel. The food was excellent. Even better than food I had when I was in Germany and Austria.

A Mexican trio, accordion, guitar and bass entertained the group and it confirmed the idea that a lot of Mexican traditional music sounds like German traditional music. For a mistake, I lucked out with a very enjoyable evening. My bill was 155 pesos, 100 pesos for the meal and 55 pesos for three Coronas.

I left early to catch the bus back to the camp site. I had been told the buses run until 10 PM. Most of the restaurants in this area seem to close about the same time or earlier. I don’t think there is a lot of crime in the area but it seems most of the locals don’t stay out late in the evenings.

Gasoline in Pemex stations is 6.68 pesos per litre or a little over $2.35 per gallon.